rancho la puerta

Before I met my husband and way before kids I hit a wall.  My job was not working out, I had gained 20 lbs and I felt awful, mentally and physically. My life was not on the right path.  I was single with no dating prospects and I had followed the money trail instead of fulfillment with my job.  One night during this period I awoke at 4:00am with horrible pains in my left side.  I ended up in the emergency room with kidney stones.  My stress levels were at an all time high.  A girlfriend who worked at Rancho La Puerta asked me to come down for a week to visit.  It was late October, the weather was changing to winter and I knew if I didn't get away then I would fall deeper into depression.  I was desperate.  I am forever grateful to my friend for her generosity and compassion that week.  My experience at the Ranch changed my life.  It is a beautiful retreat nestled in mountains and surrounded by flowering bushes, rosemary, and grape vines.  I decided to start each day with a 3.5 mile sunrise hike up Pilgrim Way trail and then, after an organic breakfast, try my hand at a yoga, kick boxing or a T'ai Chi class.  After lunch the temps would rise above 90 degress so with my excercise complete I would spend the afternoon relaxing in the pool or having a treatment in the spa.  After dinner I would slowly make my way back to my cottage stopping to sit in a private corner reflecting on my day.  I didn't think much about my plan once I returned home instead focusing all my energy on healing my spirit.  I cried a lot.  I laughed a lot.  And I regained the strenghth I had lost.  Upon my return home I immediately started looking for a new job.  It took me six months to leave that company and then another six months of "time off" before I settled into my current position.  I attribute my time at the Ranch to waking my soul which allowed me to create my destiny.  I left with a renewed energy that opened my heart and eventually brought my husband into my life.  It may sound like a miracle happened while there but it took me almost a year to move forward and complete the circle.  The Ranch gave me the tools to start my journey.

Rancho La Puerta is a one hour drive from San Diego in a sheltered valley in Tecate, Baja California, Mexico.  Surrounded by rosemary bushes, flowering trees, grape vines and meandering paths, the 3,000 acre Ranch opened in 1940 as the world's first destination spa.  With a sustanable, organic farm they follow a slow food concept creating an all-natural menu that is low in fat, sodium, and refined flour and sugar - while high in energy, fiber, and complex carbohydrates.  They offer fitness, spa, cooking classes, and art classes and are open year 'round.  Between the ocean, mountains and desert the Ranch experiences a mild, Mediterranean climate characterized by cool, moist winters and warm-to-hot, dry summers.  I quote from their website: "We provide space—that which is most lacking in today's life. Space to breathe freely amidst nature. To relax. To renew, reflect and redirect one's longer-living life. To explore the possibilities of changing course in one's life. To that end we often refer to our program as “The Door to the Future...Glorious Wellness” which refers to your future, one strengthened and emboldened by good health and fearless life-long learning, which unleashes the willingness to change…for the better."