 Hi {!firstname_fix} It's rainbow time in New Mexico. This week I sat out on my front porch brushing dogs. It was late afternoon and the sky over by the mountains was a dark blue purple color. As the sun went down, that yellow, later afternoon light was hitting the adobe walls on the house across the street. One of our neighborhood peacocks was doing his little shimmer dance with his feathers all outstreched. It made me laugh, since the girls are all off sitting on the nests. The boys are out showing off to each other. These classes will begin Wednesday, July 9, 2008. Please click on the name of the class you wish to join and it will take you to the registration page: Step 1: The Art of Breakfast (1 week)is our foundation class to get you started. Learn all four parts of step 1 in a structured way. Learn how to progress through them with enjoyment. Let us support getting your program off to a fabulous start. YLD Weight Loss Readiness (2 weeks) is the new getting started class for YLD members. We are really excited to do this new format. Come learn how Phase One of your program sets the foundation for your entire weight loss plan. We only do this once a quarter. So if you are ready for renewal, hop on board. I am working on the schedule beyond next week. My life with little Franklin [see the article] kinda grabbed most of my time. I should have the schedule up by tomorrow evening. ***Ok, and I have made a change in the class fees....if you are on disability or low income (your household income is less that $1000 a month), you make take classes for free. This is an honor system. If you qualify, simply make a note in the notes box and we will not charge you. 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 **********************************************************************
July 7 ** Quote From Kathleen **
There is NO failure in this plan, only more information to help you learn about your body and your self. *********************************************************************
** Testimonial for the Week**
I love to travel and I've taken over a dozen big trips since starting the program, so I've had lots of practice. Learning to travel on program is like learning a new skill and it can take some time, so be gentle with yourself. Even if you aren't able to maintain everything on this first trip, the next will be better and once you are home, your cells remember and everything settles back into place fairly quickly. You won't lose it. Having a good plan and some back up plans in place really make travelling a breeze. And the first thing I always plan is breakfast. I'm also a shake drinker so first I find out if I'll have access to a blender on my trip and if not I take along my handy dandy shaker bottle from the RR store with the whisk inside. If I can use a blender, I generally take my ingredients and/or stop at a store once I arrive and stock up. If I'm using my shaker bottle, I rely on my travel shake which is different from what I have every day, not my favorite, but it does the trick. I highly recommend you test out any travel shakes or changes to your shakes at home before you go. Otherwise, you won't want to have breakfast (guess how I know that?) and then things will deteriorate. I'm a big fan of using baby food in my travel shake. I generally put frozen banana in my shake, but I found that baby banana will mix up well in the shaker bottle. Flavorings can also come in handy. Be creative and see what you can come up with. And then just a side note. If your daughter is eating her protein, I wouldn't worry about if she eats it first, middle, or last. My girls wouldn't eat their protein, so I gave them only their protein to start and then the rest of their breakfast. It sounds like that may not be an issue with your daughter. Let us know how your prep goes as well as your trip. Relax and enjoy it! Emily ********************************************************************
**Radiant Ambassadors** I've just discovered "Google Alerts". You input a search category such as *sugar addiction* and Google checks everything that is posted on a daily basis with sugar addiction in it. I've already been sent several stories that are in the current press about sugar addiction and a handful of blogs too. I've also set up a search for *Potatoes not Prozac* and *Radiant Recovey*. You can access the site at http://www.google.com/alerts. If anyone wants to set up a search of their own feel free - the more people we have looking, the more likely the word will get out about RR! And unlike a magazine or newspaper article, blogs stay there indefinitely and will show up when someone else googles it at a later date. I'm replying to maybe 4 or 5 blogs a day and of those two have already expressed an interest in RR. It looks like a good way to stay on top of what's happening and spread the word too! Selena Come join us if you are excited about spreading the news. ********************************************************************
**Radiant Kitchen**
Our kitchen team has been looking at how to best revitalize and organize our kitchen resources. We have finally come up with our three kitchen lists and what they will be doing. I know you will be as excited as I am to discover this. Here they are: Food and Cooking is for beginners and those interested in keeping meals simple. We will emphasize skills and help you to gain confidence in your Radiant Recovery cooking journey.
Recipes is a place to play with others who love cooking as much as you do! We exchange recipes, explore new cooking ideas, share about our favorite gadgets.
Doing Step 1 with Less is a group to share in the art of getting started Radiant Recovery if have a limited income and want to find practical ways to be able to do the program breakfast.
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**Your Last Diet: More Than What You Think**
YLDonline is a membership program run directly by Kathleen DesMaisons herself. Don't miss the weight loss readiness class starting this week. I won't be doing another one till Fall. And make sure to get to chat. I have some some very interesting topics for you all. I am excited about this challenge of working with newbies and old timers in a creative way. For your homework, check out the spider story http://www.littlesugaraddicts.com/press_room/webs.html. 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. ********************************************************* ***********
**Radiant Recovery Store **
David manages the Radiant Recovery Store. He is also Kathleen's oldest son. We just got 3,000 pounds of shake in and I had to clear every inch of the shed to fit it in. We are offering a special promotion to help clear out some stock. So with every $50 merchandise purchase (not including shipping), we are offering a free logo denim shirt, polo shirt or windbreaker. Our sizes and stock on the promotional items is very limited, so they will be given out in chronological order of your orders being placed. Please list the size and item you are interested in in the notes section of your order. Please leave a good phone number to contact you so that we can confirm you have received the promotional item. If we sell out of an item or size of the promotional item, you may cancel your order if you still wish to. Thanks so much and enjoy these wonderful gifts.
Those who act quickly will get these specials. Once they are gone, they are gone. Please send questions and suggestions. I love hearing from you and truly want to help you do your program better. ********************************************************* ***********
**Our Online Groups**
OK, the online groups for this newsletter are up in the kitchen section. Go check and see what you think. ********************************************************************
**Franklin**
Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D.
This
was an interesting call. Since I have been back from Maine, I have said
that I would not be taking dogs. I am willing to coordinate adoptions,
do the admin stuff, but I am off duty with direct dog care. I want to
focus on my own doggies and get settled for the summer.
David is the namer in the family. He named the little guy Franklin. I start spending some time with franklin. I am thinking that once I have a sense of who he is, getting him placed will not be hard. So, Franklin is not just blind, he cannot smell, and he runs in circles, and he does this high stepping like a German guard. I take him to the vet. She says, *it is not his eyes, he has some pretty major neurological deficits.* I took him to the dog opthamologist. He said, *it is not his eyes, it is his brain.* Not long ago I taught a class on brain plasticity and how the brain can reorganize itself even with major impairment. But Franklin was pretty impaired. Really, really sweet but really, really impaired. The vet asked me about quality of life. What kind of life would he have? I thrashed about with the idea of it being fairer to this pup to not have to struggle so. This ethical dilemma is a huge one. Do we euthanize a severely impaired puppy? Who will be responsible for his care? How is this burden dropped in my lap? I was not sleeping well. It felt as if I was faced with killing the pup or continuing to spend 3 hours a day caring for him. I put out a call for help to our rescue group and to my friends and to potential adopters. Was there anyone who might help with some rehab care? That call echoed into the canyon with a loud reverberation back to me...just echos, no offers. I took him back to the vet and I said, *look, can we find out exactly what is going on here and what his prognosis is?* She had studiend with the best neurologist in the West, so she did an in-depth assessment. It wasn't good. he doesn't feel his feet, his head is spinning, he has no balance...* Her response to the question of whether I should put him down was to say, *well, why don't you take 2 weeks and work with him and see*...so I said alrighty, Franklin, let's give it a go. I went home and cried because it was hard. I asked Grace to help on this one because I honestly didn't know how I would do it. I built him a chute eight feet long and 10 inches wide. I figured if he could be patterned to walk in a line, he could walk on a leash and someone might take him. He started running down the chute, and then circling back and running back to me. He started responding to his name. I have a college student who runs Pepper, my little super athlete, my little golden who wants to be in a triathalon. She runs Pepper 3 times a week. She arrives at 7 and comes back at 7:30. She is sweaty, flushed and breathless. Pepper wags her tail and says, *can we go again please?* I asked her if she would help with Franklin. Nineteen year olds have lots of energy. She put Franklin in the chute over and over until he was tired. Once I had a helper, I didn't feel so overwhelmed. I called my friend who is a physical therapist and works with stroke victims and she came and did some more thinking about what we could do with him. I called my middle son about my anguish of the ehtical dilemma. He is a good one to talk to. He is a minister and thinks about ethical sorts of things. So he laughed and said, *well, Ma, you do seem to be blessed as the woman of last resort* and then said, *maybe he is here to teach you something....*. He also talked about death as a release, that it didn't have to be a bad thing. It made space for me not to thrash about it and just care for the puppy. I put his picture up on the rescue site. I was honest about him. And I went to the task of his rehab. I gave him a special brain repair diet. And I loved and loved him. One evening at dusk, I was holding him and kissing him. He turned his head and licked me with puppy breath. Franklin doesn't lick when he drinks, he sort of bites water. But he licked me, and I knew what I was doing was the right choice. I go an email from Lu. She lives out in Eastern NM in a town that has a fighter jet on a pole at the entrance, a convenience store with gas for $4.09 a gallon and some grain mills. She is retired, she loves dogs. She lives with her partner who is disabled and a chihuahua and a black lab named Ben. She wants Franklin. She thinks that Ben will be his mentor. She writes me 3 mails a day. She builds a chute for Franklin. She makes sure the yard will be safe for him. She will put a bell on Ben. So I say, *yes, you can be his forever home.* It's a long drive out there. I was going to take him next week, but this weekend a friend was here. I asked her if she wanted to go on a field trip. We packed a picnic, my three dogs, put Franklin in the crate and off we went. Jill, my Garmin GPS, guided us to Lu's mobile home in the middle of nowhere. Lu loves Franklin. Her partner loves Franklin, Ben loves Franklin, the little chihuahua loves Franklin. Their home is immaculate and simple. I gave her a little puppy and blessed what they are doing. I will send special dog food and omega 3 fatty acids, they will send pictures. His new name is Chance Thomas Kat Acquaro ©Kathleen DesMaisons 2008. Here are the folks who are helping put the newsletter together: Gretel, our webmaster, puts it all together 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 Geraint |
