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COMMUNITY FORUM
Share with others, ask questions, explore everything and anything about your program. Yes, even topics like chocolate and Fritos. This is a great place to get started when you are new.
GROUPS
Work on your steps, get information on what to eat while running a marathon, ask about depression meds, learn how to do life. Groups are free and fun.
JOIN US ON FACEBOOK
CLASSES
The Journaling Part 2 class was going to start last week. That didn't happen. I am very story. We will strive fo this week.
Radiant Heart Care
This is an expanded version of the class we did last year. I have continued to learn many things about heart health and want to be able to share them with you. This class will help you understand your *heart* story and how it relates to your food. It will give you a safe place to talk about your diagnoses, your medications and your relationship to your care providers.
We will look at how to develop a healing plan that looks at your food, your exercise, supplements that might enhance your program and best ways of collaborating with the Health professionals. I am particularly interested in the role of grief and sorrow in our heart stories. This class is part of the new design of class that will go for a month at a time and will be defined and developed by the
needs of the people in the class.
I can honestly say this is the most sophisticated class I have put together - mostly because the information is so complex, I have had to work really, really hard to make it understandable. I have spent hours and hours doing this and am VERY pleased with the content.
The pain got to me, We haven't started yet. You get another chance to sign up. And if you wonder if this is a class you might want to take, LOL I guarantee you it will be a living, breathing exploration.
If you have thought of joining us but didn't get to it, you have another change. Come NOW.
Sign up for this class
WORKING WITH KATHLEEN
Coaching is a special offering for people who are serious about enhancing their programs and would like to have ongoing coaching. We will do individual assessments to sort out exactly where you are in the process. You will be guided in making your own individual plan. You can learn about journaling and adjusting your food for your own life needs – what to do when. You will
be given tools and shown how to use them.
We are just starting a new group called Return to Radiance Coaching for those who have done the steps in the past and then drifted.
Skilled Coaching is for people who are steady on step three and ready to move through four-six. The small groups stay together as they learn skills.
Signature Coaching is intensive individual coaching geared to your specific situation. You may want to step out of the
craziness of sugar addiction, return to steadiness and clarity after slipping away, slow down and focus on your recovery, or deepen a steady rhythm of recovery.
This is a way to step out of feeling overwhelmed with where to start and what to do. Because it is so individualized, we can work on what is right for you at this point in your journey. People tell me that coaching helps them feel safe and focused. We work with your style, your rhythm. We address your fear and let go of shame.
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"When you don't know how you will get through, just do the food. It is your anchor, your guide and your way."
Hi All,
An amazing thing happened yesterday that I just have to share. I observed that our mornings seemed to be emotionally-charged lately, although our food was steady, the mornings were just becoming hectic and unhappy.
After breakfast yesterday I talked about this with my children (10, 9 and 7). Instead of coming down on them with a list of disappointments and consequences, I shared my observations and asked them to do the same.
Then, I asked them to come up with some solutions. They had some great ideas which we implemented today. Our morning was much smoother and we talked about this at breakfast again. I thanked them for their solutions and willingness to work at this, and we all felt great.
I realize that I was able to work with the children in this way because my food is steady. I am much more clear-thinking than I used to be. I am able to remove my emotions from tough situations and talk lovingly with my children to come up with solutions.
As a result, the children follow my lead and keep their emotions in check, as well. When they need to cry, I wrap my arms around them and help them work through it without becoming upset myself.
When I am at peace, it brings my children peace. Doing the food has brought us to a much more joyful and happy place.
Well, one of the problems was the morning scramble for what to wear, (I'm sure you parents know what I mean, lol!), so my 7yo daughter suggested that we choose 5 days' worth of clothes and have the outfits ready to go. No looking for ties, belts, shoes or socks this morning!
Another problem was bickering about morning chores. My 9yo son worked with my other son and daughter to divide the chores up so that there would be no questions about who was going to do what.
We talked about the noise in the morning...the volume can get high if the kids are talking from upstairs to downstairs. My 10yo son recommended that we can focus better on what we need to get done in the morning if we keep the volume at a normal level by waiting to talk until you're with the person you're talking to!
We didn't have any problems with getting our proteins and browns on time, or getting out of the house on time, so I did thank them for these skills as we worked on the solutions.
Finally, the kids came up with a morning routine that they posted on the wall so that they don't miss anything. It goes like this:
Wake up
Eat a protein and brown
Make bed
Do chores
Get dressed & brush teeth
Smile, you're ready for the day!
It seems like simple stuff, but allowing the kids to come up with the solutions was really empowering to them and made for a much more peaceful morning today. Being steady on the food gave me the sense of well-being and clear-thinking to guide the kids through their own solution-making process. Doing the food continues to heal and strengthen us!
Amy
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I love posting these delicious latke recipes from Gail, they truly are delicious. These would make great browns for your meals!
Traditional Latkes
- 4 medium potatoes
- 1 onion
- 2 eggs
- 3 T flour (any kind, I use Kathleen's baking mix)
- 1 tsp salt
- Dash of pepper
- 1 tsp baking powder (omit with Kathleen's baking mix)
- Oil for frying
Grate potatoes, skin and all. I usually use a lighter skin potato like red bliss and I sometimes throw them in the food processor. Grate the onion. Squeeze the extra moisture out of the potato and onion. Combine all other ingredients, mix well. Heat oil in medium frying pan, drop by tablespoons, and fry until bottom is golden brown. Flip and brown other side. Drain on
paper towels. Serve with applesauce or sour cream.
Sweet Potato Latkes
These are Gail's notes, "This recipe I have played with some. They don't usually come out as crispy."
- 2 sweet potatoes
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 T flour (any kind)
- Cinnamon to taste
- Dash of salt
Peel and shred the potatoes. I guess you could leave the skin on, but we don't. Squeeze the extra liquid out. Combine all other ingredients, mix well. Heat oil in medium frying pan, drop by tablespoons, and fry until bottom is golden brown. Flip and brown other side. Drain on paper towels.
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Last week at Ranch, I had someone ask me why I don't just tell people what to eat in order to lose weight. It really pushed me to think about what it is we are doing in YLD. The key concept is about LAST - this means the whole point is to get you to realize that diets are not the story. Diets = restriction which is simply one more way of taking away power. YLD is all about *empowerment*
which means it is slow, thoughtful and transformative. It can be a little disorienting since it is so different from what you are used to.
Chats, chats, chats. We just keep talking, reflecting, learning. You will learn about fat terror, about the myths of obesity, how dieting fosters *restriction* and what that means for your long term success. We add new science to help you understand why you do what you do.
I’m in my third year of recovery and THIS year is the worst roller coaster of trying to balance my protein/sugar/mood swings. Was at wit’s end, wondering where could I find a doctor who knew addiction recovery AND nutrition when my sis sent me a blurb on your book. Went to bookstore and the words leapt off the cover at me! I KNEW it was more than just blood sugar; I had been doing food combining, protein in the
a.m ., etc., for years, even before I quit drinking. You have saved my life and, more important, my peace of mind by filling in the blank spaces in my diet management. All I want is to feel normal after I eat! Even after I had the blood sugar thing down, I was still experiencing weird feelings, and there they were in the book: a column for beta-endorphin and one for serotonin! Thank you so much for giving me direction!! God bless you! I have been telling everyone about your
book.
—M. S.
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It is Not The Rules That Count
Kathleen DesMaisons, PhD
That is not a stock photo. It is a picture I took at a coffee house when a friend of mine was playing his harp and this Dad and his baby we sitting listening. It was a moment. It was an image of what happens when we stop fighting and we listen. This is one of my more favorite articles.
I went shopping for a gift. I went to the store that sells Dungeons and Dragons to talk with them about an introductory game to give my grandson who was then 13. I expected it to be sort of gothic and scary. It wasn't at all. The guy behind the counter told me that he had started playing as a teen. He was raised in a Southern Baptist household that was very conservative. His mother had burned his books as being from Satan. Of course he still
played. Then many years later, his younger brother who is 16 years younger got to be a teen and wanted to learn. His mom called him for a consult. They all played together and had a wonderful time.
We decided on an introductory game. And then he said maybe I should get the rule book as well. I noticed that there was a rule book bundled with a Dungeons and Dragons for Dummies. I thought, AHA, I could get that and then I could play with him. I thought it was a board game. The guy explained that it is really about story telling. So, off I went with my treasures in the turquoise plastic bag. Not black, and no scary symbols.
When I got home, I sent an IM to Jim. Jim was the liaison for the men's list and is a grand master or something in the D&D system. I don't really know specifically but I know he goes to conventions and wins prizes. I asked him if this was an ok thing to be doing or if I would get in trouble with my daughter. He said, no, no it is wonderful. It is all about stories and characters. I said, *Oh, like imaginative play for guys?* He said, yah.
I told him that I looked at the rule book and it was a little intimidating. I wasn't sure that I could learn it. But then I thought it was sort of like the program. When we start, it feels incomprehensible with all the nuances and details. But we just start with one thing and learn that. And then learn the next.
The Jim said, *just remember, Kathleen , it is not the rules that are important, it is the story.*
Well that just about knocked my socks off.
I think that is true for the program too.
In the last few weeks, we have been talking in leadership about what doing a fine program means. We had an issue when some folks were in Albuquerque at Ranch time. We went out to lunch at an Indian restaurant. I ate white rice. I didn't even think about it. I was thinking about the company. But it sort of created quite a stir. In fact, it meant that one of our leadership people resigned because of my *lack of integrity*. I had been thinking about this
since then. Was there less integrity to act as if, was white rice really naughty since it never triggers me, I don't particularly like it, yada yada. Some folks said I needed to act *clean* around newbies. But that wasn't a newbie. The reality is I have been doing the program since 1988. And I do eat sushi and white rice at Indian restaurants.
We have been talking, and talking about this on our leadership team list. And people have been sorting out what step 7 means, what quality program means...But I couldn't find my point of view yet.
But when Jim said that...it is not the rules, it is the story....everything clicked.
The story...the recovery story. What is the quality of my life? How are my relationships? What is happening with my creativity? Is my program a joy, a support, nourishing and delightful? Does the habituation support me? Do I want skill, grace and excellence? When I was at the lunch eating some white rice, I was paying such attention to the PEOPLE, how they had grown, who they were, who they were connected to, how their programs were flourishing. Stuff
like that.
Now, I know that this idea is a little different from what some of you have felt the PROGRAM is. But I want you to consider that THE program is not a monolithic mandate. It is a guidance for YOU to determine what works for you. It is an invitation, an invitation to discover your story, your story with food. Maybe for you white rice is bad, bad, bad. Maybe not. For me it is not. For me, Italian bread, even whole grain bread is a killer. So I don't eat
it. It is danger, danger. But white rice is not at all.
I know we will keep talking about this. I also know that the ability to tolerate ambiguity is one of the things that grows as we do. If the *rules* are not the issue, but the story is, it makes it way harder. Because then you have to listen to your own story and stand with it.
What a wonderful challenge on the eave of my trip to the sea.
It is not the rules, it is the story.
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