June 22, 2009


Hi {!firstname_fix}

It certainly has been an intense week in the community! My article last week evoked an extraordinary discussion. I think it was the most incredible thing we have done together in a long time. Then I took it to chat. I was going to talk more about it, but we kinda went into a discussion about the drug effect of being codependent and what it does to us.

It just seems as if you all in the community have matured and deepened in your recovery so much that we can go into these profound places and talk about where it is taking us. It is no longer a personal journey. This is a gift, an incredible gift.

My car is home. The main mechanic from Toyota says the engine is dead. But Carrie at Jeff's Gasoline Alley said to bring it over next week and they will check it. I got her name sort of serendipitously. I called and had an amazing discussion. She asked interesting questions....like she knows diagnosis. Questions that no one else has asked. It sort of felt like when I am talking to people and they *know* that I know stuff that their doctor didn't, LOL. Comforts me. At the very least, we will have a new resource for cars.

So classes are continuing. If you have trouble sleeping, come to the sleep class. You may find out it is just because you are worried about your job, but you may find out how your biochemistry can play havoc and what to do about it. We always have fun in that class.

These classes will begin Wednesday, June 24, 2009. Please click on the name of the class you wish to join and it will take you to the registration page:

Radiant Step 2 Skilled (1 week) is the next level of journaling. This is for those of you who know *how* and want to learn what to do with your data. This class shows you how to interpret what you have written in an exciting and pragmatic way.

Radiant Step 3 (2 weeks) is is one of our core classes. This is a skill-based class. If you want to learn the baby steps of a successful step 3, come join us. This class is ALWAYS fun.

Creating Restful Sleep (2 weeks) is a class where you will learn the art of healing sleep patterns and maximizing restful and wonderful sleeping.

These classes will begin Wednesday, July 2, 2009. Please click on the name of the class you wish to join and it will take you to the registration page:

Radiant Thyroid (2 weeks) is a new class for those of you wanting to make sense of how thyroid issues can be involved in weight loss (or not). Come learn what tests to have, how to read the values, and how to make sense of the confusing, highly complex and very contradictory information out there on this subject.

Radiant Step 1 (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.

Resource Center Tour (1week) is one of our free tours. Come see what is in the Resource Center.

If you are on disability or low income (your household income is less that $1000 a month), you may take classes for free if you get certified. I have put the guidelines for certification on the class schedule page.

The class schedule is online. 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. 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

Radiant Recovery Cookbook

Naomi's Nutritious and Delicious Cookbook

Sheila's Kitchen Recipes

I tasted those pancake thingies that mom made. I couldn't figure out what you would use almond meal for. But wow, were they good. I will eat them in a heart beat.

Don't forget we are now carrying COQ10 in the store. It is great for your heart. I am taking it. I know we will put was there more to this?

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

Last week’s article about the “fast track” set off more discussion than anything we have talked about in 10 years. It was extraordinary. And it was pretty heated. But this kind of dialogue is what makes the community so wonderful. Your ideas, your thoughts, your questions move us.

There were a lot of people who want fast track, a lot of people who feel it is nuts. I figure my job is to make sense of all of this….and to come back to you with my own reflections. Here is a beginning…and perhaps the beginning of what will soon go into my blog…

I think there is a lot of mixing up between YLD [the online Your Last Diet Program] and the 7 steps of Radiant Recovery. Last week’s article was about applying fast track to weight loss, not to recovery. This week I want to talk about recovery.

Radiant Recovery is about HEALING addiction. It has two parts: changing the biochemistry by changing what and when you eat and changing your behavior to change the patterns of addiction.

The first part, changing your food can be done as quickly or as slowly as you might choose. Many people have done it very quickly and successfully that way. The question is…is that the best way?

Here is my sense of this one. If you come in with a lot of 12-step recovery, or emotional maturity, or other skills, and you are not into drama or wacky, you can of course, simply “do the food” without a big fuss. As many people said on the forum, you might have already gone off of sugar, you might already be eating three meals, etc, and you simply adjust some without it being a big deal. Or at least that is what you think.

Now, if you hadn’t done any of that stuff, and simply decided that you were READY NOW!!! Doing all the steps all at once would of course, put your body into shock, give you a HUGE BE spike and be very dramatic, all of which are actually addictive patterns. But you might be able do it. But you might not be able to hold it.

Now, what I have learned over the last 10 years is that Radiant Recovery is way more than just the content of the steps. Healing the addiction is a process and happens as you follow the 7 steps. They are incremental and build on one another. The PROCESS takes time to learn and reintegrate behavioral patterns. In addition, the process actually re maps brain patterns. And this does not happen in a week. It is the process of doing each step, savoring what each step means, and integrating the tiny parts of each step that create huge change in your heart and life.

When I talk about what else is embedded in the steps, I am talking about all the code hidden inside each step. And the code is what unlocks the PROCESS of recovery. The food gets your brain settled. The process teaches you a different way of healing. When we add the chemistry of the food to the code, we get a mighty combination, one that is deep, rich and powerful. One that is life-changing.

So, in the end, do I want a fast track? No, absolutely not. I like savor. I want a track of commitment, of listening, of sharing, of building on a foundation anchored in a steady biochemistry. I want a track that is formed in dialogue, sharing and learning to trust. Actually, I want what we have. I love Radiant Recovery. I love this community.

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.
The banner photograph is by Patti Holden.


©2009 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/weeklynewsletter.htm.