Resourcing | The inner journey

Healing stays have been on the rise for several years and we bet that the pandemic will give them an additional squall. If retreats and other group activities are postponed until further notice, there are still some great options for taking care of yourself, right now, and others to plan for in the near future. .

Eve Dumas
The Press

When more or less “normal” life was able to resume last spring, the rooms and retreats of the Life Center in Ripon were filled en bloc. Attendance did not decline until the new restrictions. Co-owner Hélène Léger has noticed how much Quebecers need respite, introspection, small and large care.

Founded 10 years ago, the 16-room (32-bed) hostel once offered mainly weekend group retreats. The pandemic naturally forced M^me Léger and his partner, Michel Stornello, to adapt their business model.

“Before COVID-19, the center was full two years in advance. When everything was cancelled, we had to rely on marketing and communications to make ourselves known. We have implemented a reservation system on the site for individual stays, now offered all week. »

Even today, one can very well spend a few nights in peace at the Center de vie. Meals (vegetarian) are included. It is possible to explore 206 acres of land, including several walking/snowshoeing trails. The property’s old grain silo has been transformed into a magnificent sauna. Massage therapy, naturopathy, “energetic harmonization”, reflexology, etc. are all offered.

“Here, the spaces are large and each person can have their own little intimate lounge. The rooms are all furnished with a table for taking meals. The sauna is for one person at a time. We are lucky to still be able to offer all this at the moment, ”admits M^me Lightweight. Group retreats will return as soon as possible.

Rejuvenation is still on the program in places like the Spa Eastman, a pioneer in the field. Meals must be taken in the rooms or outside, weather permitting, but the swimming pool is open, outdoor activities and individual treatments are maintained.

The superb Monastère des Augustines, in Quebec, also seems to be open at the moment. This winter, it is also partnering with SEPAQ to offer a stay combining well-being in nature and personal rejuvenation and including two nights in the historic spaces of the Monastery and one in an EXP chalet in the Jacques-Cartier National Park. .

Others, like the Couvent Val-Morin and the Vipassana Meditation Center of Quebec, among others, have decided to close and wait. The same is obviously true for companies specializing in group retreats, which are seeing their programming postponed, once again. But all of them are predicting a resurgence of thunder, like last summer and fall.

A “COVID-19 Baby”

Jean-Christophe Viard even took advantage of the downtime imposed by the crisis to launch Plenitude Travel, a new travel company dedicated to healing and disconnecting. The founder of ToundriGo, an incoming tour operator well anchored in the Quebec landscape, has of course seen his activities reduced in the last two years. He saw it as an opportunity to take a healing holiday for himself, something he never thought he would do in the past. “Plenitude Travel is a baby of COVID-19”, can we also read on the site of the nascent brand.

It was then that the specialist in exceptional experiences noticed that the offer was still a little limited, for well-being stays. “The places are not always very sexy. But I know of magnificent places in Quebec that could accommodate this type of stay. »

“These will not be mono-yoga or mono-meditation retreats, for example. There are already a lot of them, ”adds Mr. Viard.

Mr. Viard has partnered with professionals in naturopathy, herbalism, yoga and meditation, aromatherapy, and more. to offer a diversity of experiences. For now, there are six hosts across Quebec and nine programs in the Plenitude offer. The first retreats, which were to take place in January, have of course been postponed.

Adapt to better help

Jeanne Dubé and Sophie Latreille, founders of WeTreat, still do not know if their “Weekend nature” retreat will be able to take place at the Couvent Val-Morin in February. But they are resigned and have become accustomed to adapting.

Very popular, WeTreat activities often attract more than 30 people. Depending on the restrictions of the moment, Sophie Latreille and Jeanne Dubé have got into the habit of separating the groups to form smaller teams and to spend as much time as possible outside. “The principle of these retreats is to recharge one’s batteries, recalls Sophie Latreille. We don’t want people to be stressed by the number. »

“At the first “recovery”, in June 2020, we had all kinds of reactions, recalls Jeanne Dubé. There were anxious people, super excited people, a little confused people. We didn’t really know how to act in society, when to wear the mask or not. Today, we have a lot more experience and things are going well. So much, in fact, that WeTreat had planned a monthly retreat in 2022. To be continued…

The first activity of 2022 of Sacred Nature, the company of Chloé Robertson, will not take place in January. The four-day Émergence program, which combines yoga, meditation, intuitive dance, walking in the forest and rituals of all kinds, will be held in May instead, if all goes well.

“I offer a respectful environment, where everyone can relive as a group in a safe way and release excess stress and anxiety,” adds Ms.^me Robertson.

Chloe Robertson, who has also been teaching at Studio Mile End (formerly Wanderlust) for a few years, hosted her first retreat exactly six years ago. She is aware of the fact that people’s financial means have not necessarily kept pace with their need to take good care of themselves. So she tries to offer reasonable rates.

“I want to encourage people to experience a retreat. It’s the best investment you can make. And more than ever, it seems important to me that we take responsibility for ourselves. We all have an impact on the people around us and we need healthy individuals to form a healthy society, ”believes the one who has squarely invested in a community mission.

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