Poster of mountain moving day. Text in article
 
Welcome to Radiant Recovery®
Sept 24, 2018,

Hi {!firstname_fix},

Goodness, it has been an intense week. You know, generally I do not comment on what is happening in the “outside” world, but this week has been a crusher week. And every woman I know has been going through this relentless irritability that sometimes erupts in rage and just non specific anger. The experience of not being listened to, of being made invisible or discounted, or being told “I really do not care what you think, I am going to do what I want” is implanted in our cells. A week with the boys rushing to get Kavanaugh in place has about done me in.

This week I am including the article about recuperating from stimulant abuse. What we are feeling is about dopamine - rage and fury. So the article will talk about some antidotes. But the bigger story is a bigger antidote, that of the mountain moving day is coming. I do not think that Mitch McConnell has any idea what is happening in the hearts and cells of women. But things will not be the same. I am being changed and we will find our place.

And yes, it is connected to doing the food, doing the steps, because freeing ourselves from addiction and the opioid numbing effects of sugar, is what is giving us the way to feel this anger and to say, “this is not all right and you may not silence me any more”. If we are numb, we become complicit. If we say nothing, our silence permits our abusers to believe it was all right because we didn't fight or say anything.

I am moving from silence. I have a poster that is more than 50 years old. I got it when I was just waking up at 19. I woke for while and then went back to sleep because it was too much, too big, too hard. I felt alone. But I do not feel that now. We were young women in 1968 are now we are the elders. And I now am an elder with knowing that allows it not to be too much, too big or too hard. You can find the poster online. You can find the steps here.

The mountain moving day is coming

I say so, yet others doubt.

Only a while the mountain sleeps.

In the past

All mountains moved in fire

Yet you may not believe it.

Oh man this alone believe,

All sleeping women

Now will awake and move. 



    

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 Not starting anything new yet, but mountain moving is coming.


WORKING WITH KATHLEEN

I feel very strongly about offering you a way to work with me directly. I have set up a whole range of options for you to do that - going from private coaching to being involved in small groups. This link will show you all the choices.

Coaching Apprentice is open to people on steps 1-3 who are starting their program.  Coaching Skilled is for people who are on step 7 and want to look at other issues more in-depth. 
Signature Coaching is for those who want to work individually with Kathleen in a 90-day process. Signature is the top of the line. All who have done it talk about their lives being changed.

Another option is setting up a one hour assessment and then making a decision based on that conversation. And you can always call 505-345-3737 and ask me about how each one works.

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"When you understand your sugar sensitivity, what has been an overwhelming mystery in your life becomes a fascinating journey in self-discovery."

 
Testimonial of the Week

Here's a great idea about how to get moving even when you can't find any motivation to do so. There is a concept from CST that helped me. From a Russian saying: "the appetite comes with the meal."​​​​​​​


But it's like when it's dinner time and you're not that hungry, but when you see it and smell it, then it's like whoa, it's dinner time.


For movement, the idea is to do something, anything, that you really really like. Then when you're up, your appetite for movement might come back.


It does for me just about every time. The only times I want to go sit down and be immobile again is if I have no energy from sleep or food or water problems. But that's very different from motivation.


I use things like juggling couch pillows or tossing them at a family member. Hey they're always close at hand LOL! But then I just love games where you get to throw things.


Connie


 
David still smiling
This is David DesMaisons, your Radiant Recovery® Concierge

Come visit our STORE. Call 505-345-3737 if you have questions.
David, the store manager, is always happy to help. 

As many of you know, my Mom does Golden Retriever Rescue. She happens to have two old geezers right now. She put them both of them on this product and they are different boys! It is so amazing!!



Cetyl M for Dogs
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Chicken and Apples
Chicken and Apples


This is a fabulous recipe. And is great for this time of year!


Come over to our recipe blog for more ideas
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Visit the Recipe Page
 
Radiant Living
Radiant Living is geared to looking at Step 7 issues. I am in the process of the revision of Potatoes not Prozac and am adding a fair amount of information on *radiant living* which is really Step 7. This is where we are looking at a Step 7 life with all its quirks. This means feelings, healing old trauma and remodeling our bodies.
Find Radiant Living here
 
Your Last Diet!
Your Last Diet Book Cover


I just want to lose weight. Is this the right place for me?
It is the best place in the world for you. You won't get this information anywhere else, I guarantee. Make sure to come to chat. I am going to expand what we are doing in chat and will outline it in the article section below.


I am just starting the steps. Does it make sense to join now?

Yes, it does.  We have found that the people who come to chats do the best with the steps. The connection in chat is awesome. You get a chance to talk with the old timers, you can ask questions and I am right there to guide you, It really is an incredible opportunity.


SEPTEMBER: Insulin Resistance

September 5th: Mechanisms and chemistry of insulin resistance

September 12th: Liver insulin resistance

September 19th: Blood insulin resistance

September 26th: Solutions for Insulin Resistance


If you are not a member yet, come and join us. If you are a current member and want to join us in the new chat room, come to the landing page.  We will send you the pass words after you join.


If you would like to join us in YLD, come find us here.  ​​​​​​​
 
Pine trees in the soft rain
 

Restoring Your Brain After Stimulant Use


Kathleen DesMaisons, PhD 
 

In the past few weeks, I have been hearing more from people who are trying to crawl back to sanity after feeling totally overwhelmed with rage and frustration. I thought it would make sense to repost this article. It is about recuperating from stimulant use. This is about dopamine so it will help us.


Stimulant addiction includes things like cocaine, methamphetamine, diet pills, ephedrine drinks, psuedopepipephrine drinks, Sudafed, caffeine, Ritalin, NutraSweet® products or rage, fury, helplessness, frustration or all of the above..


All of these substances activate or cause to be activated a brain chemical called dopamine. Dopamine makes you feel bright, clear, focused and functional. When you first start using these substances, you feel like you can take on the world. After a while, your brain adjusts and you simply feel normal after use and very discombobulated when the effect wears off. Addiction sets in when you start needing your substance in order to stave off the withdrawal.


Withdrawal from these substances makes you feel just the opposite. You feel dull, foggy, sludgy, torpid, teary, scattered, hopeless, inadequate and incapable of functioning. And as soon as you get your drug, even if it is a Diet Coke, you feel better. Stimulant addiction is seductive. You feel so fine when you are using and so bad when you are not, it is almost inconceivable to imagine not having it.


But, part of you has known that it is progressive and you are feeling worse. You no longer have times of feeling good, and a particular kind of bone weary exhaustion started setting in. You had to up the dose, or shorten the time between your fixes. What started as one latte in the morning became a triple in the morning and a single in the afternoon just to function. You knew you were in trouble and decided it was time to get off.


Doing the steps helped to get you to this place. You have been reasonably steady with your food and you were ready to get out from under this addiction. For the sake of this discussion, I am going to assume you have stopped using and you feel pretty crappy. This is a how to intervention to hold you up and restore your brain so that your willingness to get clean can stick over time.


There are 3 very specific changes you are going to make over a 3-month period to get your old brain back. [and yes, you will get back to normal!]

  1. Increase your protein intake to .6 - .8 grams per pound of your body weight. If you have been using the more hard core drugs like cocaine or meth, use the upper end. If you have been using caffeine or diet products use the lower end. But play with it to see what has the best effect. You are working to increase the level of large neutral amino acids, particularly one called tyrosine. Tyrosine is the precursor to dopamine just like tryptophan is the precursor to serotonin. Do not just go get some tyrosine [you see I know the addicts mind, LOL]. You want the package that comes with protein meals. 1
  2. In the early weeks of your detox, you may want to add a protein snack mid morning and mid afternoon. A protein drink such as Georges® Restore Shake will be a particular comfort.
  3. Increase the size of your potato at night. Serotonin reduces the craving for stimulants. If you start having wild or hallucinogenic dreams, simply cut back some. Find the edge so you are getting restorative and restful dreaming and not getting uncomfortable dreams.2
  4. Take omega 3 fatty acids with a high concentration of EPA/DHA. These fatty acids are abundant in the membranes that are associated with synaptic function  the place where the neurotransmitters talk with one another. Increasing the omega 3s helps restore this function. 3

Make a concerted effort to stay away from foods that are high in omega 6 fatty acids  things like margarine and saturated fats [butter, cream, and meat fat]. Eat foods high in omega 3 like cold water fishes such as salmon.


In your early phase, you may find it helpful to supplement with omega 3 fish oils capsules like the ones we sell in the store. The recommended dosage is 2 caps per day for a 150 pound person. You may want to increase this proportionate to your size and the severity of the detox you are experiencing.


If you are taking fish oil, it will tend to thin your blood. Sometimes this will make you more vulnerable to bruising. I have found that the antioxidant pycnogenol helps with this by strengthening capillary walls. I added this product to our store as a nice adjunct to the fish oil.


I am including some citations here if you would like to read more about this. They are linked so you can read the actual abstract on line. If you click on the link that says related articles, you can follow the topic and gather more information.


And of course, you may always email me at kathleen@radiantrecovery.com

Kathleen


1Fernstrom, JD, Can nutrient supplements modify brain function? Am J Clin Nutr. 2000 Jun;71(6 Suppl):1669S-75S. Review.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov:80/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=10837313&dopt=Abstract

2Yu DS, Smith FL, Smith DG, Lyness WH. Fluoxetine-induced attenuation of amphetamine self-administration in rats. Life Sci. 1986 Oct 13;39(15):1383-8.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov:80/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=3489876&dopt=Abstract

3Zimmer L, Vancassel S, Cantagrel S, Breton P, Delamanche S, Guilloteau D, Durand G, Chalon S. The dopamine mesocorticolimbic pathway is affected by deficiency in n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Am J Clin Nutr. 2002 Apr;75(4):662-7.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov:80/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11916751&dopt=Abstract
 

Here is the Annie Lane column that brought so many of you here.


Dear Annie: I read with interest the letter from "Weird, Stupid or Selfish?" – whose husband eats all the decorative candy she puts out. His inability to resist sugar resonated with me, as I have sugar sensitivity and have engaged in exactly the same behaviors. I simply could not resist sugar.


After years of struggling and dieting and sitting in work meetings obsessing about the doughnuts instead of the topic at hand, I discovered the book "Potatoes Not Prozac," by Kathleen DesMaisons. Her theory is that people who are sugar sensitive have brains that respond differently to sugar, alcohol and refined carbs and that what they eat and when they eat it have a huge effect on them. She shows how to rebalance blood sugar levels, serotonin and beta-endorphins through small lifestyle changes and offers the latest research, free online support and seven steps to change your life. It is not about willpower; it’s about biochemistry, which her program can slowly improve, just one tiny step at a time, with amazing results.


I have been sugar-free for six years now, lost 25 pounds and never gained any of it back. I can go to dinner with family and don’t even think twice when someone orders dessert. I don’t have cravings, and sugar is no longer on my radar. I am more focused and more tolerant, and the daily mood swings are gone. The woman who wrote to you could suggest to her husband that he check out http:// radiantrecovery.com to see whether he does have sugar sensitivity. At the very least, she would be better informed about this condition. – Happy Without Sugar


Dear Happy Without Sugar: I hadn’t considered that health issues might explain

her husband’s behavior. In fact, I hadn’t even heard of sugar sensitivity.

Thanks for opening my eyes to the condition! I’d like to encourage all readers to talk to their doctors if they find themselves compulsively eating sugary snacks.

—Email questions to dearannie@creators.com


ANNIE LANE

 
 
©2018 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. 

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