Karuna Club
A gathering for men at the threshold of their lives.
A carefully chosen group of men, coming together to explore their edges, in the peace and luxury of the Dutch countryside.
- Retreats in the Netherlands
- From spring 2027
- Personally prepared and guided
The invitation
Your curiosity has brought you this far, and you’ll need your sense of adventure to get any further.
What’s on offer here?
You can expect to take part in a ritual as old as human culture: undertaking a journey of discovery together with a circle of carefully chosen men. The experience is one that will connect you better to yourself, to those around you, and to your higher purpose in life. It comes with cascading new perspectives on how you can live a meaningful and fulfilled life, aligned with what is most important to you. To get there, you will discover that there are depths to your sense of self, and to the reality we live in, that you get to glimpse in certain states of being. Just a single such glimpse has the power to change a life.
This is for you if you have found yourself wondering “Is this it?”, or questioning whether you actively chose your life or just ended up there. Perhaps you’re concerned about our surrender into technological bubbles, and feel a deep urge to reconnect with something more present and real: the feeling of your own body, the energy in a room of people exploring their edges together, or a glimpse of the vastness of a more foundational sense of self.
The experience itself will be non-normal… and far more impactful than anything you can expect.
I am Laurence. I’m The Guide. I help people let go of what they are holding onto that no longer serves them, in order to discover what wants to emerge. If this speaks to you, then I will help you find the doorway, and cross the threshold of your life.
What this is
Coaching prepares the ground, community holds the space, practice helps us cross the threshold.
Karuna Club brings men together for four-night retreats in a first-rate retreat centre in the Dutch countryside. Each retreat weaves together practices that open the same doors in different ways, chosen for the group and the moment. Around them, I have designed an individual and group journey that prepares the ground before each retreat, and helps you bring home and integrate what you find, after.
Come for a single retreat, or join the club and come back again and again: returning to the same circle across a year is what lets real change take root.
The practices
When we gather as men with a shared purpose and a willingness to see and be seen, we unlock vital parts of ourselves that we’ve been taught to suppress. We are each far more capable of shaping our lives than we imagine, and it often takes being reflected in others, in age-old communion of the masculine, to see it clearly. The nature of this work requires a certain level of emotional maturity, meaning that everyone invited in has been vetted and selected for what they are bringing to the group.
The energy of a group of such men crossing thresholds together, and sharing what they are experiencing, is a sight to behold in itself.
The work will present you to yourself from a whole range of angles. You’ll engage your senses, including the ones you’ve stopped listening to, to explore your sense of self, your boundaries and your beliefs. My approach blends the psychological, the philosophical and the spiritual. There is an open doorway for everyone, though it’s not always the same doorway.
My team
From a life in elite sport, I know deeply the incredible power of an aligned team. For this work, I have chosen a team of the most trusted, loving and solid men I have ever met, all of whom have done their own work and discovered what is on offer. These men will hold the individual and group spaces together with me, each bringing their own unique spirit and skill set to the meeting.
We will regularly invite new guest facilitators, and keep pushing ourselves into new terrain, so the club keeps growing with the men in it.
Again, it is the men you encounter through this experience who will make the most radical impact on you.
The psilocybin ceremony For those who choose it
One practice among many, for those who choose it.
At chosen retreats, participants can take part in a full-day psilocybin truffle ceremony, carefully prepared for and integrated. Each ceremony is limited to twelve participants.
It is entirely optional. Many members may never take part, and those who don’t are a full part of the group either way, with their own path through the day.
Is it legal? Yes.
Psilocybin truffles are legal in the Netherlands, and ceremonies have been held openly there since 2008. The ceremony takes place there, and nothing crosses a border.
Is it safe? Yes.
Ceremonies are facilitated by Spinoza, one of the Netherlands’ most established providers, who have guided thousands of people. Everyone who chooses to take part completes their medical screening first. Some medications (including certain antidepressants), heart conditions, and a personal or family history of certain psychiatric conditions can mean the ceremony isn’t right for you. Spinoza will talk you through this, and their answer is final.
Spinoza
Hold the ceremony
Spinoza are one of the Netherlands’ leading psilocybin retreat organisations, based near Amsterdam, and have guided thousands of people through ceremony. Their guides bring backgrounds in psychology, therapy, coaching and breathwork, with a therapist and a doctor on hand, and they grow their own organic medicine on a farm in the east of the Netherlands.
At Karuna, Spinoza take care of medical screening, dosing, and holding the psilocybin ceremonies themselves.
The journey Six steps
Prepared with care. Guided throughout. Integrated after.
A first conversation
A call with me, to see whether this is right for you, and you for the group.
Preparation
If we both say yes, a coaching session together. We get to know each other and begin to clarify what you’re bringing and what you hope for.
The group welcome
We meet online to prepare the collective space for the retreat ahead. Introductions, I set the frame, and questions have the space they need.
The retreat
With me and my team as your guides throughout, and a menu of practices chosen for the group and the moment.
Integration
A 90-minute one-to-one with me, and an online integration session with the whole group. What surfaces needs space to land. This is that space.
Karuna Club
Join the club for three retreats a year, monthly online circles, one-to-ones where they serve you, and priority sign-up for any additional retreats.
The shape of a retreat 4 nights
First day
Arriving
Arriving at Boho in the afternoon. Grounding in the body. Arriving into the circle, and preparing for what’s ahead. A first evening together around the fire.
Deep days
The journey
Morning movement. Connecting as a group. Then the day’s central journey: a long breathwork or voice ceremony, or, at chosen retreats, the psilocybin ceremony for those who choose it. Four nights leave room for more than one deep day.
After each deep day
Integration
Slow morning, sauna, walks, sharing. Beginning to make sense of what you found.
Last day
Returning
A closing circle, and home, carrying something with you.
Everything else, including the sessions my team and I run, is shaped by the group and what each man brings.
The place Boho Experience · Kockengen, NL
A first-class retreat experience, in the green heart of the Netherlands.
Two nineteenth-century farmhouses between Amsterdam and Utrecht, close to the river Vecht. Wide polder skies, water, fields, and quiet. Thirty minutes from Schiphol, and a world away from it.
Inside, it is warm, bohemian and deeply comfortable: a meditation hall, a sauna, a hot tub, an outdoor fire, and a garden to sit in. Our hosts, Nicolette and Sam, have spent years creating a place for exactly this kind of work.
You will sleep well. You will eat well, with a private chef cooking beautiful vegetarian food for us throughout. The right set and setting is absolutely essential, and we take every care to get this right.
- Getting thereBoho is 30 minutes from Amsterdam Schiphol. Travel details are shared before each retreat.
- RoomsExpect to share a room, with single rooms offered where possible. Let me know if this is important to you.
- FoodVegetarian, cooked on site by a private chef. Tell us about any dietary needs when you book.
Your guide
Laurence Halsted
- Two-time Olympian
- Performance coach
- Author
I have a background in elite sport, having competed for Great Britain in fencing at two Olympic Games, London 2012 and Rio 2016. I later became the Performance Director of a national federation, and spent a decade helping build a UK and US charity, The True Athlete Project, from scratch. I have written a book, Becoming a True Athlete, which describes an approach and philosophy for flourishing in sport and life.
Today I work as a performance coach and guide to people in sport, business and life in general, with a long personal practice of spiritual inquiry underneath it all. My clients point to my groundedness, stillness and compassion. A close colleague told me that I was a root. I always show up in my work with a calm, clear consistency. These capacities are what make me suited to guiding this depth of personal work.
After a decade of exploring performance as a powerful crucible for human development and growth, I find myself drawn to ever deeper approaches to this work. Karuna Club is where I know I can have the biggest impact.
The details
Join a retreat.
Every retreat runs for four nights. Your first retreat is half price, so you can experience it for yourself before deciding whether to go further.
- Your first retreatFour nights€3,500per person
- Every retreat afterFour nights€7,000per person
- Dates
- From spring 2027, with new retreats added through the year. Every retreat runs for four nights.
- Place
- Boho Experience, Kockengen, the Netherlands
- Group
- Up to twenty men per retreat, plus three to four of my facilitation team. Psilocybin ceremonies are limited to twelve participants
- Included
- A 90-minute preparation session with Laurence
- An online group welcome before the retreat
- Accommodation and all meals
- All practices, including the psilocybin ceremony with Spinoza at chosen retreats
- Guidance and coaching throughout the retreat
- A 90-minute one-to-one and an online group integration session afterwards
- Not included
- Travel to and from the retreat, travel insurance
- Rooms
- Expect shared rooms, with single rooms offered where possible
- Payment
- Terms on request. Write to me and we’ll find what works
If the fee would stop you taking part, write to me anyway. A small number of supported places are available.
Karuna Club
Join the club, and keep coming back.
Once you experience the freedom and aliveness of life at the threshold, you will want to keep coming back. The club is for men who are ready to explore further and deeper than one retreat can offer. Members get everything above at each of their retreats, plus:
- Three retreats a yearof four nights each, at Boho Experience
- Monthly online circlesso the work stays alive between retreats
- One-to-ones with Laurencewhenever they serve you most
- Priority sign-upfor any additional retreats, before places open to others
Been on your first retreat already? Your €3,500 counts towards membership, so you join for €11,500.
Questions
What else might be on your mind?
I’ve never done anything like this. Is it for me?
Most of the men who come haven’t. You don’t need experience of meditation, breathwork or psilocybin. We realise this work can push people past their comfort zone, so the Karuna journey is designed to lead you through it, feeling as safe and supported as possible. That’s why there is preparation work, one-to-one and group time, beforehand, and continued guidance and support afterwards.
To get the most from the experience, you should have a certain level of emotional maturity, as well as real curiosity, a willingness to open up and be honest with yourself, and a bit of an adventurer’s spirit.
Why join the club, rather than coming to a single retreat?
Because once men get a sense of the aliveness and excitement that comes from the practices, and from the conversations that accompany them, they simply want to experience more of it. There are so many amazing practices and routes to self-discovery, so why not offer a whole menu to try?
Members come to three retreats a year, meet monthly online, and get priority sign-up for any additional retreats. But you’re welcome to start with one: your first retreat is €3,500, and it counts towards membership if you join.
Can I try a retreat before joining the club?
Yes, and most men will. Your first retreat is €3,500. If you decide to become a member afterwards, that €3,500 counts towards your membership, so you pay the remaining €11,500.
How often can I come?
As often as you like. Book retreats one at a time, or join Karuna Club for three a year, with priority sign-up for any additional retreats we add.
Who leads the practices?
My team and I, together with trusted practitioners in each discipline, all of whom have done this work themselves. We will regularly invite new guest facilitators too, and keep pushing ourselves into new terrain.
Why men only?
Because something particular happens when men gather with purpose and drop the armour. Many of us have rarely, if ever, been in a room like that. I look around and see too many men who lack an outlet to open up about what weighs on them, what they fear, what they truly dream of doing.
The right men, held in the right space, will lift each other up more than any single practice or coaching session ever could.
Who else will be there?
A retreat will bring together up to 20 men, usually between their thirties and sixties, from a range of professions and backgrounds, and chosen for their readiness for the depth of this inner work and their ability to contribute meaningfully to the group.
I will also have three to four of my team present at every retreat, to ensure there is enough of our care and attention to go round the group, and to look after any and all logistical issues that could arise.
My expectation is that it is the connections you make with the others in the group that will stay with you the longest.
Do I have to take part in the psilocybin ceremony?
No. It is one practice among many, offered only at chosen retreats. Many may never take part. If you do, the choice is yours right up to the moment itself, and either way you remain a full part of the group.
Is the psilocybin ceremony really legal?
Yes. Psilocybin truffles are legal in the Netherlands, and ceremonies have been held openly there since 2008. The ceremony takes place entirely in the Netherlands.
How do I know the ceremony is safe for me?
If you choose to take part, Spinoza’s medical screening is completed first. If anything in your health or medication means the ceremony isn’t right for you, they’ll tell you, and you’ll take part in the rest of the retreat as normal.
What if I’m nervous?
That’s perfectly fine. It means you’re taking it seriously and you care about the result. Nerves are part of the threshold. Everything before the retreat is designed to settle them, and you won’t be alone for any of it. I have designed Karuna to be the safe and reassuring experience that a person with some nerves and doubts would appreciate.
What is your role, and what is Spinoza’s?
Spinoza hold the psilocybin ceremonies: screening, dosing and facilitation. My team and I hold everything else, from the first conversation through every retreat and integration session. I’m with you on ceremony days as well.
Will I have my phone?
Phones are put away for most of the retreat, with time each day to check in at home if needed. Part of the joy will be in the sense of disconnection from normal, daily life.
What about the food?
All meals are vegetarian, and cooked for us on site. Tell us about any dietary needs when you book.
Where will I sleep?
All bedrooms are of a high standard of comfort, with an ensuite bathroom. Expect to share a room, with single rooms offered where possible.
What should I bring?
Comfortable clothes, something warm for the evenings, activewear for running, cycling and movement, swimwear for the sauna, and a journal. You’ll receive a preparation pack before you arrive.
What happens between retreats?
The integration is where each retreat becomes your life. After every retreat, a 90-minute one-to-one with me and an online group integration session are included. Karuna Club members also meet online every month, with one-to-ones whenever they will serve you most.
Is it confidential?
Completely. What is shared in the group stays in the group, and we agree that together on the first evening.
Can I pay in instalments?
Anything is possible. Just let me know what you’re thinking.
How to join
Write to me.
If this speaks to you, let me know. A line or two about who you are and why you’re drawn to this is enough, and we can arrange a time for a first conversation.
What happens next
- You write. I’ll reply personally within a few days.
- We have a 30-minute call, to see if this is right for you and for the group.
- If it is, you reserve your place on a retreat, or join Karuna Club.
- Your journey begins: your preparation session, the group welcome, then the retreat.
Places are limited, and there is no guarantee you will be invited to join. I reserve the right to select participants who I can trust are ready, and who will complement the group well.