Let’s face it, talking about sex, especially as women, often comes with a lot of baggage. Whether it’s shame, awkwardness, cultural conditioning, or just the day-to-day pressures of life, many women report feeling disconnected from their own sexuality and sometimes even from their own bodies.
But there’s a quiet revolution happening. Across the UK and beyond, more and more women are stepping into safe, supportive spaces to explore their sensuality and reclaim a sense of sexual empowerment. And at the heart of this shift? Sexual retreats.
What Are Sexual Retreats?
Forget the spa days and yoga weekends, these retreats are designed to go deeper. Sexual empowerment retreats offer guided workshops, somatic practices, bodywork, and open conversations about desire, touch, and intimacy. They’re not about performance, and they’re definitely not about pleasing others. They’re about you, your relationship with your body, your pleasure, and your power.
For many women, these retreats are the first time they’ve been given full permission to explore what sexuality means for them. And that can be incredibly healing.
Disconnection from Our Bodies
It’s surprisingly common for women to feel a lack of connection with their intimate selves, not just emotionally, but physically. Some of this stems from cultural taboos and a lack of comprehensive sex education. Many of us were taught that our bodies are things to be managed or hidden, not celebrated.
Others may carry past trauma, shame, or simply years of being touched or looked at through someone else’s lens. The result? A sense of numbness, a disconnect from pleasure, or a deep longing for more intimacy with ourselves.
Somatic Sexology
This is where somatic sexology comes in, a growing field that’s catching attention in the UK. “Somatic” simply means body-based. Somatic sexologists work with people to explore touch, consent, arousal, and emotional connection in a grounded, body-aware way.
It’s not about technique or textbook knowledge, it’s about feeling, sensing, and slowly unwinding the layers that have dulled our connection to pleasure. It can be life-changing, especially for women who’ve spent years feeling that something was missing, but didn’t know how to start finding it again.
Inclusive spaces
While these kinds of retreats have been gaining popularity for some time, a new sexual empowerment retreat in Australia, created specifically for queer women, is making waves. Believed to be one of the first of its kind, it's part of a broader movement to create inclusive, safe, and affirming spaces for women of all identities to explore sexuality on their own terms.
It’s a powerful reminder that sexuality is not one-size-fits-all, and our journeys of discovery deserve to be as unique as we are.
These retreats aren’t about fixing anything. They’re about remembering, remembering what it feels like to be truly present in your body, to feel joy in your skin, to own your pleasure without apology.
And in a world that often tells women to be quieter, smaller, or less, spaces that celebrate sensual exploration and self-connection are not just welcome. They’re necessary.
At Agora, we believe that sexual wellness is an essential part of whole-body wellbeing, and that every woman deserves to feel truly at home in her body. That’s why we’re organising a series of events designed to offer support, guidance, and a safe, welcoming space where women can share their stories, connect, and learn from one another.
Keep an eye on this space to find out more about these upcoming events!
As I conclude, know that you are not alone on this path to better health and wellness. Your journey is unique but together we form a community of strength and support.
Let’s thrive together,
Cristina xx
