Dear Fellow Single Woman,

Are you tired of explaining why you’re still single … or single again?

Are you sometimes sad about being single … even though most of the time you are content with your life?

Do you cringe when the women closest to you – like your mom, grown daughter, or best friend – chide you with comments like “You’re too fussy” or “You’re not trying hard enough”?

Do you feel society’s pressure you should be married or partnered – and if you aren’t, that it must be your fault?

When you are with a man, do you feel like you lose part of yourself in the relationship?

Are you uncomfortable being single in a world geared towards couples?

Are you tired of hearing everyone’s unsolicited ideas about why you are single … and what you should do about it?

Isn’t it about time to get rid of their voices and find your OWN voice about what it means to be single (or single again) – at this moment in your life?

If you answered YES to one or more of these questions, please clear your calendar for October 17-19, 2008, and plan to meet me in Madison, Indiana, for this Unique Retreat for Single Women.

A SPECIAL EVENT JUST FOR SINGLE WOMEN

The Unique Retreat for Single Women is NOT about finding a man. You won’t learn where to meet eligible men … how to make yourself more attractive to a man … how to flirt … or any other idea that lays blame on you for being single.

Instead, the Unique Retreat for Single Women is about removing the blame you lay on yourself … as well as deflecting society’s prejudice about singles.

It’s about finding a balance between being independent and self-fulfilled as a single woman yet also wanting the intimacy and companionship of a man.

It’s about keeping your identity … even when you’re with a man.

It’s about understanding past decisions you’ve made about men … and moving on now to the future.

It’s about getting support from other women who understand how difficult it is to be single … and discovering how others handle the struggles of contending with a prejudiced society.

It’s about finding your own voice of how you feel and who you are as a single woman.

It’s about creating ways to make being single easier and less stressful.

And, it’s also about FUN.

Hi, I’m Dr. Karen Gail Lewis. I’m a marriage and family therapist and an author of seven books, including With or Without A Man: Single Women Taking Control of Their Lives, 11 Stories on the Reality of Being Single in a Married World.

I created the Unique Retreat for Single Women to right a major wrong…

Society Is Hugely Biased Against Single Women
(Even Single Women Are Prejudiced Against Single Women!)

As a heterosexual Always Single woman, I know the pressures and biases you face. For close to four decades, I’ve worked with:

• Always Single women who have never had a marriage certificate
• Single Again women who find themselves unattached after a divorce or a husband’s death
• Women suffering from a break-up of a committed relationship.

If you are not married, remarried … or at least “with a man,” society bombards you with the messages that “It’s your fault” and “There’s something wrong with you.”

It’s bad enough dealing with blame and prejudice from society in general.

But what’s even worse is hearing it from those who love you … like your mother, children, even your best friend.

You also hear it from those who should know better – professionals who work with and write self-help books for singles. When their advice starts with what you should do differently to meet or “catch” a man, they too are blaming you – it’s your fault you are single.

And worst of all is the blame you hear from your single friends, like questioning if you really gave that last man a chance. (And then … horror of all horrors: Do you pass this subtle blame and judgment on to other single women?)

  Who Should Attend

The Unique Retreat for Single Women is designed for heterosexual, Always Single and Single Again women who are over 34.

Some signs that you are ready for Unique Retreat for Single Women are:

• You are proud of having created a life and career that is comfortable yet … you are tired of feeling different
• You are angry that society is unkind and unfair to singles
• You want your life as a single woman to be less stressful
• You are indecisive about a current relationship … but you hate or fear the idea of starting over again
• You are older than those 30-somethings and feel you can’t compete
• You want to be with others with similar experiences and feelings about being single – not just to complain about men
• Your friends are all married and you no longer feel comfortable with them (or they with you)
• You are looking for new ways to have your social and emotional needs met
• You need skills for communicating your needs to a current (or future) partner
• You want tools for feeing less different, more solid within yourself – with or without a man

Rediscover Your OWN Voice as a Strong Single Woman

One of the main objectives of the Unique Retreat for Single Women is to help you find your OWN voice about what it means to be single … which allows you to:

• Stop blaming yourself for being single
• Effectively cope with bias from society, family and friends
• Get what you want from your relationships
• Get the support and understanding you need from other single women … and others who love you
• Recognize and avoid negative situations that will bombard you with criticism and unsupportive messages

During our 48 hours together, you will free yourself from the tentacles of society’s stereotypes about singles – both the glamorous images and the stigmas. You will find your authentic self as a woman who happens to be single … as opposed to your being a single woman. You will feel fulfilled, peaceful, and empowered – with or without a man.

What You’ll Discover During This Retreat

During the Unique Retreat for Single Women, we’ll explore a variety of important topics. When you participate, you will:

• Recognize how you have absorbed blatant and subtle social messages about being single – and how they have negatively affected you
• Learn how to “remove” these messages and design your own positive ones
• Stop blaming yourself for being single (as every single woman has been conditioned to do!)
• Learn to spot and avoid negative situations that contribute to your feeling bad about being single
• Skillfully change your response to other’s criticisms … and effectively cope with bias from society, family and friends
• Learn to communicate more effectively with a man, becoming clearer about expressing your needs … and firmer about getting a response
• Become aware of how you may be negatively dealing with your sexual feelings in the absence having a partner
• Create rituals for celebrating major and minor events of your life as a single
• Discover a planful agenda for thinking about being a mother (if that’s what you want)
• Devise a new and more satisfying system for organizing your social life
• Design a “Friendship Garden” that enhances your current friendships and leaves space for making new ones
• Identify the myths about being depressed because you are single
• Recognize the need for physical touch and the effect of its absence
• Strategize for overcoming touch deprivation
• Understanding the gnawing pain of the not knowing if you will ever meet a man of your choice
• Unearth your “Missing Something”
• Access a new level of personal power
• Possess your own Self-Assessment Test to gauge how well you are doing in nine aspects of your life as a single
• Gain guidance and clarity on the unique challenges you face as a single woman
• Develop your personal plan for moving ahead differently … for however long you are single

This list is just a start! Bring your own challenges and questions about being single or single again.

Although I can’t tell you exactly what we’ll discuss at any given point, I can guarantee this: there will be laughter, perhaps some tears… and lots of healing.

How the Retreat Works

This is not a weekend full of lectures; there are no speakers. Instead, the retreat will focus on helping you deal with your specific issues about being single.

Each day is divided into three sessions: morning, afternoon, and evening. The times we are together working on the issues are called “workshops”; There will be several workshops each day. These highly interactive sessions incorporate group discussions, imaginary conversations, imagery, experiential exercises, and lots of other creative techniques designed to help you dig deeper and fully process what you are learning.

Throughout the retreat, we’ll use exercises from Workbook for With or Without A Man, one of the bonuses you’ll receive with your registration package, to help you process and integrate the lessons you’re learning. We’ll also use a Self-Assessment Test to help you gauge how well you are doing in taking control of 9 areas of your life.

Each workshop concludes with an assignment and is followed by free time to absorb what we’ve discussed and to think about how it applies to you. Feel free to take a walk, sit on the grass while watching the steamboats cruise by, or relax in your room on the luxurious Ralph Lauren bed linens as you do your assignment. (You can even feel free to NOT do your assignment … as there no “musts” this weekend!)

During the last workshop, you’ll create your own “action plan,” which will spell out how you’ll use your own voice differently … and what about your life you want to be different as a result of this 48-hour retreat.

6 Months of Support to Help You Implement Your Plan

Too often, women leave a retreat feeling energized … but then they slip back into their “normal” life come Monday morning.

Unlike other retreats that are finished after the last day’s closing session, the Unique Retreat for Single Women builds in six monthly follow-up group telephone sessions. We’ll gather as a small group for 90 minutes once a month so that you can get support and guidance on the challenges you’re facing as you integrate your newfound knowledge, beliefs and voice.

Saturday Entertainment

As fun and liberating as retreats are, your brain still needs downtime. So, the retreat will include plenty of opportunity to kick back and relax…while your unconscious mind keeps working away at all the new ideas.

Before lunch on Saturday, an old fashioned Trolley will pick us up at the Riverboat Inn and take us on a private tour of Historic Madison. After the tour, the trolley will escort us to a local restaurant for lunch, and then return us to the Riverboat Inn for our afternoon workshop.

After dinner on Saturday, we’ll be entertained by a gifted ventriloquist, Barbara Baxter, and her “friends.” The three-act play tells the tale of their experience as singles and how they found their own voice.

When and Where

The Unique Retreat for Single Women will be held October 17-19, 2008, at the Riverboat Inn in Madison, Indiana. This unusual riverside setting is conveniently located between Cincinnati, Indianapolis, and Louisville.

Rooms overlook the Ohio River with its many sail boats, yachts, and the still-active, old-fashioned steamboats. The tastefully decorated rooms are outfitted with Ralph Lauren linen.

To reserve your room, call the Riverboat Inn directly at 1-812-265-2361 or http://www.RiverboatInn.net. (Lodging is not included in fee.)

“So … How Much Will This Cost Me?”

(Hint: It's much less than you would expect)

You probably think that the Unique Retreat for Single Women is outrageously expensive.

And it certainly could be! You get direct personal attention from me for an entire weekend … including 15 hours of workshops (a $1500 value) and six monthly 1½-hour follow-up telephone sessions (a $900 value). That’s $2,400 in services alone … and it doesn’t include all of the other benefits you’ll get when you participate.

2 Ways to Save

But the cost for this once-in-a-life time opportunity is not even close to $2400.

It will NOT cost even half of that.

I believe this weekend will provide you with a life-altering experience. And I want every single woman who is serious about finding her own voice to be able to afford it.

That’s why you can participate in the Unique Retreat for Single Women for a fraction of its true value – your participation fee is only $897.

Plus, if you attend with a friend, you’ll save $100 each – your investment in yourself will be $797.

And, as a further incentive, if you register by June 15, you’ll receive an additional $50 discount.

That’s right. You can participate in the Unique Retreat for Single Women for as little as $747. That’s just $2.05 a day for the next year – less than you spend on a latte.

Reserve Your Seat Now 

Here’s What You Get

When you register for the Unique Retreat for Single Women, you’ll receive:

• Guidance by a nationally known therapist and author. Throughout the weekend, you’ll participate in at least 15 hours of small-group workshop sessions. (A $1,500 Minimum Value)
• Six months of monthly follow-up telephone coaching and support. To fully benefit from everything you learn during the retreat, you must apply your new knowledge and action plan once you get back to the real world. Once a month, we’ll gather as a small group for 90 minutes so that you can get support and guidance on the challenges you’re facing as you integrate your newfound knowledge, beliefs and voice. (A $900 Value)
• With or Without a Man: Single Women Taking Control of Their Lives, my most recent book, which details the nine areas of your life you can control … and that will make you feel better about the life you have for however long you are single (A $18.95 Value)
• Workbook for With or Without a Man, filled with 30 exercises you can use to identify what negative messages and biases about your single status that you’ve absorbed, to shift your thinking, to fight the blues and to create positive change in your life. (A $35 Value)
• Breakfasts and lunches on Saturday and Sunday (A $50 Value)
• Private trolley tour of Madison, Indiana (A $50 Value)
• Evening entertainment by ventriloquist Barbara Baxter (A $120 Value)
• Surprise gifts … some fun and some serious (A $40 Minimum Value)
• AND most importantly … a new perspective on yourself as a single woman and how to confront a prejudiced society (Value: Absolutely Priceless!)

[Note: your participation fee does not include dinners or lodging.]

That’s a total minimum value of $2,718.95! Yours for as little as $747. Enroll now.

Last Chance for 2008

While you don’t have control over making an appropriate man appear in your life, you can take control of the tools available to you to design the best life you can. The deep work that we’ll be doing at the Unique Retreat for Single Women will help you find your own voice, break free of the stigma and stereotypes society has placed on your, and transform your life.

Due to demands of running a full-time private practice while juggling a full speaking calendar, I will be offering the Unique Retreat for Single Women only one time in 2008 – October 17-19 in Madison, Indiana.

If you want 2008 to be the year that you finally shed any buried, lingering feelings of discomfort about being single – so you can fully relish the life you have now, for however long you are single – reserve your spot today.

To reserve your space or for more information, click here or call 1-513-542-0646.

I look forward to accompanying you on this journey of self-discovery and freedom … and as you rediscover your own voice.

Dr. Karen Gail Lewis

P.S. Not sure if this retreat is right for you? Call me at 1-513-542-0646 … or listen to my free preview teleseminar. Click here for details.

P.P.S. Register by June 15, 2008, and save $50. Enroll now.

P.P.P.S. Have a friend or relative who would also benefit from this retreat? Reserve her seat today, too … and you’ll both save $100. Reserve two seats now.

P.P.P.P.S. Part of your program fee may be reimbursable under your medical insurance plan. Call me at 1-513-542-0646 for details.

Reserve Your Space by sending us your name, email and phone number below.