Wellapalooza 2016 is in less than two weeks!

June 10th-12th, 2016

We’ve had an influx of registrations over the last day and spaces are limited. If you would like to attend Wellapalooza 2016, or know someone else who may be interested, please make sure that registration is complete by Friday, June 3rd!

Additionally, we are also holding a Physicians Learning Lunch in conjunction with Wellapalooza 2016. The Physicians Learning Lunch is on Sunday, July 12th, 2016 at Turf Valley Resort in Ellicott City, MD. Dr. Afrin’s generously agreed to stay for all three days of Wellapalooza 2016. There are ample opportunities to hear him speak and to participate in a casual Q&A and book signing with him, as well as hear our other fantastic speakers.

I’ve included a rough outline of the Wellapalooza 2016 weekend and some additional details; however, please make sure to email us with any questions, and refer to our website for more information. I will be adding more information today, once I receive confirmation on a few last details.

Wellapalooza 2016 details are listed below.

– Dr. Afrin will be available for casual Q&A’s and book signings on Friday at The Mindfulness Center in Bethesda, MD and on Sunday at Turf Valley Resort in Ellicott City, MD. He will be answering questions related to Mast Cell Activation Disease and will be signing his newly published book — Never Bet Against Occam: Mast Cell Activation Disease and the Modern Epidemics of Chronic Illness and Medical Complexity – now with over 60 five-star reviews!

***We will have limited copies for sale, for those who have not read Dr. Afrin’s new book and are interested.***

– On Friday, we have graciously been invited to enjoy the mind/body classes offered at The Mindfulness Center in Bethesda, MD – right outside of DC. The mind/body classes offered on Friday at The Mindfulness Center are therapeutic yoga with Dr. Norris, Tai Chi/Qi Gong & Candlelight Yoga with Jessie Norris in the evening. A full schedule for Friday is on the Wellapalooza website.

– On Friday, we will also be able to speak with Deborah Norris, Ph.D. on evidence-based mindfulness approaches for managing chronic pain, have a casual Q&A & book signing with Dr. Afrin and more.

Dr. Afrin will also be speaking and giving a more formal presentation on the complexities of Mast Cell Disease about chronic illness as part of Wellapalooza on Saturday evening at Turf Valley Resort.

– We will be at Haven on the Lake in Columbia, MD most of the Saturday, to enjoy the amenities, such as the healing environments, mind/body classes, and hear Rebecca Snow Nutrition & Dr. Clair Francomano present. (www.havenonthelake.org)

– Haven on the Lake and Turf Valley are 5 miles apart from each other. Turf Valley is where we had a block of rooms and where most of us are staying for the weekend. I’ve recently heard that Priceline or Expedia has a great deal for a standard room for $99 per night — a great deal since our room block has expired and all the executive king rooms have sold out. If anyone is interested in a room, I can call Turf Valley to see what options there are and if they will match the prices that a few have found on online travel sites. (www.turfvalley.com)

– Rebecca Snow (nutritionist/herbalist) will be speaking at 10 am on Saturday morning in the Whole Foods Market Columbia, MD cafe one floor above Haven on the Lake.

– Dr. Clair Francomano will be speaking on integrative approaches to managing Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and related conditions at 2 pm on Saturday at Haven on the Lake.

– Sunday is both the 2nd casual Q&A & book signing with Dr. Afrin and the Physicians Learning Lunch on the complexities of managing patients with complex medical conditions (Physicians and healthcare providers only). If you know of any healthier providers who would be interested in attending, please share the Physicians Learning Lunch flyer with them. You can share both flyers either way, in order to help make sure we are to let as many people as possible know about Wellapalooza 2016.

– Additionally, as part of Wellapalooza on Sunday, we will be enjoying another day at Haven on the Lake (the day is split between two venues – 5 miles apart) – utilizing the amenities, mind/body classes, and healing environments. Entrance to Haven on the Lake, all mind/body classes at both The Mindfulness Center on Friday (if you register for Friday or all three days) and at Haven on the Lake, and access to the Healing Environments at Haven on the Lake are included in your daily registration for Wellapalooza 2016. You do not have to pay additional to take classes or reserve a salt cave session! I will be providing details on how to sign up for classes as we get closer to Wella weekend.

– We will also be a part of an inspiring discussion with Dr. Christine Mohrhaus Hale about getting your life back after dealing with the devastating spiral from chronic illness. Christine is a physician who lives with EDS, Psoriatic Arthritis, and other comorbidities, and has fought her way back – now helping lead one of the largest healthcare organizations in the country, and is also a recent instructor and performer with Moxie Mischief Aerial Arts – all post-EDS and Psoriatic Arthritis diagnosis. Her story is nothing short of inspiring and amazing, not to mention that she brings a wealth of information and resources for us based on her experience as a physician in charge of a large healthcare organization.

– Haven on the Lake has also helped us coordinate special Wellapalooza-related private group class – one on Saturday and one on Sunday. One class will be Aqua Fusion and the other will be Barre Fusion. I will be confirming with class will be on which day today and will post on the Wellapalooza website, and will update the schedule as well.

– Details on the specific mind/body classes and seminars for Wellapalooza, in addition to the classes that each attendee has access to at both wellness venues (depending on registration date(s)), will be added to the retreat schedule soon!

– Haven on the Lake is also trying to coordinate a special seminar on aqua yoga massage for us. This therapy is a new therapy that will be offered at Haven on the Lake starting sometime in the summer; however, we are hoping to be able to coordinate a seminar and demonstration on this amazingly healing therapy. It’s fairly popular in California and Haven on the Lake is one of the few places on the east coast who will be offering this therapy — one that was originally put together based on therapeutic principals for the disabled.

– We are also waiting to hear confirm on our 2nd speaker for Sunday. Please make sure to look for an announcement and details on both our FB page and the Wellapalooza website.

– And we haven’t even discussed the Wellapalooza 2016 sponsors and partners, or this year’s Wella Swag Bags! Getting to spend three days at amazing wellness facilities is present enough for me. I couldn’t be more excited and hope to see you all there!

Last, I’ve highlighted a few important details below – please read:

***Registration ends Friday! There will be no on-site registration! If interested, please make sure to register by Friday. You can register for all three days at a discount, or register for a specific day. You have many options for attendance!

www.wellapalooza.com

***Haven on the Lake has childcare available for an extra fee. If you are interested in coming and need childcare, please let me know and I can help coordinate information and registration for you.

***Wellapalooza 2016 IS being held at three different venues – basically, it’s at two different wellness facilities for a reason. We wanted to make sure people had options, we kept costs low, and that we tried our best to allow those closer to DC and those closer to Baltimore have a few options for attending.

***If you do come to all three days or even Saturday or Sunday, you will be driving between the venues. It’s only 5 miles between Haven on the Lake and Turf Valley, but there are no shuttles. We tried, but it wasn’t possible to coordinate a shuttle between Turf Valley and Haven on the Lake. The idea of driving 5 miles between two venues on the same day hasn’t been an issue for anyone, but we’re hoping people carpool for the short drive if needed.

Similarly, if you are staying at Turf Valley and will be attending Wellapalooza on Friday in Bethesda, Bethesda is a 30-45 minute drive from Ellicott City. However, for those who are staying at Turf Valley and will be attending all three days, we are trying to coordinate transportation or carpooling back and for to Bethesda from Ellicott City. I will know more once I have an idea how many attendees are registered for all three days and how many will be staying at Turf Valley.

***To register or read additional details, go to www.wellapalooza.com. You can also read additional details below and click on the registration and schedule links.

Finally, I’ve attached an email message that I received from Haven on the Lake earlier today. How awesome is this? What more could we ask for from venues welcoming Wellapalooza attendees?

“Hi Kendra, We have confirmed two classes for Wellapalooza, an aqua fusion with barre class on Saturday and a barre class for Sunday.

Finally, is there anything about MCAD, Ehlers-Danlos Syndromes, or other conditions that attendees may experience that we should need to know in advance to better prepare our instructors to make their classes more successful and enjoyable?”