I went to a $5,000 ‘man camp’ in California. It took a surprising turn | CNN

Have you ever had someone stare right into your soul? It’s not a pleasant experience. I felt a loss of control; my stomach lifted and pressed against my chest like that moment of weightlessness, right after takeoff, when a plane slows its rate of climb and settles into an ascent. “I feel like we’re missing whatever you’re wanting to connect on,” the woman across from me said — life-coach talk for “I see through your bullsh*t.” She held my eye. There was no point holding back. It was time to let it all out. STREAMING NOW: CNN visits two mens’ workshops with sharply different approaches to tackling toxic masculinity and male loneliness. Upgrade to watch the full report. It was day three of an eye-opening week, and I was having an intense, one-on-one treatment session. On camera. And soon, I’d be sharing even more with a group of men I’d met 72 hours earlier. I was in California to cover a story: a five-day, male-only retreat in Sonoma, in which a group of dudes unpack and reframe their relationships to masculinity. It’s an interesting concept – but what makes it unique is that the camp is founded and run by a woman, life coach Lori Jean Glass, and her team o

Jun 23, 2026 → Jun 23, 2026