Vacations help you escape; retreats help you return home—to yourself. In this bonus episode, Erica and Rusty crack open the “medicine bag” from Becoming the Medicine with The Satsang Project in Costa Rica: jungle dawns, cacao ceremony, applied belonging, and the kind of community that asks, “How’s your practice this week?” Expect island humor, psychology you can actually use, and a love note to human-sized heroics.

What’s inside

• Why retreats ≠ vacations (one is escape, the other is relationship).

• The three pillars: Preparation, Presence, Continuation—and how to pack practices, not just photos.

• How to choose a trustworthy retreat (fit, rhythm, accessibility, substance-free clarity).

• Satsang’s secret sauce: immersion abroad + continuity at home (founder/director Charleen Stokes).

• Rusty’s “hot-or-cold” confession, Erica’s photographer’s eye, and the art of returning without shame.

The Aging Heroes Challenge:
Before you touch your phone tomorrow, take five slow breaths and sip your first drink with full attention. That’s it. Repeat if it feels good.

Perfect for anyone craving steadier mornings, kinder self-talk, and community that sticks around after the airport pickup.

Souvenir to keep: capacity—more breath in the body, more patience in the throat, more calm behind the eyes.

Explore Satsang retreats (destination + at-home): satsangproject.com/retreats

Hit play, take a breath, and start becoming the medicine—daily, imperfect, and very much alive.

In Bocas del Toro, even the parrots and ceiling fans find a groove—and that’s the point. This episode gets real about why lone-wolfing burns you out and how true collaboration (think dragon boats, Beatles energy, and “business hats” at home) multiplies wisdom, speed, and joy. We unpack conditioning (why your hometown smell equals stress), call out ego-in-a-canoe behavior, and give you practical tools to get back in rhythm—plus an Aging Heroes Challenge to practice syncing with one other human this week. Come for the island vibe; leave with a better band, boat, and life.

Cartagena doesn’t ask you to blend in—and neither should your life. In this episode, we wander the Walled City and Getsemaní to explore the difference between fashion vs. style, courage vs. conformity, and why individuality is a service to your relationships, work, and community. Erica shares the modeling-industry pressures to “fit the box,” Rusty roasts his old trucker-cap uniform, and together we build your “stone walls” (core identity) and paint your “mural” (how you express it). Expect practical tools, a gutsy weekly challenge, and some salsa-and-steel-drum energy—plus a playful rum-tasting confession that proves authenticity can be messy and hilarious.

• How to name your non-negotiables (your stone walls)

• Why style beats fashion every time

• The quick test to catch your conformity reflex

• How individuality strengthens relationships, work, and community

• The trap of identity foreclosure—and how to get unstuck

The Stone Wall Expression: do one real, small act that expresses your individuality (wear it, say it, make it, try it). Then write one line about how it felt—freeing, scary, energizing?

• “The opposite of courage in our society is not cowardice; it is conformity.” —Rollo May

• “Fashion fades. Style is eternal.” —Yves Saint Laurent

What You’ll LearnAging Heroes ChallengePull Quotes