Grief & Respite: A Durango Retreat

Tall pine trees in a forest during sunset with a clear sky above.

For clients who need or want more than a weekly session can hold, Grief & Respite is a multi-day, individually tailored experience that pairs focused therapeutic work with genuine rest — set against the mountains of Durango, Colorado.

Each intensive is built around you: structured grief therapy sessions in the morning or early afternoon, paired with restorative time — hiking, soaking, bodywork, or simply stillness — in the hours between. I'll help you plan the shape of your days in advance, and can connect you with vetted local resources: massage therapists, hot springs access, and options for fresh meals ready and waiting at your Airbnb, so the logistics of being away from home don't compete with the work itself.

This format is designed for out-of-town clients who want concentrated, focused support — whether you're navigating a fresh loss, an anniversary, or grief that's been carried quietly for a long time and finally has room to be tended to.

What is offered:

Each retreat is tailored to the individual client, after a discussion about your needs and goals. Options include:

  • A personalized daily itinerary built around your needs and pace, including therapeutic sessions in which we address the six central needs of mourning and make space for narrative and reminiscence work

  • Time in nature — Durango's trails, forests, and open sky offer a kind of quiet that grief often needs

  • Massage and bodywork

  • Yoga, Pilates, dance, or other movement classes

  • Soaking at the Durango Hot Springs Resort & Spa

  • Options for other time on the water — the Animas River or Lake Nighthorse, whether that means stillness at the shore or something more active

  • Fresh, prepared meals

  • Space to rest between sessions — not just around them

Reach out to discuss dates, length, and whether an intensive is the right fit for where you are right now.

Is Grief & Respite Right for You?

This intensive format works well for clients who:

  • Are grieving a loss — recent or long-held — and want focused, concentrated time to work through it rather than the slower pace of weekly sessions

  • Are stable enough in daily life to travel, engage in therapeutic work each day, and manage time alone between sessions

  • Have an existing support system at home (a therapist, doctor, and trusted people) to return to after the intensive

  • Are drawn to combining structured grief work with rest, nature, and physical care — and see that pairing as part of the healing, not a distraction from it

This format is not appropriate for clients who are:

  • In active crisis, experiencing suicidal ideation, or in need of a higher level of care

  • Not currently connected to local support (a therapist, psychiatrist, or care team) they can return to after the intensive ends

  • Managing an untreated or unstable mental health condition that would make several consecutive days of intensive processing unsafe without closer clinical oversight