Spark the expansion of your essential nature . . .
Invigorate Liberate Celebrate
Shift paradigm from the depth of your soul
to the peak of your possibilities . . .
Credit: Jan Novotny
NEW title! Formerly Haven-Style Embodiment Training
Now: Dynamic Embodiment: Somatic Breath & Energy Skills Training
Upcoming Offerings at the Haven on Gabriola Island
Practice of Being:
Dates to be Announced
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If you’ve taken Come Alive or another Haven program, you already know the experience of waking up to yourself — that moment when you feel more present, more open, more connected with who you really are and with others.
And you may also recognize the reality of how this is possible:
Being is more than a moment.
Being is a life practice.
Grieving:
Dates to be Announced
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Grieving is a skill that is often undeveloped and overlooked. In this compassionate program, we will learn together and journey through the dimensions of grieving and mourning to open the flow of burdened life-force and emerge full-heartedly.
Grieving within a group gathering cultivates the sense of belonging which is one of the most powerful healing medicines in existence. It is the experience of being held in the embrace of a village.
Come Alive:
Dates to be Announced
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Come Alive is the Haven's most popular core program and the perfect place to begin or continue your journey in personal or professional growth and transformation.
People from all walks of life, backgrounds, experiences, lifestyles, and locations participate in Come Alive and often experience something profound.
Teens Alive 1 & 2
August 15 - 18, 2026
August 18 - 21, 2026
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Join us for the 33rd Year of Teens Alive running at The Haven!
The goal of Teens Alive is to give young people a space to ask questions, share perspectives, try out new approaches when connecting with others, and build a community.
Teens Alive I
Learn foundational models exploring new ways to think of self-criticism and compassion, while connecting with others in new ways.
Teens Alive II
Practice new communication tools and engage in emotional literacy activities, while building community.
Over 500 teens have been a part of and contributed to this program since 1992. Join us for one or both parts in summer, 2025!
Learn more on the new Teens Alive website: teensalive.ca
Mandarin Living Alive: Self Awareness Essentials:
June 6 - 19, 2026
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With 琳达· 尼科尔 斯 Linda Nicholls and 李文淑 Wen-Shwu Lee.
The Mandarin Living Alive programs offer the unique experience of time, space, and guidance to help you (re)discover who you truly are. For 12 days, you’ll have the opportunity to create and establish new or different patterns for conscious living. In Living Alive: Meaningful Connections the focus is on relational awareness. Grounded in experiential learning, it invites participants to explore how they connect, maintain, and end relationships—intimate, social, and professional. You will discover your interpersonal patterns and learn how they shape your life.
Boundaries:
Dates to be Announced
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This dynamic three-day program at The Haven combines teaching and experiential learning about discerning, defining and then effectively expressing your boundaries.
You will also learn about accountability and consequences for when an expressed boundary is not accepted or regarded.
For those who internalize boundary conflicts into an illness pattern, there will be an opportunity to explore and decipher the boundary being expressed through the symptom.
Conscious Breathwork: A Training for Personal Mastery & Professional Skill Development:
July 24 - 26, 2026
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The association of breath with spirit, with the divine, is deeply rooted in so many of our ancient indigenous cultures, including Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism, the meditative and spiritual core of yogic traditions, Christianity and Judaism. This knowledge has been preserved and is practiced today by shamans, mystics, yoga masters, healers, medicine people, meditators and available to all of us should we choose to learn.
Weaving The Threads of Consciousness: Integrating Psychedelics & Peak Experiences:
Dates to be announced
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Transformative work is vital to support the shifts in consciousness necessary to adapt, thrive and lead in the complexity of these very interesting times. There are many wonderful opportunities to help these consciousness shifts through psychedelic and other altered state processes however, many participants who have these ‘transformative experiences’ neglect to integrate them sufficiently. The transformative potential of the experience and the resources invested are wasted, or worse, the person’s world is completely destabilized.
Our intention with this workshop is to honor the transformative potential that lies in participants’ past psychedelic experiences and other transformative processes by integrating the gifts, insights and wisdom that emerged during them; weaving the threads of consciousness into a more integrated life through actions, relationships and transformed worldviews.
Credit: Jan Novotny
Musings
Credit: Jan Novotny
Gathering in a circle to engage in intensely personal and inventive ways is the most healing, life enriching experience imaginable. Every one of us emerges with fresh insight, vitality, inspiration, well-being, and inner strength, prepared to thrive from a deepened sense of connection.
Credit: Jan Novotny
Portals of Expansion
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Conscious Breathing
Conscious breathing is our most potent healing, enlivening capacity. During this dynamic program you will experience a range of breathing patterns that will enhance and sustain your overall vitality and well-being for the rest of your life.
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Defining Boundaries
Defining then acting on a boundary is a relational issue, which is why boundary challenges show up every-where, every-day, personally and professionally. In this illuminating program, you will learn how to discern, define, and express effective boundaries.
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Shadow Exploration
Every one of us has parts of ourselves that we unconsciously repress or deny. Becoming acquainted with our elusive shadow reconnects us with the broader dimensions of our self and others, our deeper nature, our passion and our potential.
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Art & Science of Communication
We humans create, influence and reveal our reality through our languaging. There is a fine art to expressing our reality, verbally and non-verbally, in such a way that we are actually understood by others and listening to others in such a way that we come to understand them.
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Depression Alternatives
From within the depths of depression it is difficult to find the light. This revealing program is an exploration of hidden factors that support suppressing and depressing. Alternatives in support of embracing a fuller, more joyful life will be illuminated.
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Fully Grieving
Grieving is a skill that is often undeveloped and overlooked. In this compassionate program, we will learn together and journey through the dimensions of grieving and mourning to open the flow of burdened life-force and emerge full-heartedly.
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Psychedelic Integration
Expanding into non-ordinary realms of consciousness through psychedelic journeys or other peak experiences is a privilege – and whatever you encounter offers treasures that require integration to be authentically beneficial. It’s time to start living your larger life!
Credit: Harvey Schipper