When you seem to be drowning in work 24/7 and still not getting the desired results, when even noise-cancelling earplugs and sleep masks don’t help your constant sleep deprivation and you feel like you have no time to rest with the media shoving terrifying world news at your face and your phone constantly ringing with messages and notifications ‒ you might find yourself in a position close to giving it all up. But your urge to escape can be turned into powerful actions that will recharge your batteries. Keep reading if you would like to find out about the common red flags you might need to deal with.

What’s a retreat?

A spiritual retreat is your step back from the routine for inner work. It’s about isolation from the external (and familiar) world in order to devote all free time to work on yourself.

The origins of retreats can be seen in most of the world's religions. In a modern, ritual-free context, retreats act as an opportunity to release tension and take a step forward ‒ beyond your current limitations and behavioral patterns.

#1: You constantly feel on the verge of bursting with anger

It’s as if you’re a time bomb without a set timer. Recent research proves that anger itself is not a piece of cake, but a bitter pill of feelings and emotions to swallow.

What we mean by that is anger hides feelings and emotions that we don't want to feel ‒ fear, sadness, or embarrassment ‒ because showing them can make us seem vulnerable. Anger, rage, indignation give us the confidence that we’re powerful and are in control of the situation. But often it’s only an illusion.

#2: You find yourself distracted easily

Everyone is having hard times staying focused today ‒ with all the colorful signs and billboards, constant city noises and never-ending flows of information from TV, radio, phone, etc. We all get distracted by outside stimuli from time to time, this can’t be avoided. But it’s certainly a red flag if your own thoughts become your main distraction and your train of thought constantly fails to get to the final destination.

#3: You wake up already waiting for the day to end

The hateful alarm clock is obviously not music to your ears, but you won’t hit the snooze button if you’re excited to start your day. When you were a kid and you had to wake up early because your family had a trip planned, how did you feel? A bit drowsy ‒ yes, but were you happy and enthusiastic about going on a mini-adventure? This is the state you need in your adult life, and retreats can help you wake up that happy kid inside of you.

#4: Fatigue has become your second nature

It’s okay to feel tired and sleepy after a long day, but if you feel exhausted and unmotivated on a daily basis, even after a good rest ‒ that’s when it gets serious. Fatigue can be caused by various reasons, among which there are health conditions signaling even about the need to check with your doctor.

#5: Your sleep schedule is chaotic

Every hour of sleep adds up to your energy, and the “I’ll get enough sleep on a day off” attitude is not something your body will thank you for. More often than not you might deprive yourself of sleep because you think you’ll get more things done by doing so. And that’s not the case.

Of course, external causes such as street noise, your partner's snoring, an uncomfortable mattress, etc. can be what influences your sleep quality. In this case it’s been scientifically proved that using sleep masks and noise-cancelling earplugs (either foam earplugs or wax earplugs) helps get a better night’s sleep.

But you can’t shush your thoughts ‒ the internal cause ‒ all of a sudden when falling asleep, because doing so requires some training. And retreats are a perfect opportunity for this.

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