Inside the rage retreats where women pay up to $4,500 to get in touch with their anger

At Lumalia Emmy Armstrong’s Holy Rage Retreats in the Oregon woods near Portland, small groups of women gather among the trees, expressing themselves through sound and movement. In intimate groups of up to 10 women, hearing one woman growl can give another permission to do the same. Later, they burn letters written during a group discussion and close the retreat with a song.

A group of adults growling in the woods might sound like an unusual way to spend an afternoon, let alone money. But organizers are selling something they say participants struggle to find elsewhere: a place to be angry without judgment. Prices vary widely. Armstrong charges $600 for a 3.5-hour session, while the Bay Area CBT Center advertises multi-day rage retreats for up to $4,500 per person. 

“I believe that people are craving places they can experience emotion without getting ostracized, diminished, or diagnosed,” Armstrong told Fortune.

Her women-only Holy Rage Retreats draw attendees from their mid-20s to mid-50s, she said. Many are navigating divorce, illness, breakups, or a reconsideration of their religious beliefs.

At the Bay Area CBT Center, psychologist Avigail Lev told Fortune she works with women who have become accustomed to putting other people’s needs ahead of their own. She said those patterns can leave women angry, yet struggling to express resentment or stand up for themselves.

Some fear their anger is dangerous or will hurt others, Lev explained, making it difficult to say no or set boundaries. So far, only women have attended the center’s rage retreat; she said 84 women and two men have expressed interest. Lev suggested men may face less pressure to suppress anger and therefore see less need for an outlet, but emphasized that she had not asked them about their motivations.

The work is also personal for her. At a retreat several years ago, where she worked with someone she described as a “guru shaman,” she experienced anger as empowering rather than overwhelming.

Before that experience, she said, anger had left her feeling helpless and frantic. But at the retreat, she recalled feeling powerful, composed, and clear in that moment.

“I felt like: don’t mess with me,” she said. “It was the first time ever that I could say I ever experienced what anger feels like in my body, and feeling composed and powerful at the same time.”

Fortune’s efforts to speak directly with participants in Armstrong’s and Lev’s retreats were unsuccessful.

Caroline Golko, a Chicago therapist who attended another retreat called RAGEher in 2025 and returned twice, told Bloomberg that her husband and others had noticed she was calmer and more present afterward. She attributed the change to having an outlet for anger without fear of judgment.

Lev also added that some online portrayals of rage retreats miss the work that happens beyond the screaming. “Rage is not performative,” she told Fortune. “You don’t need to throw a tantrum and scream or force something.”

At her retreats, participants identify core beliefs, discuss situations that triggered anger, and examine whether fearing the emotion has stopped them from saying no or setting boundaries. The aim is to help them recognize what anger is telling them and choose how to respond.

What $4,500 buys

The Bay Area CBT Center advertises a five-day retreat for $3,500 and a seven-day package for $4,500. Both include lodging, meals, and therapy sessions, with longer stays offering additional work and follow-up support. Its website also lists a one-to-three-day option for $2,500. Participants complete a questionnaire about how long and intensive they want the experience to be, and what exactly they want to work on. 

The center held its first rage retreat in May with 16 participants, Lev said, and another is planned for late October. She said most interest came from women, and she hopes to expand by offering more dates and retreats.

At Holy Rage Retreats, which Armstrong started hosting in August 2025, the half-day experiences begin with a meditation practice she calls “Your Body as Poetry,” followed by opportunities for sound—including optional screaming or growling—and movement. She said attendees are screened to ensure they have appropriate support for anything that comes up before or after.

Her retreats also include photography, which Armstrong sees as an opportunity for women to see themselves beyond their usual posed expressions. She said she keeps the groups intentionally small at about around 10 people so everyone is well supported. 

For Lev, assessing what participants take home means asking about their behavior. Attendees rate how consistently they act in accordance with their values before the retreat, afterward, and weeks later through questionnaires, she said. Those values might include being honest, assertive, or standing up for themselves. She did not provide outcome data.

“Releasing is not enough to change behaviors and change beliefs,” Lev said.

Evidence for rage therapy is thin

The science behind rage therapy is another matter. Research on hitting objects does not support it as a way to reduce anger, and there are too few studies of screaming to conclude its effects.

Sophie Kjærvik, an anger researcher at the Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, pointed out that relief isn’t the same as a lasting benefit. 

“An activity can feel cathartic in the moment without reducing anger,” she told Fortune.

Anger can provide useful information, signaling that something is unfair, a boundary has been crossed, or an important goal is being blocked. Recognizing that signal and choosing a response differs from trying to physically release it, Kjærvik explained.

Her team’s meta-analysis found that activities that increase physiological arousal generally did not reduce anger, while relaxation, mindfulness, meditation, and slow breathing consistently helped. 

Kjærvik said calming exercises, social support, group discussion, or other aspects of a retreat are more likely to explain why participants might feel calmer afterward than venting.

To her knowledge, rage retreats themselves haven’t been evaluated in controlled studies. For customers, immediate relief or positive testimonials do not establish lasting benefits, she said. If a retreat makes therapeutic claims, she recommends looking for research to support them.

“Effective anger management is not about eliminating anger,” Kjærvik said. “But about responding to it constructively and communicating one’s needs in everyday life.”