Awakening Alchemy Retreat Centre
Your Journey - Your Sanctuary
For people whose bodies are carrying more than they can say in words. This pathway is for those living with chronic pain, tension or nervous-system overwhelm, including back, neck, shoulder and joint pain, fibromyalgia, Parkinson's, functional neurological symptoms, and pain that seems to have no clear medical cause. Here we work gently with the body and the nervous system so it can remember what safety and ease feel like again.
Many guests arrive with long standing pain, tightness or fatigue that has not fully responded to conventional approaches. The body may feel braced or guarded, movements careful and effortful, sleep broken, and the mind on constant alert.
During your stay we focus on helping your system step out of fight or flight and into a slower, safer rhythm. As the nervous system begins to settle, muscles can let go of habitual holding, breath can deepen, and pain can often soften or become more manageable.
This retreat may be helpful if you are living with:
We do not diagnose or replace medical care. Instead, we create conditions in which your body and nervous system can begin to rediscover balance and peace.
Each retreat is tailored to you. We combine gentle, hands on work with education and practices you can continue at home. The emphasis is on safety, clarity and kindness, not on pushing through pain.
Subtle guided movements and gentle touch help you release excess effort in everyday movements like standing, sitting and walking. As the body learns to do less, it lets go of unnecessary tension and posture and balance often improve naturally.
Gentle contact with specific marma points, combined with awareness and breath, helps the body soften its protective bracing, supports energetic flow and can ease tension linked to shock or old experiences.
Simple, grounded breathing practices and awareness exercises calm the stress response and invite more space inside. You learn how to recognise early signs of overwhelm and how to guide yourself back toward steadiness.
A gentle magnetic healing bed uses pulsed electromagnetic fields to bathe the body's energy field in calming, rhythmic pulses. Many guests find this helps the nervous system shift out of high alert, making it easier for the whole body to relax and receive other work.
These approaches are offered in a way that respects your limits and sensitivity. Nothing is forced. We move at the pace your system can genuinely welcome.
“I arrived exhausted, in constant pain and wary of trying yet another approach. What made the difference here was the sense of being met as a whole person. My pain did not vanish overnight, but something softened. I left with less fear in my body and clear ways to support myself.”
— Guest, 6 day stay
“After years of back and neck pain, this was the first time I felt my system drop out of fight or flight for more than a moment. The combination of hands on work, breath and the magnetic bed gave my body a new reference point for peace.”
— Guest
Many guests come with existing diagnoses such as Parkinson's, fibromyalgia or functional neurological disorder. We do not offer medical treatment or advice and we recommend that you continue to consult your healthcare team. Our role is to provide gentle, complementary support focused on nervous-system regulation, posture, movement and embodied ease.
Typically there is one focused one to one session in the morning, with plenty of time for rest and integration, and further sessions after lunch and into the afternoon, depending on what your system needs and how you respond to the sessions. The exact rhythm is shaped around your energy levels and needs.
Most guests choose a stay of between four and seven days so there is enough time for the body to begin to trust the new way of being and for you to learn practical tools to take home. Shorter or longer stays may be possible by arrangement.
The investment typically ranges from £1600 to £4200, depending on the length of your stay and what support you require. Your retreat includes accommodation, nourishing meals and all treatments, sessions and coaching.
From pain to peace is not a promise of a perfect body, but an invitation into a different relationship with your body, your nervous system and your pain. If something in you longs for that, you are welcome here.
Awakening Alchemy Retreat Centre is run as a Private Members' Association (AAPMA). This ensures that we can protect our members' privacy and sovereignty in all our activities. Copyright AAPMA 2025. All Rights Reserved.
Awakening Alchemy Retreat Centre: Lurg Lodge, Midmar, Inverurie, AB51 7NB
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