Running a business is exhilarating, but let’s be honest, it’s also exhausting. As the founder of two businesses in the travel industry, I’ve spent years putting everything into my work. It’s rewarding, but it comes with a cost.
For me, that cost was not having a single full day off in four years. Even on our big overseas holiday last year, balancing sightseeing with finding wifi and trying to keep it all together was not actually a holiday in hindsight.
Eventually, that kind of pace catches up with you. You feel it in your body, your mind, your creativity, or lack thereof. I knew I needed more than a weekend away or an afternoon nap. I needed a true reset. Some frank conversations about my health and what this was doing to my body (thank you , Zoe Mac) led me to Eden Health Retreat in the Currumbin Valley, a sanctuary designed for digital detox, nervous system regulation, and reconnection with yourself.
The power of stepping away
We all talk about work-life balance, but I’ve come to believe that it’s a myth, or at least, the wrong framing. It’s not work versus life. It’s about life balance. Your work is part of your life, but when it starts to consume every moment, there’s no room left for you.
For small business owners, especially those in the travel industry, that constant state of doing becomes our default. We’re used to looking after everyone else – clients, suppliers, staff, family – leaving ourselves last on the list.
Eden forced me to flip that script.
A digital detox, the kind you can’t cheat on
One of the biggest drawcards of Eden for me – despite it being a very scary concept – was the digital detox. Yes, the internet exists there, but only in a couple of small pockets on the very edge of the property. Otherwise, your phone is dead weight. There’s no signal in the valley, and you know what? That’s a good thing.
Without constant notifications, pings, emails, and social scrolling, the day opens up. Time feels different. The mind becomes clearer, more focused. It’s confronting at first, we’re so conditioned to reach for our phones the moment there’s a pause, but once that urge fades, it’s liberating. A freedom opens up. The day is yours to do what you wish.
Reconnecting with my body and mind
Whether you switch off your phone, or not, Eden is about switching back on to yourself.
There’s a continuous program of wellness activities, and while I won’t spoil the full itinerary, the variety is incredible. From breathwork and sound healing to guided walks, yoga and cold-water immersion, it’s a mix of science-backed practices and soulful experiences. Or you can simply choose to do nothing at all.
One of my standout moments was plunging into a freezing rock pool after an early morning hike. I’m not a cold-water person (30-degree pools are for me), but there I was, stripped down at 6:30am, in the middle of winter, diving in with a bunch of people who two days earlier were strangers. It shocked my system, woke me up in ways caffeine never could, and reminded me that pushing past comfort zones is where growth happens.
Sessions on nervous system resets, emotional freedom techniques (tapping), and understanding circadian rhythms gave me practical tools I could take home, because let’s face it, life’s not going to magically stay peaceful because I slowed down for four days. The real world doesn’t disappear, but now I’m better equipped to handle it.
The luxury of doing nothing (without guilt)
Some of my favourite moments weren’t structured activities at all. It was sitting in the sun with a book, lounging by the sauna and hot tub (often blissfully alone), or lying on the grass by the creek and the magical giant bamboo forest, shoes off, just grounding.
There was a massage (or three) that reminded me what it felt like to have tension actively leave my body. And meals? Delicious, nourishing, thoughtfully prepared, eaten without the distraction of screens or schedules.
I even journaled. Something I hadn’t done in years, simply because I hadn’t felt I had the space to.
Coming home with tools
By the end of my stay, not only was I rested, I was recalibrated. More importantly, I wasn’t leaving empty-handed. I had tools to regulate my nervous system, strategies to reconnect with nature in my everyday life, and a renewed understanding of what my body needs to feel safe, steady, and creative again.
Halfway through my stay, I noticed a strange feeling, or more accurately, the absence of one. Something inside me felt … different. Like something was missing. And then it hit me: the constant pressure on my chest, the ever-present hum of stress and anxiety, it wasn’t there. The feeling I was struggling to identify was actually calm. Safety. Stillness.
That is the feeling I want to carry with me as I return to normal life.
And maybe most importantly: I discovered what it feels like to prioritise me. As a lifelong people pleaser, this was not a familiar feeling.
A soft reminder for my fellow business owners
If you’re a small business owner, particularly in the travel industry, I can’t recommend slowing down at a retreat like Eden enough. Not because it’s a luxury (though it certainly feels luxurious), but because it’s necessary. We can’t pour from an empty cup, yet we keep trying.
You don’t have to go to Eden specifically, but do something that pulls you completely out of your normal patterns. Somewhere you can’t default to your laptop or phone. Somewhere that forces you to slow down, reflect, and recalibrate.
Because when we make space for ourselves, not only do we come back rested, we come back better. For our business, for our clients, and most importantly, for ourselves.
