From Pain to Purpose. This is Why I Teach My Retreats In Portugal…
Over the past few months, I’ve shared posts about my retreats in Portugal, my work…and I hope they’ve given you a glimpse into what I’m passionate about.
Now, I want to open the door a little wider and share something more personal with you.
It’s the story behind why I do what I do. A story of loss, healing, and rediscovery.
It’s also the heart of the work I now offer to others with my retreats, a path shaped by lived experience, and guided by creativity, movement, and inner listening.
I want to share something deeply personal with you today—a story that shaped who I am and the work I offer to the world.
Image from one of our retreats in Portugal.
I married a man who mirrored my childhood wounds…
Years ago, I lost my father in a tragic airplane explosion in China. It shattered my family. My mother fell into depression. My siblings drifted into their own ways of coping. I was left alone—with big questions, aching loneliness, and no space to mourn.
And yet... something was planted deep inside me. A seed of creativity. A need to make sense of chaos through expression.
Guided by my grandmother’s wisdom, I turned inward. I began to explore movement, silence, and spiritual listening. I drew. I moved. I wrote quiet, sacred poems. It wasn’t healing—yet. But it was the beginning of something real.
Later, I married a man who mirrored many of my childhood wounds. It took me seventeen years to walk away—from sadness, from emotional distance. But I did. For my children. For myself. For truth.
Nature, Art and Yoga in Portugal.
Yoga, breathing, and creative practices were my saving grace…
Through every chapter, the rituals I returned to—yoga, breath, art—were what kept me connected to myself.
Then came a calling I couldn’t ignore. In 2006, after the tsunami in Sri Lanka, The New York Times reached out. They asked if I’d bring my school-based yoga program to support children there. I said yes. At 3 a.m. that night, I felt it: my life would never be the same.
I traveled with not just yoga in my toolkit—but art, creative voice, and tools to help others find meaning in their suffering. I worked with over 13,000 children and trained hundreds of teachers. And yes, I also faced resistance. In 2008, I survived a targeted attack. I was beaten and broken—but not defeated. Yoga helped me breathe. Art helped me process. Creativity saved me.
This path didn’t just support others—it reshaped me. I stopped seeing life and practice as separate. Creativity, movement, and breath became one thread. They still are.
Today, I pour everything I’ve learned into my work…
Now, I pour everything I’ve learned into the retreats I lead. And I want to personally invite you to the next one.
It’s called Return to Radiance, a yoga and art retreat designed for those who are ready to reconnect to their creativity, their bodies, and their inner guidance.
This is for you if you’ve felt grief, burnout, or the weight of life dimming your spark—and you know, somewhere deep inside, that your story holds medicine. That your creativity is waiting.
We’ll gather in a five-star sanctuary in Portugal. You’ll experience:
Nourishing Ayurvedic meals
A personalized wellness assessment
Tea ceremony & meditation in nature
4 half-days of immersive painting + a tile workshop
Daily yoga and meditation rituals
Space to come home to yourself.
…And so much more.
If your heart is saying yes… I would love for you to join us.
[Click here to find all the details and book your spot]
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reply to this email or email/call Casa Palmela, the beautiful venue for this retreat.
Let’s walk this path together.
With warmth,
Therese.