Do you enjoy spending time in the wilderness with your partner and feel like a relationship enhancing experience would be beneficial? Then you have come to the right place!
For 2018 we are hosting one retreat for up to five couples. The retreats are designed for wilderness enthusiasts wanting to enhance their relationship connection. As a wilderness field instructor in 2006 I saw the therapeutic power of the great outdoors, as an EFT therapist and past attendee of Hold Me Tight workshops I know the power of the attachment model to help strengthen romantic relationships. The wilderness retreats are my integration of both to help you have the best possible couples experience.
See below for specific details of the retreat, each will include camping and hiking in the wilderness but require different levels of physical conditioning. You will be required to arrange transportation to and from the trail head or campground and all equipment/food you wish to bring with you. What you will receive is; 2 booklets with the Hold Me Tight material that you can review before the retreat, a one hour consultation before the retreat to clarify goals and go over any questions or concerns you might have, 4 hours a day of dedicated discussion going over the Hold Me Tight material along with break out sessions where you and your partner will be able to practice and discuss the material and an amazing experience with other couples that you and your partner will remember for a lifetime. You will also have access to me for the entirety of the trip to go over material or discuss other questions that might come up.
The following are some of the benefits you can expect to receive from the Hold Me Tight discussions:
Learn how to connect with your partner on a deeper more emotional level.
Be able to identify negative interaction patterns the two of you get into and how to get out of them.
Learn how to continue to strengthen the bond the two of you already have.
Learn how to forgive each other and repair.
Be more responsive to each other and emotionally engaged.
Learn the basics of attachment theory and how to create a secure attached adult relationship.
The retreats are designed for couples that feel relatively safe and secure with their partner but are looking to enhance their connection or perhaps move past blocks that get in the way of a deeper connection. If you feel comfortable going on a three day backpacking trip with your partner but feel like your relationship could benefit and grow with a more intimate experience this is for you. If you have questions as to whether or not the retreat would be a good fit please feel free to contact me. Due to the environment and time we might not be able to go over all the printed material, I have designed the discussions to help you as a couple get the most out of the experience and still have a good understanding of the material. If you have attended a traditional Hold Me Tight workshop in the past and want to refresh what you learned while enjoying the beauty of nature this is a great opportunity as well.
Retreat pricing and refund policy:
There are currently no retreats scheduled. Please contact me for more information and possible future retreat dates.
Olympic peninsula
If you want flat hiking while exploring the Olympic coastline this is the trip for you. The first day we will meet at the trail head, that is roughly 2 hours from Port Angeles, hike in three miles over flat terrain to the campsites along the beach and explore the surrounding coastline. The second day we will take a day hike along the coastline. The third day we will continue to explore the coastline and return to the cars. This will be the easiest trip as far as physical excretion but if you like the coastline the scenery will be spectacular. Along with the hiking there will be 4 hours a day of lecture and discussion. For this trip you will need a national parks pass and need to register at the local ranger station for a camping permit and receive a bear canister to store food items in.
Comments from past participants:
"We signed up for this because we enjoy hiking/backpacking and we found ourselves hitting an impasse in some of our conversations. We both wanted a deeper/stronger connection with each other but we'd get stuck in "demon dialogues" and end up driving each other away rather than closer. We found John to be compassionate, respectful, and skilled in dealing with whatever we shared. The educational material presented helped keep conversation on track and didn't put too much pressure on either of us. We left encouraged and felt that we had some new tools that we could use if we became stuck in our conversations. We would definitely do this again." Jenni B.
"The hold me tight retreat was very beneficial to my wife and I. It was helpful to see how quickly it was for us to get caught in the Crazy cycle and how hard it was to get out of it. My wife and I walked away from the retreat with a lot of hope about our future as a couple. The hiking was amazing and the views were outstanding. Seeing a mountain goat at the top of the mountain was a thrilling experience. We would highly recommend this retreat to any couple who wants to improve there connection as a couple." Stu B.