Return to Regulation
A Yoga Retreat to Resource your Nervous System
Emerald Isle Thursday, March 4th - Sunday, March 7th 2027
At a time when technology and the pace of modern living place steep demands on our nervous systems, choosing practices that support regulation becomes essential. While we can learn to resource our nervous systems on our own, we are also a co-regulatory species — meaning the power of immersing ourselves in healthy community can't be underestimated. This is precisely why this yoga retreat is built around meaningful connection, designed to nurture and nourish your nervous system at the deepest level.
So many aspects of our health hinge on the state of our nervous system: digestion, metabolism, hormonal balance, sleep, immune function, mood, energy levels, and more. When we understand how the nervous system works and what supports regulation in our bodies, we can better resource ourselves — and as we tend to our own nervous systems, we create ripple effects that extend into the collective.
Welcome to our oceanfront beach house where we will be for this unique retreat experience.
Drawing from three years of studying the nervous system in her Polarity Therapy Training Program, Betsy has thoughtfully created a retreat to regulate, replenish, and rejuvenate the nervous system. She'll offer the group easily digestible information about how the nervous system works, and guide participants in discovering what triggers dysregulation and what supports regulation. Through a combination of accessible yoga, guided meditation, gentle breathwork, playful creativity, deep rest, delicious meals, and convivial connection, this retreat will resource you for greater health on every level of your being.
This retreat welcomes participants of all levels — total beginners and advanced practitioners alike. You can choose to stay at the luxury oceanfront beach house or join as a day attendee. All meals are thoughtfully prepared with organic, locally sourced ingredients and customized to meet everyone's dietary needs. Watercolor classes taught by a local NC artist give participants a chance to feel the power of creativity in supporting wellbeing. Additionally, onsite massage therapists will offer bodywork sessions and Betsy will offer energy work sessions you can add to your retreat experience. On the last full day of the retreat, participants will experience a special sound bath meditation, a sonic bath for the nervous system. Together, this unique combination of offerings will support you not only in regulating your nervous system, but in experiencing embodied joy in a nourishing community.
Meet your retreat hosts
Betsy ~ Retreat Leader
Betsy Bertram is a certified Kripalu yoga teacher, Reiki practitioner, Polarity therapist, writer, and speaker. She offers group classes, workshops, customizable one-on-one sessions, and retreats. In all of her work she supports health and healing, increases well-being, and nurtures people to live in alignment with their values.
Betsy’s yoga journey began when she attended her first class at age eleven. After nearly a decade of practice, she went on to earn her 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training Certification at the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in 2011. Additionally, she completed the Thousand Petals Yoga six-month immersion program in 2014 and the five-month meditation program in 2019. She has taught yoga for fifteen years to diverse students from ages four to one hundred.
She believes yoga is for everyone and every body of all ages, shapes, and sizes. As a yoga teacher, she strives to make the practice more accessible through a supportive, safe, and non-competitive environment that cultivates connection to self and others. Her compassion-centered classes inspire exploration, embodiment, and enjoyment.
Hayden ~ Chef
Hayden Willis has been working in and out of commercial kitchens since the age of 18, shaping nearly two decades of experience across styles—from southern food to fusion fine dining. Her work has taken her through multiple states and flavors, but one truth has remained: food is central to healing, joy, and human connection.
Hayden’s cooking is an offering. Every dish she prepares is an act of reverence for the ingredients, the people she serves, and the stories that unfold around a shared table. She believes food can comfort, communicate, and celebrate. It nourishes more than the body; it becomes memory, meaning, and can be a powerful medicine.
Approaching food as a full-sensory experience, Hayden believes it is something that should nourish the eyes as much as the body. Every element on the plate is part of a larger ritual that honors both the natural beauty of the ingredients and the moment of sharing.
For Hayden, food is a gift. A way of honoring life itself. Preparing meals to ground, delight, and sustain, leaving guests feeling full in body, mind, and spirit.
Watercolor Classes with Alisha
Alisha Wielfaert of The Painted Way will be offering watercolor classes during the first hour of our free time each day of the retreat. These classes are great for beginners and seasoned watercolor artists alike. Alisha will provide all of the watercolor tools you need to connect with a sense of play while learning basic watercolor techniques and tapping into your creative inner child. Learn more about Alisha and The Painted Way here.
Retreat Schedule
Thursday
6-7 pm Welcome Circle and Appetizers
7pm Dinner
Friday
7:30-8 am Meditation
8-9 am Breakfast
9-10:15 am Programming: Mapping the nervous system
10:15-10:30 am Break
10:30 am-12 pm Yoga
12-1 pm Lunch
1-2:30 pm Watercolor Lesson with Alisha
2:30-6:30 pm Open time
6:30 pm Dinner
Saturday
7:30-8 am Meditation
8-9 am Breakfast
9-10:15 am Programming: Resourcing the nervous system
10:15-10:30 am Break
10:30 am-12 pm Yoga
12-1 pm Lunch
1-5 pm Open time
5-6pm Singing Bowls Meditation: A sonic bath for your nervous system
6-6:30pm Break
6:30 pm Dinner
Sunday
7-8 am Yoga
8-9 am Breakfast
9-10 am Closing Circle
Notes on the schedule
Everything on the schedule is optional - this is your retreat experience and Betsy encourages everyone to opt in and out of things to create a retreat that is nourishing to you.
Watercolor Lesson: This class is great for beginners and seasoned watercolor artists alike. Alisha will provide all of the watercolor tools you need to connect with a sense of play while learning basic watercolor techniques and tapping into your creative inner child.
Massage and energy work: There will be a table and Thai massage therapist on site for anyone who would like to add a bodywork session to their retreat experiences during the open times on the schedule. Betsy will also be offering energy work sessions. You can add these services on when you register for the retreat. Note these are an additional cost.
Open time possibilities: enjoy the beach, sit in the hot tub, go on an adventure to Beaufort, read your book, take a nap, make art, do nothing.
The Retreat House
Retreat Cost
$800 for retreat programming & meals: includes yoga, programming & meals (does not include accommodations).
Early Bird Special: $750 if you register before September 1st
Accommodations range between $125-$725 (see room listings below with details & pricing by room).
$400 non-refundable deposit due to hold your spot. Full retreat payments due by January 15th. Payment plans available.
Accommodation Options (Cost & Details)
Floor #2
Bedroom #1 - King bed with private bath and deck access (Oceanfront) $725 BOOKED
Bedroom #2 - King bed with private bath $575 AVAILABLE
Bedroom #3 - 1 set of double bunkbeds with private bath (shared room ~ sleeps 2) $250 per person (total room cost $500) AVAILABLE
Floor #3
Bedroom #4- King bed with private bath and deck access (oceanfront) $725 BOOKED
Bedroom #5- King bed with private bath and deck access (oceanfront) $725 BOOKED
Bedroom #6- King bed with private bath and deck access (oceanfront) $725 BOOKED
Bedroom #7 - 2 sets of twin bunkbeds (shared room~ sleeps 4) with private bath $125 per person (total room cost $500) AVAILABLE
Bedroom #8 - King Bed with private bath $575 AVAILABLE
Floor #4
Bedroom #9 - King bed with private path $575 AVAILABLE
