Get away from it all with a spiritual break in Spring
If you’re considering booking a short break this spring, why not do something different? Instead of heading for a beach in Greece or a city break in Paris, get away from it all with a spiritual break designed to help you relax and unwind.
Leave the stress of daily life far behind and enjoy focusing on yourself for a few days – perfect!
Choosing the right retreat
Many retreat centres across the UK offer meditative and spiritual retreats. Most are located in rural settings where you’ll find peace and tranquillity and almost all offer a warm welcome and home-cooked meals (usually vegetarian) – some also offer a range of optional trips to see the area.
Choosing the right retreat will depend on your budget, available dates and your location in the country, but a quick search on Google can help you find a few options. You’ll find yoga, meditation and Buddhist retreats across the country.
Why choose a retreat?
Going on a retreat is a great way to get into meditation if you’ve never tried it before. Group meditation is ideal to motivate you and get you started, and spending a few days or a week solely focusing on meditative practice will help to inspire you.
Body, Mind and Soul retreats or those which focus on healing meditation offer respite from constantly ringing mobile phones and the stresses and strains of everyday life, so they’re ideal if you’re stressed or feeling depressed or anxious.
What will you learn?
On a spiritual or meditative retreat, you can learn various things.
One of the best retreat types for those new to this kind of break is an introductory retreat, where you’ll learn the basics of the discipline and technique of meditative practice. By the time you leave, you’ll feel confident enough to continue your practice once you go home, and many retreats will offer guided meditation CDs to allow you to continue practising.
Lying on a beach and soaking up the sun is all very well, but when you consider the thousands of thoughts we all have running through our heads every day, it’s easy to see why you could spend more time dwelling on negative thoughts when you have nothing else to do!
Taking off on a spiritual retreat is a far more productive way of gaining perspective on any issues that are bothering you – you won’t only be giving your body a break, but your mind too!
Meditation can help your rational mind take over, giving your emotional brain a break from the stress it deals with daily; this can help you feel more balanced and stable.
