Detoxing in The Desert

My review of We Care Spa

I am writing this as I wrap up my second stay at We Care Spa. For those of you who don’t know, We Care is a detox resort located in Desert Hot Springs (basically Palm Springs).

There’s no food—just juices, teas, detox drinks, and soup at 4 PM—plus a daily colonic. The property is incredibly tranquil and peaceful. Between treatments, you can lounge by the pool, relax in the sauna, walk the ancient labyrinth, sit under the meditation pyramid, and more.

On the water bottle they give you, it says “we detoxify your body, revitalize your mind & restore your spirit in an intimate desert oasis” and I totally agree!

Here’s a breakdown of the program, the classes and treatments I’ve tried (including the fact that I fell asleep during reiki), my tips and tricks, and how to expect to feel!

The Program

As mentioned, there’s no solid food—yup, you heard that right! Instead, you follow a daily drink menu.

On the back, there is the checklist to keep you on track

I highly recommend attending the orientation meeting on the first day. It helps you get a lay of the land—at first it feels like there are a lot of steps, but once you figure it out, it’s easy peasy. They give you a water bottle and a blender bottle with your name on it, which you use throughout your stay (and take home). The staff is incredibly nice and super helpful.

4 PM is the best part—soup time! This is when you get one mug of organic vegetable soup + 2 food-n-zymes.

The main lobby is where you get your juices, teas, and, when the soup comes out, it feels like happy hour.

My Tips & Tricks + What To Pack

• Add extra cinnamon and extra cocoa to your detox drink to make it taste better. You’ll see on the drink list that you have this detox drink twice a day– it has psyllium husk in it which keeps you feeling full and it’s made with their detox powder.

• Eladia is my favorite for colonics, but my friend Jena loves Anabel.

• For the soup, add garlic powder, olive oil, coconut aminos, and flaxseed—otherwise, it’s sooo bland. Sometimes I even have two cups!

• What to Pack:

  • Bring a tote bag! They give you a flimsy paper bag that flies away, and you’ll want to keep your folder/notes with you + you’ll want your things with you as you walk around the property.

  • For clothes, honestly all you need are sweats, PJs, a few swimsuits, and that’s it! I lived in my new favorite LDMA sweatpants–more on these sweats and why they’ve become my entire personality in my Feb Favs post!

• Use the shake plate and the chi swing (I even bought both for home!) they have in the super little gym. They have a peloton too!

• If you feel tired or lightheaded, ask for an electrolyte slushie.

• If you’re really hungry, they can make you a protein shake.

• Make sure to check-out the gift shop–they have really good products there!

• Arrive early and stay late. Even if your room isn’t ready, or if you’ve checked out, they encourage you stay on the property and get extra detox time in. We usually arrive early (like 9AM) the day we’re checking in so we get a full day of juicing.

Classes/ Treatments I’ve Tried

• Reiki– the practitioner was so sweet but truth be told… I fell asleep and low-key think I missed the healing. You’re supposed to have visions etc. but I was too busy snoring… the practitioner assured me I was still healed but it’s tbd.

• Bioresonance–this was fun! Jesse is SO nice and the process is very cool. He puts your hands on two metal plates, put headphones on you and it scans your body– basically it measures the frequency of energy wavelengths coming from the body and helps identify points where the frequency is off. The report goes into foods you should avoid, fears you have etc. Then there is a healing portion where it helps realign your frequency.

• Euphoria Treatment –I really liked this body treatment. You start with a bath, followed by a body exfoliation, body wrap, head massage, and then a full-body massage. It’s 120 minutes.

• Colonic– a certain number of colonics are included in your stay and then you can add on extras if you want. They used a pressured system (I am normally a gravity girl) but I found them to be easy and comfortable.

• Sound Bath– I did this both times and it’s nice and chill.

• There was also an astrology class this week but it overlapped with my treatment. They also offer yoga, pilates etc.

How You’ll Feel

Okay, so everyone wants to know—how will you feel? Most people assume that without food, you’ll be miserable and cranky. The truth is, you don’t really get that hungry.

For me personally, as someone who eats pretty healthy, I never find myself fantasizing about a burger. At most, I wish I could have a salad or some sweet potatoes. But I’ve only done the program for three days, so I imagine it’s much harder on a longer stay. I also think the experience changes every time you come. The first time, I remember feeling hungrier, but this time it was much easier.

Of course, with the liquid-only diet and colonics, your stomach is super flat, and you feel really light. But at this stage of my life, where I’m happy with my body and weight, I wouldn’t suggest this as a "detox" primarily for weight loss. It’s more about cleansing your body on a cellular level to maintain good health rather than a quick fix to drop a few pounds…if that makes sense!

It might be a great kick-start to a health or weight loss journey, but if someone only wants to lose weight, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it. You might just end up missing food too much and any weight loss is temporary.

Overall, I truly love We Care and think it’s such a great, healthy, weekend retreat away from LA!