The Gateless Residency: A 12 month sanctuary for Writing, Artistry, Craft and Vision

MOVE YOUR PROJECT FORWARD IN REAL TERMS. GIVE YOUR LOVE FORM.

RHYTHM, SANCTUARY,DEDICATION, MENTORSHIP, KIN

A virtual residency of creative catalyst, shelter, support and focus for the projects closest to your heart.

Application for the 2026/2027 Residency: Dates TBD

"*" indicates required fields

APPLICATION FOR THE 2026/2027 GATELESS RESIDENCY

This application is intended for you to consider your own creative process and work at this time, and also to ensure that the pre-requisites of this residency are a fit for you. This space doesn't operate on creative hierarchy. All levels and stages are welcome. PLEASE BE SURE YOU HAVE READ THE WEB PAGE IN ITS ENTIRETY BEFORE APPLYING.

Name*

First Last

Email Address*

(*Be sure to use an address that you check regularly and to double check your spelling here. This will be where you receive all course information and communication)

Phone Number: Sarah will call you for an interview/conversation

Where on our planet are you located?*

What are you working on right now/intend to work on in this residency?*

What are your needs/desires/ goals and intentions for this residency time?*

What calls to you about this particular container? What aspects meet your needs and longings?*

In her commentary on the story La Llorona in Women Who Run with The Wolves, Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés Réyes names the 5 phases of creation as: inspiration, concentration, organization, implementation and sustenance. Which of these phases do you have a natural affinity for and tend to spend most time in, and which phases do you find the most absent or challenging in your creative process/current project?*

What else would you like to tell me regarding your interest in this residency or your project?*

What is your vision for yourself/your project at the end of this residency?*

Prerequisites

Participants must have the confidence, physical centering, and psychic anchoring to hold them in time and space. Self-responsibility and the ability to reestablish coherence in the face of your inevitable edges is required. A clear sense of containment is required. This residency is not a fit for those who may be currently feeling destabilized, traumatized, struggling to heal, or in need of reestablishing basic nervous system or life coherency.

Yes, I meet this prerequisite

I'm not sure I meet this pre-requisite. I'd like to talk about this on our call.

I do not meet this pre-requisite

This is a container for nourishing creative process, not a therapeutic container. Plenty of rich inner material will arise in this residency. What surfaces for residents will be reflected and metabolized within frameworks of creative process. Residents must possess self-responsibility for their process and not seek to be rescued, solved or healed from this container or other residents. We will be nurturing the art of "being with"- each other, ourselves, our work, and what arises, and cultivating depths of trust in self, inner wisdom and the living intelligence of life. This kind of gaze will allow for a profound and intimate creative soul-self to rise. Residents must also possess the capacity to "be with" another, trusting that person's own inner wisdom. This container is not a space for processing, healing or resolving issues or trauma as one might do with a therapist. Vulnerability is essential for our creative intelligence to arise and is welcome here. As are tides of emotion and varied states of being. You will be asked to hold your own vulnerability, and that of others, with respect and as a gift that needs no advice, suggestions or solving. You will be "naming" much about your project and process out loud with each other, touching deep places in your own artistic soul and will be asked to hold all you hear in our sessions in privacy and confidence. Should material arise that does in fact need a therapeutic container, residents are responsible for seeking that auxiliary support.

Yes, I understand this and this is a fit for me. If I need therapeutic support as an additional resource for this creative process, I will seek that outside of this container so that I can access the gems of this residency

Sessions will not be recorded. This is an intentional choice to support us in being present in synchronous time and space. If you miss a session, there is nothing for you to catch up on., which is intended to be a relief. The ecology field of the residency will find you.

Yes, I understand

Have you worked with Sarah before?*

Yes

How did you find your way here?

Social Media

Mailing List

Friend

Other

Beautiful. Who is the friend that led you here?

MONTHLY INVOICING*

Note that you will be invoiced from PayPal each month for your payments and that you must pay manually. Payments are requested on time and without follow up or reminders please. You do not need a PayPal account to pay. You can pay by debit or credit card.

I understand

REFUND POLICY*

If by January 1, 2026, you have applied yourself fully to all aspects of this residency (full attendance of all classes with an allowance to miss 2 sessions of your choice, not including the sanctuaries) and do not feel this is is meeting your needs, Sarah will cease your payment plan with the addition of $100 admin fee, and withdraw you from the program. Beyond this date and condition, this program is non-refundable. You are committing financially for the full 12 months. Credit Card on file is required and will be collected in a phone call.

I understand and agree to this payment and cancellation policy.

Please ensure you have read this entire refund policy and agree to its terms, effective upon your acceptance and first payment. Please type "I have read this payment and refund policy, understand it, and agree to its terms" in the box below.*

RELEASE: In checking the box below, I acknowledge and understand the following in relation to attending programming with Sarah Byrden and The Elemental Self:*

-That Sarah Byrden, The Elemental Self and all collaborators and contractors therein utilize a number of different contexts, approaches and practices depending on the particular course of study and work I have signed up for.
-That this is depth work and has the potential to impact my body, mind and spirit in unforeseen ways.
-That some practices involve physical movement, and carry risk of injury.
-That it is my responsibility to assess my physical, mental and emotional readiness to engage in class and to modulate my participation accordingly.
-That Sarah reserves the right to terminate my participation in class for any reason that may put her, me or the group at risk.
-That Sarah Byrden is not a licensed therapist, counselor, or doctor of any kind.
-That if I need further support and resources for my care and health (mental, emotional, physical or spiritual), I will seek and obtain guidance from a licensed health care practitioner.

I hereby waive and release any claim that I may have at any time for injury and/or liability of any sort against Sarah Byrden, The Elemental Self, LLC, and any of her collaborators and contractors.

I understand and agree.

PLEASE KEEP YOUR EYE OUT FOR A FOLLOW UP EMAIL CONFIRMING YOUR REGISTRATION. IF YOU DO NOT RECEIVE AN EMAIL WITHIN 24 HOURS, PLEASE EMAIL US AT INFO@THEELEMENTALSELF.COM. (YOU EMAILING US IS THE ONLY WAY WE’LL KNOW THAT SOME PART OF OUR COMMUNICATION STREAM WITH YOU ISN’T WORKING PROPERLY, AND WE DON’T WANT YOU TO FALL INTO A DIGITAL BLACK HOLE!)