From Triggered to Transforming: A Healing Retreat for Emotional Freedom

In this safe, warm, supportive environment at GilChrist, you'll have the opportunity to uncover and release the deep-seated emotional triggers and traumas that may be limiting your potential. With expert guidance, group support, and healing practices, you’ll gain powerful tools to begin transforming your triggers into sources of strength and healing.

What to Expect

• Understanding Triggers and Trauma: Learn how trauma impacts your emotions and behaviors, and discover practical tools to navigate and release old wounds.
• Mindful Healing Practices: Engage in guided meditations, breathwork, and body-centered therapies designed to soothe your nervous system and promote deep emotional healing.
• Transformative Workshops: Dive deep into understanding your emotional triggers and how to create healthier responses and boundaries in your relationships.
• Supportive Community: Connect with like-minded individuals on a shared healing journey, and build lasting connections with people who understand your struggles.
• Self-Compassion and Empowerment: Learn to cultivate deep self-love and compassion, and gain the confidence to move forward from a place of healing and strength.

Why Attend?

This retreat is for anyone who feels ready to break free from the emotional cycles that keep them feeling stuck. Whether you've experienced childhood trauma, relationship wounds, or past pain that still influences your reactions today, this retreat will offer the tools and insights needed to shift from surviving to thriving.

About the Facilitator: Jazmin Guy

As a licensed mental health therapist with expertise in both Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and integrative healing practices, my approach is centered on supporting individuals in achieving mental, emotional, and physical well-being. I blend evidence-based therapeutic techniques with holistic modalities to help you create lasting change, heal from past experiences, and cultivate a greater sense of inner balance.

With a background in five years of practice, I work with individuals dealing with anxiety, depression, stress, trauma, and life transitions. I use CBT to help clients identify and challenge negative thought patterns, build healthier coping strategies, and develop practical solutions for overcoming life's challenges. In addition, I incorporate holistic methods such as mindfulness, energy healing, meditation, and aromatherapy to address the root causes of emotional distress and promote deep healing on all levels—body, mind, and spirit.

I believe that true healing requires a holistic approach that honors the connection between the mind, emotions, and body. By combining the best of modern psychology with ancient healing traditions, I empower clients to find clarity, improve self-awareness, and develop a deeper connection to their inner wisdom.

Whether you're looking to reduce stress, heal from trauma, manage difficult emotions, or simply feel more balanced, I offer personalized therapy and coaching sessions designed to support your journey to optimal well-being.

Retreat Schedule

Day 1: Uncovering Our Triggers & Trauma, Healing Through Awareness & Release

• Join the group for an intimate circle where we will share our personal intentions for the retreat. This is an opportunity to connect with fellow participants and set the stage for deep healing.
• Explore the psychology of emotional triggers and trauma. Learn what triggers are, where they come from, and how they affect our emotions, behaviors, and relationships. Gain insight into how trauma is stored in the body and why certain situations provoke intense reactions. Purpose: Begin identifying your own triggers and learn to create space between stimulus and response.
• Dive deeper into how trauma impacts the nervous system and emotional regulation. This workshop will teach you how trauma responses manifest (fight, flight, freeze, fawn) and practical tools for emotional regulation and release. Learn how to use mindfulness, breathwork, and somatic practices to release stored tension.
• A gentle yoga practice designed to help you reconnect with your body, release tension, and foster emotional healing through movement. Focus on mindfulness and body awareness to help you release trauma stored in the muscles and fascia.
• Through guided journaling exercises, reflect on your personal triggers and their origins. Gain clarity on how past experiences are influencing your current emotional reactions and start to shift old patterns. This session will help you reframe old beliefs and create new, healthier responses to triggers.
• In a supportive, non-judgmental environment, participants will have the opportunity to share insights, experiences, and emotional releases from the day's work. This is a time to practice compassionate listening and receive support from the group. Purpose: Let go of what no longer serves you, making room for personal growth and emotional freedom.

Day 2:  Reclaiming Your Power & Creating Lasting Transformation

• Calming meditation to center yourself. This grounding practice will help you connect to your body and the present moment, setting the tone for healing.
• A gentle, guided ceremony to release any emotional baggage, unresolved trauma, or old wounds. Through visualization and a meditative process, we’ll create space for healing and renewal.
• Learn how to cultivate self-compassion, set healthy boundaries, and reclaim your personal power. Learn practical tools for nurturing yourself and protecting your energy from future triggers or emotional wounds.
• Mindfulness practices, including mindful walking, grounding techniques, and self-soothing exercises, to help integrate the healing work done throughout the retreat into your everyday life.
• Using the tools, insights, and practices you've learned, work on creating a personalized healing plan. This plan will include daily practices, self-care rituals, and emotional regulation tools to keep you grounded and connected to your healing path.
• In our closing circle, we will share reflections, insights, and gratitude for the journey we’ve taken together. We’ll also discuss how to continue integrating the healing work into your life and support one another in maintaining lasting transformation.

Key Themes & Practices of the Retreat

• Understanding Trauma: Gain insight into the emotional, physical, and mental impacts of trauma.
• Emotional Release: Use somatic and mindfulness-based practices to release stored trauma and emotional tension.
• Healing Movement: Gentle yoga, breathwork, and other body-based practices to reconnect with yourself.
• Personal Empowerment: Develop tools to create lasting transformation and emotional freedom.
• Community & Support: Build deep connections and support through shared experiences and group exercises.

What to Bring

• Comfortable clothes for movement and relaxation
• A journal for reflection and exercises
• An open mind and heart ready for transformation
• Any personal items for comfort (blanket, pillow, etc.)
• Food for the weekend. Lunch on Saturday will be provided. Each guest space has a complete kitchen, with a stove, oven, and a refrigerator, though most do not have a microwave.

Note: The schedule is designed to provide a balance of active workshops, quiet reflection, and healing practices. Throughout the retreat, we encourage self-care and emotional check-ins to ensure everyone feels safe and supported.

Space is limited!

Don’t miss this opportunity to transform your relationship with yourself and others.

Registration and Lodging Details

Financial support and scholarships are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Early bird registration for the retreat program is $125; once scholarship allotment is met, the cost increases to $250. 

• First, send an email to Jazmin (click here) or reach out by phone at 269-218-0013 to register for the retreat or with any questions. Jazmin will let you know if the early bird rate is still available. 
• Once you have registered and paid for the program with the facilitator, contact GilChrist to reserve your cabin using the online registration form (or by calling the main office at 269-244-1130 with any questions). Lodging is a suggested rate of $60/night per person (sliding scale, pay-what-you-can) in addition to the program fee, payable at the end of the retreat. More details regarding cabin logistics will be provided via email upon registration. See the complete GilChrist FAQ for more information about the facility.
• Additional support for other expenses (gas, meals, etc.) is available through the Retreat Equity Fund – click here for more information.

We are honored to support you on this journey to healing.