Hi {!firstname_fix}

Back to snow here. But there was a day last week when the air felt different. Felt like spring is thinking about itself. The dogs felt it too. I realize that in New Mexico, spring comes and when it starts (about now), it just continues. I think in the Northeast, it is a tease. We have a day like that, a whiff and then more snow.

The beach grass looks particularly bedraggled these days. The sky is one tone of grey, the sea another, and the islands out there are darker tones of green and grey. Even the sun spot is a grey light. Funny thing is that I think it is all quite beautiful. Soft. Quiet. Waiting.

It mobilizes me for reflection You will see these new classes popping up as a direct result.



This class will begin the week of February 27, 2008. Please click on the name of the class you wish to join and it will take you to the registration page:

Depression seems like a good mid winter class (smile)...come over and learn the chemistry of depression. Learn about antidepressants and learn why sometimes they don't work. If you are currently on medication, this is a great choice. You will get a chance to speak with Kathleen directly about your drugs and what they do.


These classes will begin the week of March 5, 2008. Please click on the name of the class you wish to join and it will take you to the registration page:

Back to Basics 1 is our map back to steady for folks who got up to step 6/7 and then forgot. This is a very caring and focused way to see what happened and to get back on track. This is only for people who were detoxed and then got lost.

Brain Chemistry: Beta Endorphin is the core class for sugar sensitives interested in the brain chemistry that affects why we are the way we are. If you are new to the program, this is a wonderful tool for learning.

Using the Resources of the Community is for those of you who are brand new and would like to find your way around town. Come sit on the top of our double decker bus for a guided tour. And even if you are not brand new, this is a really fun class to reconnect with all the treats of the community.


The class schedule is on line. Click here to see what is planned. Please do not sign up for classes that are not yet scheduled.

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 and you do not have to be at your computer at any set time. It does not matter whether you are in the US, Europe, the Far East or Australia, you simply respond on your own time. And although I advertise that the classes are one or two weeks, sometimes we are a little flexible and they may run longer.

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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February 25, 2008
** Quote From Kathleen **


Words for feelings are not good or bad. They are simply a way to help you understnad what is happening.

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** Testimonial for the Week**


Hi All,

My daughter, Darcie, had her first orthodontist appointment today...she now has spacers between her teeth. Her older sister, Kendra, who is done with her braces, has been incredibly helpful remembering what soft foods she liked after any orthodontic adjustment. Kendra wanted to make something *special* for her sister the first night. She found a recipe on the back of our brown rice cereal box, to make brown rice pudding. Instead of regular milk, she used coconut milk, and she didn't add any sweeteners. Both girls *loved* the pudding, and Darcie was thankful, because chewing was not very fun.

I love to watch my girls interact, and I know that the food has helped tremendously with the relationship they have with each other. I get glimpses of what life *could* have been like when the girls are off for some reason...a late night, a late meal, etc. One likes to hide and gets weepy, and the other likes to pick fights. It's not pretty. I love our recovery life, and the girls love it too!

So how are you all doing? How are the steps going for everyone?

Colette

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**Radiant Ambassadors**


Kathleen did a talk up at a mental health agency in Bath, ME. There were supposed to be 60, but a major storm changed that. About 10 brave souls came out. But we are planning another time.

Come join us if you are excited about spreading the news.

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**Radiant Kitchen**

By Naomi Muller, Step 7, author of Nutritious and Delicious Cookbook.


This recipe comes from the Radiant Recipesa> cookbook. I was looking for a really yummy comforting brown and I think this definitely does the trick.

Georgia Sweets

  • 3 lb. sweet potatoes or yams, scrubbed and cut into chunks
  • 2 T. butter
  • 2 T. orange juice concentrate
  • 1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
  • 2 large eggs, slightly beaten
Topping:
  • 1 c. chopped pecans
  • 1/3 c. rolled oats
  • 3/4 tsp. cinnamon
  • T. butter, cut into bits
Place sweet potatoes in a large saucepan with enough lightly salted water to cover. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and cook at a simmer until potatoes are soft, about 15 minutes. Drain well and set aside. While potatoes are cooking, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a 9 x 12 baking pan with cooking spray. With a hand masher or electric mixer, whip potatoes in a medium-sized bowl. Add remaining ingredients and whip until smooth. Spread mixture into prepared pan. Combine topping ingredients to form a crumbly paste. Spread over top of sweet potatoes. Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes or until golden brown and hot throughout. Makes 6 servings. Prep time: 15 minutes. Cook time: 60 minutes. Learning skill.

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

YLDonline is a membership program run directly by Kathleen DesMaisons herself.


We are planning a few changes to our YLD database. I will be sending out an update letter in the next week, so look for it please.

Come to chat, we will be talking about the newsletter. (smile).

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.
 


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**Radiant Recovery Store **



David manages the Radiant Recovery Store. He is also Kathleen's oldest son.



We have some wonderful products for joint health. Kathleen was first introduced to these a number of years ago at the National Golden Retriever Dog show when it was held in Albuquerque. One of the vendors had Joint Response and was showing a video about it. You can go here and see the video It knocked my socks off.



At that point in time, I had recently moved to Albuquerque. My 8-year-old rottie, Pippin, had severe arthritis. We gave him Joint Response and in 3 weeks he was acting like a puppy. So we started carry the dog stuff in the store.
We kept getting great reports. I asked the company if they were going to carry a human product. They said yes. So now we carry that. And they recently added a cream. Click here to see the products.


As most of you know, Kathleen likes to learn about the things we carry. She started doing a fair amount of research about cetyl. Here is a pretty balanced discussion.

http://www.glucosamine-arthritis.org/arthritis/cetyl-myristoleate-arthritis.html

The article is pretty interesting...here is a clip:

The first double blind study followed two years later. Dr. H. Siemandi conducted a double blind study under the auspices of the Joint European Hospital Studies Program. There were 431 patients in the study, 106 who received cetyl myristoleate, 99 who received cetyl myristoleate, and glucosamine, sea cucumber, and hydrolyzed cartilage and 226 who received a placebo. Clinical assessment included radiological test and other studies. Results were 63% improvement for the cetyl myristoleate group, 87% for the cetyl myristoleate plus glucosamine group and 15% for the placebo group.

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**


I thought we would feature our international groups. PLease come and join us. The folks downunder are having a conversation about foods unique to them and we have a bunch of liaisons who are ready to travel to eat...(smile)

RadiantEuro

RadiantScandinavia

RadiantBrits

RadiantFrance

RadiantDownunder

RadiantCanada

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


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**Some Thoughts on Wellbeing**
Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D.


I have been reading some research material from the American Psychological Society and thought it would be fun to talk some about some of what I am reading. Much of this material is more academic than excites me. But there was a scale of “psychological well being” that I found intriguing. It measures self-acceptance, positive relations, purpose in life, environmental mastery, personal growth and autonomy.

These sound a lot like what happens as people do the food. So now I am thinking what fun it would be if we began to have a dialogue on our forum and lists about what it is that happens with the food. I am going to start by sharing what I notice.

Blame and entitlement shift to taking responsibility and humility.
Despair shifts to hopefulness.
Anger shifts to humor.
Inadequacy shifts to empowerment.
Isolation shifts to connection.
Arguing changes to sharing.
Denial moves to disclosure.

When I started, I thought it was about healing depression and addiction. I thought we were creating a health system. I had no idea what else would come. I thought the changes I experienced, all of the above and more, were personal things coming from my own journey. But as time has passed, it seems that these changes come with the territory. They are developmentally predictable and way more universal than I ever imagined.

Doing the food changes something profound. It is as if it resets us to a start of openness – open heart ready for healing. And then all the other stuff we all do has a place to sit. I often use the image of a cracked bowl. We can fill it a thousand times, spend a lifetime trying and we still are empty. If we fix the crack, we get filling up and spilling over.

This community, this website is made possible by the tireless work of close to 50 volunteers. They are spilling over and share the recovery, the radiance that doing the food has brought them. Go read their stories if you want to know what is in store. And come share your stories as well.



©Kathleen DesMaisons 2008.

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

Gretel, our 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.

©2008 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 Patti Holden, Step 7