Mind & Heart: A Mindful Path to Wholehearted Living

This workshop for professionals is a 3-day intensive for individuals who want to further their own healing and for those who assist others in the healing journey. This workshop acknowledges that many people have encountered difficult situations as children and as adults: trauma, abuse, neglect, break-ups, betrayal, disappointment, failures, illness, loss, and grief. Yet, humans are resilient creatures - they generally find ways to survive. However, surviving isn’t the same as thriving! Indeed, many times the very adaptations that helped people to survive get in the way of really living life wholeheartedly.

Psychiatrist, researcher, teacher, and workshop designer, Jon Caldwell, DO, PhD, will personally facilitate the workshop. The Mind & Heart workshop is a scientifically researched intervention that entails a mixture of highly informative material and experiential exercises using mindfulness and compassion. Because these ancient practices will be applied in unique ways to heal past wounds, people of various skill levels with mindfulness can benefit from the workshop. Also, the practice of mindfulness and compassion does not need to interfere with workshop participants’ spiritual beliefs, but can serve to deepen existing belief systems. All that is needed is a curious mind, a willing heart, and an intention to heal!

16.0 Continuing Education Credits or NBCC Clock Hours Available

Cost: $1500 per person, all inclusive of two meals on Friday, three meals Saturday, one meal Sunday, lodging at Rio Retreat Bunkhouse, and ground transportation from and back to the Phoenix Airport.

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Rio Retreat Center Brain Spa is OPEN

The WHY of biofeedback has been incorporated into the Monday psycho-educational lecture. There has been a  big response with workshop participants using the brain spa,  mornings, evenings and during lunch breaks! 

The Brain, Heart, Body connection at RIO:

• CES  - Cranial Electro- Stimulation -  the  CES stimulates ALPHA WAVES, increases oxygen and blood flow to the brain  
• HRC – Heart  Rate Coherence  -  Reduces  stress,  Develops self-awareness of internal reactions
• Chi Machine most beneficial to the heart and lungs.  Increase lymphatic flow and improves the immune system.

WHY?  These machines support a positive feedback loop between positive emotions and good physical health.

We need to teach ourselves how our brains and bodies work; being in control of ourselves requires becoming familiar with our inner world and accurately identifying what scares, upsets, or delights us. 

You can be fully in charge of your life only if you can acknowledge the reality of your body, in all its visceral dimensions.”
― Bessel A. van der Kolk, The Body Keeps the Score

For more information call (866) 816-0139.

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The Subtle Cues of Communication

“You cannot ‘not’ communicate.”

In the world of communication theory, this is a common adage. Simply stated, it means that no matter how hard you try, it’s impossible to refrain from communicating to those around you. Since the majority of communication occurs through non-verbal cues that are transmitted both consciously and subconsciously, we are communicating whether we want to or not. Even silence is communicating something. So when couples or family members say, “Our problem is that we don’t communicate with one another,” they are misinformed. They are communicating a great deal. It’s more likely that they aren’t communicating very effectively and they often don’t like the messages that are being exchanged.

In the world of communication theory, this is a common adage. Simply stated, it means that no matter how hard you try, it’s impossible to refrain from communicating to those around you. Since the majority of communication occurs through non-verbal cues that are transmitted both consciously and subconsciously, we are communicating whether we want to or not. Even silence is communicating something. So when couples or family members say, “Our problem is that we don’t communicate with one another,” they are misinformed. They are communicating a great deal. It’s more likely that they aren’t communicating very effectively and they often don’t like the messages that are being exchanged

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Rio Retreat Center adds Equine Exeriential to our evening activities!

Along with other evening activities including Yoga, Acupuncture, Tai Chi, Music, and 12 Step Groups, our Rio Retreat Center workshop participants now have the opportunity to take part in an Equine Experiential. Jean Collins-Stuckert, Executive Director at Rio, had a plan to add this next piece into Rio’s evening activities, “we have access to these beautiful, healing horses at our Retreat Center and this experience fits right into the flow of what we do here at Rio, it can help to integrate the work our participants have been doing in group all week with a mindful self-awareness.”

Christie, equine specialists at The Meadows, spent Thursday evening with twelve of our Rio Retreat workshop participants. Working with Black Jack and Phantom, participants engaged in round pen activities building relationship, communication and trust with the horses. On the first evening, the feedback was phenomenal -

“This experience was amazing! My horse helped me to feel grounded in my Survivors workshop experience” 

“I was so engaged with the horses, I loved the interaction with them, I had so much fun!”

“There’s a quote on the wall at the corrals - I may not speak your language, but when you spend time in my presence and listen with your heart – you will hear my voice. This rang so true for me.”

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