Women’s Recovery Week

A Healing Space for Women Who Have Survived Sexual Abuse

Women’s Recovery Week is a focused, immersive experience designed to help survivors explore the ways their stories of past sexual abuse have shaped their lives. These intensive workshops led by Dr. Dan Allender and Allender Center Lead Instructors and Facilitators encourage participants toward a deep engagement of the psychological, spiritual, biological, and social aspects of both the personal and collective experience of trauma and abuse. This week is an opportunity to reflect on the wounds of your past, understand their impact, and learn to bless your story.

When our story is dismantled in the face of kindness and strength, the power of shame can’t prevail. Kindness wins. Love triumphs.”
-Dr. Dan Allender; Excerpt from Healing The Wounded Heart

Want to attend a Recovery Week in 2026? Start here.

Recovery Weeks fill quickly every year, and spots are limited, so the best way to ensure you have a chance to join us is by adding your name to our 2026 Interest List. By signing up, you’ll be the first to know when applications open. No pressure, no commitment—just a simple way to stay in the loop and take the next step when you’re ready.

Save the dates for Women’s Recovery Week: May 17-22, 2026, in Colorado Springs, CO.
Applications will open on October 13, 2025.

Join the Interest List for 2026: Women’s Recovery Week

Questions? We encourage you to reach out to our Programs Team at programs@theallendercenter.org with your questions and to receive more information.

Quick Links:

About Women’s Recovery Week:

Recovery Week offers a kind, nurturing environment for participants to engage this sacred, healing work away from everyday distractions and in the context of relationship with other survivors. The week provides teaching and discussion with Dr. Dan Allender and Allender Center Lead Instructors extending from Dr. Allender’s work in the book The Wounded Heart.

Recovery Week also includes small Story Group work facilitated by an Allender Center-trained facilitator. These groups are carefully curated spaces that invite participants to explore past abuse and its effects. Participants will be able to share their stories and struggles with others, as well as in daily individual sessions with an Allender Center Facilitator trained in Narrative Focused Trauma Care®.

Important Dates & Location:

Women’s Recovery Week 2026 Dates: May 17 -22, 2026
Location: The Hideaway Inn and Conference Center, 3805 Walker Rd, Colorado Springs, CO 80908

Application Dates & Deadlines:

Applications open: Oct 13, 2025
Applications close: Oct 29, 2025
Interview window: Nov 3-7, 2025
Decision letters sent: Nov 14, 2025
Registration/Begin payment deadline: Dec 8, 2026

Waitlist Round (if spots remain):

Applications: Feb 16–Mar 2, 2026
Interviews: Mar 9-13, 2026
Decision letters: Mar 20, 2026
Registration/Begin payment deadline: Mar 30, 2026

Applications must be fully complete (online application, letter of recommendation, and scholarship request if applicable) to receive consideration and move forward with the required interview, which will be processed on a first come, first served basis. Please carefully read all of the details about how to apply below.

How to Apply for Women’s Recovery Week:

We’ve introduced a new application process to provide clear expectations, transparency, and support for every applicant. Each application is carefully reviewed by our Programs Team to ensure readiness, safety, and relational fit for this intensive experience.

Step 1: Submit Your Application Materials (Oct 13 – Oct 29, 2025)

Applications open October 13, 2025, and close October 29, 2025. To be considered, you must complete all four parts:

Online Application: Fill out the short online application form during the application window.
Letter of Reference: Provide the name and email of someone who knows your story (mentor, pastor, small group leader, or counselor). After you submit this, we’ll contact your reference directly with a form to complete. Your application is not complete until the reference form is received. You can track the status in your application portal. You may also wish to follow up with your reference to ensure they have submitted your letter of reference.
Application Fee: A non-refundable $50 application fee is required.
Scholarship Request (if applicable): If you want to be considered for a partial scholarship, include your request with your application. Requests submitted after the application window may not be eligible.

Important: Applications missing any of the above will not be considered. All materials are reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis, so apply early. Late or incomplete applications may only be considered during the Waitlist Round in February 2026.

Step 2: Schedule Your Interview (Nov 3-7, 2025)

Once your application and reference are reviewed, our Programs Team will reach out to you to schedule a one-on-one online interview, which will take place between November 3-7, 2025. Interviews provide a safe space to share your story, ask questions, and discern readiness. Interview slots are available on a first come, first served basis. You must complete your interview within the interview window of November 3-7, 2025; if not, your application will be waitlisted.

Step 3: Receive Your Decision (Nov 14, 2025)

After interviews, our team will carefully review each application. You will receive a decision letter on or before November 14, 2025, with instructions for next steps.

Step 4: Complete Your Registration & Begin Your Payment Plan (by Dec 8, 2025)

Once accepted, you have until December 8, 2026, to secure your seat by making your first payment through your online learning portal. If your first payment is not received by the deadline of December 8, 2025, your spot will be released to the Waitlist Round.

Waitlist Round (if spots remain)

Applications: Feb 15–28, 2026
Interviews: Mar 4–11, 2026
Decisions: Mar 15, 2026
Registration/Begin payment deadline: Mar 31, 2026

Costs & Payment Policy

The total cost of this workshop is $5,895. The fee completely covers the costs of the six-day intensive workshop, including lodging and meals.

At the time of application, a $50 application fee is due. The $50 application fee helps us provide a seamless and intentional application process.

To secure your seat, you must make a payment. You may choose to pay in full or set up a payment plan for five (5) equal monthly payments.

Sliding Scale Scholarships are Available:

We believe in the importance of this work and do our best to make this offering accessible. If the cost of the workshop is a barrier, we encourage you to invite your community to consider sponsoring you. We are also grateful to be able to offer a limited number of partial scholarships thanks to the generosity of our donor community. We offer two scholarship tiers: 15% off and 30% off. Instructions to request a scholarship are explained in detail within your application portal.

To determine which scholarship amount is right for you, please refer to this Green Bottle Sliding Scale graphic designed by Alexis J. Cunningfolk. If you fall into the “full bottle” category on the scale, we ask that you not request a scholarship for this program. If you fall into the “half-full bottle” category on the scale, please request a scholarship amount of 15% off. If you fall into the “quarter-full bottle” category on this scale, please request a scholarship amount of 30% off.

If you have been impacted by the work of The Allender Center and want to invest in healing spaces for those who have experienced sexual abuse, we would be honored to receive your gift. Visit our Giving page.

Preparing for Recovery Week

Engaging the Healing the Wounded Heart online course is recommended before arriving at Recovery Week. Our hope is that the course will foster categories and a shared language among the group that will deepen your experience. Individuals accepted into a Recovery Week will be able to access the course at no additional cost.

Schedule

Recovery Week is a six-day workshop with check-in beginning at 4 PM Mountain Time on Day 1 and concluding at 10:30 AM on Day 6. The schedule allows for periods of rest and reflection for each participant as well as time with others. Each day includes 3 meals together with others at the retreat as well as teaching time with Dr. Dan Allender, a 2-hour facilitated small group and an individual session. Each participant’s schedule is dependent on the timing of their particular group and individual session. Your schedule may look like:

7:30 AM: Breakfast
8:00-10:00 AM: Teaching with Dr. Allender or an Allender Center Lead Instructor
10:00 AM – 12:00 PM: Small group time
12:00 – 1:00 PM: Lunch
Afternoon: Free time for resting, journaling, walks, etc.
4:00 PM – 4:45 PM: Individual session
6:00 – 7:00 PM: Dinner
Evening activities vary from day to day.

*All times listed in local (Mountain) time.

Lodging & Meals

Women’s Recovery Weeks include lodging for five nights and six days at The Hideaway Inn & Conference Center in beautiful Fort Range, Colorado, with wooded mountain views. You’ll enjoy access to an exercise room, game room, volleyball and lawn games, and spa patios. You can unwind on one of the nature trails or five decks to take in the views of Pike’s Peak. Each room includes a private bathroom and high speed wireless internet. Each of the rooms are single occupancy and come fully furnished with your own private bathroom. ADA accessible rooms are available. Amenities include: individual heating control, soft pillows, blankets, toiletries, and WiFi. Recovery Week participants must stay at the lodging provided by The Allender Center. All meals are included and accommodations can be made for dietary restrictions.

Location: The Hideaway, 3805 Walker Road, Colorado Springs, CO 80908

View image gallery of The Hideaway

Travel

Participants are responsible for their own travel to and from Recovery Week. We advise you to wait to make flight arrangements until you have received notification of your acceptance into the workshop. The Hideaway is located about 40 minutes from the Colorado Springs airport and around 1 hour, 10 minutes from the Denver airport. Participants are encouraged to consider rideshare options (e.g., Uber, Lyft, or Taxi) or driving a personal vehicle if preferred (there is ample parking at the facility).

Disclaimer

Recovery Weeks are a unique psycho-educational experience that allows you to engage your life stories specifically as they relate to narratives of sexual abuse. The sessions are designed to encourage you to engage your story in a holistic way by exploring psychological, spiritual, biological, and social aspects of the experience of trauma and abuse. Please note: this program is not therapy and does not act as a substitute for therapeutic engagement.

These workshops are a time to reflect on how abuse has shaped your life. The issues considered are betrayal, powerlessness, ambivalence, and how the gospel frees us to trust, dream, and embrace life. You will be invited to engage the profound brokenness of your heartache, all the while learning to love your own story.

Cancellation Policy

Due to the intimate nature of this workshop, it is important to thoughtfully consider the time, financial, and emotional costs of participating prior to enrolling. With very limited seats available we take seriously our responsibility to honor the integrity of this workshop and the brave individuals who participate.

The Allender Center understands that unforeseen circumstances may arise and wants to be as clear as possible about our financial policies regarding payments, cancellations, and refunds. This policy exists because your enrollment reserves a limited spot in our program, and cancellations close to the start date make it difficult for us to fill that space. We strive to steward our resources wisely, and withdrawals create financial challenges that impact our ability to operate and serve others effectively. We appreciate your understanding of the commitments required to sustain this program for all participants.

By enrolling in this program, you acknowledge and agree to the following payment and refund policies:

The $50 application fee and a $500 enrollment deposit (included in your first payment) are non-refundable and non-transferable under all circumstances.

If you cancel or withdraw from the program, any additional program fees may be refundable or still due, based on the following schedule. Refunds and amounts due are calculated based on the total program cost, not the amount paid to date.

More than 45 days before the program start date (before April 2, 2026): After $500 nonrefundable deposit, 100% of remaining program fees refundable
30–44 days before the program start date (April 3 – April 17, 2026): After $500 nonrefundable deposit, 50% of remaining program fees refundable (the remaining 50% is retained or still due if not yet paid)
Less than 30 days before the program start date or anytime after the start date (After April 18, 2026): No refund (100% of program fees are retained or still due if not yet paid)

If there is an outstanding balance at the time of cancellation or withdrawal, you are still required to pay any amount due according to the schedule above, whether through an existing payment plan or another payment method.

If you choose to cancel or withdraw your registration, please notify us in writing by sending an email to programs@theallendercenter.org.

FAQs

How do I know I’m ready for a Recovery Week?

If you’ve already begun engaging your story—through a Story Workshop, Narrative Focused Trauma Care training, work with an NFTC-trained individual, or in individual or group therapy—you may find Recovery Week to be a meaningful next step. If you’re brand new to story work or group work, it can feel like a big leap, and that’s okay. We’d be glad to talk with you about whether this is the right time. Please reach out to our team at programs@theallendercenter.org.

Will Dan Allender be my small group leader?

Dr. Dan Allender will be teaching to the larger group and may offer some one-on-one sessions during the week. Your main point of connection will be your small group, led by a skilled Allender Center Facilitator trained in Narrative Focused Trauma Care®. These facilitators walk closely with participants throughout the week, providing guidance, care, and presence.

Can I still apply if I have already attended a Recovery Week?

Absolutely. This work is lifelong, and many participants return to Recovery Week more than once. Each experience can bring new layers of healing, insight, and freedom. You are welcome to join us again.

Is everything I share kept confidential?

Yes. Confidentiality is a core value of Recovery Week. While you’ll be sharing within a small group, each participant commits to honoring one another’s stories with care and respect. Our Facilitators and Instructors also hold confidentiality as a sacred trust.

What if I need financial help to attend?

We know the cost of Recovery Week can feel like a barrier. That’s why we offer a limited number of scholarships each year. You can request scholarship consideration as part of your application. We also encourage you to ask your community for support. Many participants have obtained support from their church or other fundraising efforts.

If you have more questions, we’d be glad to assist you. Please email us at programs@theallendercenter.org for more information.

Testimonials

What previous participants of Women’s Recovery Weeks have said:

It is invaluable. I think it opened up new memories, new ways of processing what I already knew, ways to integrate my story and how it impacts my current life. It really sped up my process of healing.” -Women’s Recovery Week Participant

Life-giving! Especially in all the connections for us to see and know God in the midst of our trauma. I went from extreme self-contempt to freedom (after 20+ years of seeking but not-quite-finding) Life, not only for me, but for my children, and the Christian non-profit I work for as I am able to share the kindness of God and His healing with them.” -Women’s Recovery Week Participant

The impact of this experience will continue to unfold as I continue to journey into my story. The experience of kindness – the kindness of God and of others throughout the week – was a powerful witness to entering into my own story with kindness and grace. I have a greater hunger for integration, wholeness, and freedom.” -Women’s Recovery Week Participant

I truly don’t feel like I have words. I was blown away by Dan and his teachings. I had read his book and done the online course, but learning from him in person was so special and worth every penny. I was surprised at how much I gained from group sessions (I had never done that before). I was caught so tenderly in my 1:1’s and I made some lifelong friends, I’m sure of it. It was a life-changing experience.” -Women’s Recovery Week Participant

There were several things about my story that I’ve always downplayed and didn’t think were that major. It was so helpful to have others validate how difficult the road has been and share insight I’ve never thought of. I’ve come to a place of peace in many areas of my life.” -Women’s Recovery Week Participant