Retreats
Retreats
Retreating from our external world is an opportunity for intensive Self care - a simple remedy for modern life stresses. The business of life can overtake us and we can easily lose our way. Giving ourselves permission to let go of the distractions of everyday responsibilities, supports us to turn within. Here we find our inner treasures, peace of mind and a lightness of being. Irregardless of what happens in the external world, within us all, is a place of inner calm and balance.
Cameron’s retreats are full immersion experiences. They attend to all levels; physical, mental-emotional, and spiritual. Every retreat introduces Ancient Wisdom teachings and practices, from Chinese Medicine, Yoga, and Indigenous ways of being.
Following a structured schedule Cameron introduces foundations for lifelong wellbeing. Sessions are highly interactive engaging the wisdom of the group with question and answers. Movement practices of Yoga and/or Qigong assist to embody the learning.
Ancient Wisdom
Cameron is a lifelong learner of The Four Fold Way, an archetypal framework created by cross-cultural anthropologist, Dr Angeles Arrien.
The four ways of being are based on Dr Arrien’s lifetime study and research of ways of Indigenous people. In 1994, Cameron began her year long training in these teachings, which was the foundation for Professional Development training at her Acupuncture College in Christchurch.
The FFW is a framework for living an authentic life based on truth-telling, being present, staying open, non-judging, and tuning into the heart.
The essence of the Four Fold Way is learning to connect Heart to Heart by listening to deeper levels. On retreats we come together to invoke and honour the highest in ourselves and others.
Qigong
Qigong is one of the eight limbs of traditional Chinese Medicine based on movement and breath practices. Qigong literally means ‘master the Qi’. It has been used for centuries to keep people well by free-flowing the circulation of Qi- energy, and blood.
Qi is called the ‘commander of the blood’ and ‘blood is the mother of Qi’. Qi functions are to warm, move, transform, nourish, hold, and protect. When our Qi is strong we can stand up and own our place in the world.
Qigong optimises wellbeing by stimulating the free-flow of the meridians (energy pathways). Qi is the functional power of the internal organs. Strong qi flow nurtures and maintains balance and overall strength in our bodies and minds.
The Chinese medical frameworks explain the interconnections of the body-mind-spirit. After the retreat you will takeaway tools to strengthen the internal organs, boost your everyday energy levels, and harmonise your mind and emotions.
Nature
Throughout the ages people have retreated to sacred sites to reconnect with the original harmony that exists inside us. Time with Mother Nature is one of the fastest ways to return to our whole, beautiful original Self.
The natural environment is full of rejuvenating life force. Slowing down to the pace of nature, we experience her splendour and beauty. This helps reconnect us to the peace and harmony there in the background of life.
BEING in Nature helps put our tiny little lives into perspective! Immersed in her power we are reminded that life is always shifting and changing. Change is the driver of our evolution , designed to refresh and renew us, as surely as the sun rises and sets.
Bespoke Retreats, Whangarei Heads, NZ
Let’s create something meaningful together.
Testimonials
Using higher views of seeing and being, we expand our perspectives and discover new life possibilities.
"What the retreat did for me was quiet my life in significant ways. Since I returned from the retreat, I have noticed that my days are often buoyed now by a greater since of peace and a larger understanding of the broad spiritual context we all live in. I have more strength I can call upon in myself. I also have more empathy for myself and for others".
Susan Conley, Beijing Retreater, Author of "Landslide"and other books
Retreats are an opportunity to pause and revision our lives.
"For me the retreat was a discovery of the world from a different perspective. Cameron opens doors for new perceptions of nature, life and the universe. She not only shares much of her vast knowledge and wisdom but, most importantly, offers tools to experience it and implement it into daily life. The retreat started me off into a new phase of my life. Now, the memory of the time spent together serves as a reference, it brings me back to center and reminds me of the bigger picture"
Stefanie, Schau, Beijing Retreater, Psychologist
Apply these teachings to everyday life for closer connections
“Immediately after this retreat I could tell something had changed. I connected with my patients almost immediately. Where it sometimes took 10 minutes of digging and questioning before people showed me their true worries or fears, now almost within a split second people would open up and showed me their emotions. And I didn't do a thing, it was all effortless. I figured that because I changed inside, my presence had changed, which was more inviting for my patients to show or share their vulnerability”
Dr Morintje Schraeder, New Zealand Retreater 2017
Retreats are a time for reconnecting to deeper parts of ourselves and resetting to what is natural to us.
"I started at the retreat as a wife, a mom, a family doctor and as the retreat unfolded, I shed those roles and just found myself and to be connected to myself was the most powerful gift I could have been given. Since the retreat, I take better care of myself and my family and friends and my colleagues and patients. I am connected in a way I never was before".
Dr Marie Shieh, Beijing Retreater
Viewing life through the frameworks of Ancient wisdom gives us new ways of showing up to life.
“I met Cameron in Bali in 2019 during a 30-day Qigong teacher training, and what stood out to me was her ability to truly listen — not only with the mind, but with the body and heart. She approached Qigong and Chinese medical theory not as something to collect intellectually, but as a lived language for understanding inner life. The way she engaged with the teachings showed a natural sensitivity to the connections between organ systems, emotional and mental expression, and the physical body.
Cameron has a grounded and attentive presence that allows space for real transformation. She understands Qigong as a healing practice — one that balances, supports, and settles body and mind — and she embodies this understanding in how she moves, relates, and holds space with others.
What I appreciate most is her authenticity. She doesn’t try to impress or perform; she allows the practice and her way of being to speak through her. This quality creates trust and safety, and it’s what enables these teachings to genuinely transform lives.
Marco Bartolomeo - Yoga and Qigong teacher, Tenerife