Mindful Recovery Retreat

Mindfulness, movement and nature-based practices frame a daylong retreat focused on recovery, stress and nervous system support. The retreat takes place Sunday, June 14 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Patch of Heaven Sanctuary, a 20-acre forest preserve and nature sanctuary in South Miami-Dade. Designed for people navigating addiction, burnout or patterns of attachment, the program uses guided practice, time outdoors and community support as tools for reflection and steadiness.

The day draws on mindfulness meditation, Buddhist Refuge Recovery-informed practices and nervous system soothing techniques, with attention to the many ways addiction and compulsive habits can appear, from digital devices and shopping to drugs and alcohol. Participants will explore practices for breathing through difficult moments, offering self-support in times of urgency and meeting challenging emotions with compassion rather than judgment. A light breakfast and lunch are included.

Teachers and facilitators include:

• Suzanne Jewell, Chief Experience Officer at Patch of Heaven Sanctuary, certified mindfulness meditation teacher, Executive Resilience Coach and Forest Therapy guide, whose work is shaped by lived experience with burnout, C-PTSD and benzodiazepine dependency.
• Alan Almerico, a certified hypnotherapist, life coach, NLP Master Practitioner, HeartMath practitioner, sound healer and musician with personal experience in recovery from drug and alcohol use.
• Shannon Santos, a certified mindfulness meditation teacher, mindset mentor and spiritual life coach with long-term recovery experience and more than 350 hours of teacher training.
• Melissa Sorokin, founder of Beelightful Bees and Patch of Heaven Sanctuary’s official beekeeper, who incorporates her recovery journey and work with pollinators into nature-based mindfulness practices.
• Anamargret Sanchez, a yoga teacher and founder of the long-running “beneath the oak trees” Legion Park community yoga class, bringing decades of study and teaching experience to the retreat.

Set within Patch of Heaven Sanctuary’s subtropical forest environment, the retreat offers a full-day container for slowing down, reconnecting with nature and practicing tools that may support emotional sobriety and recovery.