SAVE THE DATE
REAL Widowhood Weekend: #NextYou Experience
December 3–6, 2026 | Virginia Beach, Virginia
The REAL Widowhood Weekend: #NextYou Experience is an intimate retreat created exclusively for widows who are ready to step out of survival mode and into restoration. Set in a beautiful Virginia Beach home, this special weekend includes chef-prepared meals, meaningful conversations, self-care experiences, laughter, encouragement, and connection with women who truly understand the journey. Submit your interest form today: https://bit.ly/nextyou-experience-interestform
As the holiday season approaches and another New Year begins without the love of your life, give yourself the gift of being cared for, nourished, and supported.
TWO SIGNATURE EXPERIENCES.
ONE TRANSFORMATIONAL WEEKEND.
Whether you missed our live Interest Meeting or are just discovering the REAL Widowhood Weekend: #NextYou Experience, everything you need to explore this unique retreat is available here.
Watch the recorded Information Session, download the Retreat Guide, and discover how two nationally recognized grief leaders have combined their signature programs into one unforgettable weekend designed to help widows move from surviving to living with renewed purpose.
This isn’t simply a retreat. It’s an opportunity to better understand your grief, reconnect with yourself, and leave with practical tools, meaningful relationships, and hope for what’s next.
Two Signature Experiences
The #NextYou Experience with Maya Dionne
Rediscover who you are beyond your loss.
Maya will guide you as you:
✨ Rediscover your #NextYou
✨ Create your personal roadmap forward
✨ Build a life of purpose through authentic sisterhood
Her work helps participants envision the life they still have the opportunity to create.
Where Grief Gets Stuck™ with Dr. Tina Fornwald
Understand why grief can feel overwhelming and learn practical ways to move forward.
Dr. Tina will guide you through:
✨ Understanding Where Grief Gets Stuck™
✨ Identifying your Five Survival Patterns™
✨ Recognizing what’s keeping you from moving forward
✨ Learning practical strategies to navigate grief with greater confidence
✨ Receiving The Five Widows Club: 30-Day Companion Journal to continue your healing after the retreat
Her work provides attendees with practical tools they can apply long after the weekend concludes.
One Transformational Weekend
Together, Maya’s #NextYou Experience and Dr. Tina’s Where Grief Gets Stuck™ create a retreat unlike any other.
You’ll leave with:
✨ A clearer understanding of your grief
✨ A renewed vision for your future
✨ Practical tools for everyday life
✨ A supportive community of women who truly understand
✨ Resources you can continue using long after you return home
Watch the Information Session
Learn about:
✨ The retreat vision and purpose
✨ Weekend schedule and activities
✨ Maya Dionne’s #NextYou Experience
✨ Dr. Tina’s Where Grief Gets Stuck™ framework
✨ The Five Survival Patterns™
✨ The companion journal
✨ Accommodations, meals, and frequently asked questions
▶️ Watch the Information Session
Download the Retreat Guide
Explore the retreat at your own pace with our downloadable guide, including schedules, accommodations, what’s included, and additional details.
Join Us
Healing doesn’t happen because time passes.
Healing happens when we have the right support, meaningful tools, and the courage to take the next step.
If you’re ready to invest in yourself and discover what’s possible beyond survival, we’d be honored to welcome you to the REAL Widowhood Weekend: #NextYou Experience.
Testimonial
DATES & LOGISTICS
Retreat Dates
- Thursday, December 3, 2026 Travel & Arrival
- Friday & Saturday Full Retreat Days
- Sunday, December 6, 2026, Departure
Location: Virginia Beach, Virginia
(Exact venue details will be shared when registration opens.)
EXPERIENCE OVERVIEW
What to Expect
While the full schedule will be shared closer to registration, the Real Widowhood Weekend is designed to include:
- Guided moments of reflection
- Gentle opportunities for connection
- Quiet time by the ocean
- Space for rest, journaling, and breathing
- A supportive environment that honors choice and personal boundaries
This is not a clinical experience, nor is it a performance-based retreat. This retreat is not group therapy, nor is it a high energy or performance-based experience. It is a gently guided space rooted in choice, rest, and respect for individual grief journeys.
It is a place to arrive as you are and leave a little lighter.
WHO THIS RETREAT IS FOR
This Weekend May Be Right for You If You Are:
- A widow seeking rest rather than fixing
- Craving meaningful connection without expectation
- Wanting space to reflect, breathe, and soften
- Early in grief or many years beyond loss
- Drawn to healing environments rooted in gentleness and dignity
You do not need prior retreat experience.
You do not need to know anyone attending.
Interest Form Details
We are now accepting Interest Forms for the REAL Widowhood Weekend: #NextYou Experience, taking place December 3–6, 2026 in Virginia Beach, VA.
Submitting the Interest Form allows us to better understand your current season of widowhood and determine whether this retreat is the right fit for you. It also gives you priority communication regarding registration and retreat updates.
The Interest Form includes:
- Contact information
- Your widowhood journey
- Why you’re interested in the retreat
- Readiness and commitment
- Timeline for joining
- Emotional fit
- Final reflection
- Preferred contact method
Complete the Interest Form here:
Hosting & Collaboration
Real Widowhood Weekend: #NextYou Experience is a collaboration hosted by Widowhood Real Talk with Dr. Tina and The Bounce Back Widow® (Widows Do Bounce Back LLC).
Together, these two widow-led organizations share a commitment to compassionate, grief-informed support, creating a space that honors loss while fostering resilience, rest, and restoration.
This collaboration reflects a unified vision:
to hold widows with care, dignity, and respect without pressure, performance, or expectation.
The #NextYou Experience Scholarship Fund
Not every widow who needs healing can afford the journey.
The REAL Widowhood Weekend: #NextYou Experience was created for widows who are ready to step out of survival mode and into restoration — a weekend filled with practical grief tools, meaningful conversations, rest, and authentic community.
We believe that financial circumstances should never be the reason a widow misses the opportunity to heal.
That’s why we created the #NextYou Experience Scholarship Fund.
Your generosity helps provide scholarships so widows can experience:
- 💜 A safe community where they don’t have to carry grief alone.
- 💜 Practical tools to help them move forward.
- 💜 Time and space to focus on their own healing.
- 💜 Hope for what comes next.
To honor every woman’s dignity, scholarship recipients remain confidential, and every attendee participates equally, regardless of how her retreat experience was funded.
Because healing doesn’t happen in isolation.
Every widow deserves a seat in the circle.
If this mission speaks to your heart, we invite you to help another widow receive the gift of a #NextYou Experience.
Prefer to give from your phone? Point your camera at the code above.
FAQ
The Real Widowhood Weekend is explicitly designed for widows at any stage of their grief journey. Whether your loss is recent or many years behind you, you are welcome here.
No. Sharing is always optional. This retreat honors personal choice, boundaries, and emotional safety. You will never be required to speak, share, or participate beyond your comfort level.
The retreat is grounded in compassion, respect, and dignity. The Real Widowhood Weekend is inclusive and welcoming to people of all backgrounds and beliefs.
The weekend will include gentle, guided experiences focused on reflection, rest, and connection, along with time for quiet and personal space. Full details will be shared closer to registration.
This is a small, intimate retreat. Attendance will be limited to preserve a calm, supportive environment and allow for meaningful connection.
Yes. There is no “right” time to attend. Many widows find value in simply being in a space where their grief is understood without explanation.
That’s okay. Joining the waitlist does not commit you to attending. It simply allows you to receive information as details are released, so you can decide when the time comes.
Additional details, including pricing and lodging information, will be shared in Early 2026.
Registration is expected to open in Spring 2026.
You can email wrtwtevents@gmail.com with “Real Widowhood Weekend 2026” in the subject line to join the interest list or ask questions.
Let the waves hold space for you.
Let the sunrise remind you that your light is still here.
We look forward to sharing more when the time is right.
Join Our Sponsor Interest List Today!
Real Widowhood Weekend: #NextYou Experience is jointly hosted by Widowhood Real Talk with Dr. Tina and The Bounce Back Widow®, a collaborative partnership rooted in shared values of compassion, healing, and support for widows.
