5 Reasons for joining a gay retreat
1) Joining a retreat starts the very moment you first think to yourself - I want to go on a retreat, or I think I need a retreat! This is the exciting part of the journey. Something is calling you to do something brave, different, new, challenging, right now you don’t know what that is, but you’re opening up to the possibility of going on retreat. Get really clear on what is motivating and inspiring you to do this for yourself. Do you need rest? Do you need a break from home or work? Do you want to experience the healing power of regular yoga? Do you want to make new friends and feel part of a community? Do you want to travel and enjoy a new landscape and culture? Are you going through a really tough time and need support and some time away? Or is it a combination of all of these? then trust your intuition and see what retreat calls to you. Hopefully one of mine! Until eventually you arrive on retreat and meet the group, and the experience begins. Every choice, every step, is part of the retreat process. Embrace all of it.
2) Making friends and feeling part of a community. Many gay men who come on these retreats find it hard to make friends in the modern urban gay world. Too much time in apps, the bars aren’t as fun or as social as they used to be, encounters becoming increasingly transactional and soulless. Many gay men are craving more meaningful connections in their lives, that are about more than sex and pleasure. We’re looking for strong friendships and to feel part of communities where we are supported and can be ourselves. This is one of the things I’m most proud of about these retreats. There is such a strong international community of men who have shared many retreats together over the years and some truly beautiful friendships have emerged. Participants say that they have finally found their tribe. Many come back year after year. Every retreat the connections within the retreat community deepen. It’s such a special part of my work over the past 11 years.
3) The Food! We eat so well on retreat. Every meal is colourful and full of health and vitality. Diet is so important to our health. And many of us struggle to eat well at home in the busy hustle and bustle of modern life. On retreat you have a whole week of eating home made vegetarian / vegan food with local products, organic when possible. You’ll notice a huge difference in your digestion, mood, energy levels and focus. I love our meals together on retreat. Seeing how each group revels in eating lovingly prepared healthy food!
4) Time off devices. Many of us struggle to maintain a healthy relationship to screens and devices. Our nervous systems are overwhelmed by the constant fight for our attention by tech companies. Coming on retreat and switching off devices is such a simple and effective way of giving your body time to settle into a natural daily rhythm. Waking up early with the sun, morning yoga, regular meal times, early bed, good rest and sleep, time in nature. Over the week the senses start to awaken and our phones seem like a distant distraction. We get more present and feel more alive. More and more I prioritise the need for screen free time on retreat. Especially in the mornings. This single factor has one of the biggest impacts on participants health and wellbeing. We all need to find a healthy balance with tech in our lives and a retreat is a great space to feel what life can be like away from screens!
5) Change your life. Some gay men come on retreat for a relaxing break. Others come on retreat because they are ready to challenge themselves, face fears, face what’s holding them back, and make positive changes in their lives. Some are struggling with work, mental health, relationships and more. A retreat is a special time to have a break from these stresses and responsibilities and fears. It’s a sacred pause for you! Where you can simply rest and be. When people arrive on retreat and say their intention is to spend lots of time thinking about their problems, hoping for a solution, I gently suggest don’t do this! Come on retreat to be present, connect with nature, take care of your body, eat well, rest well, make new friends, embrace joy and pleasure and the simplicity of life. Feel your senses awaken, your heart open, how and wonder and awe and gratitude floods in, and then at the end of the retreat you can go back to your life feeling renewed and energised with a fresh perspective. How we feel on the inside, especially regarding our nervous system and immune system, had a huge impact on how we perceive the world. When we rest and come back into balance and presence through yoga and nature on retreat, thus can dramatically transform our outlook on life. So problems and struggles that once seemed insurmountable, actually feel manageable. And life begins to flow again in the most magical and unexpected ways.