Join Gaia & John on their Italian Retreat
'A State of Regulation'
to Discover How to Regulate your Nervous System
By Being Fully Yourself and In The Present
(in Urbino, Italy, 6-12 September, 2026)
Hello you,
So, have you watched the video? (If not, please do).
Do you see how regulating your nervous system - achieving 'A State of Regulation' can change everything?
(Because it’s your nervous system that’s leading your threat-detecting life experience).
So it’s Gaia & John here again…
… and reading through this will hopefully complete the picture on whether this is for you.
“I barely have the vocabulary to describe how incredible this experience was. Gaia and John (created) what can only be described as, a magical experience! John’s F**k it philosophy, charisma and wit perfectly complemented Gaia’s profound knowledge and careful craft when it came to development work. I have truly walked out of this experience a different person with a refreshing new perspective on life. Also, rather unexpectedly, I gained some lifelong friends along the way.”
Mark W., London
We mentioned in the video how most people don’t know it, but that their nervous systems are likely to be stuck in the ‘ON’ position, looking out for threats all the time.
And that this is perfectly natural. We’ve evolved so successfully by being on alert like this.
Our Nervous Systems Tend To Be Stuck in the ‘ON’ mode
But we stay in this ON position even when there is no or little threat, so we end up over-reacting to ordinary everyday incidents.
And this then skews every aspect of our lives.
That when our nervous systems are ‘ON’ in this way, we are constantly looking out for what might go wrong:
we worry needlessly
our thoughts are racing
we struggle to sleep at night
we hate uncertainty and anything that’s unresolved
so that we are always striving to sort things out, endlessly looking forwards to a time when things might settle down.
But with our nervous systems stuck in ‘ON’ mode, we can never settle down.
This is our pattern. This is our protective biological self, running the show.
Does this ring a bell?
Because the result can be misery. Constantly fighting, fleeing or frozen in the face of the ever-changing nature of life.
There Are Ways to Regulate our Dysregulated Nervous Systems (and thus achieve 'A State of Regulation')
Yes, there is hope.
There are evidence-based ways to regulate our dysregulated nervous systems.
And we have spent our adult lives exploring these ways. And helping thousands – and even millions via the reach of our F**k It books – to regulate, to calm down and be more fully ourselves again.
This is What The Retreat is All About
We’re going to share these ways with you on our retreat in Italy in September (6-12).
And it is true that just being on retreat at this luxury spa:
In the sunshine
In the rolling hills of Le Marche
Amongst the vineyards bursting with grapes
Walking by the river that runs through the estate
With the outdoor and indoor pools, spa, massages
Being with new friends with the same aim
Eating delicious Italian food
Sitting back in comfort and luxury
… all this will help regulate your nervous system.
Of course.
We’ve run retreats in this area of Italy for more than 20 years, so we know the effects of just being together in such a fabulous place.
How a Great Retreat can become a Great New Way to Live
Yes, it’s the work that we do together that turns that relaxed and happy holiday feeling into something that you can feel every single day of your life.
And it does all hinge on the nervous system.
I (Gaia) have discovered that regulation of the nervous system is fundamentally linked to our ability to be ourselves.
And that’s down to the fact that it’s the way - as little ones – we had to adapt ourselves to the environment, and be alert to what was needed of us. We weren’t allowed to be ourselves so those adaptive patterns set in, along with our on-alert nervous systems.
So that being fully ourselves sets off a virtuous circle in our biological systems:
When we realise it's safe to be ourselves again: by expressing what we’re feeling, or asking for what we need, or acting in a way that just feels right, rather than what other people want of us… then our nervous systems naturally regulate, as the fear subsides and they are no longer ‘ON’ all the time.
And I (John) have discovered that the short-cut to calming our nervous systems is through being more mindful and present.
And that’s because we’re wired to hold on to past experiences, then constantly anticipate what might happen in the future, running endless scenarios to check for threat, and then readying our bodies to deal with any and all possible threats.
We run on the scenarios rather than the reality of what’s happening in the present. So the moment we switch to taking in what’s actually going on now, in our bodies, in our feelings, and in our perception of the world as it is in the present, we’re able to relax. As the scenarios aren’t running the show.
This means that…
Being More Ourselves.
… And Being More Present.
… Allow us to regulate our nervous systems based on what’s actually happening, rather than what we’ve been programmed to think or feel might happen.
We’ve been doing this work for 50 years between us
After working like this for more than 50 years between us,
we’ve seen the big effects this work can have.
After all, there’s a huge amount of wisdom and science and evidence behind this work.
And we’ve developed our work in unique ways, whether in the F**k It philosophy, or in Gaia’s Being Me Therapy, which she trains people in over three years.
We’ll be sharing this work with you in unique, fun and practical ways
We’ve run retreats in Italy since 2004.
So we know how to balance –
deeply relaxing practices, when you’ll melt like gelato in the sun
with fun exercises, when you learn how to shift your nervous system
with interactive teaching, so you understand the evidence-based background
with sharing in the group, when you see you’re not the only one feeling how you’re feeling
You’ll have an amazing time,
and you’ll learn ways that you can use every single day when you’re home:
When the sun is behind the clouds,
When the world demands more of you,
When things go wrong, and problems knock at your door.
So that you’ll be able to sit in a different state.
A state of regulation.
By Being Yourself and more Present.
We look forward to seeing you in Urbino for this retreat.
Love,
Gaia & John xx
And There’s a Special Extra for this Retreat Too
Every year, John runs his 10-week online ‘Super Relaxers’ programme.
It’s a £970 programme that runs from September to the end of November, with regular group sessions and a systematic building up of your relaxation skills, with recorded meditations and practices to use.
And we’ve included participation in this special programme, when you join the retreat. So this is not just a retreat, it’s a Programme, when you’ll be supported over 3 months (in the critical time after your retreat).
Prices & Booking Your Place
We’ve run around a hundred retreats since 2004,
so we know what works and what doesn’t,
and how to make the whole thing smooth and relaxing.
The prices you see below include:
The retreat experience we’ll be leading in September
The costs of the spa hotel, which is full-board (bed, breakfast, lunch and dinner and access to the spa pool)
John’s full Super Relaxers programme, September to November
To reserve your space on the retreat & programme, and your room in the hotel,
we ask you to fill out a form and pay the initial £690.
We will then ask you for another payment (to pay directly to the venue) one month later.
And then the final balance payment a month after that. (These timings only alter if we’re closer to the retreat, in which case they’d be condensed).
If you have any questions, there are some FAQs below.
When you’re ready to book and reserve your spot, click this –
FAQs
I see the dates of the retreat, but when do I need to arrive and leave the spa hotel?
You’ll be arriving at the hotel by about 6pm on Sunday 6th September.
We have our welcome get-together at 7pm.
And participants usually leave after breakfast on the last day, Saturday 12th September.
How do I get to that spa hotel, where exactly is it in Italy?
The closest town is Urbino (and what an amazing town it is!).
Once you’ve booked, we’ll be sending you our ‘holiday pack’, which gives you all the details you’ll need for your retreat, including travel info.
What’s the routine for the retreat?
We’ll be doing group sessions together from Monday to Friday inclusive.
The pattern tends to be that we gather at 10am, after breakfast.
And we have the group session till lunch at around 1.30pm.
That means you’re free after lunch to do whatever you fancy (swimming, walking by the river, having a massage, going to Urbino, and so on).
We gather for dinner in the evening.
We sometimes wander off this schedule, and do something else on an afternoon.
We’ll let you know the precise plans at the welcome meeting on the first evening.
Is there a hairdryer in the hotel room?
Yes. And this is probably the most frequent of the frequently asked questions
Will I get to know other members of the group before the retreat?
Yes. We’ll invite you into a private WhatsApp group closer to the retreat so you can start to connect with each other (and maybe even share some of your trip there, especially taxis!).
What’s the schedule for the Super Relaxers training after the retreat?
The Super Relaxers training runs from September to November, and consists of roughly one online (evening) session a week (with two gap weeks). It’s 10 weeks in total.
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