Pouring rain
Dec 9, 2022,
 
Hi {!firstname_fix}, 
 
First of all I would like to apologize for the gap in my producing newsletters. I am hoping the schedule will be back on track now and you can enjoy a weekly read.
  
My last newsletter talked about the "cleaning up" I had been doing at my house. We fixed things, cleaned things, cleared out and did some pretty major rehab on a RV that had fallen into great distress. I named it my "recovery tiny house" because it had say unattended in a orchard for 6 years and got overtaken by bees and the weather.  The roof leaked, the leaks went into the walls, mold grew, beams rotted, the flooring had holes and the bees squirmed their way into every crevice. I would say it was pretty nasty.
 
The process was a lot like what we do here. Assess the damage, take on one thing, one nano step at a time. Remove the surface stuff, do not flee, put on a mask, fumigate, and pull out what is rotted, broken and damaged. One section at a time. Take stuff to the dump. Clean, scrub, down to the studs. Get new lumber, order new parts, do not freak out. Take apart one connection at a time. Buy another box of screws, rebuild the roof. Learn all about plasticity. Rest, keep going.
 
We have pictures of every step. I am thinking about writing about the process. Tonight, everything is done.New roof, insulation, new walls, new ceiling, new floor. Warm and toasty, everything works. On the outside, it looks pretty much the same, but the inside is breathtaking. Cozy, inviting, functional. And it is in an RV park. With a person living in it.
 
I think our community has had a rehab as well. Things are simpler, more focused. We have been doing this healing stuff since 1988, so that would be 12 + 22 = 34 years. Lots of other people are doing sugar stuff these days. Much of it is flashier and umm, perhaps more "pumped up" I think. And here we are, reaping the rewards of doing the steps, getting and staying steady. Or coming back with a new appreciation for breakfast, or carbs, the potato and not having sugar.
 
Someone was taking about feeling "bored" with her food and I was laughing...make a meatloaf, try making some veggie juice, make some cranberry chutney for the holidays. You don't have to be bored, ever. Check out the recipe page at the website.
 

 

Testimonial for the Week

 

Kath is in Perth. Don't be confused. She is doing summer while we have winter.

 

Well actually I never left, but haven't had much time to write lately.

 

I have finished a 4 week stint of relief work in the school library. I and a volunteer have completed a full stocktake of the entire collection that children can borrow, reconciling what is on the shelves to what is on the computer catalogue, and removing from the catalogue all the items that have gone missing. Everything is ready for the end of the school year and summer holidays This has been a mammoth task.
 

The library lady I was relieving came back to work today. I handed back over to her and I am (relatively) free. She was fine with the changes I had made that other staff were apprehensive of her reaction to. I was bold, and confident, fully doing the task I was employed to fill, making policy decisions and prepared to wear their consequences. I have learned new things about the computer system and was teaching the librarian this morning when she came back and I handed over. My energy and enthusiasm was steady, as was my sense of humour. I have completed a stocktaking report for the principal, and walked away free.

 

Clear boundaries allow me to leave, with no regrets or lingering. My daughter leaves primary school now, and I have said that although I am available for paid relief work, I am not going to volunteer at the school next year when I have no children there.

 

Compare all of this with 5 years ago.

 

I was having panic attacks, we had recently moved to the city and I felt permanently overwhelmed. I volunteered covering books in the school library where I had a quiet table in a secluded corner by myself, and could leave when I had enough. I gradually got more confident, and stayed for longer. After a while I learned some things about the computer system and catalogue, and was able to do things on days the librarian was not there. When she went on leave, they paid me to fill in for her. This year I have worked about 1/4 of the school year, earned money, proved to myself that I can manage working part time away from home.

 

What a difference doing the food makes.

 

Kath 
Radiant Recovery Store
David Smiling
I  have noticed that a lot of you are ordering things as gifts, We started this tradition last year at Christmas time. I know that folks LOVED getting an assortment that includes a book, a journal, and some shake. I am happy to pack up any collection of things you would like me to send out. And If you want to include a gift card, just write me instructions on the order sheet and I will personally add it.

 

I love helping to make your generosity a reality!

 

If you haven't been to the store for a while, how about just coming over and browsing. You will be thrilled to see all the changes! 

 

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

 
Omega 3 Gummies

 
The original and best Food Journal for doing the steps outlined in Potatoes Not Prozac.




Your Body Speaks
Your Last Diet: A Surprise Awaiting
Your Last Diet Book Cover

    As most of you know, YLDonline was started to support folks who want to lose weight. The entire program is structured to support our concept that if you heal the body first, then the weight loss will be permanent. In the process of the work, we discovered that some folks are really resistant to losing weight. They have the motivation, the skill and the commitment, but the pounds would not budge. Rather than claiming failure, we took it as an opportunity to learn more. I went and found the last variables we needed for the weight loss resistant. And oh my, are folks getting results. It is so exciting for me to truly know that hope is possible. You do not have to be fat. This is not a magic pill, but it is the ultimate.


 

I know that many folks are planning on a winter gift of the program. it is a great time to do so because we are just about to start a new set of 10 week classes to move you into this next part of your program. And you do not have to be on step 7 to join YLD. We will plug you in right where you are. 


 

Come and join us. Click here if you are ready to change your life or just plain ole have fun.

***********************************************************************************

 

    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. We have 2 YLD ZOOM. meetings each week as part of the offerings included in your membership. They are a time for connection and learning. We are looking at all sorts of intriguing ideas like "Why we crave chocolate and why some people don't" [it's genetic LOL].
Image
 

A Celebration of LIght

Kathleen DesMaisons, PhD

 

 

I have been lighting candles. New Mexico is very dark at night. The sky is clear and you can see light from very far away. I love seeing the candles as I stand outside and look in the house. Today David is up on the roof putting the reindeer up. You can see them from all the way down the street. It makes me smile when I come home at night. Tomorrow, we will bring my '53 Chevy pick up truck to the front and put lights on it.
 

This month is the time of deepest darkness. We have these special days, days of celebrating that even in the darkness, a tiny spot of light can be seen. Many folks have wobbled and relapsed this month. And the feelings of relapse are always the fear and desperation that we all know so well. Holidays filled with sugar and treats is a double edged sword. We think those things are such a part of celebrating and that just a little won't matter. We think we will just *celebrate* and then January first we will once again make the resolve to clean it up and do it.

 

Today, I am going to invite you to try something new. Do not wait until January first, but today start holding the idea of light coming. Each choice we make can build more light. And connecting here to others who are committed and willing and gaining skill is a mighty tool. The loving and funny conversations on the forum will support you and hold you up.  Humor and connection heal us. I believe that all the traditions that remember the light at this time of year can help us remember our own inner light. Sometimes it feels that the draw is to spending money and struggling, or rushing around, but it is a time to reflect on healing. No matter what the circumstances you are in this year, invite the light and ask that it fill you. 


 

 

This is Grace unfolding. You are not alone.
©2022 Kathleen DesMaisons. All rights reserved. You are free to use or transmit this article to your blog 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 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 will also be found posted on the web.