Live long, happily
A retreat in Malibu will incorporate data from the Blue Zones — regions of the world where people live the longest — and the work of psychologist and former Harvard lecturer Tal BenShahar.
The two-night Happiness Retreat will include yoga, meditation and journaling sessions, and a talk by Nick Buettner, a director of Blue Zones, a movement based on the practices of the areas in the world where people live the longest. (Those include Ikaria, Greece; Okinawa, Japan; a community of Seventh-Day Adventists in Loma Linda, Calif.)
“There are huge myths around happiness,” said Tia Graham, founder of Arrive At Happy, a Los Angeles-based company organizing the retreat. “People think that if they get that promotion, relationship, new car or house, they will be happy. But study after study has shown that whatever that new thing is, that happiness only lasts a few months.”
Workshops are intended to arm participants with tools that studies have shown lead to overall happiness; stronger connections with friends and family, intellectual growth and learning how to anticipate — and deflect — inevitable daily stresses. Info: March 21 to 23, Calamigos Ranch, 327 Latigo Canyon Rd, Malibu. Accommodations at Four Seasons Westlake Village. $2,750 per person includes two nights at the hotel, meals, sessions, workshops and transportation between retreat location and hotel. arriveathappy.com