The Somatic Intimacy Retreat - Under 35 Edition

The retreat highlights

Join us for a transformative retreat designed to help young adults reclaim their intimacy and connection with their bodies. This immersive experience is crafted to address key aspects of sexuality and intimacy, fostering a holistic understanding and integration of body, presence, and pleasure. This experience will initiate you into the core skills required to become someone who is empowered to navigate the complexities of intimate relationships, connect deeply with your sexual body, and to know what you want and what you don’t want.

Practice Body Awareness and Presence - Engage in mindful somatic practices to deepen your connection with your body. - Explore techniques for staying present in the moment, enhancing your ability to fully experience and enjoy intimacy.

Get Body Image Confidence - Participate in supportive workshops that challenge societal standards and promote self-acceptance. - Discover ways to cultivate a positive body image and embrace your unique beauty in a safe, encouraging environment.

Connect to Your Eros and Self-Pleasure - Learn about the concept of eros and its role in a fulfilling intimate life, starting with the basics. - Empower yourself with knowledge about self-pleasure and its benefits for personal growth and self-love.

Navigate Partnered Touch and Consent - Experience guided, respectful exercises that highlight the importance of touch and the nuances of giving and receiving it. - Engage in open discussions and simple role-playing activities to understand and practice consent in a safe, supportive environment.

Pleasure and Safety - Explore the dimensions of pleasure beyond the physical, including emotional and spiritual satisfaction, in an accessible way. - Gain tools for creating a safe and consensual space for both yourself and your partner(s).

Inner Safety and Nervous System Regulation: - Practice techniques for nervous system regulation, helping you stay grounded and calm whilst engaging within sexual contexts. - Understand the importance of inner safety and how to foster it within yourself.

A dedicated retreat space for young adults… why ?

We believe it’s highly needed to create safe spaces for young adults with better sexual education, open communication, psychosomatic guidance and support, and societal acceptance to help them navigate their sexuality and intimate relationships smoothly and thoroughly.

Young adults today face a variety of struggles related to sexuality and intimacy, influenced by a complex interplay of social, cultural, religious, technology, and psychological factors.

This retreat is for you if… - You are a young adult (aged 21-34  years) - You feel inexperienced when it comes to healthy intimacy and relationships - You seek to deepen your understanding of sexuality and intimacy - You want to cultivate self-love - You are thriving for healthier relationships - You want to learn tools you’ll be able to use in your everyday life - You want to boost your sexual and intimate confidence!

Please note:

• No previous experience is necessary - this is particularly for people who want to arrive with a ‘beginner’s mind’
• There is no sex in the practices that we’ll guide, but eroticism and sexual energy are in the space during the group work and we’ll be maintaining a non-judgemental, sex positive culture throughout.
• This is a mixed group. You may practise with people of different genders.
• Self-touch (non-erotic and erotic) and connection touch (non-erotic) will be invited at certain times, within a specific frame.
• There will be the opportunity to undress during certain group exercises (no obligation).
• We leave plenty of room for you to actively decide at any given moment what you want to give and receive, and with whom you want to practise.

Example Daily Structure

10am - 10.30am Grounding embodiment practices

10.30am - 12.30pm Morning group workshops

12.30pm - 3pm Lunch served and rest break

3pm - 6pm Afternoon group workshop 7pm dinner

8pm onwards / before 10am Personal Time: Enjoy quiet moments for self-reflection, nature walks, river swims and journaling to integrate your experiences.

This will be a 3.5 day retreat followed by a 2-hour advanced integration call the week after. We'll begin at 1pm on Thursday and complete by 5pm on Sunday. Also included is a supportive integration online meeting on the Sunday morning of the following weekend (8th December). This will help you to continue in your life that which you discovered in yourself at the retreat.

Your hosts and teachers: Aisha Paris Smith and Thomas Rocourt (an on-site chef and workshop assistant will also be present throughout)

Aisha Paris Smith,

Certified somatic sexologist, certified somatic sex educator and sexological bodyworker. Aisha blends her conscious approach to life with the profound experience of being in a body to all that it means to be a human with flesh, blood, bones, ego and eros. She experiences every day the wisdom of her body and has seen clients transform through the power of somatic methods.

She came into this work inspired to support couples create a relationship that works on all levels. Her clientele ranges now from couples, to teenagers, young adults, the elderly and folx of all ages, descriptions and identities.

Aisha makes safety, confidentiality and choice her top priorities for clients. Common questions she asks her clients includes ‘How can you be more yourself within your body?’, ‘What is the best thing that you can create for your pleasure?’ and ‘what would it be like to honour your shadow as well as your light?’.

Everything is an invitation and Aisha honours her clients as experts of themselves. Her only agenda is to be a resource for their growth.

Aisha is a multi-sexual cis-gender woman, of mixed ethnicity. Her coaching is aiming to be inclusive and queer-safe.

Visit www.aishaparissmith.com or https://www.instagram.com/aishaparissmith/ to find out more.

Thomas Rocourt

Thomas is a certified somatic coach, artist and professional dancer. His quest for meaning and inner freedom has guided him since he was very young. He experiments a lot; He is an experiential researcher - in perpetual motion.

On this path, he works for the psycho-corporal integration of our beings and for an embodied spirituality. He is committed to the union of body and soul, heart and sex, matter and spirit, the profane and the sacred, human beings and nature, human beings with each other...

He is certified in ‘Somatic sex education & Sexological Bodywork’ with the Sea School of Embodiment. He is a member of the professional association of Sexological Bodyworkers (ACSB). He is also trained in Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy and in Tao with Mantak Chia. He works with the nervous system; his work is ‘trauma-informed’.

He has a rich background in dance and somatic practices. He facilitates movement spaces. In particular playfight and contact-improvisation.

He is committed to a shamanic path, mainly Latin American inspired.

He is a straight cis-gender man. His coaching is aiming to be inclusive and queer-safe.

To find out more about his work, see: www.thomasrocourt.com IG @thomas_rocourt

Location Nestled in a serene natural setting in the Garden of England, Kent, our unique retreat centre provides the perfect backdrop for relaxation and introspection. With its own Forest Garden for morning walks and River Darent for lunch time swims, it’s an incredibly supportive location for this journey of returning to your body and breaking through for more intimacy. Enjoy cosy accommodation, healthy home-cooked meals, and beautiful surroundings as you embark on this transformative journey.

Food and Nourishment

The menu is a mostly vegetarian, wholefood offering with deliciousness at its core! We will ensure ample sustenance of hearty dishes from our on-site chef. You will be able to share any dietary requirements when booking, and breakfast, lunch and dinner are all included.

Join us Rediscover the power of intimacy and connection with yourself and others. Empower your body, mind, and spirit through this enriching retreat experience. Secure your spot today and take the first step towards a more empowered and fulfilled intimate life.

Travel

The nearest train station is Shoreham (Kent) and the train journey is 50 minutes from London and tickets are as little as £8 one way! For those who would like to drive, parking is availailable on site.

The fee includes all teaching, accommodation in a shared room with mixed genders. All your meals, snacks and drinks for the duration of your stay and all materials for the retreat.

After booking, you’ll be invited to complete an application form to share more information about what you want out of the retreat. We’ll then be in touch to arrange a welcome call to get you ready for your trip!

Help with financing the retreat

For those who would be unable to join due to a lack of financing, we're happy to offer a 25% scholarship. Please apply for this scholarship here and someone will be in touch to let you know the outcome.

Refunds

Refunds of 60% of the total are available 6 weeks before the event. Please contact the organiser if you require a refund.