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June 21, 2010 Hi {!firstname_fix} It has been a week of a lot of change. Feels like lots of people are deepening their programs, their lives. It actually is pretty amazing. Summertime used to be the time of slowing down, now it feels like it is speeding up. I am committing to making space for down time, for quiet time, for reflection. It is making a big difference. These classes will begin Wednesday, June 23, 2010. Please click on the name of the class you wish to join and it will take you to the registration page: Using the Resources in the Community (4 weeks) is a free orientation 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. Radiant Remembering (2 weeks) is a very special class for people who have worked their way to step 6/7 and then have forgotten the steps and reverted to old ways, perhaps even falling off the cliff. This is a tender and caring process to help you remember how to get back on track. If you have not yet detoxed, this is not your class. But if you have and then forgotten, please come join us. This class will begin Wednesday, June 30, 2010. Please click on the name of the class you wish to join and it will take you to the registration page: Brain Chemistry: Beta Endorphin (2 weeks) is one of our most popular classes. It will teach you the core of the science behind the program. This is the outline for a critical part of sugar sensitivity, why you act the way you do and what you can do to change it. I love this class and so do all the people who have taken it. Somehow BE rocks! The class schedule is online. Click here to see what is planned. Please wait to sign up for classes until a week or two before, and 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. 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. Be sure to visit our Radiant Recovery website and Community Forum regularly. Warmly, Kathleen **********************************************************************
** Quote From Kathleen ** Not remembering is significant information - sort of like standing up a date. **********************************************************************
** Testimonial of the Week ** 
Well today was our last day of our mini grown-up holiday....the children return tomorrow!!!..... we woke early...funny that when you can actually enjoy a lie in, the builder opposite and my body clock have different ideas!I got up and made my shake, but being decadent I took it back to bed and enjoyed it while reading and chatting to hubby..it was lovely really talking with no interruptions! After a few chores, we decided to visit some garden centres and nurseries, I used to go a lot, but then there was no space left for plants and sin of all sins Lily dog developed a taste for things horticultural...not a good idea if you want to please your mistress! So she is older and wiser now..and I have lost some plants this winter. Now garden centre fare isn't really RR friendly...cakes and scones..white stuff is the order of the day. So, armed with this knowledge, we plumped for my yummy egg and salad sandwiches before commencing battle with the hordes in the petunias! 'Twas lovely to sit in our garden and eat lunch together, it felt like a date, without the butterflies in your tummy :o) A blackbird on our roof completed the scene and sang a beautiful tune! I was pleased that not all the west country had followed our lead and the garden places weren't too busy. One place did some nifty hats, which we both had to try on and giggle over. We eventually ended up in my favourite nursery where the only problem is deciding what not to take home. Despite my love of so many plants, I did manage to stick to my purple and orange colour plan, and after a lovely decaf tea stop we came away with some gems at bargain prices. Well they are small, which suits me, as I love to watch them grow, impatient gardeners literally pay the price! Sadly I couldn't find a particular type of rose I was after..but I can wait, and it means I have to go visit these places again ;o) Back home, tea was already planned and DH cooked. We had lamb chops with fresh mint from my garden, skins on mash, broccoli, cauli, peas and carrots. Followed by some Hereford strawberries and a dollop of cream...yum! A bit of gardening was calling....well chopping and clearing mostly, but we did plant the Clemitis that was acquired today. Hopefully it will be happy winding its way up some gnarled trunk. Relaxing time now! Tomorrow we shall collect the children, we are both looking forward to seeing them and hearing more about their adventures. Hope you all had a good day too. G x **********************************************************************
** Radiant Ambassadors ** 
Sugar addiction research. It's happening :) I came across a fascinating video the other day and thought it might be fun to share here: http://bit.ly/9N8u3I It's from the University of California and shows a lecture by Nicole Avena, who worked with Dr. Bart Hoebel on sugar addiction studies. Avena outlines the proof for sugar addiction (in rats). But we all know that it also affects humans too (grin). Interestingly, about 9 minutes into the video, Nicole shows Your Last Diet and The Sugar Addicts Total Recovery Program alongside two other books and describes them as clinical accounts of sugar addiction (grin). I find it tremendously exciting that one of the scientists is showing two of Kathleen's books in her talk about sugar addiction! Selena Come join us if you are excited about spreading the news. **********************************************************************
** How I Found Radiant Recovery ** 
Thank you for your kind thoughts and words, Janis. I'm going to have to redo some work, and it will cost me an extra day or so. Not fun, but also not a big deal in the grand scheme of things. On the upside, I'll have learned to perform this particular task better, so there's that :) Here's to intelligent mistakes!My story is similar in many ways to those that have gone before me and those that share the path with me now. I've been fat all my life, though when I look back at old pictures, I'd love to give that kid a hug and let him know that he's actually well within the average range, and good food is most important. Well, you probably know how it goes: dozens of diets tried, and pounds of weight lost and regained. I was a pretty functional addict, but when my kids were born, things really started crashing for me. I had bouts of anger and depression. I gained a bunch of weight and would binge nightly. I was disconnecting from everything. One day, I was listening to a radio show called New Dimensions. The host was interviewing a woman named Candace Pert, who had written a book called Molecules of Emotion. She was talking about how our emotions are connected to our biochemistry -- pretty cool and pretty familiar, eh? I went to the library and looked up Candace Pert. They didn't have any of her books, but they had this one book that she had written the introduction to -- it was called Potatoes Not Prozac. I had seen the title before in the One Spirit Book Club catalog. I checked it out. I recognized my story immediately. I cried when I heard Kathleen say, "It's not your fault." I started on the program, and I joined one of the online groups. As happens to many of us sugar-sensitive folks, someone said something to me that I misinterpreted, I got angry, and I quit. But those newsletters kept coming, nudging me, reminding me. Six months later, in autumn, I rejoined the community, renewed my commitment, and tried my best to listen with an open heart. I also started going to the weekly chats, and those were transformational. I attended my first Ranch the next spring. Kathleen and others in the community have been an unbelievable support for me. They've given me the opportunity to grow and to give back. It's hard to describe sometimes, but I hope this story helps to give a better sense of who I am and why I'm here :) Jim **********************************************************************
** Radiant Kitchen ** 
Ok, these are the Brits Lunch Brownies. The original recipe is from Simply
Sugar and Gluten Free. The woman who writes that web site it is in culinary
school and alters recipes to be SF. She does use agave, but Emily from Step
Three recommended I sub apple juice concentrate. I didn't read it right and
subbed apple juice, but we all thought it was yummy anyway. Great with a cup
of tea or coffee after a yummy Whole Foods Mexican meal. :) Let me know if
you make them!This is her original recipe. My alternates are in parens. Makes 24 brownies. (I cut them small and got 36.)
Heidi For more great program-friendly recipes, check out our cookbook in the store. **********************************************************************
** Your Last Diet - More Than What You Think ** I am thinking about some changes to make YLD more fun. I think we will start planning the chat topics to follow the article in the newsletter. So if you get excited about a particular newsletter, come over to chat and let's talk about it. I am going to be writing up a little set of guidelines about how chat works so you can feel comfortable about expectations. It is such a highlight of the week, that I think it will work better if you know the ground rules. Thank you for all your feedback, it has been very helpful. If you are not a YLD member, come and join us. Click here if you are ready to change your life or just have some plain ol' fun! **********************************************************************
** Radiant Recovery® Store ** David manages the Radiant Recovery® Store. He is also Kathleen's oldest son.
Please send questions and suggestions. I love hearing from you and truly want to help you do your program better. **********************************************************************
** Our Online Groups ** A lot of new people have come over to radiantparents and are talking about how to do new behaviors with their kids. We are talking not just about food, but about new patterns of recovery in your family. If you are looking for great support for toddlers to teens, come join us. The problem solving is such a comfort and I love seeing the more experienced parents give so much help to new people. **********************************************************************
**The Infamous Day Four ** Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D.
Many of you who have been around this community for a while have heard us talk about a “day four.” And you wonder what this is. Not referred to in any of the books, it actually is a key concept for us in making sense of out recovery. Let’s deconstruct it a bit. Day one opens with something we call a BE spike. This refers to an event that causes a quick and high rise in the level of Beta-Endorphin, the brain chemical responsible for “runner’s high.” The first experience on day one will be a day of great emotion. It can be a high, or grief, or loss or excitement. Let me give you some examples:
There are little day four's, and they are mind-boggling day four’s. Sometimes a day four will come on day three. And unless you have prepared for it ahead of time and know what is happening, you will be thrown for a loop. In the middle of it, you will not remember. Let me give you an example of something that recently happened to me. It caught me off guard and is a perfect example of a mega day four. On Sunday afternoon I had made a play date with a ten year old. We planned to go swimming at a friend's and hangout. I told his dad we would meet at 2:00, planning for a swim date. Just before I picked him, I got a call from the friend with the pool. “I’m doing errands. Can you come at 3:30-4:00?” No problem. I picked up my play date at 2:00 and said, “Ok, we are going on an adventure. We have 90 minutes and you get to pick it. “Ok,” he said, “I know a place down by the river. I can take you there.” Sounded good to me. He guided me turn by turn, told me where to park the car and off we went. I was wearing my flip-flops. I had planned for the pool. We walked, and walked and walked. It was hot, it was dusty, and I got grit between my toes. Eventually we got down to the Bosque, the wooded area that shades the Rio Grande. The birds were calling. There was not a soul around. My little flip-flop feet were hurting.
We walked back to the car. I was grateful for the half gallon of water from Traders Joes. We went swimming, it was a fabulous day. On Wednesday I did chat and couldn’t focus. I felt edgy, irritable and cranky. I didn’t want to be there. I felt overwhelmed by too many rescue dogs. I wondered why the mentors hadn’t shown up, I fretted about the laundry I had left at the laundromat, I raged about the repairman who had casually told me the part for my washing machine wouldn’t be in 'til next week. Ronan threw up in the living room. My daughter warned me to stop rescuing dogs if it made me angry. I was angry that day, angry that the dog collars were chewed, the kenned fence ripped, the dogs abandoned. After chat, I went to the laundromat to get my clothes. I looked at the vending machine, I wanted a diet coke, and I wanted a Butterfinger candy bar. I even thought about a beer and pizza. I went home, tried to take a nap, the phone interrupted it. I tried to plan dinner and found that Ronan had eaten what I had planned to eat (why he threw up). I made a snack. I went to mentor chat. I shared how I was feeling. Someone asked (of course), “How is your food?" And, of course I snarled, “Fine.” That particular interaction is the Hallmark of the day four. The “Fine.” This, of course, made me laugh. And once I started laughing. I could remember that this too will pass. So I did life, I did chat, we had fun, we laughed. Later in the evening, I went on IM (instant message) with a dear friend and started bubbling; the pain and grief of an event that happened six months ago came bubbling out. She understood, She said it was simply part of my pain, my tears, the experience. I think on day four the veil is thinner, the skin that protects us from emotional pain is delicate. We feel more deeply. With low BE, we remember the old days before healing - how it was to feel so deeply and want something, anything, to take the pain away. But this time, this time in recovery, I could know that feeling it is better than taking it away. That the tears are like the river, washing my heart like washing my feet in the river. I went to bed and left the salt on my face. I fed all the dogs, rescue dogs in the back, puppies in the north, my dogs in the kitchen. Folded the laundry, crawled into bed with back against the wall. Turned off the light, listened to the fan, closed my eyes and let sleep come. In the morning I was back in my body, back in myself. I have a copy of the IM. I will put it in my journal for sorting later. I have a plan for all dogs. The laundromat is nearby. Dinner is set, my housekeeper is dusting, day four has receded, I bless it for what it revealed. Here are the folks who are helping put the newsletter together:
Gretel, our webmaster, puts it all together. David runs the Radiant Recovery® Store. Selena provides the weekly Ambassadors column. ©2010 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, use this attribution: "By Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D. of Radiant Recovery®", and notify kathleen@radiantrecovery.com of the location. Please visit the Radiant Recovery® website at http://www.radiantrecovery.com for additional resources on sugar sensitivity and healing addiction. 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/ |
