Awaken and Align (Or: From Sceptic to Softie in Less Than 24 Hours)
Spoiler: I cried, I journaled, I liked it
I didn’t fully know what I was walking into when I booked Awaken and Align, a one-night wellness retreat created by Eva Nunn of @thepositivetribes. I just knew I needed something. A breather. A reset. A bit of time where no one needed anything from me. No nappies, no deadlines, no relentless mental lists. Life had been feeling loud and full, and I wanted quiet. I wasn’t nervous about going solo (in fact, that part I was really looking forward to) but I was a bit nervous about the retreat itself. Would I find it too intense?
Would I feel like I belonged there?
The truth is, I struggled during the first couple of sessions. I found it hard to connect to the more spiritual language. The talk of manifesting, the journaling prompts about our higher selves. My brain started throwing up its usual defences. This is a bit much. This isn’t for me. I could feel myself pulling back, wanting it to be more grounded, more straightforward - less incense, more clarity. But then, somewhere in the middle of it all, a question floated in: OK, but how do I actually feel? And the answer caught me off guard. I felt... good. More than good. Relaxed, even. My body felt soft, like it had finally exhaled. My brain was quieter. And that was the turning point. I stopped trying to intellectualise the experience and just let myself be in it. And it felt right.
Maybe that’s all I needed, to feel like myself again, but lighter.
There was also something else, someone else, sitting quietly in the background of the whole weekend. My Mum. Her presence was so strong throughout the retreat, even in the silences. Not in a spooky or overly spiritual way - just a soft, insistent pull. I missed her so much it ached, but at the same time, I felt her in everything: the quiet moments, the creativity that started to bubble up out of nowhere, the small intuitive nudges that felt like hers. It was like something in me that had been locked away, some creative understanding or old knowing, had been gently pushed open. I kept thinking, She’d love this. She’d laugh at parts of it, yes, but she’d get it. She’d get me.
The weekend itself was full but never frantic. There was Pilates and Meditation with Siobhan McQuillan (@thecosmiccoach.ie) who held space beautifully and without any pressure. The Sunset Circle on Saturday evening was exactly what it sounds like - peaceful, reflective, a kind of group exhale. The Cacao Ceremony, held by Jean from @softly_healing_cacao, was gently heart-opening, a ritual that felt like a permission slip to soften. And the Sound Bath with Lyndsey Madison (@lindsaykellymadison) was probably the most grounding moment of the weekend. No talking, no processing, just the vibrations doing their quiet work.
But the big one for me, the one that cracked something open, was the Breathwork Session with Ciara Ashwell of @mariposa_holistic_wellness. I’ve never done anything like it. It was intense, euphoric, uncomfortable, emotional - borderline traumatic and deeply healing at the same time. It stirred up so much, and not all of it was easy. Afterward, I had to go back to my room, wrap myself in a blanket, eat chocolate, and just be. And honestly? That felt as necessary as the session itself. There’s a kind of wellness that doesn’t smooth things over but brings them up to the surface to be seen. That’s what this was.
I left the retreat feeling a kind of joy I hadn’t felt in a long time. Not the loud, performative kind, but something quieter and sturdier. A reminder of what’s possible when I give myself even the smallest bit of space. It also made something very clear to me: I want to be in this world more. Not just as a participant, but as part of it. I don’t know exactly what that’ll look like yet. I have no formal training, no business plan - but I know how I want it to feel: grounded, honest, modern, open to people like me, who love wellness but sometimes find it a bit much.
If you’ve ever felt curious about wellness but worried you wouldn’t quite fit, I get it. But this weekend showed me there’s a version of it that feels human and accessible. That’s the kind of space I want to help create. One where you can take what you need, leave what you don’t, and come away feeling a little more like yourself.
Eva’s planning the next one for December. I’ve already mentally booked the childcare.
Chat soon,
Sarah X
