Cultivating the Joy of Aging: A Ketamine-Assisted Mindfulness Retreat
About this Retreat
Details of this retreat
“Perhaps aging is not a process of becoming less. Perhaps it is a process of remembering more.”
For much of our lives, many of us have worked very hard to be good: a good daughter or son, a good partner, a good parent, a good professional, a good citizen of whatever tribe we happened to belong to. We were so good at it that we forgot we were performing. The role became the self. Then, without asking permission, the cracks appear. A certainty dissolves. A role no longer fits. And we find ourselves asking a question that refuses to go away: what if this is not the whole story?
This retreat is an invitation to meet that question in community and to discover the unexpected joy of aging. The stories crack, the masks loosen, and beneath it all we find something ancient, something tender, and something surprisingly intact. Not a new self. The self that was waiting all along.
The retreat is open to individuals from all walks of life, ages and all levels of experience, whether you arrive with a personal intention, a professional lens, or simple curiosity. It is designed for those ready to deepen their personal growth within a supportive group setting. Together we will slow down, move gently beneath our defenses, and reconnect with the emotions we may have set aside in order to survive. Awakening contains grief: not because something is wrong, but because something is ending. We will honor the identities that carried us here even as we make room for what is emerging.
Ketamine is offered not as a mandatory component across three sessions. When chosen, it can support this process by softening defenses and reducing anxiety, allowing access to stillness, insight, and love. Many participants experience increased clarity, compassion, and a non-defensive perspective that supports meaningful transformation. Alongside the medicine work, we offer many portals for cultivating joy: meditation, breathwork, poetry, art, and time in the gardens and mountains that surround Menla. These practices open space for creativity and wonder and help create the conditions for cultivating joy.
At the heart of this retreat is the circle. Healing rarely happens in isolation. Wisdom is shared, truth ripens in community, and the group itself becomes the medicine. Again and again we watch the moment of sacred recognition arrive: the realization that we are not alone. So come. Pull up a chair. Bring your questions, your grief, and your joy. The circle is forming, and there is room for you.
Safety is our highest priority. Each participant is carefully screened to ensure readiness for the group experience and the safe, appropriate use of ketamine if chosen. This retreat is not a residential treatment program and is not appropriate for individuals experiencing an acute mental health crisis or unmanaged chronic psychiatric conditions. A medical interview is required for attendance.
Schedule:
Thursday, June 24
4 - 6 pm Check-in starts
6 - 7 pm Dinner
7 - 9 pm Evening program
Friday, June 25
7:45 - 8:30 am Meditation and yoga (optional)
8:30 - 9:30 Check-in and opening program (no breakfast)
9:30 - 10 am Meeting the medicine
10 am - 12:30 pm Ketamine session
12:30 - 1:30 pm Lunch
1:30 - 3:30 pm BREAK (book a massage or spa treatment!)
3:30 - 5:30 pm Afternoon program
6 - 7 pm Dinner
7 - 8 pm Evening workshop
9 pm Bonfire (weather permitting)
Saturday, June 26
7:45 - 8:30 a, Meditation and yoga (optional)
8:30 - 10 am Morning program (no breakfast)
10 am - 12:30 pm Ketamine session
12:30 - 1:30 pm Lunch
1:30 - 3:30 pm BREAK (book a massage or spa treatment!)
3:30 - 5:30 pm Afternoon program
6 - 7 pm Dinner
7 - 9 pm Evening workshop
9 pm Night activity
Sunday, June 27
8:15 - 11 am Check out of rooms
9 - 11 am Ketamine session (optional)
11 am - 12:30 pm Group process
12:30 - 1:30 pm Lunch
2 - 3 pm Group activity
3 pm End of program (optional stay Sunday night)
*Please note this schedule is subject to change.
Getting Here
Accommodation
Deluxe King
Deluxe Queen
Deluxe Double (Shared Room)
Standard Single - Shared Bath
Economy Premium Single - Shared Bath
Economy Single - Shared Bath
Economy Double - Shared Bath (Shared Room)
Economy Quad - Shared Bath (Shared Room)
Customer Reviews
ASKing age for roombooking
Overall, I found the property and the experience to be wonderful. All the staff are truly loving and caring. Thank you!
A wonderful week
Amazingly tranquil space for a retreat with great amenities
The lecture hall is such a great space and the audio / visual people do such an amazing job of stage managing the room with multiple cameras and mics that it makes for a great educational tool to be able to go back to such a well produced recording after. The room is large, with comfortable seating and environment.
The food in the dining hall in the Main Inn building is vegetarian and is awesome, even for omnivores like myself - didn't miss the meat at all for the week.
My room this time was in the same building as the lecture hall and was very nicely done and comfortable with an armoire, queen bed, desk and chair. My previous room had a sink and mirror, this one did not. But that was fine. Previous room in another building shared a bathroom with one other room, this one shared a bathroom with 10 other rooms, but it was a multi person bathroom with two shower stalls, two sinks and one toilet stall for men. So with a mix of genders in the rooms, you only share with about half the rooms. It worked out well. Finally, I used the recommended car service to go to and from the resort and it worked out great. The only issue with that is that the roads around campus are gravel and so if you get dropped at the Inn and walk to the Convention Center like I did with a roller bag, that can be a longish, bumpy walk while most people would be driving. No biggie, just something to keep in mind.
The spa is also amazing. The retreat I was at gave you ample free time to explore the resort and surrounding areas for hikes, etc. I got two awesome massages and the steam room and sauna in the men's room were very nice along with an automated shower that had several massage settings to choose from as well.
All in all, a great educational experience at Menla with one of my favorite Buddhist teachers, with great accommodations, great food, and great people in a beautiful setting in the Catskill Mountains of New York.