JOANNA
URWIN
YOUR HOST
How 'Nourish Ourselves' Began
There was a time when my life was very busy.
I ran a successful, award-winning video production company and worked with international clients, travelling the world. The work was creative and exciting, but it also came with long hours, constant activity, and the pressures that often accompany modern working life.
From the outside everything looked full and successful.
But gradually I began to feel something many people experience at some point in their lives — a quiet longing for a different rhythm.
A life with more space.
More simplicity.
More connection with nature.
Discovering the Farmhouse
In 2002 I discovered and bought a farmhouse in the countryside near Bergerac, in the beautiful Dordogne region of south-west France.
Surrounded by vineyards and open skies, it felt like a completely different world.
At first it became my personal refuge.
Whenever I came here from the UK, life slowed down almost immediately. The air felt softer. The days felt longer. The constant noise of modern life seemed to fade into the background.
I began to realise how much we all need places like this — places where we can step away from the pace of everyday life and simply be.
Something Unexpected
Over time I started inviting friends to stay.
What surprised me was how quickly they responded to the calm of the place.
Women who arrived tired or overwhelmed would gradually begin to relax. Conversations became deeper. Sleep returned. Laughter appeared again around the table.
Again and again I heard the same words:
“I didn’t realise how much I needed this.”
That was when the idea for Nourish Ourselves Retreats began to take shape.
A place for women to pause
Nourish Ourselves Retreats was created to offer women something that has become increasingly rare in our busy world:
Permission to pause.
Many of the women who come here are navigating full and complicated lives — careers, families, responsibilities, expectations.
Sometimes they arrive feeling tired, uncertain, or simply in need of space.
Here there is no pressure to transform yourself or achieve anything.
Instead, the invitation is simple:
Rest.
Breathe.
Spend time in nature.
Share nourishing food.
Reconnect with what matters to you.
Some women enjoy creative activities such as cooking or photography. Others prefer quiet walks, reading in the garden, or simply enjoying the peaceful surroundings.
Everything is offered gently and without expectation.
The meaning of nourishment
The word nourish means something deeper than simply feeding the body.
It means restoring ourselves in ways that truly sustain us.
For some women that nourishment comes through conversation and connection.
For others it comes through silence, reflection, or time alone.
Each retreat unfolds naturally, according to the needs of the women who are here.
A gentle invitation
My hope is that every woman who visits leaves feeling lighter and clearer than when she arrived.
More rested.
More connected with herself.
Because sometimes the most powerful thing we can do is simply give ourselves permission to slow down.
And remember what it feels like to breathe again.
Nourish Ourselves Retreats
For the soul’s quiet unfolding
