Making the decision to enter an extended period of time away from the concerns and demands of your everyday routine is a powerful commitment. But with the high stress and incredibly intrusive lifestyles lived today, sometimes a retreat is the answer to stress and anxiety.
Retreats are designed to take you out of your daily life and situation. With its recent rise in popularity, many kinds of retreats have emerged. Ranging from religious, youth focused, spiritual, synergistic, couples, family and even mental; retreats come in many different forms. Anxiety retreats in particular have become increasingly popular and as such has caught the attention of many sufferers around the globe.
With so many anxiety retreat options available, how can you determine if it is a good fit for you? Read on to explore what you need to know about anxiety retreats.
What is an Anxiety Retreat?
The purpose of an anxiety retreat is to provide you with an escape from your anxiety. These retreats can include therapy sessions, spa treatments, massage therapies, and tranquil locations such as mountain valleys and beaches where you are fully immersed in nature.
A typical anxiety retreat offers individual sessions with a therapist, stress-relieving activities such as gardening, walking, group therapy, and focuses on “cleansing therapy” and teaching how to handle stressful situations in everyday life. Some of them also offer a “life management” consultation as follow-up treatment, nutritional advice, acupuncture and private trainings.
Most of the anxiety resorts offer programs that can last for a few days or even months, depending on your needs. The schedules may vary and they depend on whether it is an individual or group therapy program. You should keep in mind that some programs have fixed dates and you will have to plan your retreat well in advance.
The most important factors to consider in your initial consideration for a retreat are:
- Is this location right for me?
- Do the programs offered appeal to me and my personal needs/wants?
- Do I want to participate in an individual or group therapy program?
- How long do I want to be away on this retreat?
How much does an anxiety retreat cost?
Anxiety retreat centers can be expensive, since costs include initial assessment, and hourly fees for individual and group therapy may be $150 to $400 per hour. Additional fees may apply for lodging. However, all prices vary from center to center, the most important thing to do is consider your finances and decide which programs suits your needs. Seven day retreat can cost up to $4,000, accommodation and meals included, however there are also resorts that can cost more than that. The most important factors to consider in your cost assessment for a retreat are:
- What is your budget for your retreat?
- What is the base cost of the program?
- Are there any additional fees?
Top Retreats to Consider
Brookhaven Retreat Center for Women
Brookhaven Is an upscale women’s treatment facility that offers The Lily Program® ~ An Individualized Mental Health Program For Women, and are specifically focused on Social Anxiety. The center provides each woman a multi-track program with a full range of clinical professionals that will give women tools to help quiet the self-defeating noise in their heads and instead learn to tap into their own intuitions. They offer а wide range of activities and individual and group therapy several times a day, and have psychiatrists available 24 hours.
Brookhaven Retreat Center for Women
The STAR Program: Kenyon Ranch
A STAR Retreat is a 10-day therapeutic workshop that is carefully structured and designed to offer participants an opportunity for personal growth and accelerated healing from anxiety. STAR has an unusually high ratio of staff to participants, which allows the program to be individualized in order to assist each person to uncover sources of anxiety or depression. They also offer other range of activities such as body massages, as well as a fitness and business center.
The Star Program: Kenyon Ranch
Have you ever considered going to an anxiety retreat or perhaps you have already attended one? If so, please feel free to share your story with us.
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My father just passed away and my mom is really struggling with it. I think a retreat to help her out would be beneficial. If not, then maybe just having her do group therapy could help. I will have to look into pricing options and see if it is an doable.
I’m sorry for your loss. A retreat can be beneficial, but they can be expensive. Your local hospital may have bereavement groups, to help people with the loss of loved ones. The following article talks more about being widowed and how it affects anxiety: https://anxietyboss.com/how-being-widowed-affects-your-anxiety/.
I’m suffering from health /illness anxiety to a huge extent . I’m working with therapist here at home and just switched Meds . I feel Very hopeless. Not sure if a retreat is worth it . I am so desperate to get out is this hole.
If you have the resources to afford an anxiety retreat, then it may help you to get started on the road to recovery. A retreat will allow you to get rid of all the distractions and stressors of your daily life, so that you can begin to do some deep introspection, and learn skills to reduce your anxiety.
For some people anxiety was learnt through the miss-attribution of symptoms to outside stimuli. For example someone who develops a stomach bug and feels an urgent need to vomit while in a crowded shopping mall may develop a spiralling fear of open public spaces (agoraphobia). In cases such as these, where there is no deep-seated cause, exposure and cognitive therapy will probably bring about a complete cure.
Thanks for sharing.