What I learned while trapped on a tiny island in France overnight
The five stages of grief as we realised we weren't getting dinner or our beds till the morning.
Hi readers! It has been a very full summer for me, so this is my first post in a while. For those who are new to my work, I am an emotional wellness practitioner. Here is a story of when I had to use my tools for emotional regulation in an extreme situation this summer. Trigger warning - if you have been stuck in an emergency situation with extreme winds or have a phobia of it, this might not be the article for you!
We had driven from Germany to the south of France, on a three week road trip we had planned for months. In the van we had an inflatable boat so that we could have better access to the hidden beaches — my partner and his friend who made the same trip last year thought it was an essential addition to the equipment this time round.
We were three photographers traveling together. We visited Rencontres d'Arles the photo-festival which blew my mind. I will write about that in another post. After a week of photography nourishment we continued our journey around Province.
Something that I felt heavily while in the south of France was how they enforce covering the body when you are not on a beach. Having lived in Germany for years, where you can wear a bikini top on the street and even less at a lake or pool, and nobody cares at all - this felt extreme. As a photographer who works with the nude from in nature this was a real challenge for me, to keep my creative vision clear while managing these cultural and even legal expectations that I didn’t expect to encounter.
We reached the legendary lake where we wanted to use the boat. We first of all camped overlooking it from above, planning to reach the water in the morning. After watching the most incredible sunset together, I went to bed and the guys stayed up to watch the stars. While in the embrace of the vast twinkling lights they made a plan, we would row to the island on this lake and bury a message in a bottle to our future selves. A cosmic time capsule of friendship, growth and adventure.
I was into the plan when I heard it in the morning, but cautious of going by tiny boat to a place I’ve never been. We drove to a camp site closer to the lake and with the plan in their hearts the boys were in full-action mode. They prepared several litres of water to take, acoustic guitar, our hammocks and warmer clothes. The plan was to go to the island for some hours and row back during the sunset and be back at the camp to have dinner and sleep. I get hangry so my priority was to make sure I had some gluten free biscuits and bread to see me through and keep me regulated.
It wasn’t till we were on the island, it got quite windy. Then it got very windy — and it became apparent that none of us had checked the weather — and the only food we had was my gluten free snacks.
The Five Stages of Grief
Denial
We kept an eye on the weather app. It said that the water would be calm enough to row back at 10pm. So we enjoyed the sunset and took lots of photos. We did our message in a bottle and buried it like pirates. Made a playlist for rowing back. 10pm came and went, the app said it’ll be calm enough to row at midnight. Midnight came and went and the wind was even worse. We say things like “At least theres no light pollution out here and we can really see the starts” and “It’s fine we only have four tiny slices of gluten-free bread - we’ll get dinner at the camp in an hour or two”.
Anger
Laying on the blanket trying to relax and watch the stars, the wind was so strong coming across my face that I could hardly breathe. The trees were all bending and around us in the darkness. Anxiety began to set in and I could feel my heart beating in my ears. We each started to get irritated and move in and out of anger, trying not to bring each other down. I let out some bitter words and then apologised and we each took turns at expressing our frustration, fear and hunger.
Bargaining
It crossed my mind that we could try EFT Tapping to regulate ourselves - and even try and in a goofy way to bargain with the wind through our affirmations. All three of us stood on the beach in the dark tapping our faces and repeating affirmations to emotionally hack our nervous systems into being calm and to trust we will be fine no matter if we get back tonight or not. Also tapping to reassure the massive wind that its safe for it to calm down too and to let us go home.
Depression (just Sadness in our case)
Defeat, we built a shelter with our blanket to protect us from the wind and put our sad asses in the soil. Hungry and disappointed with ourselves. Rationing out this gluten-free bread between us. We called someone on the mainland to see if they had any bright ideas — or knew anyone with a motor boat to come and get us, no luck. A moment of clarity came over our friend and he realised there must be some trees further-in on this island that we could put our hammocks on and try to sleep. We had been so focused on the water, with intent to row again, we never even though of that.
Acceptance
We realised we were not getting back to our camp and we probably wouldn’t sleep. We just hoped that we would be able to put up our hammocks and have some comfort. Our friend’s mission to find a spot for the hammocks was successful. So grateful to him for this! We got a spot for the night, but none of us really slept as the wind blew through the hammocks, and without any isolation mats it was very cold night for us. Just staying as calm as possible to get through it. Lucky to be sharing a hammock with my partner, I used him as a mattress and he used me as a blanket. Our friend stayed up wrapped in all the odd clothes and the picnic blanket, in his hammock reading Herman Hesse. I’ve never known anything more poetic. The morning came and the water was finally calm enough to row to the shore.
What I learned
I learned how generous it is to have good humour and an open heart. Especially in these intense situations. I learned that the body can push though almost anything when it has to. I’m glad nothing more serious happened and we all got out with our health and our belongings and our friendship intact. And the bucket hat I thought mother nature had claimed in the 30mph winds showed up back at camp.
What do I do?
I’m an EFT Tapping Practitioner (Emotional Freedom Techniques) and Portrait Photographer. It’s my life’s work to help others connect to the essence of who they are and what feels authentic for them. My goal is to support people in creating lives filled with emotional fulfilment, purpose, and joy.
If this resonates with you, you can find out more about my work and reach out through my website: claire-farrell.com
It's my honour to hold space as we explore the beliefs and barriers holding you back—making room for your most authentic self to thrive.
1:1 EFT Sessions - You can click here to find out more about what an EFT Tapping Session with me looks like and what to expect.
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Lots of love,
Claire