Unplugging To Get the Most Out of a Retreat: Benefits and Tips

How many times have you picked up your phone intending to check one thing and found yourself zoned out or doom-scrolling social media?

While everyone is managing their lives on their cell phone, tablet, smartwatch, or computer, it’s hard not to get distracted by the constant notifications and information overload.

An uninterrupted internet signal can keep you connected to the world but disengaged from your true self and quiet the guiding voice within.

It’s no wonder retreats designed to refocus your mind, reset your spirit, and recharge your body often require you to unplug from your digital devices. Explore with us the benefits and tips of unplugging to get the most out of a retreat. After this read, you’ll want to try a few for yourself.

Table of Contents

• Do I Have To Be Unplugged for a Retreat?
• 10 Benefits of Unplugging During a Retreat
• How To Unplug at a Retreat
• Tips To Make the Most of Your Retreat at Sedona Mago — Unplugged or Not
• Sedona Mago Center for Well-Being and Retreat: Intentional, Thoughtful Retreats To Nurture Both Mind and Body

Do I Have To Be Unplugged for a Retreat?

With email, calendars, cameras, alarm clocks, and social media all integrated into one smartphone, it can be difficult to unplug, or intentionally disconnect from your digital device, while attending a wellness retreat.

The good news is that not all retreats require you to completely unplug.

Whether you have responsibilities like kids or an ailing loved one at home, switching off or handing in your device may not be an option for you, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still garner the benefits of the retreat.

The key is to be mindful of your electronic accessibility and usage.

Some retreats, usually referred to as silent retreats, may require you to turn in your devices completely; others offer more practical ways to participate in silent activities without your device while still being reachable to the outside world.

At the Sedona Mago Center for Well-being and Retreat, we offer a variety of retreat experiences that gently guide you toward healing and self-rediscovery while minimizing digital distractions. While we recognize the benefits of unplugging completely, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. That’s why we have equipped our lobby area with computers and limited wireless internet access around the casitas so you can comfortably focus on your healing journey without missing the most important moments.

10 Benefits of Unplugging During a Retreat

#1: Achieve Clarity and Focus

The advancement of the digital age has caused an information overload that can clutter your mind, reduce your attention span, and impair your ability to focus.

Studies have shown that even a smartphone’s mere presence can reduce cognitive capacity.

Being intentional about your electronic usage while at a retreat can help your brain return to its natural rhythm. You may even forget about your device for a while, allowing you to feel more alert, focused, and refreshed.

#2: Improve Connections and Relationships

Have you ever sat at a dinner table while everyone was hypnotized by their phone, completely oblivious to the company of another?

It’s no secret that the pull of technology can hinder human interaction and connection. Learning to ditch your device at a retreat can help refresh your social skills, have impactful conversations, and foster meaningful connections.

#3: Enhance Awareness and Presence

From emails to news updates, incessant notifications pull you away from the awareness and presence you need to tap into your innermost thoughts and feelings.

Leaving behind those electronic tethers can help you be more mindful, take in your surroundings, and live in the moment. With mindfulness and presence, you may find a new appreciation for nature, relish moments of quietness, and enjoy the activities you participate in, facilitating a richer and more fulfilling retreat experience.

#4: Maintain Emotional Balance

Social media usage contributes to comparison with:

• Friends
• Family
• Strangers
• Influencers; and
• Celebrities

This unhealthy practice can lead to developing low self-esteem. A 2017 study found that overuse can negatively impact mental wellness and even cause depression.

Nearly 57% of Americans admit to being addicted to their phones. Phone addiction can look like obsessive scrolling or a constant need to be tethered to the device. A reluctance to disconnect from your phone is an even greater indication of the need to do so.

You may find over a short time that digital disconnection can help restore your state of inner calm.

#5: Experience Better Quality Sleep

Studies show that electronic devices emit blue light, causing more alertness and damaging your sleep patterns.

Device usage at night promotes wakefulness that can alter circadian rhythms, the 24-hour cycle of hormones and chemicals in the body that help dictate when you sleep and when you’re awake.

Circadian rhythms work together with natural daylight to produce cortisol in the daytime to make you feel more alert and melatonin, which induces feelings of sleepiness, at night.

Exposure to blue light at night can cause your brain to reduce the release of melatonin and make it harder to fall and stay asleep.

At the Sedona Mago Center for Well-being and Retreat, you’ll find a television-free sleep space to help restore your sleep cycle, calm your mind, and encourage continued self-reflection.

#6: Improve Creativity and Productivity

Unplugging can enhance awareness and presence, but it also clears mental space to allow the mind to wander and be curious. Exploring new ideas can lead to creativity and foster flow.

To achieve a flow state you must allow yourself to be completely immersed in an activity without distraction.

You may find that turning off your device during a retreat can have lasting effects on your productivity, even after you’ve returned from the retreat.

If you continue the practice of removing distractions, it can become easier to access clarity and focus and tap into the flow state.

#7: Decrease Stress and Anxiety

Reports have found that digital consumption can elevate stress levels and trigger anxiety.

Have you ever heard the ping of someone else’s device and immediately felt a visceral sense of urgency? The physical response is ingrained in our bodies.

At a retreat, you’re encouraged to prioritize yourself. Depending on the type of retreat you attend, activities like journaling, meditation, or physical movement are designed to relieve you of everyday stress and anxiety. Unplug and leave behind the pressures of digital life and constant accessibility.

#8: Boost Physical Health

Screens can keep people inactive, and when glued to their seats, hours can pass like minutes.

Getting rid of your device can help you break free from the trance and move your body. By going for a long nature walk or just getting some fresh air, your physical health can improve when your device is no longer a distraction. Besides feeling good physically, exercise can significantly improve mental health.

#9: Connect With Nature

Nature has the profound ability to heal, but you can’t experience the power through your screen.

Mindfully immerse yourself in the sights, sounds, and smells of the forest, also known as forest bathing. Forest bathing has been found to reduce stress hormones, boost mood, and enhance overall well-being.

The red-rock landscape and open sky of the desert makes Sedona, Arizona, famous for retreats. Many also believe Sedona has incredible healing and spiritual powers.

But you must put your phone down and feel the earth beneath your toes. Bask in the healing energy of Sedona’s vortexes and soak in the sacred, soothing hot springs.

#10: Improve Self-Awareness

When you remove the digital distraction and focus on the world in front of you, you become more present.

With enhanced spatial and social awareness you become more attuned to yourself.

You no longer have digital media influencing your mind or body. You can turn inward and take stock of what’s happening within. This can be a pivotal moment.

Embark on your spiritual journey to finding your true self among the endless landscape of majestic red rock vistas at Sedona Mago. Here, you will be guided through an exploration that will help to unravel an unshakable light and power that emanates from within. Plan your retreat today.

How To Unplug at a Retreat

Many retreats have a protocol in place to help you unplug and take advantage of the full experience.

If you’re challenging yourself to unplug at a retreat here are a few tips you can try:

• Turn your notifications off, or better yet turn off your phone completely. Put it somewhere safe, out of sight, and away from you, and resist the urge to check.
• If you do need to check your phone, set an intentional time that you check.
• Create a “gadget-free” zone where you don’t bring your phone, like your sleeping area or the communal area.
• Set a “digital detox day” where you intentionally participate in activities that don’t involve phones, tablets, computers, or televisions and you don’t check them until the following day.

Tips To Make the Most of Your Retreat at Sedona Mago — Unplugged or Not

At Sedona Mago, our retreats are designed to help provide the paths and environments that cultivate holistic healing and self-realization. Here are some tips that can help you prepare and make the most of your Sedona Mago retreat.

Manage expectations. Feel free to share as little or as much about your retreat with friends, family, and colleagues as you feel comfortable, but it’s important to manage expectations about your reduced availability. This will help ease any anxiety you may feel about missing important communications as you will have already set alternatives in place. For example, you may consider setting up an out-of-office reply to provide other points of contact to manage email communication.

Set intentions. Be clear about how you want to spend your time at Sedona Mago. This can include reflecting on if you want to implement a digital detox. You can use the tips provided in the previous section to create a customized plan to unplug that you feel comfortable with. It’s important to reflect on what you hope to achieve before you arrive at your retreat and how disconnecting may help.

Enjoy nature. If you’re coming to a Sedona Mago retreat, you are in for a breathtaking display of nature. If you put your device away and let nature be your guide, you’re sure to be filled with peace and wonder.

Embrace mindfulness. At your retreat, you will have the opportunity to engage in mindful activities like meditation, yoga, and journaling. Allow yourself to fully immerse in the moment. This time is only for you.

Share in the experience. Bond with fellow retreat-goers without the distraction of screens. Take advantage of the social activities and communal areas to engage in real-life experiences and foster deep connections with others. Share stories or participate in group meditation. These experiences may be the building blocks of lasting relationships that enrich your social life.

Reflect and reintegrate. After your Sedona Mago retreat, look back on the intentions you set before arriving and reflect on your experiences. Consider how reducing your electronic usage contributed to the benefits you gained and how you can integrate these practices into your daily life.

Sedona Mago Center for Well-Being and Retreat: Intentional, Thoughtful Retreats To Nurture Both Mind and Body

Return your mind, body, and spirit to homeostasis at a Sedona Mago retreat.

Our programs are designed with intention guided by the spiritual traditions of Sun Tao. You will find a wide variety of experiences, from our Revitalizing Detox Retreat created to reset your body and brain in six days to our Finding True Self Retreat which aims to heighten awareness and connection to self.

Most of our retreat programs are developed to awaken something deeper within you, so we highly recommend detaching from or limiting access to your electronics.

Whatever retreat you choose, give yourself the gift of your full attention and you will get so much more out of it. To learn more, contact us today.