Just Moved in Together? Planning Marriage? Newlywed?
Build a Lasting Connection™ – a strong foundation – for long term relationship success.
You’ve chosen your significant other. There’s lots of excitement involved in beginning life together with your sweetheart. You furnish your place together, make decisions about paying the bills and sharing closet space. Perhaps you plan a wedding.
And you want it to be forever!
This Lasting Connection™ Retreat moves beyond the tangibles of furniture and finances and takes you on a deep dive into communication and sex, bonding and connection, conflict and repair. Best of all — you’ll learn a reliable process you can take with you into your forever future.
You WILL leave this retreat with a deeper emotional connection. Guaranteed!
Next Lasting Connection™
Online
Spread over 5 Thursday evenings
March 3, 10, 17, 24, 31, 2022
7-9 pm
The Lasting Connection™ Mat (or LC Twister)
You’ll use the Lasting Connection™ mat to deepen communication between you and your partner and to facilitate emotional depth while exploring possibilities. The Lasting Connection™ mat gives you a safe way to stay connected even when you have different perspectives and opinions. The mat keeps the process transparent so you remain clear about what you want to explore, decide or heal together.
The Lasting Connection™ mat will be mailed to you prior to the beginning of the online retreat. When the Lasting Connection™ retreat is in-person you will have a mat available to you when you arrive.
About the Lasting Connection™ Retreat
Based on the latest education research the Lasting Connection™ retreat is designed to provide couples with the essential components their relationships need to build a lasting love that will stay strong to weather the storms of life.
The Lasting Connection™ retreat is built on John Gottman’s research on couples and is infused with attachment theory. The experience is structured around a relationship pyramid that has five sections including attachment, communication, managing conflict, physical intimacy, and shared dreams. Each section builds upon the last, so the couple is able to conceptualize their relationship as a process of building, growing, evolving, developing and rising up in a collaborative manner. In the retreat, couples will first be given an overview of the nature of love, and the core concepts of attachment. As the retreat proceeds, attachment remains interlaced with each concept to reinforce the foundational principle of attachment throughout the life of the couple relationship.
The Lasting Connection™ retreat must be led by a trained facilitator and is either presented in a 2-day format or in a weekly format for 5 weeks. Irene Oudyk-Suk, the facilitator for this retreat, has been personally trained by Dr. Debi Gilmore and Dr. Rebecca Jorgensen, the developers of the Building a Lasting Connection™ program.
Online Details
Spring 2022, Thursdays 7 – 9 pm
You’ll each need to be in the same location
You’ll each receive a zoom invite to your email prior to the scheduled start time. Please sign into zoom on one device (laptop works best!)
Further information related to technical requirements
Plan on having empty floor space behind you on which you can lay down your 8×4’Lasting Connection™ mat
When you register the Lasting Connection™ mat will be mailed to you.
In-Person Details
postponed for now, Friday 6 – 10 pm, Saturday 9 am – 4 pm
Lunch on Saturday: bring your own or delivered via Uber Eats at your expense
Location: Lawrence Park Community Church, 2180 Bayview, Toronto (just south of Lawrence, across from Sunnybrook Hospital). Though this is a church there is not a religious focus at this retreat.
Upcoming Retreats
February 11, 12, 18, 19, 2022
Fridays 6-9:30pm, Saturdays 10:00am-1:30pm
March 3, 10, 17, 24, 31, 2022
5 Thursdays, 7-9pm
Touch & Physical Intimacy In-person
April 1-3, 2022 Caledon, ON
Friday 4-7pm, Saturday 9am-3pm, Sunday 10am-3pm
May 13-15, 2022 Toronto
Friday 2-6pm, Saturday 9:30am-4:00pm, Sunday 1-5pm
Online March 3, 10, 17, 24, 31, 2022
This event is limited to 6 couples.
| Registration Deadlines | Retreat Fee | Materials* | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before Jan. 24, 2022 | 624 | 0 | 624 Per Couple |
| Jan. 24 – Feb. 6, 2022 | 674 | 0 | 674 Per Couple |
| Feb. 7 – Feb. 13, 2022 | 724 | 0 | 724 Per Couple |
| Registration closes Sunday, Feb. 13 , 2022 at 11:55 pm |
*Materials cost includes the venue charges, workbooks, snacks, beverages. Does not include overnight accommodation. There is no material fee for this online retreat.
*Materials cost includes the venue charges, workbooks, snacks, beverages. Does not include overnight accommodation. There is no material fee for this online retreat.
Discounts
Please note that there are no available discounts for the Lasting Connection™ retreats.
This retreat is a workshop; it is not therapeutic in the same way that the Hold Me Tight® and the Physical Intimacy retreats are, so no medical receipt will be distributed at the conclusion of the retreat.
Times and Other Details
Times: Thursdays, 7 – 9 pm
Internet: You’ll need to be in the same location. You will need access to a laptop or a desktop, an internet connection with good bandwidth and a private location. You’ll each receive a zoom invite to your email prior to the scheduled start time. Please sign into zoom on one device (laptop or desktop is best). Check out additional technical requirements
In addition to the technical considerations plan on having empty floor space behind you on which you can lay down your 8×4’Lasting Connection™ mat
In-Person 2022, Toronto, ON fees
| Registration Deadlines | Retreat Fee | Materials* | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before__, 2022 | Per Couple | ||
| __-__, 2022 | Per Couple | ||
| __- __, 2022 | Per Couple | ||
| Registration closes Sunday,__, 2022 at 11:55 pm |
*Materials cost includes workbooks, snacks, beverages. Does not include overnight accommodation.
*Materials cost includes the workbooks, snacks, beverages. Does not include overnight accommodation.
Discounts
Please note that there are no available discounts for the Build A Lasting Connection™ retreats.
This retreat is a workshop; it is not therapeutic in the same way that the Hold Me Tight® and the Physical Intimacy retreats are, so no medical receipt will be distributed at the conclusion of the retreat.
Times and location
Times: Friday 6pm – 10pm, Saturday 9am – 4pm.
Location: