Retreats at Home: Mindfulness for challenging times (a 1-day retreat)
In a short space of time the coronavirus has profoundly affected our lives. We offer a 1-day mindfulness Retreat at Home to help support and nourish you as you face new challenges and uncertainties.
Although we are temporarily closed at the moment, we can still connect to each other as a community and to our mindfulness practice as part of our self-care.
This secular, 1-day mindfulness retreat offers the opportunity to receive support from experienced teachers within the structure of a retreat.
One of the unique features of this retreat is the chance to develop supportive community through connecting with each other and sharing our experiences in smaller groups.
There will be a maximum of 15 people on this retreat with opportunities for smaller group sharing.
The retreat also offers the opportunity to bring your practice into everyday activities at home during mindful activity breaks during the day as a way to support your continued practice.
The retreat will take place online using the platform Zoom (see further information below to ensure you have the minimum tech requirements). Guidance will be sent at the point of booking for using Zoom as well as a guide to getting the best out of your home retreat.
This day-long retreat will offer the chance to:
- Connect to your practice and to a wider sense of community
- Experience teaching and guided meditation sessions from experienced and compassionate teachers
- Experience mindful movement routines and practices such as qi-gong and yoga that can be used in daily life
- Learn how mindfulness and self-compassion can help to keep us steady through uncertain and challenging times
- Bring your practice into your home with mindful activity breaks during the day as a way to support your continued practice
- Undertake some mindful activity tasks
- Connect with teachers and each other to share our experience
Is this retreat for me & how can I do this at home?
This retreat is for people who have some experience of mindfulness meditation and who would like to connect with their practice in the supportive company of others.
To get the most out of this retreat you will need a room in your home where you will not be distracted by other people and which can serve as a confidential space.
To join you will need to be fully available for the duration of the retreat (this helps create a greater sense of group coherence with less distraction for your fellow retreatants)
The 1-day retreat will run from 9am - 5pm with a 15 minute ‘tech check’ at 8.45am prior to the start of the retreat for those who need to familiriase themselves with using Zoon
Technical requirements
We will be using the online application Zoom to connect with each other during this retreat. To use Zoom you will need a computer or a phone with a speaker and camera. Full instructions will be sent with your welcome email at the point of booking. However you can also download the zoom app here to familiarise yourself with the application and to make sure it meets your system requirements.
Outline of the retreat schedule for the day
8.45am - Tech check for those new to Zoom
9.00am - Introduction to the day
9.45am - Mindful Movement – gentle yoga
10.15am - Guided meditation
10.45am – Mindful Activity session and break
11.30am – Sharing
11.45am - Teaching
12.30pm - Guided Meditation
1.00pm - Lunch
2.15pm – Mindful Movement
2.45pm – Guided Meditation
3.15pm – Mindful Activity session and break
4.00pm – Sharing
4.45pm - Closing session
A refreshing chance to feel part of Sharpham again, connect with some lovely people and reinvigorate my practices in this time of isolation. A much needed and welcome change to my routine/rut!
I thoroughly enjoyed the online retreat and felt a great sense of peace and inner calm both during the day and afterwards. It was a wonderful and inspiring experience, sprinkled with Sharpham magic. Highly recommended
I found the online 1-day retreat inspirational, calming and it definitely had the touch of the 'Sharpham magic' that we all crave in these strange times. Considering it was the experimental first one online it was remarkable, and with a little bit of fine tuning it will be even better. Personally I was anxious about managing the technology side of things but with Ben's patient help I managed to make it through with only a couple of minor hiccups! A big 'thank you' to Patti, Ethan, Ben and the group for making it such a special day
I started the day unsure if an online retreat could replicate the Sharpham magic that I have enjoyed on other retreats, but from the moment I logged in I was put at ease. The retreat leaders and fellow retreatants helped create a warm, open, safe, reassuring space. The retreat has given me a chance to slow down, and to approach the reality of the world we now find ourselves in with a new mindset and with greater compassion for myself and others. Thank you Sharpham!
In these difficult times we are asking people to pay what they can to support the future of the Trust. We suggest £45 however we also understand if you cannot afford this and if you can pay more thank you.
Ollie Frame
Ollie Frame works as an integrative therapist, mindfulness teacher and retreat leader. Trained in Mindfulness-based approaches with the University of Exeter, he runs 8-week courses for the general public, for teachers and students in schools and colleges, and for various other client groups on behalf of Devon County Council. Having completed additional training in Mindfulness-Based Compassionate Living (MBCL), he is especially enthusiastic about self compassion, Metta meditation and other heart-based approaches within the world of mindfulness. Ollie also works as a Polarity therapist and an integrative counsellor, with a particular interest in Psychosynthesis, depth psychology and inner journeying.
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Patti Summerville - Mindfulness & Yoga retreat leader
Patti began a personal meditation practice in 1996 after attending a retreat at the Tushita Institute, Dharamsala, India. Over the years her practice has been influenced by Mahayana and Theravada Buddhist traditions and in 2013 she took on the role of co-ordinator at The Barn Retreat Centre, an Insight Mindfulness Meditation Retreat centre at Sharpham. Patti has trained to be a Mindfulness Meditation Teacher with Exeter University and an Integral Hatha Yoga Teacher in 2009 at the Sri Swami Satchidananda Ashram. She creates a framework that links traditional yogic and modern secular mindfulness principles where 'your yoga practice becomes your meditation'. Classes will include pranayama (breathing), asana (posture) and nidra (deep relaxation) to cultivate a mindful practice and prepare for other formal mindfulness meditations.
Ethan Pollock
Ethan has been supporting retreats and mindfulness groups for over a decade. He spent five years training at Plum Village with the internationally recognised Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. He currently offers retreats and classes on mindfulness and buddhism at meditation centers and local groups around the UK. His teaching helps people touch more calm and ease in their everyday lives by bringing awareness and appreciation to simple daily activities, retreatants especially love his guided meditations!
How to book easily and securely:
- online on this page
- by phoning 01803 732542
Ring us or email us on [email protected] if you've got any questions.
Please click here to see our booking and cancellations policy.
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