Everyone has an opinion about your divorce. Leave them. Fight for the marriage. Think of the children. Protect your assets. The advice comes from everywhere, and most of it says more about them than about you. Meanwhile, you're lying awake at 3 am trying to figure out who you are without this marriage, or whether you even want to find out. Divorce doesn't have to be a catastrophe. It can be a conscious uncoupling, a reclaiming, even a relief. But our culture has only one script for it, the tragic one. This script keeps women stuck in shame, guilt, and chaos longer than they need to be. This retreat is for women who want a different way through. Maybe you're already divorced and struggling to find your footing. Maybe you're still deciding and need space to think without everyone else's voice in your head. Either way, you'll spend four days in Oregon wine country with two experienced coaches who won't treat your divorce like a failure. You'll grieve what needs grieving, get clear on what you actually want, and begin to imagine a life that might be smaller in some ways but truer in others. Divorce is an ending. It can also be a door, and you get to decide what's on the other side.

Retreat Date(s)

Open all year on demand. All days, weekends or weekdays. Reach out to us and we'll find a date that works for you.

Itinerary

There's a version of your life where divorce is the worst thing that ever happened to you. You've probably been living inside that story, or fighting against it, for months. The shame. The guilt. The sense of failure. The fear of what people will think, what the kids will feel, who you'll be without the structure of this marriage holding you in place. But there's another version. One where divorce is simply a transition, painful and necessary, like surgery or childbirth or any other passage that hurts on the way through, but leads somewhere you needed to go. Susan and Sandy have walked alongside enough women to know that divorce can be done with intention, clarity, and even grace. Not because it isn't hard, but because hard doesn't have to mean "destroyed." McMinnville sits in Oregon's Willamette Valley, surrounded by vineyards and hills that don't care about your marital status. You'll arrive carrying the weight of decisions made or unmade, conversations replayed, futures imagined and feared. The first afternoon is about setting that weight down, just for a moment, and remembering what it feels like to breathe. The coaching begins where you are. If you've already filed the papers, we'll work with what's emerging: the identity questions, the practical overwhelm, the grief that surprises you at odd moments. If you're still deciding, we'll create space for you to hear your own knowing underneath all the noise. Susan and Sandy won't push you in either direction. They have no investment in whether you stay married or leave. Their only investment is in you finding your own ground. There will be tears. There will be moments of anger, maybe at your partner, maybe at yourself, maybe at the whole institution of marriage and everything it promised. There will also be unexpected lightness. Laughter that catches you off guard. Glimpses of a future that doesn't look like punishment. Between sessions, the valley holds you. Cozy restaurans, long walks, quiet dinners. Time to think or time to stop thinking entirely. The pace is yours. The conclusions are yours. The only agenda is helping you find your way back to yourself, whoever that turns out to be now. By the last morning, you'll notice that the path forward might not be perfectly clear, but it will feel possible. You'll leave knowing that divorce isn't something that happened to you. It's something you're moving through, consciously and with your eyes open. This is a private retreat designed around your needs. The following represents a typical rhythm, but sessions adjust based on what emerges. Day 1 - Arrival 4:00 PM Arrival and settling in. Unpack, breathe, let the travel day release. 5:00 PM Welcome session with Susan and Sandy. Where are you in this process? What are you carrying? What do you need most from these four days? This will be an easy conversation and we will set the intention for our time together. The beginning of feeling held. Evening Rest. Walk the streets if you'd like. Let the quiet do its work. Day 2 - Telling the True Story 9:00 AM Morning session. The story of your marriage, told as a narrative with beginning, middle, and end. Not to assign blame, but to make sense of the arc. What was true at the start? What changed? What are you ready to let go of? 12:00 PM Lunch and rest. 2:00 PM Afternoon session. "Zooming out" and looking at what happened to you from a different perspective. Taking inventory. Which parts still fit? Which parts do you want to let go of? Which have been waiting for space to emerge? 5:00 PM Free time. Vineyard walk, tasting room, or simply being still. Evening Optional journaling. Integrate, rest. Day 3 - The Contradictions 9:00 AM Morning session. Holding the opposites: relief and grief, anger and tenderness, freedom and fear. Using dialogue exercises to let each part speak without having to resolve them into one tidy feeling. 12:00 PM Lunch. 2:00 PM Afternoon session. If you're still deciding: what does your heart say underneath the noise? If you've already decided: what needs to be grieved, and what's ready to be released? 5:00 PM Free time or optional walk with one of the coaches. Evening Rest. Day 4 - What Comes Next 9:00 AM Integration session. What has shifted. What clarity has emerged. What do you need for the road ahead, practically, emotionally, relationally. Building a simple structure and a tangible plan for the next chapter. 12:00 PM Lunch 1:30 PM Marking the transition, honoring what you've done, acknowledging who you're becoming. Preparing for your transition back home. You'll leave with Susan and Sandy's contact information and the knowledge that support is just a phone call away. Between 3 and 4.30 PM Departure, depending on your travel schedule and needs.

What's Included

Pre-retreat Zoom meeting to get to know each other and answer all your questions Welcome drink during our check-in meeting Water, tea, coffee, and healthy snacks served throughout the day Approximately 20 hours of personalized life-coaching with two experienced coaches in a private coaching setting Daily schedule is personalized to your needs Daily guided meditation and Breath Work Course Manual - personal notes, inspiration, personalised exercises Post retreat support session on Zoom Post retreat coaching support package at a reduced rate Transportation during the retreat related to the coaching work sessions Luggage storage Free parking available onsite Wifi connection, although we recommend to enjoy some digital detox time during your retreat

What's Not Included

Flights costs Travel insurance Accommodation Meals Additional activities not included in the itinerary

Food (if applicable)

We invite you to our table as friends & family. Water, tea, and coffee, as well as healthy snacks like fruit and nuts, are included in your booking. We know and love the best health food places in town and during your retreat days we invite you to explore fresh, regional, mostly organic food. We will adapt to your dietary wants and needs, whether you are vegetarian, vegan, GF or you have other wishes.

How to get there (if applicable)

Book your flight to Portland International Airport (PDX). Uber transportation to McMinnville appr. $100​/​one way. Unless you prefer to rent a car, we can arrange to pick you up at Portland International Airport (PDX) for 100$ (one-way) and for 200$ (two-way). Nestled in the heart of Willamette Valley, McMinnville was just nominated as the friendliest small town in Oregon! With an inviting climate that's temperate year-round, McMinnville is a great place to visit in any season. Hospitable, welcoming, and very friendly, the town is an ideal destination in the Pacific Northwest, and our Coaching to Connection workspace is right downtown on 3rd Street!

Past Reviews (optional)

Elke G., Germany It was a wonderful time in the US, also at the sea. Through the coaching process I was able to sort my thoughts and feelings and get a new perspective for my life. Thank you both!