Nov 29, 2018

RETREAT RECAP

How wonderful it was to gather with such amazing, lovely, divine beings at Spectrum Wellness 360's Retreat Yourself Weekend! I had the pleasure of leading several workshops, guided meditations + our closing ceremony. There were tears, there were hugs + plenty of laughter! Everyone had their own breakthrough, and I was very pleased with the way everyone was present in each moment and very supportive of one another.

We gathered at the Mondrian Penthouse, after a restorative, heart-centered yoga session with Tammy Lee of Relax Just Breathe. Hearts open + ready to receive. Minds open and ready to learn, relate + grow... I shared a few words of wisdom, as I burned white sage + palo santo. Surrounded by gorgeous waterfront views, we closed our eyes and began to drift away. Following the meditation we shared some things that came up, and it got deep. Without sharing details, there were discussions centered around family and emotional pain that had built up over time.

The Art of Expression was our focus, which was also represented by the incredible "What's Your Elephant" art installation by Niki Lopez. Powerful words and images evoked a sense of peace + love. When the tears began to flow, each group member offered their words of encouragement, without condescending or discouraging the expression that was taking place. I sat back and admired the group. They were healing themselves and one another!

The workshops that I led took place at The Hyatt Centric, and consisted of Wabi-Sabi: The Balance of Being Perfectly Imperfect + Living Your Best Life. For the first session, we discussed what being perfect meant to us, and the fact that there is a scale that everyone falls on, whether they are not at all concerned with perfection, completely obsessed with being perfect in every way, or somewhere in between. Most participants were pretty balanced in terms of their expectations of themselves, and they had a clear outlook on ways to not get caught up in perfectionism, while still striving to be their Best Self.

The second session was based on my book, Clarity: Designing Your Dream. It is the second book in my Journey To The Light series. The first book is Emerge: Live Your Dream. I set these books up to be interactive guides, so that they fit into my workshops. I had the participants fill in the portions that required them to consider aspects of their lives that they wanted to improve.

We shared with one another, and I wrote on the board a few of the key things from each person that they wanted to improve, or that they considered part of Living Their Best Life! Some of those things included: Freedom to travel, indulging in creativity, following a passion or calling, maintaining true friendships, staying away from energy vampires, not fixing people, focusing on the present, and finding self. This was a truly wonderful immersion into the depths of our soul desires!

We finished our session by balancing the hemispheres of our brain with a breath-work technique known as Clearing The Nadis, where you take your right hand and use your first two fingers + thumb to hold down each nostril one at a time, as you inhale and exhale. Please see the video below to learn this technique and try it yourself! It's perfect for high stress situations, during meditations, or when you awaken in the morning before starting your day.

Guests also enjoyed healing workshops, like the "Access Your Inner Goddess" aromatherapy + sage smudging class with Green Gabriela, of Conscious Community, the "Health is Wealth" workshop with Dr. Sharon Lombard, "Relationship Rodeo" + "Learning To Trust Again" with Veronica McRipley, Founder of Spectrum Wellness 360, and the "Self Love Bootcamp" with Octavia Yearwood, of This Girl's Lunchbox. C Wayans was Hilarious + Honest, which is always a great combo! Laughter is always the best medicine + The Truth will set you free...

We ended on the third eve of the retreat with a divine closing ceremony of gratitude for ourselves and one another. I reminded everyone of a mantra that I learned from my wise, sage sister... "You Are The One You've Been Waiting For." As I played the Tibetan Singing Bowl, attuning everyone's chakras into vibrational harmony, I could feel the energy shift.