Pathways to Wholeness

With Gabor Maté and Betsy Polatin • Nov. 30–Dec. 3, 2023 9am–12pm PST

A 4-day Online Retreat

Trauma shapes our lives. It shapes the way we live, the way we love and the way we make sense of the world. It is at the root of our deepest wounds. Virtually all our afflictions, mental illnesses, physical diseases stem from trauma. Trauma distorts our view of reality and leaves us stuck in contraction, defense and reactivity. It compromises our capacity to be in the moment, to be present to our relationships and to fully take in the environment.

The wisdom in the trauma comes through when we realize that our traumatic responses and imprints are not us, that we can follow all traumatic responses back to their source, work through them, let them dissipate and thus reconnect to the unblemished, ecstatic consciousness that we were born with.

Join Dr. Gabor Maté for this 4-day participatory, interactive online workshop on understanding and healing trauma. Gabor will share decades of research and experience. He will guide us to discover the root cause of our trauma. We will begin building a relationship with it, so we can start to uncover the wisdom and reconnect to our true selves beneath the hurts and adaptations. The workshop will include daily talks and interactive engagements with and among participants. We will learn some of the tools offered by Gabor’s Compassionate Inquiry™ approach. We will also be gently guided daily by Betsy Polatin in breath and movement, including Somatic Experiencing practices and resolution of trauma in the body. This combination invites pain, discomfort and repressed emotions to come to the surface to be experienced, witnessed and let go of in a safe, supportive setting. Acceptance, allowing, non-judgement, expression and self-compassion are the ingredients needed for healing.

The guidance will be articulated in four main themes:

1. Recognizing Trauma
2. Loosening the Grip
3. Expanding Compassion
4. Developing Resilience

Why attend?

to be introduced to the process of Compassionate Inquiry™
to understand your own triggers and their origin
to recognize mental-emotional patterns and triggers, and how they limit your wholeness, choice and freedom
to bring healing and integration to trauma from past traumatic events
to find a greater sense of aliveness by completing unresolved or repressed emotions
to participate in daily, live inquiry sessions with Dr. Gabor Maté

This online workshop is limited to 1,000 participants. We expect to sell out, so we encourage you to register as soon as possible.

Who is this online retreat for?

This will be an in-depth program, suitable for therapists, spiritual seekers and anyone looking for a profound, experiential understanding of their traumatic imprint and the hidden beliefs that sustain it.

Daily schedule

Welcome	9:00–9:05
Betsy Polatin - Breath and Movement	9:05–9:15
Gabor Maté - Presentation and Q&A	9:15–10:10
Betsy Polatin - Breath and Movement	10:10–10:20
Breakout Sessions	10:20–10:50
Break	10:50–11:05
Gabor Maté - Presentation and Q&A	11:05–11:50
Betsy Polatin - Breath and Movement	11:50–12:00

Find the time in your time zone

Recommended Pre-Event Orientation

On November 29 (the day before the retreat), 9:00–10:00 AM PST, we will conduct a highly recommended orientation for participants to log on and get familiar with the technical container of the event. This session will explain question-asking procedures during the event, how to get integration support, and how to navigate around the zoom platform. This session is optional but highly recommended.

Retreat container

Gabor will be offering a mixture of didactic presentations and Q&A sessions with participants. The event is structured like a live retreat, and all participants are invited to participate live to all sessions on all days.
Gabor will be answering questions live, subject to limitations due to time available and number of participants.
Sessions will take place through the Zoom platform. A link will be sent to participants the day before the event.
Confidentiality is an integral part to the container of this event. Please do not share any session content with anyone.
Gabor's questions are only an invitation. You choose the level at which you feel comfortable participating.
If you have any concerns, please reach out to the SAND team. We are here to support you.

Recordings

Your registration includes access to all recordings of the event, so any missed sessions may be watched at a later date. Group exercises will not be recorded.
Having a web camera is strongly recommended.
Please note that by participating in this event, you agree for your audio and video to be recorded.

Scholarships

SAND is committed to cultivating a diversity of voices and life experiences in our events and making them accessible to people of all income levels and backgrounds. To this end, we have created a robust scholarship program for those with limited financial means. SAND will award a number of partial/full scholarships for this event.

Applications will open October 15, 2023
Applications will close November 25, 2023
Notifications will be sent November 20, 2023
Deadline to register with a scholarship is November 24, 2023

Scholarship applications are now closed.

Please note that by the time scholarship decisions are made, the retreat will likely be full, and that scholarship awards will not result in a refund to those already registered.

Continuing Education

There are no Continuing Education units associated with this event.

Currency

Prices are in United States Dollars.

Refund Policy

The registration fee for SAND’s online events is non-refundable. SAND will consider refund requests due to an extraordinary circumstance or emergency on a case by case basis.