Dr. Joe Dispenza
I’ll never forget the first time I saw thousands of people sitting in silence, eyes covered, meditating in unison, as if the outside world had disappeared. It was 6 a.m. in London’s ExCeL Centre and I was one of them.
I’ve always been fascinated by the mind–body connection — the idea that our thoughts, beliefs, and emotions can shape our health, our actions, and even our lives. A close friend had attended one of Dr. Joe Dispenza’s meditation retreats and said it had changed his life. So when I saw he was bringing his week-long event to London, I felt drawn to experience it for myself.
Who is Dr. Joe Dispenza?
Dr. Joe Dispenza is a chiropractor turned neuroscientist and bestselling author who has built a global following by blending quantum physics, neuroscience, and meditation into an immersive experience.
At the heart of his philosophy is a simple but challenging idea: to change your life, you must first change yourself — your thoughts, beliefs, and emotional habits. Most of us, he says, live on autopilot, replaying the same mental loops that keep us recreating the same experiences.
To break free, you must become aware of your old patterns, let them go, and consciously choose new ones. As he often reminds his audience, “Where your attention goes, your energy flows,” a reminder that what we consistently focus on can shape both our inner state and outer reality.
Inside the Retreat
The seven-day schedule was intense. Each day began before dawn, with the first meditation starting at 6 a.m. and the last lecture ending around 8 p.m. Between those hours came deep meditations, long talks, and bursts of laughter — because, despite the seriousness of his material, Dispenza was surprisingly funny.
Over the week, we spent close to 40 hours in meditation. Some sessions lasted an hour, others stretched to four. Each morning I joined thousands of others in a dimly lit hall, wearing an eye mask and preparing to turn inward. The mask helped shut out the world, but the real shift was internal — a quiet clarity slowly replacing my usual mental chatter.
The meditations themselves varied. We practiced seated meditations, lying-down body scans, standing sessions where we tried to embody a new identity, and walking meditations outside, moving as if our future selves were already here. It wasn’t caffeine or adrenaline that kept us going. Somehow, turning inward seemed to recharge us.
And then there was the music. Between meditations, the resident DJ took over - music pumping, light flashing, and thousands of people moving in together. It was part rave, part release, and completely unexpected.
The collective energy in the room was palpable. Thousands of people meditating together amplified something — a kind of shared stillness that felt both grounding and electric. The people I met were from every walk of life — doctors, bankers, coaches, therapists — all curious about the potential of the mind.
As the week went on, I began to understand the science behind what we were doing — how our state of mind shapes the body, and how meditation can help reset that connection.
The Science of Change
Dispenza describes the mind–body connection not as mysticism but as biology in motion. Stress, he says, locks the body into survival mode — the familiar fight-or-flight loop that keeps us repeating the past. His meditations are designed to do the opposite: to slow the brain’s busy beta waves and open up more creative, receptive states. Over time, the thinking quietens, and something deeper takes over — a calm, steady clarity that feels new yet familiar.
Intention and Emotion
A central theme throughout the retreat was the pairing of clear intention and elevated emotion. Dispenza explained how emotions such as gratitude, joy, or love can open the brain and body to possibility. When combined with a clear mental image of the future we want to create, this pairing becomes a powerful signal to the nervous system.
He calls it “rehearsing your future.” Elite athletes have used similar techniques for decades — mentally practising success while feeling the emotion of victory. The idea is to teach the body how it will feel once the event happens, so that when it does, the mind and body are already aligned.
I found that concept surprisingly practical. During the week, I started to picture moments from my own life — projects I wanted to bring to life, situations I wanted to handle differently — and noticed how pairing those images with real feelings of gratitude made them more vivid, more believable. In Dispenza’s view, manifestation isn’t wishful thinking; it’s the biological outcome of consistent focus, emotional coherence, and practice.
What stayed with me
1. Space changes everything
Whether you’re a believer or a sceptic, taking a week away from the noise of life is powerful. Stepping out of routines, switching off notifications, and spending hours tuning inwards is like hitting a mental reset button. Without the constant pull of deadlines and distractions, you can ask the bigger questions: Who am I now? Who do I want to become?
2. Our energy flows where our attention goes
I’d heard this phrase before, but the retreat made me see it differently. I realised how easily my attention can drift toward what’s missing or stressful, and how that shapes my days. If we spend our days worrying, we train our brain to find more things to worry about. Since the retreat, I’ve become more deliberate about where I put my attention — and I’ve seen the ripple effect in my work, relationships, and overall mindset.
3. The overcoming process is the becoming process
Change doesn’t happen overnight, but it does happen through consistent practice. As Dispenza said repeatedly, “The overcoming process is the becoming process.” You start to think differently, act differently, and little by little, things begin to shift.
Several of the intentions I set during the retreat have since unfolded. Was it coincidence? Maybe. But I know I left London more focused, open, and ready to act when they did.
Looking Back
I went in curious. I came out convinced that whatever you believe about the mechanics of Joe Dispenza, dedicating time to deeply focus on who you want to become is never wasted. In a world obsessed with what’s urgent, the real power might be in giving your attention to what’s important. A Joe Dispenza retreat is not a week off. It’s a week in — a week of training your mind and body to think, feel, and act in alignment with the life you want to live. And sometimes, that’s exactly what we need.
