If you are exhausted and yearn to rest, like nearly everyone I know, you may be interested in what's arguably the most radical wellness trend of 2026 - an ancient practice called "dark retreat." This powerful experience, touted by celebrities as the latest way to achieve self-realisation and peace, involves no drugs (unlike, say, ayahuasca), no intense physical work, and no strict diet - just staying in absolute darkness in a comfortable room for 24 hours a day, for several days.
Many schools respond to misbehavior by assigning detention, where students are required to sit still and keep to themselves. But one school counselor in Maine, Leslie Trundy, is offering a different option: detention hikes. Trundy's novel approach captured national media attention when she began offering students the option to join her for hikes on nearby trails. A year-and-a-half into this novel offering, the results are compelling: Fewer students have been receiving detention since the new option was introduced, and teachers have observed more positive engagement in the days following hikes. While there has not yet been a formal research study to quantify the impact, detention hikes appear to be a meaningful, relational alternative that supports students while connecting them to the benefits of time in nature and physical movement.