I am long out of the habit of asking others for their permission to do things. I don’t need to justify my choices to anyone but myself. However, sometimes the hardest person to convince… is myself.
As I am gearing up to host the next Catch Your Breath Retreat, I built this list for women who have a hard time convincing themselves to take a break. If your reaction is like many I’ve heard, (“Ohhhhhh this sounds like exactly what I need! But [insert reason you couldn’t/wouldn’t/shouldn’t here]”), read this list and see if any of them ring true for you. If you can close your eyes, picture yourself attending a retreat, and it makes you feel all happy and stuff, there’s the only justification you need.
So. *Ahem* 8 Reasons You Need to GTF away Go on a Retreat:
1) Focused time to think about you
Most of us spend time thinking about everyone else. Our kids, our clients, our pets, our significant others, our employees, our coworkers, our friends, our bosses, our neighbors… Ok, that’s great – we are an empathetic bunch. However, I am constantly surprised when I ask people questions about themselves that they can’t answer. Questions such as, “When are you the happiest? What are you most proud of accomplishing? What is your deepest fear? What lights you up the most? When is the last time you cried?” I believe these answers should be on the tip of our tongue. And the only way they’ll get there is if we take time every now and then to get to know ourselves better.
2) Slowing down.
When I ask women to gauge the pace of their lives, I get responses like, “Frantic! Busy! Go-go-going! Time is flying! Non-stop! Crazy!!!!!” …Sound familiar? Weird that this is how we describe our day-to-day lives. Being productive is fine. Even being busy is fine. But go-go-going WITHOUT STOPPING TO BREATHE is dangerous. A retreat gives you the time to pause without feeling like you need to “be productive” every second of every day.
3) Connection
If you sign up for a retreat, you do so because you are in a certain frame of mind – likely in a place where you’re ready to do some introspection, learn some things, and dig into some deeper stuff. Well, so are all the other women who signed up for the retreat! Congratulations, you have automatically surrounded yourself with people who are in the same boat as you. You know, the people you can text when you’re at you’re wit’s end. The people who GET IT. The people who have your back. The people you want as your friends.
4) Unplugging
To be “unavailable” every once in a while is a very restorative thing. What peace to know that the world continues to turn even though you haven’t checked your e-mail for 24 hours. The sun still rises even though you didn’t respond to that text. Your family is still alive and well even though you took an extra day to return that phone call.
5) Clearing the clutter
Get out from behind your piles of laundry, paper work, yard work, schedules, appointments, drama, and obligations… Go to a new, clean, beautiful place where you don’t have to change the sheets or clear the dishes. You can just enjoy BEING.
6) Learning
If you’re doing the same thing day after day, year after year, it is hard to pick up new knowledge. But transplant yourself into a situation where you’re surrounded with new people and being introduced to new ideas, and you will become a sponge for new information. Then you can return to your life with a deeper perspective or a better understanding.
7) Celebrating
When is the last time you thought about how much you freaking rock? When did you last give yourself kudos for accomplishing something, or overcoming an obstacle? When did you last pat yourself on the back for holding it together day after day and smiling and being kind and patient even though you’re exhausted? When is the last time you had a delicious piece of coffee cake guilt-free? Or kicked back with a few cocktails and laughed and cried while sharing stories with other women? Life is a party and we don’t celebrate enough.
8) Taking care of you IS taking care of everyone else.
It isn’t selfish. How do you treat your loved ones when you are exhausted, fraying around the edges, and stressed to the max? How do you treat them when you feel well-rested, well-fed, and connected?
If this is all hitting home for you, join us for our next Catch Your Breath Retreat for women who do. it. ALL. You can read about our last retreat here and see some more info here.
Registration opens 8/22 and closes 9/2. In the meantime, here is what you can do:
- Put yourself on this e-mail list to join the other women who are the first to receive retreat updates.
- Share this information with anyone you know who could use a break to catch her breath.
- Remember that you are worthy of your own time and attention. Always. ❤️
