Mindfulness & Qigong at The Coach House

Hear FIRST about our retreats &events

Develop your mindful awareness through Qigong, an age-old practice that harnesses the power of the breath, movement and intention to create health, vitality and balance within the body.

Qi means 'subtle breath' or 'vital energy' and Gong translates as 'skill cultivated through steady practice'.

Qigong is a practice deriving from The Tao - an ancient school of Chinese philosophy of living in harmony with 'the source of everything'. But you don't have to be a devotee nor experienced in the practice to benefit.

This retreat features dedicated Qigong sessions alongside meditation: connecting both practices to deepen your sense of mind/body awareness and nature connection.

Experienced leaders are there to support you, plus you'll enjoy periods of free time to rest and reflect on your learning, in a place far from the busy-ness of every day life.

You'll be staying full-board in The Coach House - our retreat centre specifically aimed at connecting you with nature.

See the Leaders tab above for teachers and their styles.

This retreat is for you if you are:

• in need of some time away from day-to-day distractions and demands
• new or experienced in qigong and/or mindfulness
• keen to work with mindfulness principles in your qigong practice
• looking to spend some time connecting with nature in beautiful surroundings

You’ll be guided through two different Qigong routines: the Five Element Flow and a Three Treasures Form. Both are comprehensive practices for increasing energy and vitality, and enhancing one’s connection to Shen, Qi and Jing (mind, heart and body).  

During this retreat you'll:

• experience qigong practice perfect for both beginners and the more experienced
• cultivate your mindfulness through guided meditation sessions
• have opportunities to reconnect with nature, including guided walks on the stunning Sharpham Estate and some light mindful gardening sessions in our 18th century Walled Garden 
• have free periods each day to relax, reflect and rejuvenate
• enjoy delicious and healthy home-cooked vegetarian & vegan food

Your physical and mental health

Although meditation, yoga, qigong and mindfulness can be helpful in managing stress, depression and anxiety, our retreats might not be suitable if you are experiencing major depression or other clinically-diagnosed psychiatric illness such as bipolar disorder, psychosis or current self-harming. Click here for more information and for our booking process.

This retreat is for adults aged 18 and above.

Silence whilst on retreat

All of our retreats usually include some short periods of silence as a way of deepening into mindful awareness. If you are new to spending time in silence in the company of other people, it can feel awkward to begin with. However people usually find this to be a useful experience and we encourage you to explore the silent periods in a spirt of open-ness and curiosity. The retreat moves into silence each evening from 9pm - 9am the following day and until 2pm on day 3 (see also Schedule tab above for typical day).

Getting your hands in the earth

Coach House mindfulness, nature and gardening retreats feature morning sessions helping in our ornamental and Walled Garden in the grounds of Sharpham House, alongside our experienced garden staff Frances and Chloe.

We manage the gardens organically and the produce we grow supplies the kitchens in Sharpham House and the Coach House.

There are a mixture of tasks on our nature-mindfulness and gardening retreats, depending on the season. We invite you to bring your awareness to the land, plants and the nature surrounding you at Sharpham.

You don't need to know anything about gardening to participate - our team will support and assist you.

It is important that you are willing to participate in doing this as part of your mindfulness practice (we can find suitable tasks for people with health difficulties – let us know in advance) and that you try to commit to all the scheduled activities during the week.

NB: If you're less able to do gardening, a Sharpham House retreat may be more suitable

Facilities in The Coach House

The Grade II-listed Coach House has been sympathetically converted to create accommodation in four wings surrounding a central courtyard.
The Coach House has 18 bedrooms, 12 of which are en-suite. The 6 others share 3 bathrooms, one for each pair of rooms. 

We have an accessible ground-floor bedroom with en-suite bathroom in the Western Wing of The Coach House. Please contact us to book this.

The Eastern Wing features a lounge, library, kitchen and has a contemporary timber-frame extension which serves as a dining room and meditation/meeting space. The extension has large French doors which open out on to a patio and garden with direct access out on to the south-facing lawns.

Not all of the gardens or the estate have disabled access, so do contact us to discuss your needs and what is possible.

Mindfulness in nature at Sharpham

When you experience Sharpham's inspiring and nourishing environment, we hope you'll
connect spiritually with the natural world, so you’ll:

• become aware of how we are all part of nature - not artificially separate from it
• pay attention to and appreciate the natural world surrounding us
• explore nature through your senses and your natural creativity
• tread more lightly on our finite planet, developing a respect and reverence for all living things

Click here to read our ethos and principles
 

What you need to know

If you decide to stay with us, we’ll send you a list of what you need to bring for this retreat in your Welcome Letter that we send out after you've booked.

You can also find out more about staying with us on our Frequently Asked Questions page, including:

• accessibility information
• why we encourage you to come on your own and not with partners or friends
• what the difference is between our retreats

See our Coach House Covid-19 measures here
 

Our food & your dietary needs

We have a fully stocked, mostly organic and vegetarian kitchen. The main meal is at lunch time and is prepared by our Cook supported by retreatants. We try to use produce from our gardens as much as possible which retreatants help grow.

We can accommodate gluten-free and/or vegan dietary needs. However, our kitchen is not gluten, dairy nor nut-free. We do not provide gluten-free bread, but you are welcome to bring your own.

Please make sure you include dietary restrictions and any food allergies on your Booking Form. We may need to communicate further with you about specifics. The booking form is sent as a link once you have booked and paid for a retreat.

Our water is provided from our own spring, UV treated and filtered.
 

A 5-star setting with the added bonus of really being grounded in nature

                                    - a Sharpham retreatant