Retreat

How the Counterculture invented Wellness

Matthew Ingram author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Watkins Media Limited

Published:14th Jul '20

Should be back in stock very soon

Retreat cover

This insightful exploration connects the counterculture with modern health practices, revealing how the lessons from Retreat can enhance our well-being.

In Retreat, Matthew Ingram delves into the often-overlooked connection between the counterculture of the Sixties and Seventies and the evolution of health and wellness. While the era is typically celebrated for its music, fashion, and social revolutions, Ingram highlights a critical aspect of its legacy: the profound impact of hippie philosophies on modern health practices. This exploration reveals how the ideals of the summer of love continue to resonate in today's wellness movements.

Ingram connects various elements of the counterculture, such as yoga, meditation, psychedelics, and veganism, illustrating how these practices have shaped contemporary understandings of health. By tracing the roots of these movements back to the hippie era, Retreat uncovers the enduring lessons that can be drawn from this vibrant period. The author emphasizes that the pursuit of well-being is not merely a modern trend but rather a continuation of a rich historical dialogue.

Ultimately, Retreat serves as both a cultural history and a call to action, encouraging readers to embrace the holistic approaches to health that emerged from the counterculture. Ingram's work invites us to reconsider the significance of these practices and recognize the wisdom that the hippies have to offer in our ongoing quest for wellness and fulfillment.

"This richly researched archaeology of the counterculture places health at its core, showing how ideas of healing and therapy were inextricably bound up with the era’s spiritual cravings and erotic politics. Every chapter scintillates with unexpected connections and startling insights.” 
”A rich tapestry of mind-altering influences of the counterculture that shaped our aspirations. Enjoy the ride. I did."
"A huge range of interviews, intelligent analysis and concise, sympathetic observation make this a compulsively readable but also impressively erudite account of this endlessly fascinating subject.”
“A riot of a read. Ingram’s exploration of how psychoanalysis and psychedelics fused with meditation, mysticism and spiritual awakening to oil the cogs of the contemporary wellness economy is both forensic and radically irreverent.”
"An eerily pertinent exploration of wellness and the counterculture."

ISBN: 9781912248780

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: unknown

524 pages

New edition