Hi {!firstname_fix}

So, here is Thanksgiving once again. I love Thanksgiving. I think I love it so much because quite a long time ago I shifted my focus onto it being a day of gratitude.

In the Handling the Holidays class, we do one exercise about gratitude. I have people list all the things they are grateful for in their lives. And then read that list on Thanksgiving morning. It sets the tone for the day in a different way. I guess I spend the whole week reflecting on what I am grateful for. I am always amazed at how this changes my outlook on life. Instead of munching about what is not working, I love the reflection on what is.

Even if you are alone, take time to make this day a time of paying attention. See what comes for you. And know that I carry all of you in my heart and you are a very large part of my gratitude list.

Many of you have asked me about getting some quick info without having to do a whole consult. I thought we might try out a special little service and see if this will meet your needs.

Let’s say you have some quick questions you want to run by me. You know the program, maybe have taken classes, have a sense of what to do but would like, or are looking at changes in meds and want some input on talking with your doctor.

These would be questions that are a little more involved than the input I can give you on the list. *Ask Kathleen* will let you do that by email. Here is how it will work.

You click here to sign up (this takes you to our shopping cart that lets the billing be all in place).

Then you send an email to: Kathleen@radiantrecovery.com with the title ASK KATHLEEN and I will respond by email. In that email, you will need to include where you are in the program (what step, how long), how old you are and how much you weigh (smile).

The fee will be $25.

I know a number of you have been asking me for it, so let’s see if it works for you.

There will be no new classes starting this week (11/22).

We will resume the following week after Thanksgiving (11/29) with theses classes. Please click on the name of the class and it will take you to the registration page.

Step 3: Three Meals is our old standby. It is a GREAT class to do this time of year. Learn or remember how to create a regular and consistent pattern of 3 meals. Insure against grazing and skipping. Step 3 is the hardest of the steps. Come get some help with it.

Handling the Holidays: Christmas is one of my favorite classes. If you would like to get yourself into a wonderful frame of mind and heart, come do this class. We have so much fun and you will be surprised to learn these techniques to transform what can so easily be a hard time.

Back to Basics 2 is the second level for those of you on step 7 who are struggling. If you just finished BtB1, come join us.

Resource Center Tour is one of our free walking tours through the website. This one takes you through the resource center. Explore all the nooks and crannies and discover things you did not know were there.

I have posted a new class schedule on line. Click here to see what is planned.

A number of you have asked me how the classes work. Check the class list page for more information on this. The classes are done online with one lesson each day. You do not have to be at your computer at any set time.

And please go read the questions and answers before you write to me. If you have trouble getting through the process, write the tech forum.

Please feel free to pass this week's newsletter on to your friends and family. Don't forget to let me know what you like and would like to see me cover.

Be sure to visit our Radiant Recovery® website and Community Forum regularly.

Warmly,
Kathleen

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November 20, 2006
** Quote From Kathleen **


Your journal will really help you sort out what is going on in your brain chemistry and your body.

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** Testimonial for the Week**


Here's a little story about *90% solid*:

I am making a quilt. I finished sewing the blocks on Friday, and on Saturday I was pressing the blocks in preparation for sewing them together. I noticed that 90% were just about right (6 inches square), but the last 7 that I pressed were a quarter inch too small. If I used them in one row of the quilt, that would mean that row would be almost 2 inches smaller. If I scattered them around, the quilt would pucker.

So I went back to my fabric, cut some more pieces and made some more blocks. No big deal. And I took a good look at the ones that weren't right to see where I'd gone wrong. I knew it wasn't in pressing--I did a really careful job. I didn't think it was in sewing--I was reasonably accurate at that, too.

Turns out the mistake was way back when I had cut my fabric. I had specially cut some strips to center on a repeating rose motif--and I was so focused on the roses that I didn't notice that the last strip I cut was 1/4 inch too small. And the 7 blocks I sewed it in were also 1/4 inch too small.

90% plus of my cutting was excellent. But that 10% or so that wasn't would have thrown the whole thing off if I hadn't gone back and gotten it right before sewing the whole thing together.

Incidentally, it was just this kind of mistake that made me quit quilting before the program. I would try to make do, and end up in a muddle and really frustrated. It's a joy to take care and go at my own pace and get it right. Not perfect--but right :)

Jeannie

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**Recipe of the Week**


Here are a few more more Thanksgiving recipes.

Wild Rice and Sweet Potato Stuffing

 Ingredients:

  • 1 cup uncooked wild rice
  • 2 1/2 c water
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 2 medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1" cubes. Do not peel
  • 1 cup chopped apple
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 c onions, diced
  • 1/4 c celery, diced
  • 1/4 c parsley, chopped
  • 1 tsp. poultry seasoning
  • 1/4 tsp. pepper
  • 2 TBS olive oil
  • 1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds
Directions:

In a medium saucepan, combine wild rice, salt and water. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 45-60 minutes or until grains open. Drain and set aside.

In another saucepan, combine sweet potatoes with enough lightly salted water to cover. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer for about 15 minutes until potatoes are tender but not mushy. Drain, set aside. In a large skillet, heat 2 TBS. Olive oil over medium high heat. Add garlic, onion and celery and saute until vegetables are fragrant. They will be about 2 minutes.

Add apples, poultry seasoning, and pepper. Continue to saute another 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

Combine wild rice, sweet potatoes and apple mixture. Add chopped parsley and combine well. Add almonds and toss.

Use stuffing to fill poultry. Or you can put the stuffing into a lightly greased casserole dish and bake at 350 for 25 minutes until golden and heated through.

Cranberry Chutney

 Ingredients:

  • 4 Valencia oranges
  • Rind of one orange
  • 4 cups apple juice
  • 2 LB. Fresh cranberries
  • 1 1/2 cup walnuts
  • 1 tsp. Cinnamon
  • 1 pinch nutmeg
Directions:

Cut up the oranges, add the rind of one of them simmer in 4 cups apple juice for 15 minutes. Add 2 lbs. fresh cranberries and 1 1/2 cup of walnuts. Simmer for an additional 15 minutes until it thickens. Add 1 tsp. cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg.

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**Your Last Diet: More Than What You Think**


Chats last week were fun. We talked about a book called The Obesity Myth and shared our own feelings about the cultures that reinforce defining ourselves in terms of what we weigh. It is always exciting to make these connections and see that we have choices. I love the dialogue. Chats are the high point of my week.

The conversations on the YLD list have been a source of comfort and inspiration. To listen to new folks come in with that desperation we all know so well and then hear the change is awesome. Angst gives way to problem solving. Hopelessness gives way to action. And I sure see that this kind of support makes it possible to *do* what we know works so well.

If you are not a YLD member, come and join us. Click here if you are ready to change your life or just plain ole have fun. It is not too late to get into the classes if you come right now.
 


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**David's Corner **



Guess you guys just love those oatcakes. I already had to reorder And I am thinking that they are a great alternative for kids. Madison is coming for Thanksgiving. I am going to do some taste testing with her.
Speaking of company....what about stocking up on special choices for the holiday. If you have not tried the wild rice we carry, now is a great time. Come read about why our wild rice is so special. Do not get commercial wild rice, get the rice that is hand harvested from natural rice in the lakes. We all make it up by doing half wild rice, have brown rice in the rice cooker and then freezing individual portions. If you get busy or late, and are looking for the perfect carb, you can just grab a portion and heat it. If you want to read about it more, go to this website www.savewildrice.com.


Please send questions and suggestions. I love hearing from you and truly want to help you do your program better.

 
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**Our Online Groups**


Hi, I'm Kathleen, and I'm the volunteer liaison for the RadiantEuro group. This is a new online support group for our members living in Europe. We have some folks in Italy, Cyprus, Slovenia, Germany, France and Holland and I thought it would been really fun to have a special list for you. Come join us and see what fun we are having.

Or come to the group page to see all our groups. http://www.radiantrecovery.com/list_serves.htm


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**Reflecting on Teenagers**
Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D.


Kath sent this note to one of our lists this week:

This is a warning to all you people who currently have the kitchen available to make your own breakfast in a timely fashion. If you get your children making their own breakfasts, you might have to be even more diligent about watching your breakfast is within an hour because the kitchen can become busy with kids becoming self sufficient!

I have 4 teens. They all do the food. They are all independant breakfast getters, making and eating their own when they wake, getting themselves packed, lunch planned and made, all in the backsack, and off to school whether they are starting early with concert band or choir, taking an excursion, or a normal day.

And when I come in from work, at about 5pm I am likely to be sat down, while they make something for me to eat, before I am allowed to make dinner!

What a wonderful life

Kath


This post really stopped me cold. I remember these kids from a while ago. They were all on ADD meds and the household was more like what we tend to think of as a house full of teenagers. We have a picture of what adolescence has to be. But what if that image is not about adolescence, but about the food.

Think about it. Mood swings, outbursts of anger, power struggles, bickering, slamming doors, pouting, self esteem in the gutter, grandiosity overflowing, whining, crying, feeling ugly, fat, out of control, testing limits, being belligerent, having a smart mouth, not wanting to do school work, only wanting to do school work. We think self absorption and angst. And yet listen to what Kath is reporting.

Now that did not happen in a week or a month....but that energy gives me shivers. That energy is the dream of every one of us who has children. You may think it is a dream that is beyond you. Kath is a regular person. She started the program with the same stuff going on that you have in your life. And she just did the food. And she did the food with her family. They didn’t buy in in the beginning, they didn’t agree or like it. So Kath worked on herself...and took small steps.

When I started off with this food stuff, I thought it was about healing sugar addiction. I had no understanding of the depth of what we were learning. Our community has taught me that the healing that the food brings is way beyond healing sugar addiction. It literally rewires brains and changes relationships. And as those happen, it streams all around and everywhere. I don’t talk about that part much. Who would ever believe me?

I am going to put together the stories. I know that many of you are connected on the lists, the forum and in the classes and you hear these changes. But many of you are not. And you may not know, or you may forget or may not believe the power of what we are doing.

Focus on the food. Your life will change!



©Kathleen DesMaisons 2006.

Here are the folks who are helping put the newsletter together:

Gretel, the liaison for the recovery list and the webmaster puts it all together
Naomi gathers the recipes.
David, who runs the Radiant Recovery® Store talks about what new products we have.

You are getting the weekly newsletter from Radiant Recovery® in response to your signup. A copy of this newsletter may also be found posted on the web at http://www. radiantrecovery.com/weeklynewsletter.htm.

©2006 by Kathleen DesMaisons . All rights reserved. You are free to use or transmit this article to your ezine or website as long as you leave the content unaltered and use this attribution: "By Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D. of Radiant Recovery®. Please visit Kathleen's website at http://www.radiantrecovery.com for additional resources on sugar sensitivity and healing addiction." Please notify me at kathleen@radiantrecovery.com to let me know where the material will appear.

Banner Photograph by Geraint Smith