Getting the Love You Want: A Couples Retreat

Getting the Love You Want is a couples retreat at the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, led by Harville Hendrix and Helen LaKelly Hunt. Built on their book Getting the Love You Want: A Guide for Couples, the weekend teaches Imago Relationship Therapy, their approach to building safety, empathy and appreciation between partners. Couples of all genders and sexual orientations are welcome, at any stage of their relationship.

What to Expect

The retreat runs from a Friday evening to a Sunday midday, and it moves between live workshop sessions and self-guided practice for the two of you. The central skill is the Imago Dialogue, a structured way of communicating. Over the weekend, couples work on how to:

- Develop new communication skills using the Imago Dialogue.
- Resolve longstanding frustrations with compassion and ease.
- Establish and maintain safety in the relationship.
- Recreate the passion, attraction and intimacy that first brought you together.
- Find a path to emotional healing and spiritual growth through the relationship.
- Experience a deeper level of empathy and connection with your partner.

The program also treats conflict as an opportunity for growth rather than something to avoid.

Opening day starts with check-in at 2:00 pm, then a Kripalu Yoga class from 4:45 to 6:00, dinner from 5:30 to 7:30, and a first program session from 7:30 to 9:30. On the full day, Kripalu Yoga runs from 6:30 to 7:45 am, followed by silent breakfast until 9:00. A program session fills the morning from 9:00 to 12:00, lunch follows until 1:30, and a second session runs from 2:30 to 5:00. Yoga returns at 4:45, with dinner from 5:30 to 7:30. The closing day repeats the morning pattern of yoga, silent breakfast and a 9:00 to 12:00 session, and ends with lunch and departure. Times can shift, and the schedule given at check-in has the final word and the room locations.

About Harville Hendrix

Harville Hendrix was born in Statesboro, Georgia, in 1935. An ordained Baptist minister, he earned his BA at Mercer University and a BD at Union Theological Seminary, then completed an MA and PhD in psychology and religion at the University of Chicago Divinity School. He taught at Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University and later founded and presided over The Institute for Relationship Therapy in New York. He is best known for co-creating Imago Relationship Therapy with his wife, Helen LaKelly Hunt, and for developing the idea of "conscious partnership."

About Helen LaKelly Hunt

Helen LaKelly Hunt is an activist, writer and relationship therapist. She holds a master's degree in counseling psychology from Southern Methodist University and a Ph.D. from Union Theological Seminary in New York, where her research explored theology and women's activism. She founded and presides over The Sister Fund and co-founded the Texas Women's Foundation, The New York Women's Foundation, the Women's Funding Network and Women Moving Millions. With Harville Hendrix she co-founded Imago Relationships International, a nonprofit that has trained more than 2,500 therapists and educators in over 60 countries. The two are coauthors of Getting the Love You Want.

The Setting

Kripalu sits in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts, with 300 acres of grounds open to guests. Accommodations are intentionally simple, meant to help you unplug. You can choose a private room for solitude and privacy, or a community dorm for those who prefer connection and company. Rooms are ready by 4:00 pm, and a luggage room is available if you arrive earlier. Three meals are served each day, and breakfast is taken in silence.

Before You Go

No prior experience with the Imago Dialogue or couples work is needed. The program is taught in English.

Your stay includes all workshop sessions with Harville Hendrix and Helen LaKelly Hunt, more than ten yoga classes, three meals a day, accommodation on the grounds, and access to Kripalu's facilities. Healing Arts sessions and purchases from the Kripalu Shop and Cafe are extra.

On the day of departure, room check-out is at 10:00 am. You may stay on campus and take part in the workshops until 2:00 pm.