Adventures in a (mainly) Wonderful World

December 2024 - the 'It's nearly Christmas edition'

Dear Fabulous Friends - I hope you’re starting to feel festive.

Life over here has been very busy since I wrote my last monthly ‘Adventures Newsletter’ and it’s hard to know where to begin (or end). I also can’t help feeling that the last thing anyone needs in the pre-Christmas chaos is another email. But I do want to say ‘Happy Nearly Christmas’ and bring you some news from my (mainly) wonderful world. So I’ll limit myself to three things, plus a postscript, and will try to keep things on a December / Festive theme.

The Inaugural Save Me From The Waves Christmas Adventure Retreat in Scotland – is/has wrapped!

December marked the start of a new adventure for me – my first ever live ‘Adventure Retreats’. 15 wonderful women spent three truly terrific days on the stunning West Coast of Scotland, and my word for it is: ‘Perfection’ (and that’s a big and important word for a perfectionist). For a long time, I’ve dreamed of creating something that would bring together my love of arts and adventure. Something that embodies my passion for music and mountains, the sea and shared-stories. Something that feels almost akin to immersive theatre. And I did it.

In fact, correction! We did it. Because creating something unique and unforgettable like this requires ‘sangha’ and there are so many people who have played their part. But above all I want to acknowledge the beautiful and bountiful brilliance of my co-host Alice Todd, Co-Founder of SwimQuest Holidays. I wrote a more detailed post on the retreat last week for my Big & Brave Family here on Substack entitled ‘I Had A Dream’. And I’ve now made it ‘free to read’ so you my dear adventure followers can check it out too.

We are running two retreats next year – a week long one on the idyllic island of Formentera in Spain in May and another three day Christmas retreat next December in Scotland If you’re tempted, do read more and think about joining us – it really is something special. Don’t take my word for it – read the reviews that are already coming in. Here are just three of them:

‘Wow – what a powerful experience – just what you needed, but didn’t know it.’ Becki

‘A safe magical place where tears of release were outweighed by laughter and joy.’ Annie

‘Thank you for giving everyone the opportunity to be themselves… I’ll never ever forget this trip.’ Jo

Here’s a grid of nine photos but read the post to see all 24 of my favourite photos of The Adventure Retreat Scotland 2024, and my favourite video too - it’s of a memory I don’t think anyone of us that were there will forget and will forever make us smile.

Big & Brave Love

This month marks a year of me writing on Substack (the social media platform this newsletter comes to you from). I’ve written a post every week for my ‘Big & Brave Family’ (which is my ‘paid community’ on the platform) alongside my free monthly newsletter - Adventures in a (mainly) Wonderful World. But I thought I would make some of my most popular paid posts from this year free to read throughout December in case you fancy diving into the archive. Consider it a little xmas gift to you:

The Shit That Shaped Us

Being Beyonce

Death is Welcome Here

The first two of these posts are part of my ‘Your Shit is Your Superpower’ series which I’m developing with my dear friend and shit-shaper Dr Tara Lal. At the end of November we also hosted our first ever live online ‘Shit Into Superpower Session’ and it went really well. So here’s the biggest present under the tree – a chance to listen to the full audio recording of it which you’ll find in this post:

Are You Having A Wonderful Life?

I’m going to make all these posts freely available to read/listen to until the end of the month. Tbh I do find it difficult buying presents, I worry a lot about whether people are going to like what I choose, so I really hope you like this one. And if you do then why not become part of my Big & Brave Family on Substack in 2025? Here’s another (final) present for you: a 50% discount on an annual/monthly subscription available until the end of December too. And get writing your SHIT LISTS (more on that in the audio) because we’ll be turning them into SUPERPOWERS soon.

Do you have an AdventureMind?

I love a three. So the third and final thing I want to mention (before the postcript) is that one of the achievements I’m really delighted and proud about this year is that I was invited to be an Ambassador for AdventureMind – the leading movement for the mental health benefits of adventure founded by Belinda Kirk. I attended the AdventureMind conference in the Lake District at the end of November and my mind was blown by so many great presentations. Next year I want to start sharing some of the best stories I’ve heard featuring people who have turned their shit into superpower using the power of adventure. Do check out the pic and Instagram accounts below of some of my fellow fabulous female adventure ambassadors. These women have sass so if you need some New Year adventure inspiration take a look!

And that’s it before the PS…

PS.

I’ve had so many amazing adventures myself this year including of course publishing my new third book Save Me From The Waves (A possible xmas present for friends/family? And if you’ve read it then writing me a review on Amazon would be a massive xmas present to me!). I’ve done over 50 live events as well as a plethora of podcasts and press. I’ve also swum the Hellespont – one of the most legendary open water swims in the world. And I’ve walked round the circumference of the Channel Island of Jersey. I’ve visited four new countries (to me) and am currently in Taiwan visiting a dear friend who has come out to live here for a while. Today I’m off on a mini expedition to climb Taiwan’s highest mountain – Mount Yushan (aka Mount Jade) which stands at a cool 3,952 metres. And after a couple of nights roughing it in freezing temperatures I’ll be heading for some hot spring spa luxury. Once an adventurer. Always an adventurer. Once a princess of pampering. Always that as well. Here’s me on the streets of Taipei this week.