Last week in my Sacred Celebrations Facebook Group (join us here if you’re not already a member!), I did a training about what a retreat is and why you might need to go on one. It was well-received (two of the attendees signed up for my October retreat) so I figured I’d share some of the highlights with you!
A retreat is stepping out of ordinary time. It’s removing yourself from your daily responsibilities, routines, and expectations. It’s detoxing from technology, information, noise, and other distractions. It’s giving yourself space and grace to rest, to be, and to breathe.
A retreat can be very simple. It can be an hour or two on a hammock in your backyard. It can be taking a day to go to your local botanical gardens, pack a picnic lunch, and read a book. It can be a weekend away at a cabin in the woods with no TV and no WiFi. It can be a week at a retreat center, taking yoga classes, walks on the beach, and eating healthy food.
10 Reasons to Go on Retreat NOW!
- You’re exhausted. It’s OK to REST. It’s not only OK, but also necessary for your health, well-being and vitality. The four seasons don’t skip winter just because there’s no time for it. A time of rest and time for lying fallow are necessary for all living beings.
- You’re overwhelmed. The swirl of chaos and busyness is real. Step away from technology, responsibilities, and external chatter for a few hours or days. When you simplify, you’re able to hear your inner wisdom more clearly.
- You need to regulate your nervous system. When you treat yourself to good food, spend time in nature and allow yourself to receive care and attention, you rebalance your energetic system. That helps you to be physically and emotionally stronger and steadier.
- You deserve ME-TIME. You’re always giving/serving/caring for others. You get to fill-up your empty cup, too!
- You can learn life-changing habits. Depending on the type of retreat you go on – whether a structured one with a trained retreat facilitator like me (the Magical Mountain Retreat is coming up in October!) – or you take yourself on a self-guided retreat, you can engage in new habits. You could learn yoga, the art of journaling, the power of noble silence, how to connect with your intuition, expression through art…the possibilities are endless!
- Get out of your head into your BODY! When you unplug from technology, especially, you’re more likely to move. Dance, walk, hike, stretch. Move your body in ways it’s not accustomed to and release built-up tension.
- Feeling disconnected? Women need other women. When you build community and connection, it helps you to feel seen, heard and understood. It’s also valuable to get reflections from people not in your inner circle but who can offer friendship, kindness, and thought-provoking perspectives.
- You need time and space to process a recent transition. When you are going through big life changes like divorce, death, marriage, retirement, moving, or recovering from an illness, give yourself grace. A retreat is the perfect way to do that.
- Magic often happens at retreats. There may be animal messengers (cardinals, dragonflies, deer, and more!), goddess cards that give exactly the right message, gaining clarity on next steps with your relationships, career or life.
- Retreating is FUN. Do it enough and it becomes addicting. You may laugh and sing and wander in the woods and eat dark chocolate and look at the stars and sing songs with women you just met and think, “Wow, this is a pretty good life. I’m so grateful!”
If you think one of the two remaining spots for the upcoming Magical Mountain Retreat Oct 24-27 in Asheville is yours, register here.
If you want to plan a retreat for yourself but you’re not sure where to start, reach out via my contact form with a question or two and let’s see if I can help steer you in the right direction!