Saprea > Blog > All Blogs > The Saprea Retreat is for You. Yes! I Am Talking to You.

Share this blog on:

The Saprea Retreat is for You. Yes! I Am Talking to You.

We face an interesting challenge at Saprea. We designed our services for a specific segment of women, but those women often think our services are for someone else.

Let me explain. When we started planning the Saprea Retreat, we specifically wanted to create a place for the “Forgotten Survivor”—the woman who is doing okay in life; the woman who has figured out how to cope with her abuse; the woman who is high functioning; but the woman who is still affected, often deeply, by what happened so many years ago.

We wanted this retreat because there are a lot of services for the woman in crisis, but there is virtually nothing for the resilient woman who has figured out a way to cope with the crisis yet still feels many effects. We know that she still deals with the impact of her abuse, and, despite her tremendous efforts, she still feels broken.

We often hear from participants that they almost didn’t apply because they felt the spot should go to someone else, someone more “deserving.” We hear statements like:

“I’m doing okay. Let someone else come that is really struggling.”
“My abuse wasn’t as bad as other people’s. I don’t want to take a spot from them.”
“I’ve moved on. Help someone who is still struggling.”

At Saprea, we want the “high-functioning,” “doing okay,” “not as bad as someone else” survivor to know that our retreat is for you. We built the retreat experience for you. We want to help you move past coping to healing.

Here are two questions you can use to know if the Saprea Retreat is for you:

Are you an adult woman who was sexually abused at or before age 18?

Are you coping and even high-functioning but still feel the effects of trauma?

If the answer to these two questions is “yes,” then we are here for you. And we want you to come. You are worth the time, the funding, and the attention.

No matter where you are on your healing journey—at the beginning, somewhere in the middle, or near the end—we are confident you will find value in what we offer.

So next time you doubt whether or not the Saprea Retreat is for you, we hope there is a little voice in your head that says, “Yes! In fact, it is designed just for me.”

About the author

Chris Yadon, MPA

Managing Director

As Saprea’s first employee and Executive Director, Chris Yadon collaborated closely with the organization’s founders to launch and establish its operations in 2015. Chris now serves as the Managing Director, leading the organization’s public efforts to drive societal change around the issue of child sexual abuse. He has previously held executive leadership positions for start-up tech and healthcare organizations. Chris is committed to driving broad societal change to address child sexual abuse and uses his influence as a thought leader and strategist to inspire others to take action. He firmly believes we can collectively create a better future for our children. A sought-after speaker, Chris inspires audiences with timely topics such as overcoming emotional numbing by learning how to feel again, protecting children from child sexual abuse in a hypersexualized world, and how to intentionally drive societal change. He has been featured across several media platforms where he is requested to contribute as an industry leader and subject matter expert. Chris received a BA and an MPA degree from Brigham Young University. He is the grateful father of six children: three boys and three girls. He and his wife, Christy, have been married for 28 years.