Why every adult should go to camp

Welcome back to another episode of how to twenty-something where today I’m going to reflect on my week off when I went to go volunteer with experience camps at the end of July

I did an episode with Justin Weidenfeld last year about the benefits of volunteering and what I learned while being a counselor at a grief camp, but this year I thought it would be nice to encourage you to go away to camp and take a break from your current lifestyle, not necessarily as part of a volunteer program but simply an adult camp

This was my second year taking a week off of my life and my routine to instead spend it in Georgia at Camp Twin Lakes and even though the week was filled with jam packed really long days and on average 6 hours of sleep a night, i feel more refreshed and connected to myself than ever before

It’s little things that you don’t think about on a day to day basis until you truly take a week off, enter a little bubble, and let the outside world disappear 

Now, like i said, there are adult camps out there so that’s definitely a route you can take, or you can do what I did and volunteer at a camp

Basically, I think it is beneficial for every adult to put their life on pause for a week and not think about their own schedule, stressors, or day to day life, and going to camp really helps you shut off that part of your brain

It invites you to be fully present for an entire week and it’s what this episode is going to be about

My camp is called Experience Camps and it is a nonprofit for kids who have experienced the death of someone close to their heart, so a parent, a sibling, or a caregiver

I personally experienced the death of my father when I was 13 and pretty much disassociated from that grief for about 13 or 14 years.. Really until I went to experience camps last year and realized how much guilt I held in my body that was completely untouched

But being introduced to a camp that supports a cause I needed when I was younger and getting to go to camp for a week.. Say less

I was counting down the days leading up to camp because I really could not wait to not be on my laptop, to not be worrying about my schedule, what I needed to be doing day in and day out, what to make for dinner, what plans to have

It’s not to say I don’t enjoy my life, I do, but man is it nice to turn my brain off and not be entrepreneur jess and just be counselor jess for a few days

Where you go to a place with other people who immediately get it, get you

Where you background doesn’t matter and where you are already given a commonality, albeit a shitty commonality, but a commonality nonetheless

There’s an instant sense of vulnerability is accepted and encouraged and no matter what, you’re going to have someone to hug, a shoulder to lean on, and tears to shed

Grief camp is a normal summer camp where my kids went fishing, paddleboarding, ziplining, horseback riding, woodburning, swimming, slip n sliding, etc, but then there is also the grief portion where every cabin is paired with a grief specialist and there are sharing circles for the kids to talk about their person who died, there are activities to help the kids better understand their emotions and their grieving journey, and by day 2 it feels as though you’ve known these people your entire life

It truly is a special place and there are camps you can volunteer with for multiple different causes if something else speaks to your personal story like there’s camps for people with diabetes, kids with cancer, kids with parents who have cancer, turrets, siblings of disabled people, literally anything

And then like I said, if you just want to be the camper for the week and not the adult then you can go to adult sleepaway camp

There’s camp no counselors, adult summer camp, grown up girls camp, all you have to do is research adult summer camp and you’ll be sure to find a place that fits your needs and budget

If you have a small budget to work with then I recommend volunteering because not only are you spending your time giving back, but you also don’t have to pay for anything besides your transportation

And as a camp counselor you still get to do most of the activities the kids get to do

But i’m not going to tell you what kind of camp to pick, whether you’re volunteering or paying to go, I’m going to enlighten you about the benefits of going away to a camp as an adult

First off, I do think you should go to either an all girl or an all boy camp, so whatever gender you identify as go to that gender camp

This was the first year Experience camps separated the boys and girls at the Georgia location and I think it was so much better, it was peak girlhood at every corner with no lingering subconscious thoughts of boys are around

You really do get to let loose, even if you think you let loose when it’s mixed gendered, I’m going to tell you right now, that you don’t fully let loose until it’s only all girls

I went to a sleepaway camp for a few years when I was kid and it was co-ed and last year experience camps were co-ed, so believe me when I say you should really go to a one gender camp.. It is so much better

I had one camper this year who still did lip liner and eyebrow fills every day, I had incoming 8th and ninth graders, but you know she was doing this for herself and no one else and I loved that for her

I personally felt less embarrassed about the state of my skin because almost everyone was in their natural state, imperfections and all, and it was a beautiful site to see this is just a side note but now I’m going to dive into the benefits

The first, probably most obvious benefit, and one that I’ve pretty much already been talking about is that you don’t have to think

Your day is scheduled out for you – where to go, when to be, what to eat, everything down to the minute is planned out for you

It’s like being back in grade school again, it simplifies all of mental load you usually carry in your day to day life and is handed to you on a sheet of paper

Just think about it, for an entire week you don’t have to have a single thought about what food to make and you don’t have to clean your plate afterwards

You get structured time off

Ugh glorious, that alone should convince you enough to go away to camp

Because you could go on vacation and it would be relaxing but you still have to plan it, the excursions, the places to eat, the what on the menu to eat

And at camp every single decision is already made for you

The next benefit was more surprising to me and it was something that I guess wasn’t as apparent last year, but it’s wonderful to not know what you look like

There are no full body mirrors, you’re not constantly walking by your reflection, and you just get to be

I didn’t realize how much I body check or see myself until this last week

And when I thought about it, I could see I’m constantly seeing my reflection in my day to day life

I have 3 big mirrors in my apartment, I work in a gym that is covered in mirrors, when I go on walks I walk by giant windows with more reflections

So I am constantly getting body feedback and that is just not healthy for the mind.. You’re not supposed to see yourself as much as we do in today’s society

I felt so good at camp, my brain was not occupied with what I looked like and was able to turn into how I was feeling

Not to mention the lack of mirrors and little free time or privacy, meant I wasn’t picking at my skin either

I couldn’t see my skin and I didn’t want to pop pimples in front of someone else so even though I was sweating constantly and eating camp food, my skin by the end of the week actually looked pretty good

I can’t speak for everyone when I say that, because i know of some people whose skin was reacting horribly to the food and heat, so this is just my own personal benefit

The little free time and privacy might be a turn off to some of you, and as an introvert myself there were definitely moments when I needed a break, so don’t worry, experience camps puts 4 counselors to a cabin meaning if you needed a break you could tap out, recharge your battery and then jump back in as long as you communicated with your co counselors 

Two of the days I was off after lunch, which was their rest hour, so I also took the period after lunch off and that would give me two hours of me time

One of the days I was able to go for a run, take a shower, and take a nap and I returned to the girls as a whole new person so don’t worry.. If you need recharge time you get to have recharge time

Alright the third benefit of going to camp is being able to disconnect

There’s no time for you to scroll social media, nor do you even want to scroll social media

My screen time was like an hour each day and that was spent checking the camp whatsapp group, finding songs to play on Spotify, and checking the weather

As i said earlier, you get to be fully present, you get to put your outside life on pause, for the most part, and be in the moment: laughing, singing, and crying at some points since, you know, it was a grief camp

But like, just one week of not scrolling on tiktok, makes me want to delete the app

Because even when I had free time and could doom scroll if I wanted to, I had zero desire to open the app and do so

I scheduled all of my instagram posts ahead of time and would quickly open it to check notifications, but otherwise I barely had a social media presence that week and it was wonderful 

It makes me want to continue to schedule posts for the week in advance so I don’t go on it as much

I really enjoyed not seeing what other people were up to because I was so occupied with what I was up to

And it really opens your eyes to how often you are on social media, dependent on it, and using it as feedback to your own life or for when you’re bored

It’s not healthy, we know it’s not healthy, but it is addicting, it does help you stay connected with people you aren’t constantly in connection with, but like it’s also fake connection and more snooping around

I know social media is horrible for my brain and this week away at camp has really opened up my mind to life without it

That i’m now inspired to take more social media breaks, schedule my content ahead of time, and not be so consumed by the world and people around me

Another benefit of going to camp is getting to have play time

As a working adult, so much of your life becomes serious, but going to camp allows you to play with zero pressure to be the best or do something perfectly

Growing up usually means less play time like when you were a kid and we need to constantly engage in play it’s good for the soul and it has a lot of psychological benefits too that leads to more emotional resiliency and a decrease in stress

Think about it, when was the last time you went down an inflatable water slide

I can say that I did that at the end of july

Or how about your legs feeling tired from all of the jumping and dancing and singing you were doing throughout the week

My cabin, one of our bunk rules was a daily dance party

And hearing those girls laughing and goofing off with us counselors included, was so incredible 

These are kids that have experienced a great deal of hurt and heartbreak and a lot of them don’t have good home life anymore, so to hear children laughing it’s like a glimpse of hope that all will be alright in the world

As adults, we need that, we need those reminders and moments of play because without it, you lose yourself

You burn yourself out, you stay caught in a cycle of discontent

And camp breaks you free 

There is so much power in play and it gets harder and harder to incorporate it in your regular life, or you find yourself structuring in play time and it’s not the same

Think about taking a whole week off dedicated to playing

It sounds crazy, maybe unfeasible for you, but I’m telling you you’ll be better off by doing so

And don’t tell me you don’t have the time or the money to take off and go away to camp

Because I’m self employed, so when I take off I don’t get paid, I don’t have pto

If I can find the time and know that I’m going to be okay financially, then you can do it too, you just have to want to do it for yourself

But you need to have more play and more fun in your life.. Adulthood robs us of so much of that freedom and camp lets you reel it back in

Another benefit of going to camp is the ease of making friends

There are so many experiences happening and the best way to make friends it through shared experiences 

With experience camps specifically we all have an immediate sense of belonging because most of the staff and all of the kids who attend have endured something horrible that brings us all together

The staff gets their own sharing circles and you get insight into the hurt and pain they hold and some of it overlaps with your own story

A sharing circle is where you get a chance to share your story or your feelings about your grief journey

And you get to see that you’re not alone as well as perspective that you never know what someone is going through

A little reminder to be kind to everyone

When you are volunteering with a cause close to your heart you also know that everyone else there is also a good human and no one is going to be mean, that the opposite is true, where everyone is going to be accepting

And that allows you to fully be yourself in a guaranteed judgment free environment

But the connections you make are incredible, they are the easiest connections you’re ever going to make in the adult world

You’re getting connected with people from all walks of life that you probably never would have met and are forever grateful your paths crossed

And while making connections, you are rediscovering lost parts of yourself

The good parts, the ugly parts, and the forgotten parts

It’s simple to think about in hindsight, but when you are taken out of your regular environment and when you experience a little bit of awkwardness as you leave your comfort zone, you are able to reconnect with you

You come back to the real world as a better person, as a clearer person, and as a happier one

It ties back to taking a social media break and taking a break from your life

But overall, whether you’re volunteering or paying to go to an adult specific camp, I can’t stress this enough, you need to go to camp

Every adult should go away to camp every year

Whoever invented the idea of adult summer camps, you are a genius, because we all need a little bit of play, a whole lot of connection and that’s what camp offers you

So if you’re listening and you want to go to camp, take this as your sign to do so

If you want to volunteer with me next year at experience camps, reach out to me and I can help you with a referral to be a counselor, a nurse, or grief specialist

Otherwise, this does conclude another episode of how to twenty-something, if you liked what you heard, if you are inspired to go to camp or volunteer at a camp, then please share this episode, post it to social media, send it to friend, let’s have every adult take time off to play

And as always, I can’t wait to be in your headphones again next week with another brand new episode