Retreats

Black woman with curly hair in athletic wear lying on her back on a white towel, one hand on her chest, eyes closed, looking up toward the sky

You don’t have to carry it all alone.

At Compassion Collective we create intimate, culturally attuned spaces where successful Black women can lay their armor down and be held with tenderness. Our retreats are not escapes. They are practices where rest is not a reward, but a birthright.
Body of water with red flowers in the foreground and mountains in the distance

The Courage to Bloom Dickerson Spring Retreat

  • On Heartache, Renewal & Self-Nurturance

    When was the last time you allowed yourself to be held while your heart was hurting?

    This retreat is for the woman carrying quiet sorrow — the grief of a relationship that ended, the loss of someone you love, or the slow, unspoken exhaustion of always being the strong one. It’s for the part of you that is tired of “pushing through,” and ready to be met with something gentler.

    Over four days in the soft bloom of spring in Dickerson, MD, we’ll explore how to tend to your own heart with patience and reverence. You’ll be guided through practices that invite rest, emotional release, and the courage to feel again. Here, healing is not rushed. Grief is honored. And blooming is still possible, no matter how many times your heart has been broken.

  • Arrival: Thursday, April 23 (3:00–4:00 PM)
    Departure: Sunday, April 26 (12:00–1:00 PM)
    Location: A private retreat home in Dickerson, MD just an hour from DC, surrounded by quiet woods and expansive sky.

    • 4 days and 3 nights in a serene, luxury retreat home in Dickerson, MD

    • Your choice of private or shared accommodations, surrounded by quiet woods and mountain air

    • All meals prepared by a private chef: breakfast, lunch, dinner, and nourishing snacks

    • Daily guided meditation and tea rituals

    • Facilitated group sessions supporting healing around heartache, renewal, and self-nurturance

    • Creative and experiential practices to help you process, release, and reconnect

    • Access to hot tub, fire pit, and nearby nature trails

    • Thoughtful welcome gifts and personal touches throughout your stay

    • Pre-retreat preparation materials to ground you before arrival

    • Ongoing community support through the Compassion Collective after the retreat ends

  • From $900 per person

    This experience is intentionally intimate. We welcome only 6 women to ensure there is space, emotionally and physically, for depth, softness, and true transformation.

Book Your Experience

Not sure which experience is right for you?

Take our Readiness Quiz to discover the offering that best aligns with where you are on your journey. Whether you’re seeking reflection, connection, or deep restoration, this quiz helps you identify the Retreat, Salon, or Supper that meets you where you are.

Take the Quiz

Additional Offerings

Dining table with a half-filled champagne glass, surrounded by peach and watermelon and a floral centerpiece

Soft Life Supper Summer Solstice 2026

  • The Summer Solstice marks the longest day of the year — peak light, full bloom, and the sun at its highest point. It’s a time to celebrate, step into visibility, and honor the fullness of who you are without apology.

    This Soft Life Supper invites you to bask in your feminine glory. Together, we’ll explore the Compassion Collective framework of the 7 divine feminine archetypes. Not as rigid categories, but as a container to honor all the versions of womanhood within you: the lover, the queen, the maiden, the mystic, and more. We’ll celebrate pleasure as practice, passion as fuel, and playfulness as a form of resistance against the world’s relentless expectations.

    This evening is about more than conversation — it’s about embodying your light, allowing yourself to be seen, and remembering that joy is your birthright, not something to earn after the work is done.

    • You want to explore pleasure, passion, and play as essential practices — not guilty indulgences

    • You’re ready to step into visibility without apologizing for taking up space

    • You’re curious about the divine feminine archetypes and how they show up in your life

    • You seek connection with women who celebrate your light rather than ask you to dim it

    • You want a taste of the Compassion Collective retreat experience in an intimate evening setting

Learn More

Black woman with short hair wearing a white suit, sitting at a table with a laptop and looking out the window while sipping from a copper cup with straws.

Virtual Gatherings Year-Round Salons 2026

  • Our Virtual Gatherings bridge the distance—between retreats, across cities, and for women at different points in their Compassion Collective journey.

    Held on the 2nd Thursday of each month, 6:45–8:00 PM EST, each 75-minute session blends guided mindfulness, reflective practice, and meaningful dialogue.

    For those who have experienced the depth of our retreats, these gatherings provide ongoing connection and support, no matter where you are in the world. For newcomers, they offer a chance to meet Esther, explore our core frameworks, and see if this community feels like home.

    • Practical tools and frameworks you can immediately apply to daily life, from mindfulness prompts to self-compassion practices

    • Ongoing support and connection for retreat alumnae to stay grounded between in-person gatherings

    • A welcoming introduction for new participants to experience the intimacy, luxury, and cultural resonance of Compassion Collective

    • Space for personal reflection to explore how core themes can reshape your daily rhythms

    • Direct access to Esther, including a 15-minute Q&A after each session for questions, guidance, and tailored support

Learn More

Black woman with curly hair in athletic wear lying on her back on a white towel, one hand on her chest, eyes closed, looking up toward the sky

Embodiment as Reclamation Spring Salon 2026

  • Everyone’s talking about embodiment. But what does it really mean to live in your body when you’ve spent years ignoring its signals?

    For high-achieving Black and Brown women navigating a world that polices our bodies, dismisses our pain, and demands constant strength, embodiment isn’t a trend. It’s a reclamation, a practice of listening to the body you’ve been conditioned to override in pursuit of productivity, palatability, or survival.

    This Salon moves beyond surface-level conversations to explore what it truly means to be present in your physical self. Together, we’ll discuss somatic practices, the politics of Black women’s bodies, pleasure as a pathway to presence, and how to reconnect with the wisdom your body has been offering all along.

    • You’ve heard “listen to your body” but aren’t sure how, after years of overriding its signals

    • You want to explore embodiment through a lens that honors the realities of living in a Black woman’s body

    • You’re curious about somatic practices but want more than surface-level wellness content

    • You seek intellectually rigorous conversation grounded in lived experience

    • You want to be in community with women who understand the complexity of reclaiming your physical self

Learn More

Voices from The Collective

  • "A Compassion Collective retreat is like the exhale on a Jill Scott song. Restorative, supportive, energizing."

    Laurie P.

  • "What differentiates this retreat is the continued support even after the retreat. I love knowing I have this collective of women in my life."

    Kasandra J.

  • "My experience in one word? Peaceful. The villa and meditations allowed my busy body to be still and find pleasure in the quiet solitude."

    Lindsey B.