Sausha Davis joins me in a lively chat about the transformative power of retreats and how they can turn your life around, no matter your age or situation. We dive into the nitty-gritty of why retreats are not just a luxury, but essential for high-achieving women who often juggle a million things at once. Retreats provide a much-needed escape from the daily grind, allowing you to immerse yourself in experiences that foster growth and connection. We tackle the initial hesitations some folks have about attending, like fear of missing out on life back home, but trust me, saying yes to a retreat can lead to breakthroughs that last for months. Plus, laugh with us as we make the case that taking time for yourself is not just beneficial—it's downright necessary!

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Find Sausha @ Website , Sales Mama Podcast, Instagram: @SalesMamaSchool | @SaushaDavis

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Intentional Vitality Retreats (intentional-vitality.com)

Music Credit goes to Lemon Music Studio at: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4XWZhZ32YrVV5lvpF7cr1E?si=tnbSklR7SJyPNKiHP4MbHA

Welcome to Sustain youn Vitality, the podcast that gives you a nurturing kick in the ass so you can take action every day to feel better, not older.

Your lifestyle holds the power to change how you feel.

And no matter your age or health issues, you are in the driver's seat.

I'm your host, Zoa Connor, and I am a PhD level physicist, a well being lifestyle alchemist, a travel strategist, and a retreat leader.

Zenin Vitality with Zoa is my functional wellness studio.

Join me for an intentional vitality retreat for a whole new way to use travel to support your well being.

I'm here to help you figure out how to lower your stress, increase your energy, put yourself into a healing state, boost your drive and pleasure in life, prevent disease, and feel the best you ever have in your whole life with no regrets later.

Let's go.

I am delighted to have Sasha Davis here with me and I want you to know a little bit about her before we get into our conversations about retreats.

Sasha, can you introduce yourself?

Yes, My name is Sasha Davis.

I live on a ranch in Southern Oregon.

I have four kiddos, a bunch of horses, dogs, cats, chickens, all the things keeping me pretty busy.

And I run a business that helps women scale their businesses and I also offer retreats.

So I was very intrigued to have this conversation with you today.

Yeah, it's great when we get to talk about retreat, when we come at it from a different angle.

Yeah.

All right, Sasha, so let's talk about retreat in the context of who should attend them.

Oh, yes.

So I tend to attract women like you do, which is women who are high achieving and used to being the one making everything happen in their world, Right.

And so they want to get the most impact for the least amount of time taken away from their lives.

Right?

So the concept of going on retreat is like, do you know how much I have to give up to attend this three day or five day retreat?

Right?

And of course you and I know the answer is, well, yes, we know how much because we're giving up all of that too, right?

Like, just say yes, like, you know.

You want to be here, but anyone who's never attended a retreat at all, right, there's this hemming and hawing and decision making.

You know, they, they make it about cost, they make it about the content, you know, and heaven forbid, should you add a little bit of introverted nature into that and going, oh, but like, what if I don't know the people?

You know, like, is it worth it?

So what can you say to People to let them know that it is worth it and they should say yes if, if they're considering a retreat.

Well, first off, I think anybody that is trying to enhance their life in any way, shape or form, whether that is physically, mentally, emotionally, career w, relationship wise, any of those things, there is a retreat for you.

And what I can say from personal experience is that yes, there's books out there, yes, there's podcasts out there, yes, there's courses out there and mentors out there.

But there is something so magical that happens at a retreat because now you are in the experience.

There is no distractions from your everyday life, from your phone dinging, from your boss needing something, or your colleagues needing something, or your team members needing something, your kids needing something, or your spouse needing something.

You are in the experience.

And so it is an immersion.

And you will have so much more many breakthroughs than if you were to six months on your own, 12 months on your own.

And so if you are looking for something that is impactful and want to really work on yourself, that is exactly what a retreat is for.

But it can be intimidating, it can be scary, especially for those who are like, ah, I've never done it, but once you've done it once, it's like jumping off that high dive, right?

You, you're like standing at the edge and you're looking into the pool and you're like, man, that looks so nice.

Like, I want to do it, I want to do it, but I'm like terrified to jump off the edge.

But then you jump and you make a big splash and you go around, you just keep doing it.

So then I tell people, just make retreats part of your annual self care routine.

Because those three, four, five days away will energize you for months.

Absolutely.

I learned this from three women who attended my Iceland retreat recently because none of them had ever been on a retreat before.

And within two weeks of coming back, they had all signed up for the next one already.

See, that's exactly like there's like a way.

This is like an amazing opportunity.

Like, like this gives me something that like, I didn't know I could have.

Right?

And you know then like, I want that again, right?

I learned it in a different way with my daughter when she would try, when we would travel together and it would be like, you know, there's, there's a lot of, you know, build up to the trip, you know, anticipation and dopamine and all these good things and you take the trip and then the question is, how long can you keep that high going that tells you when you need to go again?

Right.

And I do the same thing with my clients that are in Pilates.

Right.

We woke up your core, you found your pelvic floor.

You're asking me how often should you take class or how often should you be mindful about this?

Well, tell me how long it lasts if you leave my studio and you can't make it, and by the time you get to your car, you can't find your pelvic floor anymore.

Honey, we need to do something every hour.

Right.

If you can last for a couple of days and then you start to feel weak again, then you need class twice a week.

Right.

I feel like the same thing is true for these retreats.

Right?

The more intense your life is, the more retreats you might need.

Yeah, right.

Until you can kind of balance it out.

Right?

Right.

It's highs and lows, highs and lows.

And the.

And the retreat is a high of some things, right?

Connection and transformation and opportunity and peace, but it's also a low of stress, right?

Yes.

And so these women who are these wanting to make things happen and thinking about retreats, sometimes they have choices between groups and an individual retreat, a private retreat.

Right.

And they can get the transformation from either one, but they don't get the community.

Right.

So you can imagine women who are more like yourself, a little bit more, you know, chatty and wanting to have people around them and a little more extroverted.

Right.

Those people are probably going to be more impactful from a group retreat than from a private retreat.

Right.

But then there's people who are more like me, a little bit more quiet, reserved.

You know, you can turn the switch on when you need to, but then you're happy to turn it off.

Right.

And how do those introverted women do with you for a group retreat?

So I have dedicated quiet time.

So in the mornings, nobody is allowed to speak to each other until 8am so we have quiet time.

So they can just go around and see each other, but don't talk to each other.

So that kind of honors those that don't want to interact.

And then we also have like an area, typically, where you can go and just be by yourself.

So we'll typically have like, quiet areas where it's like, I need a moment, and you are welcome to use that.

And we will know how, that you need a minute or that you're not feeling up to having a conversation.

And so we talk about it, we address it, because I'm very aware that Some people are extroverted and some people are introverted.

And then we have all of the combination of in between.

So I say, here's this dedicated space for you.

Here's this dedicated space for you.

So we'll have like a group area where people can always interact.

And then I'll have kind of like a space off in the corner where it's more of like a reading room, if you will.

Typically I'll put like chairs and some like teas and things like that where people can just kind of relax.

But I very much have like the quiet times in the morning and then the quiet times in the evening.

Yep.

And sometimes this extends even to whether you're in a private room or a shared room.

Right.

I find that women who are more introverted really want that private room.

Right.

And since my retreats of course are more about the well being and how you create that when you get home.

Right.

Then I want to make sure that they're all getting fabulous sleep.

Right.

So I love private rooms, but a lot of people when they do retreats, shared rooms is standard.

Right.

And then a private room is an upgrade.

How do you handle yours?

So I kind of do a first come, first serve, but I also have.

So when they go to check out, they can put what they prefer, room share, private room.

And so I also kind of have had conversations with these people in the past prior to like sending them a registration link.

And so I'll kind of gauge what they, what they need or what they tell me they need.

And so if it's somebody who is very private, very reserved, typically I will give them the private rooms.

Because how I have it, most of the time the locations that I've had are pretty split.

So like the one of the places that I had had eight people at it, there was two shared rooms.

So two and two and then four single rooms.

And so the people that I knew would be okay sharing a room, boom, put them in a room and then everybody else gets a private room.

So that's kind of how I determine is who would be fine with having a shared room first.

Because there's some people that will raise their hand and say, put me wherever, I'll sleep on the couch, you know.

So those types of people are the ones that I'm like, okay, fine, we'll put you over here, we'll put you over.

And then the ones who maybe this is their first retreat, I will absolutely try to put them, you know, in, in their own private space.

And then that way when they come into Their room, you know, they have their welcome bag, they have their agenda, they have all of their things.

They can kind of just like take a deep breath, you know, shut their door for a minute and just have, you know, that, that quiet time before they come back out and you know, have, have the experience.

But they also have that away time where if they need to go ret their room, they have that opportunity.

I think for a lot of people, you know, when they're joining into a group for the first time, like they might, it's kind of like dipping their toes in, take their toes out.

Toes in, toes out.

Right.

So having a space where they know they can go, where it's like the, the reading room.

Right.

Well, what if there's someone else there?

But there's no one in my room.

That's a safe place.

Yeah, right, exactly.

And then other people are like wandering around going, you know, you want to meet up with me?

Like let's, let's do something, you know, like they want people around them.

Right.

And sometimes that impacts their wellness and their sleep.

Right.

If you're used to sleeping with someone beside you, then your nervous system sometimes gets concerned about being in the room all by yourself.

I had a conversation with a few women yesterday about the side of the bed that you sleep on.

Right.

So you know, you probably know, but our listeners might not.

You have a masculine side and a feminine side.

Yes.

Your masculine side is your right side.

Your feminine side is your left side.

Oh, that is funny.

And so your right side is your make happen side and your left side is your nurturing, creative, sexual side.

Right.

So most of my female clients, their husbands sleep on their left side supporting their feminine.

Right.

Which means that then when they're not with that person.

Right.

They feel unsafe and they don't sleep so well.

Right.

So on retreat, sometimes we have to talk about, well, where's that big body pill that's going to take the place of that person so that you feel calm enough to sleep well.

Right.

So little things that you get to worry about when you travel or go on retreat.

Right.

What kind of things do you find pop up that are weird like that?

Oh, so I, I mean, most of the women that come do have, do have spouses.

And that is so interesting.

I mean, I do know a little bit about the, I mean, I know a lot about the feminine and the masculine, but with the sleeping patterns, that is pretty comical because the women that have come do typically sleep on the left side when they're at home, but then they sleep on the right side when they're at the retreats.

And that makes perfect sense.

So.

Very interesting.

Or they'll sprawl out in the middle, you know, and try to.

Because they finally can.

They can finally be balanced.

Exactly.

Very interesting.

Like we were talking also about if they're in, like, a hotel room with their.

With their spouse or someone else.

Right.

They're not alone in the room.

Who gets the spot that's closest to the door?

Yeah.

Right.

So a lot of the women will put their men between them and the door because that's a safety place.

Oh, interesting.

Yeah.

Yep.

Right.

So we do weird things for our nervous system, which is why, you know, paying attention to these things really helps with your calming down and your thinking ability.

Right.

But it also means that when someone's choosing to go on retreat, they're sometimes choosing for reasons that you have no idea why they're saying yes or why they're saying no.

Right.

And so I find that fascinating.

Yeah, that is fascinating.

And I. I laugh because I'm usually the one that's closest to the door.

So not surprising at all.

Right, I know.

I know.

But going back to your question on how.

How I make the women feel safe, and so I try to do detox, like tech detox during my retreats.

So I would like for them to not be on their phones.

And that can be a really hard thing, especially for children and with young children leaving their children, not having access to their children.

And so one of the things that I do is when they come, I give them a couple of hours, you know, do their FaceTime, do their, you know, whatever they need to do to feel, feel safe.

And then I collect the phones, but then I also give a.

An emergency number to all of their family so that if something should happen, they have direct access to me to be able to then come get them for something.

And so that is kind of like that sigh of relief, like, okay, they can reach me if they need me, but I'm just not going to have direct access on my phone.

And of all the years that I have done retreats, I have only had to have one emergency phone call.

And one of the gals that came to a retreat, her grandma had passed and she had some.

Something had happened in her.

She had somebody pass.

And so then I, you know, had.

Had given her that information.

But otherwise, nobody else has ever had an emergency situation come up.

And so it's also showing them that their partners are capable.

The people that are around them can support them.

They just need to know how to ask for that support and also trust that they will get that support.

And so a lot of times when they leave the retreat, they have a lot more trust and respect and are willing to ask for help for other things which then relieves some of that overwhelm, that stress, all of that going forward.

So that's one thing that I do.

I also give welcome bags and try to give, you know, some, some things in there that make them feel at home.

So typically like a cozy blanket or a cozy sweater.

I like to give candles and journals and pen and a lot of times I'll give like a handwritten card about something that I know about them or something that I want them to work on.

And another thing, just to make sure that we are understanding why everybody is there is during that first night we really have an intention setting.

So after that meet and greet, if you will, we'll have dinner and then after dinner everybody can kind of relax for a little bit.

But then right before we go to bed will have a.

A circle time I guess you could call it.

And everybody will set their intention of why they are there for the retreat and anything they would like to let go of.

And then I'm a big fan of burning things.

So we write it all down and we throw it in the fire.

That's a great way to have this ritual of letting go is to burn that shit.

It's my favorite way.

I'm a little bit of a pyro.

Awesome.

Well, any woman would be so grateful to attend your retreat or hopefully my retreats as well.

Yes.

Sasha, thanks so much for this great conversation.

Can you let the listeners know how to find you?

Yes, absolutely.

So my most active places would probably be Instagram and LinkedIn.

You can find me at Sasha Davis S A U S H A D A V I S or Sasha Sales Mama School.

I have both on Instagram and you can find me on LinkedIn there.

I also have my podcast, the Sales Mama podcast.

So I'd love to, you know, if you want to hear me talk even more, you can come on over there.

And then all of the links are over on my website, Sales Mama Biz.

And I really enjoyed a lot of your podcast episodes.

So thanks for sharing that.

Thank you.

Have a great day.

You too.

Thanks.

If you liked what you just heard and want more, you can check out my book Wellness in Sustainable Travel and Embodied Practices for the Midlife Earth Conscious Woman.

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The Sustain youn Vitality Podcast is a gift from Zen and Vitality with Zoa LLC and Intentional Vitality Retreats based in the State of Maryland, usa.

All the podcast things planning, recording, editing, editing and producing have all been done by me, Zoa Connor, Ph.D. even though you can call me doctor, I'm not a medical professional and your safety is your responsibility.

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Always practice any fitness or movement related activities in a safe environment.

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