The A.W.A.K.E.N Project Retreats

The Retreats

Holistic healing for the whole family

To create this space of renewal for families, The AWAKEN Project (TAP) brings together healing services for both children AND parents.

Imagine your child immersed in total happiness, enjoying summer camp activities designed to their wants and needs, experiencing joy, and feeling completely supported. Imagine a camp-style retreat where children with Autism will be immersed in joy by following a camp schedule that guides them through their day in therapies, healing body treatments, and even time to do whatever it is their sweet heart pleases them to do. They will get to experience the most promising, compelling, and potentially life-changing therapies and treatments currently offered in the world, while having the time of their lives.

Parents will be treated with services too, such as a self-care spa, yoga, meditation space, and recreational outings to support a deepening connection with self, their partner, and their child. Parents have the rare opportunity to take a moment for themselves to restore.

As parents find themselves embracing moments of peace and tranquility, their children on the spectrum will be lovingly and safely cared for during the day, with the option of overnights with other children too. 

Siblings are welcomed too and will also find themselves immersed in camp delight! Not only will they have a blast playing through camp, but they will also be taught new ways to bond, play, and interact with their sibling on the spectrum.

Between relaxing in the pool, kayaking, hiking, or just swinging in one of our hammocks, we want to bring the entire family into exhilaration.

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Our specifically designed nutrition plans, education, recreational activities, and training integrate rest, relaxation, and blissful days of camp euphoria. Together, our program elevates families to a higher, more vibrational level of understanding, increasing their ability to adapt to specific challenges and support each other physically, emotionally, and spiritually. At the A.W.A.K.E.N retreats, our dedicated, specially-trained staff will not only provide an inspirational experience for families during their stay, but will also provide them with the tools and extended support they need to begin implementing their new skill sets into their day to day lives once they’ve returned home.

Diet & Nutrition Plans, Cooking Classes

We have created an extremely specialized diet and supplement plan to bring healing to bodies with Autism! Each diet plan will be tailored to the child and their unique needs. TAP will also provide cooking instruction, recipes, and online meal plans to help parents facilitate easy and healthy meals at home.

Equestrian Therapy

Benefits of horse therapy, also known as Hippo-therapy, are many for children on the spectrum. Occupational, physical, and speech therapists utilize horse therapy to reach their patients on a personal level. With the motor, emotional, and sensory awareness of riding a horse, children are able to relax tight muscles and increase their balance, posture, mobility, and function. Riding the horse brings to the child a heightened sense of self awareness, self control, and self confidence. Giving directions to the horse while riding may promote the understanding of following directions while fostering better communication skills. Instead of communicating verbally with horses, children on the spectrum are able to communicate physically through brushing, feeding, petting, and hugging them. Caring for the horse builds an emotional bonding bridge that can lead to improved communication and social skills with other people.
Vestibular sensory organs are stimulated while riding a horse through the direction change, incline, and speed. This stimulation livens sensory receptors in the body, exciting and motivating your child to engage.

Aquatic Therapy

Aquatic therapy builds stronger muscles, improves balance, and develops range of motion for children on the spectrum. 
The water brings a sense of calm to the body, offering a safe place to practice small interactions without the pressure to chat. Water play may be a form of needed exercise that some bodies may not be able to receive anywhere else. Exercise in itself is therapy, and when done in the water, it can be enjoyed as play! Water behavioral therapy helps open pathways for communication outside of the water and also improved focus. Being in the water also ushers a sense of comfort for learning to swim, presenting an opportunity for children to learn a crucial skill that will keep them safe from danger in the future.

Music Therapy

Children on the Autism spectrum seem to be especially responsive to music. It brings joy, and it is incredibly motivating and engaging. Music therapists find musical experiences that strike a happy chord with a child and are able to form a personal connection, building trust. With the formation of trust in another being, accompanied by music soothing the soul and sensory system, we begin to see a grand difference in our children. It has been observed to influence major leaps in social skills, behavior, cognition, sensory integration, and communication.

Art Therapy

Whether simply exploring art materials or tackling a detailed art project, kids are able to find enjoyment, stress relief, and a boost to their self confidence. Very different from art instruction, the goal in art therapy is to invite healthy self expression, build life skills, and address behavioral issues. For those who struggle with words, art is a way to express oneself directly without words. Using images may come more naturally and be a a relief from the daily battle to find the "right" words. With the challenge of understanding tones of voice and facial expression, conversation can be so intimidating and stressful for children on the spectrum. Working side by side on art with a therapist can forge a beautiful bond without forcing an initial need of direct face to face interaction.
A unique form of treatment for Autism, art therapy alleviates sensory and behavioral issues, and help channel autistic behaviors into an outlet of creation and expression.

Treatments

We offer various treatments that are shown to bring significant healing and repairing for a body with Autism. They include:

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Microcirculation

• Bemer bed

• Hyperbaric Chamber

• Far-Infrared Sauna​

• Massage for Autism

A lack of energy production in brain cells combined with too much oxidative stress prevents neurons from firing in the brain and inhibits brain function and neuro development. Microcirculation massively amplifies the cell's ability to produce energy, while also reducing oxidative stress. It brings a dramatic increase of oxygen to the body, helping to keep it healthy, delivering nutrients to body tissues, increasing blood circulation, balancing blood pH levels, cleansing waste, and warding off yeast and other pathogens. Reports have shown greater eye contact, expanded social interaction, more verbal communication, better self regulation, raised self confidence and trust, elevated interest in learning and understanding and healing in digestion.

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• Yoga movement for Autism

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Our Spa Services include:

Pool/Hot tub 

Sauna

Massage

Yoga/ Meditation

Facials

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Our specifically designed nutrition plans, education, recreational activities, and training integrate rest, relaxation, and blissful days of camp euphoria. Together, our program elevates families to a higher, more vibrational level of understanding, increasing their ability to adapt to specific challenges and support each other physically, emotionally, and spiritually. At the A.W.A.K.E.N retreats, our dedicated, specially trained staff will not only provide an inspirational experience for families during their stay, but will also provide them with the tools and extended support they need to begin implementing their new skill sets into their day to day lives once they’ve returned home.

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