“MEND YOUR SOUL”: A WOMEN’S WELLNESS RETREAT

LOCATION: Provence

This intensive self-exploration 5 day/6 night retreat set in a beautiful villa is designed for women at a turning point or who feel lost and want to reassess their lives to make an informed choice about which path to take for the next leg of their life journey. During this retreat, participants learn about French values and experience the French lifestyle while doing an excavation and study of their own deeply held values and beliefs to assess what belongs to their cultural or ethnic background, what thinking is inherited from their family, and what belongs to them in order to get better grounded in themselves.

Morning and afternoon workshops and discussion groups focus on personal growth, self-care and self-love. Self-reflection activities enable individuals to do deep-dives privately during free time. Enjoy free time in late afternoons and evenings to sit by the pool, chat with other women, or for journaling.

All workshops, discussion groups and activities are optional —you can attend them all or tailor a selection to suit your personal preference, leaving extra time to enjoy for yourself or to spend with other retreat participants.

Tentative sample Day:

FIRST DAY “Discover and Own Your Inner Beauty”

Breakfast Enjoy a typically French breakfast at your own pace from the buffet-style spread.

Morning

Introduction to meditation

7:00-7:30 gratitude & meditation practice

8:30-8:50 Self-guided Independent Study (20 minutes of journaling in response to a prompt related to the previous day’s optional homework or to foreshadow the new topic of the day) The first day discussion will relate to that day’s topic, for example “Inner Audit: The origin of your values” a worksheet designed to help you specifically identify where you acquired your current priorities: family, school, religion, ethnicity, culture, popular cultures…

8:50-9:20 Self-led group discussion (On the first day, a Sojo guide will model moderation). For example: Day One —group bonding, sharing with the group what life path you were on when you decided you needed or wanted a change and why.

9:30-10:50 Workshop DEEP DIVE: INTRODUCTION TO THE SLOW PHILOSOPHY & FRENCH LIFESTYLE Led by Sojo owner Lisa following a college-class format. Optional “homework” will be provided for those looking to spend the evening expanding their self-growth independently.

11:00-12:00 Aperitif & Discussion Group EXPLORING Similarities and Differences between participants’ current lifestyle and values and French ones. A guided participant conversation moderated by Lisa over light snacks and a glass of juice, soda or wine.

Lunch at the villa

Afternoon

2:00-2:50 Coffee & Group Bonding SHARING EXPERIENCES OF TRYING TO LIVE ACCORDING TO A VALUE SYSTEM THAT DOESN’T BRING JOY A guided participant conversation moderated by Lisa over espresso or tea.

2:50-3:00 Break

3:00-3:50 Workshop DEEP DIVE: REASSESSING YOUR VALUES AND BELIEFS TO GET GROUNDED IN PRIORITIES & LIFE GOALS THAT BETTER ALIGN WITH YOUR PERSONAL NEEDS AND DESIRES Led by Sojo owner Lisa following a college-class format. Optional “homework” will be provided for those looking to spend the evening expanding their self-growth independently.

4:00- Free Time:

6:00 Choose a self-serve pool-side aperitif OR help the chef prepare dinner and pick up a new French recipe!

7:00 Family-Style Dinner