Programs

Rest.Stop.Ranch’s Online, On-site, and Phone programs offer wellness education, skill-training, and healing experiences for long-term caregivers. Workshops, retreats and series programs run regularly.
View our upcoming Events and Register for a Workshop, Retreat, or Series! >
View the Programs Price List 2013 for Organizations >

Program Types include:

• Workshops are available in 30-, 60-, 90- and 120-minute time increments and offer an introduction to learn and experience sustainable wellness techniques and other practices that enhance life quality between members of a family or professional team.
• Respite retreats for active family caregivers are typically three hours.
• Day and weekend retreat programs are available for caregivers in a process of recovery and renewal.
• Four-, six- and eight-week series offer extended support and increased opportunity for learning, self-discovery and transformation.

Program Topics include:

• Take Care of Yourself: Seven Sustainable Skills for the Long-Term Care Journey
  Breathe, Receive, Restore, Renew, Retreat, Reconnect, Recreate – Seven wellness education modules designed for 24/7 dementia and other long-term caregivers offer the opportunity to learn, experience and discuss: breathing, meditation, and restorative yoga techniques; 24/7 body-care and space creation tips; partner yoga, yoga dance, and expressive art healing methods. This program is appropriate for family caregivers, care-receivers, and professional healthcare providers.
• My Doable Self-Care Plan
  Self-Care is a challenge for most busy people. When you add on the responsibilities of intense, long-term caregiving, self-care often goes out the window, and a caregiver’s health sometimes goes down the drain. Caregivers benefit greatly when they develop a self-care program for themselves that is doable for their current life of caregiving. My Doable Self-Care Plan is a 6-week coaching series for long-term caregivers. The small group (max. 6 participants) meets on a weekly basis for 60-minutes each week, while also maintaining a daily self-care vision/action journal. In addition to the weekly coaching, caregivers receive support and networking from group members. At the end of 6 weeks, caregivers have created a Doable Self-Care Plan for themselves that is accessible, affordable and restorative for their current life of caregiving. A Sustaining Support version of this program is available as a followup to the initial 6-weeks, for caregivers who wish to continue receiving the benefits of this type of support as long as needed. This program is offered via conference call and reaches English-speaking caregivers internationally.
• Resurrect, Recover, Renew
  The grief journey for a person who has been a dementia or long-term caregiver can be long and more complex than other types of losses due to the death of a loved one. This inter-disciplinary, interfaith 8-week program provides weekly education, coaching, and support to caregivers who are ready to ‘lift themselves up’ and move forward from the experience of long-term illness and loss. Educational material is drawn from long-term caregiver health research literature, grief literature, trauma and recovery literature, and interfaith sources relating to themes of resurrection and renewal.
• Dance Your Cares Away!
  A 60-minute therapeutic dance program takes long-term caregivers on an all-bodies, all-energies, loving, compassionate, holistic dance journey benefitting physical, mental, social, emotional, and spiritual health. Learn more about this program topic at marymacmusic.com >
• Move & Groove!
  A 60-minute therapeutic dance program takes adults living with extended illness or disability (such as: Alzheimer’s/Dementia, Parkinson’s, MS, ALS, Stroke) on an all-bodies, all-energies, loving, compassionate, holistic dance journey benefitting physical, mental, social, emotional, and spiritual health. Learn more about this program topic at marymacmusic.com >
• Partner Dance
  Partners affected by long-term illness experience immediate benefits in close relationships such as caregiver/care-receiver, mother/father, mother/daughter, father/son, siblings, and special friends when dancing while standing with or without a cane or walker, or sitting on a chair or wheelchair. A 60-minute therapeutic dance program brings partners on an all-bodies, all-energies, loving, compassionate, holistic dance journey benefitting physical, mental, social, emotional, and spiritual health. Learn more about this program topic at marymacmusic.com >
• Music Ministry at Home with Family and Friends
  In the course of a long-term illness, it often becomes difficult or impossible to make it to places of worship and faith-community (i.e. the church, synagogue, mosque…) –this is true for the person suffering the long-term illness as well as the 24/7 caregiver. This program explores the use of sacred music from a family’s faith tradition being used at home to foster experiences of family connection with each other and with God/Spirit/Eternal and Infinite. Learn more about this program topic at ruahmusica.com >

Inquire about scheduling a workshop or retreat at your location!
Use our web form: Contact Us
Email: programs@rest-stop-ranch.com
Phone: 978-887-4202

The Me Moments Collection is celebrated by busy moms and dads, students, small and big business people, and by the people for whom they are created – long-term caregivers and receivers! Our free self-serve media library providing 2-, 5- and 10-minute guided relaxation podcasts can be accessed 24/7 from mobile phones, home and work computers.

Browse the Me Moments Collection >
listen, practice and post your comments or questions!

Take 2, 5, or 10 minutes to:
Breathe
Two minutes is all it takes to re-set your system: Turn off the sympathetic nervous system (fight, flight or freeze) and break the chronic stress! Turn on the soothing and restorative properties of the parasympathetic nervous system.
Receive
Five minutes of guided meditation can help you clear your mind of lists and to-dos, progressively relax from head to toe, or help you feel the love that surrounds you.
Restore
Take ten minutes to set up, settle in, be in and come out of a wonderfully restorative posture (gentle modifications to postures are suggested for most poses). Restorative yoga benefits the nervous, musculo-skeletal, organ, and cardiovascular systems.

Who Benefits? The Past and Present of the Me Moment

On World Alzheimer’s Day, 2010, we launched the “Rest.Stop.Weekly” – this respite ezine was delivered for twenty-five weeks and delivered four relaxation podcasts each week. We received feedback that these podcasts were really good, even great– and that “a 2 minute breathing break really works!” Although originally developed for dementia caregivers, cancer patients, moms, dads, students, employees and business owners discovered the two-, five-, and ten-minute Me Moments and loved them! The Me Moments Collection was created and launched on World Alzheimer’s Day 2011. We will continue to develop the Me Moments Collection in ways that nurture our community members. Enjoy!