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RETREAT
Keeping it Real
in a Frantic World
Retreat, Broughton Sanctuary, Yorkshire
with Ruby Wax
and Gelong Thubten & Rahla Xenopoulos
5-night retreat
Wednesday 19 February - Monday 24 February 2025
Arrival 5pm Wednesday - Depart 2pm Monday
Ruby Wax Keeping it Real in a Frantic World Retreat, Yorkshire
Broughton Sanctuary Broughton Sanctuary named in The Cool List 2024. The 30 most exciting destinations to visit in the world presents a workshop with Ruby Wax along with Gelong Thuptan
and Rahla Xenopoulos.
From the Royal Shakespeare Company to primetime TV spanning 25 years; from a best-selling author to script editing all series of “Absolutely Fabulous.” And from receiving a Master's degree in mindfulness-based cognitive therapy from Oxford University to being awarded an OBE for services to mental health, she now teaches individuals and corporations how to de-frazzle their minds in a frazzled world. She gives us a toolbox and exercises how to become aware of when we’re nearing our ‘tipping point’ toward burn out. How we can take control and become aware of our overstressed and over critical minds so we become ‘the driver not the driven’. “We can work-out our brains to make them flexible, open and creative, just like we work out our bodies. Think of this retreat as a visit to the Mind Gym.”
She says, “We know so much cognitively about the world but how to manage our minds no one tells you. It’s like having a Ferrari on top of your head, but no one gave you the keys." Ruby, using her background in neuroscience, teaches us how to train our brains. “We work like neural-wi-fi; our mental states work like virus’s. If we’re wired, we pass that to everyone around us. If our minds are calm, that state will spread to our co-workers, our families, the community and eventually to the world. The key to happiness and success is to be the master of our thoughts and not the slave."
Ruby has run workshops for groups and corporations such as:
Google, The Football Association, MI5, BUPA, The Senior Civil Service, KPMG, Bank of America, HSBC, Goldman Sachs, Facebook , Deutsch Bank, Pepsi, Legal and General, Astra Zeneca, Facebook, Microsoft, Pfizer, GCHQ, BAE SystemsT
"Ruby and Thubten have nailed it”
Helen Kirwan-Taylor, The Times
"Ruby is masterful and Thubten makes meditation easy”
Annabel Heseltine, Country & Town House
“By the end of our six days, we’re transformed”
Christine Fieldhouse, The Ethicalist
"My advice is: sign up”
Helen Kirwan-Taylor, The Times
“It is all eminently practical”
Teresa Levonian Cole, The Daily Mail
"Broughton Sanctuary is a ground-breaking retreat space”
Annabel Heseltine, Country & Town House
This 5-day Retreat will take place at Broughton Sanctuary, declared by Ruby Wax as:
“the coolest place I’ve ever been to"
Ruby Wax
From the Royal Shakespeare Company to primetime TV; from a master's degree in mindfulness based cognitive therapy from Oxford University to best-selling author; from interviewing the president who shall not be named as part of her BBC series spanning 25 years, to script editing all series of “Absolutely Fabulous.” And from a mental health campaigner to being awarded an OBE for services to mental health. In the field of mental health, Ruby's brought support for mental health to a whole new audience discussing complex neurological theory in an accessible and often hilarious way but always with a serious point that we need to reframe the conversation and remove the stigma that mental health illness still carries. Ruby helps us understand how we can take control of our overstressed and over critical minds which I can't think of as a better foundation to take us into 2021 and beyond.
Learn more:
Gelong Thubten
Gelong Thubten is a Buddhist monk who teaches meditation and specialises in providing non-religious mindfulness workshops and training programmes for businesses and organisations. Thubten has been a monk since 1993 at Kagyu Samye Ling Tibetan Buddhist Monastery, has trained under some of the world's most accomplished teachers of meditation, and has spent over six years in intensive meditation retreats.
Learn more:
Rahla Xenopoulos
Rahla Xenopoulos is an author, a mother of triplets and was one of thirty-four South African women profiled in ‘The Power Within Companion’. She gives talks on mental health and empowerment, as well as hosting workshops that focus on health and personal inspiration. Rahla has written for The Sunday Times, Cosmopolitan, Glamour and Oprah Magazine and her latest book, The Season of Glass was a finalist for the Sunday Times Literary Awards.
In an ideal world Rahla would have a broad mind and a narrow waist but failing the narrow waist she’ll just settle for the broad mind.
Learn more:
During the retreat you will experience
Avalon Pool Suite
- Swim in a 20m clear swimming pool looking out onto the adjacent woodland.
- Nourish and relax the body in a Hydro-Massage Pool.
- Cleanse the body in an Organic Shaped Sauna and Steam Room.
- Allow our Floatation Tank to infuse your being with tranquillity and peace.
Woodland Sauna, Ice Bathing and Wild Swimming Experience
- Enjoy a rejuvenating experience in the wood fired sauna, set amongst the trees in a magical woodland.
- The heat will slow your mind, gently washing away stress and toxins.
- Combined with ice bathing in converted barrels and wild swimming, this is a most invigorating experience. to soothe mind, body and soul.
- Connect with nature, nourish creativity, and have some great fun!
Fire Temple Celebration
- Set within a picturesque woodland, this sheltered wooden structure is perfect for an evening of drumming and celebration!
Example Day
Workshops with Ruby, Thubten and Rahla take place in Avalon, a stunning building is based on biophillic (organic) design with sacred geometry and the Fibonacci incorporated throughout.
*Please note the schedule is not set and may change.
7.30am – 8.30am
Yoga or Pool Suite
8.30am - 9.30am
Breakfast
9.45am – 10.45am
Session with Ruby
10.45am – 11.30am
Tea Break
11.30am – 12.30pm
Session with Thubten
12.30pm – 1.30pm
Light Lunch
1.30pm – 2.30pm
Free Time
2.30pm – 4.15pm
Writing Workshop with Rahla**
4.15pm – 4.45pm
Tea Break
4.45pm – 5.30pm
Session with Thubten
5.30pm - 7pm
Free Time / Pool Suite/Gym/Somadome/Floatation Tank / Individual Treatments***
7pm – 8pm
Dinner
8pm - 9pm
Free Time / Occasional Activity / Individual Treatments***
*One-to-one sessions with Ruby will be available during the day.
** Sometimes it feels as though the chaos and noise of regular life is designed to disconnect us from who we truly are. Holding the stillness and quiet created in meditation, the writing sessions with Rahla provide a gentle, unobstructed opportunity to connect with the essence of who you are.
*** Individual Treatments, Somadome, Floatation Tank: Not included in ticket price.
Practical Considerations
Cushions and back jacks will be provided, but you are welcome to bring your own. Chairs will be available for those who need them. Drinking water will be provided at Broughton Sanctuary (please bring your own personal water bottles to refill).
About Broughton Sanctuary
Keeping it Real in a Frantic World will be held at the 3000-acre Broughton Sanctuary, situated in the very centre of the UK, in the foothills of The Yorkshire Dales and one of the most picturesque parts of the country. Established in 1097, Broughton Hall has been home to the Tempest family for over 900 years and enjoys a rich history stretching back over the millennium. Surrounding the historic Broughton Hall are formal gardens studded with statues, ponds, parterres and fountains offering a glimpse of 18th century fashion all set against contemporary architecture making the location a truly unique experience. The Broughton Sanctuary is home to one of Britain’s most exciting nature recovery projects, with an extensive tree-planting and rewilding programme. Broughton is a place dedicated to the journey of coming home and rewilding the spirit.
About Avalon Wellbeing
Keeping it Real in a Frantic World will take place in Avalon, the UK’s leading, state-of-the-art wellbeing centre and beating heart of Broughton Sanctuary. This stunning building is based on biophillic (organic) design with sacred geometry and the Fibonacci incorporated throughout. During your stay, you will have the opportunity to experience the unique Pool Suite: a low-chemical swimming pool looking out onto the adjacent woodland, a sauna, a steam room and hydrotherapy pool. There are many places beyond the building itself in the Sanctuary grounds to return to source, from meditation labyrinths, wild swimming reservoirs, a cosmic garden and much more.
Location
You will experience a feeling of ‘blissful seclusion’ yet Broughton Sanctuary and Avalon are well connected in terms of reach:
By Air
Leeds Bradford Airport: 40 minutes (24 miles): 40 minutes
Manchester Airport: 1 hour (55 miles)
Liverpool: 1 hour 15 minutes (69 miles)
By Train
The nearest train station is Skipton, (a 5-minute drive).
Trains from London Kings Cross are approximately 3 hours (direct and with a single quick change at Leeds).
By Car
Driving from London takes between 4-5 hours (traffic dependent).
Address
Broughton Sanctuary, Skipton, Yorkshire, UK, BD23 3AE
Booking and Pricing Accommodation and meals
There are many accommodation options available, both within Broughton Hall and in Retreat Houses situated within Broughton Sanctuary.
For any queries regarding booking please contact Annmarie Whatmough on:
01756 799608 or annmariewhatmough@broughtonsanctuary.co.uk
I’m Not as Well as I Thought I Was, from the Number One Bestselling Author Ruby Wax
"An exceptional account on mental health from a true tour de force. We're all a little messed up in our own ways, but we should all strive to be as fabulously fearless as Ruby"
Fearne Cotton
"If you buy only one book this year, make it this one. Brilliant, heartbreakingly funny and painful: I couldn't put it down"
Joanna Lumley
"Nobody can make the serious funny and the funny serious quite like Ruby. It's why she is so important to the mental-health debate"
Alastair Campbell
"One of the most powerful books of the year"
The Daily Mail
Handbook for Hard Times; A Monk’s Guide to Fearless Living
"'This is a timely and practical guide to help us navigate the fear and challenges of the times upon us. Uplifting and empowering!"
Mo Gawdat
"[Thubten] is a most qualified guide in the journey from darkness and turmoil towards inner peace and positivity. At a time when many of us are experiencing a 'new level of societal fear', everyone can absolutely benefit from this accessible and supportive life handbook."
Annie Lennox
"No one is more brilliant at bringing you out of the dark and into the light."
Ruby Wax
A Memoir of Love and Madness
In 1992, Rahla Xenopoulos was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Despite the devastating diagnosis, she sought education on her affliction. Although she found an abundance of literature on various mental illnesses, none of it seemed applicable to her. This situation inspired her to write a book chronicling her ongoing efforts to come to terms with a disease that is, in effect, a life sentence. The book recounts her upbringing in an eccentric, loving Jewish family, her struggle with bulimia, anorexia and self-mutilation, her attempts at suicide, finding true love and, finally, the 'crazy, utterly unpredictable experience of giving birth to triplets'. This is neither a self-help book nor a medical guide. Reading this book will not cure anyone; bipolar disorder is a chronic illness. But it did help Rahla - as it will countless others - 'to understand the rhythm in the cacophony of this condition'.