A Restorative Retreat for Women in Healthcare
Space to Rest, Reflect, and Reconnect
STOWE, VERMONT MARCH 26 - MARCH 29, 2026
In a system that asks too much and offers too little, many women in healthcare are quietly powering through.
Still caring deeply. Still achieving. Still showing up for patients, teams, and families and yet feeling exhausted, emotionally depleted, and increasingly disconnected from the joy that once called them to this work.
This retreat is designed for women in healthcare who are feeling the cumulative impact of sustained responsibility, emotional labor, and constant demand. Many participants are clinicians, physicians, and women leaders in healthcare whose work unfolds within complex medical systems and carries ongoing clinical, administrative, and relational pressure.
In medicine, admitting struggle can feel risky. Many women are taught, implicitly or explicitly, to endure rather than speak, to normalize overload rather than question it. Over time, this quiet endurance can erode vitality, clarity, and connection to what once made the work meaningful.
You are not alone.
Held at the von Trapp Family Lodge & Resort in Vermont, this wellness retreat offers time away from clinical load, productivity pressure, documentation, and institutional expectation. It creates space to pause, restore your nervous system, and reconnect with what matters most to you.
Athara Retreats by Seoka Salstrom, PhD, offers an opportunity to do just that.
A Reflective Retreat for Women in Healthcare Navigating Burnout, Identity Erosion, and the Loss of Joy
For many women, healthcare burnout does not look like collapse. It looks like endurance.
It looks like continuing to carry responsibility in systems that demand constant availability, emotional labor, and productivity, while offering limited recovery or support. It looks like doing meaningful work under conditions that make it increasingly difficult to feel present, vital, or whole.
Over time, the pace becomes relentless. Sleep erodes. Margins disappear. Joy thins. Identity narrows around the role. Not because medicine is no longer meaningful, but because the system makes it harder and harder to practice in ways that feel human and sustainable.
This retreat exists to meet that moment with honesty, warmth, and depth.
Not to fix you.
Not to optimize you.
Not to ask you to cope better.
But to offer a grounded, non-judgmental space rooted in contemporary psychological science and mindfulness where you can step out of the impossible expectations of the medical system and return to your own needs, priorities, and inner clarity.
Step Away From the Demands
In the business of medicine, expectations are often structured to demand more than is sustainably possible, regardless of skill, passion, or commitment.
You may feel pressure from multiple directions at once: patient care, documentation, billing and insurance systems, productivity metrics, leadership responsibilities, and the emotional weight of decision-making, all layered on top of personal and family life.
With a focus on “just getting it done,” there is often little space to notice what you need, let alone to meet those needs. For many women in healthcare, there is also little cultural permission to slow down without guilt or fear of falling behind.
During this retreat, you will have the opportunity to slow down, feel more present, and reconnect with parts of yourself that may have been sidelined by constant demand.
A Grounded Space to Pause, Not Perform
This is not professional development.
It is not therapy.
It is not a productivity reset.
This space supports emotional wellbeing, nervous system regulation, and a more sustainable relationship with work and self. It is a psychologically informed retreat designed specifically for women in healthcare who are carrying complex responsibility within demanding systems.
Within a calm, respectful, and emotionally intelligent environment, you are invited to pause and explore questions such as:
How has this work shaped my body, energy, and sense of self?
What feels sustainable, and what no longer does?
Where has joy thinned, and what do I miss?
What would it mean to lead my life from within, rather than constantly responding to the next demand?
There is no pressure to perform, explain, or prove anything here.
Exploring the Emotions and Questions That
Emerge for Women in Healthcare
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Women in healthcare face a distinct blend of systemic, cultural, and personal pressures that often go unnamed.
This retreat is designed for women who may:
feel stretched thin and unsure how long they can keep powering through
struggle with guilt about not being or doing “enough” at work or at home
miss the joy in their practice and wonder if it is possible to reclaim it
feel isolated or misunderstood within male-dominated environments
carry leadership or administrative responsibility alongside patient care
notice their identity becoming narrowly defined by their professional role
experience perfectionism or imposter syndrome despite high achievement
These experiences are not personal failures. They are predictable responses to systems that ask too much and provide too little space for recovery, reflection, or integration.
This retreat offers a place to name these realities and to respond to them with clarity, self-compassion, and evidence-based support.
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The retreat follows a carefully designed yet flexible rhythm that supports reflection without overwhelm. The days are structured enough to hold you, and spacious enough to allow you to move at your own pace.
You can expect:
ACT-based workshops focused on values, meaning, and psychological flexibility
reflective sessions for journaling and self-understanding
guided meditation and mindfulness practices to support nervous system recovery
gentle movement such as nature walks, yoga, or restorative practices
optional spa-based restoration, including massage or quiet wellness time
meaningful conversation with peers who truly understand the pressures of medicine
time outdoors for grounding, perspective, and spaciousness
frequent breaks and space for integration
The content is tailored rather than standardized, shaped by what participants share beforehand and what the group needs in the moment.
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This retreat does not promise a dramatic transformation. Instead, it offers something quieter and more sustainable.
By the end of the retreat, you can expect to leave with:
restored energy and a calmer internal rhythm
Stress reduction techniques to help with burnout within demanding systems
increased emotional flexibility and self-compassion
renewed clarity about what matters to you now
insight into how you want to relate to your work moving forward
meaningful connection with other women who understand the realities of healthcare
a sense of grounded renewal and steadiness you can carry home
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The retreat is held at the von Trapp Family Lodge in Vermont, a setting known for its wide horizons, natural beauty and quiet sense of grounding. The landscape surrounding the lodge creates a feeling of spaciousness that supports reflection and steady internal work.
You will have access to:
• peaceful communal areas for reading, journalling or quiet conversation
• walking trails, skiing (depending on conditions), and open outdoor spaces
• spa and wellness facilities
• comfortable rooms designed for deep rest
• quiet indoor and outdoor spaces for reflectionEverything about the surroundings is chosen to encourage clarity, calm and reconnection. It is the kind of place where your thoughts have room to soften and settle.
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This retreat is for women who feel stretched thin, even if they are still functioning well on the surface. You may be navigating burnout in healthcare, questioning sustainability, or noticing feelings often associated with imposter syndrome in roles that require constant responsibility, decision-making, and emotional steadiness.
You do not need to be in crisis. You only need to feel the pull to pause, listen inward, and reconnect with what matters.
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Time in nature creates a kind of clarity that is difficult to access in the middle of everyday life. The Vermont landscape offers space, quiet and perspective, helping you step back from familiar patterns and hear yourself more clearly.
The surroundings accompany the reflective work of the retreat in a gentle, grounding way. Walking a quiet trail, sitting with a view of the mountains, or pausing in an open landscape can help you connect with what you feel and understand what is changing within you. Nature becomes a companion in the process, offering steadiness, honesty and a sense of possibility.
Vermont’s green mountain landscape holds a unique blend of calmness and openness. It helps women experiencing midlife transitions, identity shifts or the early stages of an empty nest to feel spacious, steady and reconnected.
Begin your Athara experience
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1. Choose your retreat
Select the retreat that fits where you are now.
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2. Book a conversation
A quick call helps us understand what you are seeking and recommend the best fit.
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3. Join us on your next chapter
Experience meaningful personal growth in extraordinary landscapes.
Bringing Love and Science Together
with Compassion and Humor
Seoka Salstrom, PhD, is a clinical psychologist with over 20 years of experience supporting individuals through burnout, transition, and identity change. Her work draws on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and neuroscience-informed approaches.
In this wellness retreat for physicians and healthcare professionals, ACT is not therapy. It is a collaborative framework for intentional growth, helping participants reconnect with their values, build psychological flexibility, and move forward with clarity and steadiness.
Retreat FAQS
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We intentionally create a psychologically safe, judgment-free space where women can show up honestly without pressure to perform, explain, or prove competence. Group sizes are small to allow depth, care, and genuine connection. Confidentiality, mutual respect, and discretion are foundational to our time together. This retreat is designed to feel contained, steady, and emotionally intelligent.
Disrespectful or disruptive behavior will not be tolerated.
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The 4-day experience follows a carefully designed yet flexible flow rooted in neuroscience:
Deep Rest
Exploration
Integration
Each day balances structured sessions with spaciousness. Frequent breaks, optional movement, time outdoors, and restorative practices are woven throughout to support recovery rather than depletion.
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No. This retreat is not therapy, not clinical training, and not professional development.
It is a psychologically grounded, evidence-informed retreat designed to support reflection, restoration, and clarity for women working within demanding healthcare systems. While the work is thoughtful and meaningful, there is no requirement to disclose personal information or participate beyond what feels right for you.
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We offer integrated support to help the experience feel steady and well-held, including:
A pre-retreat virtual orientation to support clarity and readiness
Optional follow-up group or individual calls
Optional post-retreat WhatsApp group focused on support and integration
The retreat is designed to support lasting impact, not just a single experience.
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Participants are women working in healthcare roles with significant responsibility, often including physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, mental health practitioners, and others navigating clinical, administrative, or leadership demands. Many are highly capable, deeply committed, and still functioning well on the surface, while privately feeling stretched, depleted, or uncertain about sustainability.
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All booking journeys begin with a call with Seoka, either by filling out our contact form or by booking time on her calendar. If it seems that this retreat aligns well with your interests and goals, we’ll officially confirm your participation and send you a payment link.
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The 4-day Women in Healthcare Retreat is €2,090, although the price will be conveniently displayed in your preferred currency.
This retreat includes daily brunch, gentle movement sessions, engaging workshops, pre- and post-retreat follow-up support, access to spa facilities, and one special dinner. Please note that lodging, additional dinners, spa treatments, and activities outside the retreat's offerings are not included.
If you choose to stay at von Trapp Family Lodge, we have secured a special room rate for you available until February 26, 2026.
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Yes, but a small one. Group size is limited to 8–12 women to support psychological safety, meaningful conversation, and personal attention. Many participants attend solo, and connection tends to form naturally and quickly.
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Yes. We are committed to ethical and sustainable travel, including supporting local businesses.
Photo credit: Lodging images courtesy of von Trapp Family Lodge & Resort