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February 14, 2011 Hi {!firstname_fix} I went out to breakfast and finished up about 8:30. The sky was that NM blue, a color that shimmers and is impossible to describe. I think it is one of the most beautiful colors in the world. And this afternoon, we were outside doing outside house things. All dogs were joyful. I cleaned and did Saturday chores and am doing some internal rearranging. After the cold of last week, today was just wonderful. My housekeeper stopped by and we put the skirt on my bed. I don't understand why having my bed looked *finished* was such a joy, but it is. It makes me laugh. You will see that we have put up a new schedule. Plan for the classes you want to take. And know that the class scheduling is also sort of organic. As we get excited about new ideas, we will add new classes, or do a rerun of the special ones. I am also looking at a way to add to our *reports* so that you can have access to the material from the classes that only go once a year or so. I was thinking this would be a fun thing to do. Don't forget to check out the new recipe blog. The idea is to allow you to add comments to the recipes you try. We want this to be an interactive place for us to try the neat things that people are sharing. We are also progressing with the new CD set. Check the store for a pre-order option. I am trying to get a sense of what size production run I should do. These classes will begin Wednesday, February 16, 2010. Please click on the name of the class and it will take you to the registration page: Magical Introversion (2 weeks) is a class which has grown out of your teachings. Last year you sat with me and talked about what life is like for you. I have taken that material, added the brain component, and put together the implications for sugar sensitives. People love this class. I think it provides such a soothing confirmation about how the introvert works in the world. Depression (2 weeks) is a key class for the Potatoes Not Prozac crowd. Learn in-depth information on the kinds of depression, why drugs will or will not work, how they work and how Doing the Food can help. These classes will begin Wednesday, February 23, 2011. Please click on the name of the class and it will take you to the registration page: Step 1 (2 weeks) 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. Step 2: Introduction (2 weeks) will teach you the basics of journaling. The class will give you step-by-step instructions in how to record your food and feelings in a way that gets you excited. Play (2 weeks) This is the second section of the play class that we started last Fall. If you moved to this section, or you missed that opportunity, come join us. This class looks at the neurochemistry of play and why it is such a healing thing for those of us in recovery. The class schedule is online. Click here to see what is planned. Please wait to sign up for classes until a week or two before, and 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 **********************************************************************
** Quote From Kathleen ** The foods you think of as providing comfort are the very things that have contributed to your problems. **********************************************************************
** Testimonial of the Week ** 
I have been doing the food since 2000, when a friend loaned me her copy of Potatoes Not Prozac. We were rebuilding our lives after a series of floods in 1999 through our wheatbelt country town in Western Australia. My depression and constant illness even before the floods had been a major drain on those who loved me, and on my effectiveness as a wife, and mother to our little 4 kids, let alone as a contributor to the church, school, or community. Doing the food has brought healing to my body and my mind. My life is now far beyond what I had allowed myself to hope could be mine for real.Now I live in Perth, with my family of 4 young adults all doing the food with me, and my very patient non SS DH who does the food with us regardless. Ashleigh, our cat, puts up with us, and talks to other pets of radiant people on the radiantpets list. She also helps me to look after our little granddaughter when she comes to visit. Who would have thought that spending a bit more on our food, but more wisely, could actually save us money overall? It has significantly reduced our medical and pharmaceutical bills, and we are much happier healthier people with energy and humour and joy. Teenage mood swings and other 'typical' problems are a rarity in our household! I am becoming less timid, and feeling inadequate is becoming a thing of the past. I am again using the Nutrition and Food Science degree I had gained before our children arrived. Somehow doing the food has made it possible to *know* the things I learned. Now I can apply the healing, to myself, and compassionately with my clients. My involvement in RR has significantly informed and shaped the outlook I had after my theoretical and clinical training. My ongoing learning in this area is informed by the practicalities and experience born of my own growth and of voluntary work I have done, with people on low incomes in rural Western Australia. Now living in the city, I really appreciate the abundant availability of fresh vegetables to buy. Colourful and flavoursome, they add texture and variety to the foods I can prepare. And they make a wonderful colourful decorations in baskets in my kitchen while they are waiting to be cooked! My vegetable garden is a growing pleasure to me. I enjoy cooking, adapting recipes to become healthy, yummy and program friendly. I have cooked for church camps, and school canteens, and continue to enjoy cooking for myself and my family. It is my joy to share my experiences with others on the journey. **********************************************************************
** Radiant Ambassadors ** 
Have you ever heard of Yahoo Answers? You can ask any question and hopefully someone will come along and provide an answer for you.Every so often I peruse the unanswered section to see if there are any questions about sugar addiction that could do with an answer. On one of my excursions into Yahoo land I came across the following which was asking whether fruit was forbidden in Potatoes not Prozac: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20101111053926AAbGwxS It was fun providing an answer for it - Kathleen responded too! Readers get to vote for their favourite reply and Kathleen's answer was picked! How fabulous is that! Does anyone fancy joining us looking at Yahoo Answers? It's always heaps of fun! Selena selenas@blueyonder.co.uk Come join us if you are excited about spreading the news. **********************************************************************
** How I Found Radiant Recovery ** Hello, my name is Colly and I live in Texas! I purchased the book in 2004 at one of the many desperate stages of my life where sugar is king and I am the pauper. The eye opener I got was the correlation between alcoholism and sugar addiction. Coming from a family of alcoholics, I learned that the behavior with sugar is almost identical with those of the alcoholics. In a way, it was freeing to be able to understand my love affair with sugar. Unfortunately, I wanted the cure right now and without having to take steps like journaling. I'm still rebellious like that so I would have to say that I am just beginning, with the exception that I love breakfast, especially protein ones. I find that oatmeal, etc. just bloats me (I'm gluten/casein intolerant) but the people "in the know" keep saying that eggs, bacon, etc. are terrible for your heart even though I do well on it. My husband and I have already graduated to "brown things" because we have been trying to eat gluten free for over 20 years. I'm 71, relative healthy due to supplements/vitamins instead of prescription drugs but this addiction to sugar (I binge) keeps me a prisoner and I want OUT! Am soooo looking forward to this journey with ya'll! Colly **********************************************************************
** Radiant Recovery® Store ** David manages the Radiant Recovery® Store. He is also Kathleen's oldest son. 
We are now taking preorders for Kathleen's new 3 CD set called Deepening the Process. Disc One covers Deepening the Steps: Coming back to the steps with a new understanding of how and why they work so well. Disc Two covers the addiction amoeba and how to look at the stuff that emerges after step six. And Disc Three speaks to why emotional healing is so important for sugar sensitive people.Make sure that you are among the first to receive this incredible new tool! Please send questions and suggestions. I love hearing from you and truly want to help you do your program better. **********************************************************************
** Radiant Kitchen **
Toss the oats, coconut and almonds together in a large bowl. Pour the vegetable oil and apple juice over the oat mixture. Add the cinnamon, and stir with a wooden spoon until all the oats and nuts are coated with the liquids. Pour onto a sheet pan. Bake, stirring occasionally with a spatula, until the mixture turns a nice, even golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove the granola from the oven and allow to cool, stirring occasionally. Store the cooled granola in an airtight container. For more great program-friendly recipes, check out our cookbook in the store. **********************************************************************
** Radiant Conversations ** It is fun to see that the main conversations list is sparkling like a town community meeting room. All sorts of neat topics burble up and flourish. I love going over to see what you all are sharing about. Even more exciting is the chat study group. We take the week's article posted here and go into it in depth at chat, and then we continue the discussion in the study group. Whew, is it amazing! It is such an incredible tool because we going into such depth. Here is a little quote from Missy that captures it: I read the chat also. It was awesome. And to think that after reading the newsletter, I thought chat would only be for step 7ers, LOL. I should have known that Kathleen would make everything relate/speak to all of us at whatever level we are. **********************************************************************
** Our Online Groups ** Come check out our local geographic lists. We call them geo groups. These are social lists for getting to know people in your local area. We are revising having geos hosts for the geo lists, so you will have a local person with some experience in the program facilitating making connections in your area. We are also adding a New York list for all those people who live in NY but are not a part of the Big Apple list. If you are snowed in up there in the Mohawk Valley, or in the home of all Blizzards, Buffalo, come join us! **********************************************************************
**RULES ** Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D.
As many of you realize, we recently updated our *Rules of the Road* into a new document called Participation in Radiant Recovery. I wanted to help you begin to understand the logic behind the way we do business, and to give you a clear understanding of why we ask you to work with us on this. Basically, we use these guidelines to help us reinforce and build the values that we work from. These are the values that have guided the development of our community. The primary values of radiantrecovery.com are:
We operate under this idea of shared leadership organized into a number of layers and teams. The entire leadership of the community is volunteer. People in recovery make a commitment to give back. We are organized in these ways: List mentors are persons on step 7 who assume responsibility for each of the more than 100 lists we run. The mentors keep the lists focused and on track, they work with list members, they model support and effective ways of doing the program. They handle logistics such as yahoo glitches, SPAM and getting people into and off the lists. They run interference if a list member is off the wall or needing extra help. The mentors meet once a week for 30 minutes to check in on how things are going, and talk regularly via a special list. Geo Coaches serve as list mentors for the geographical area lists set up for socialized interaction. Geo coaches meet with their team leader as needed. List team members are community members who have agreed to support the list mentor. Lists with more than 100 members have team members proportionate to the size of the list. Team members speak regularly with the team mentor about the needs of the list. All the lists have a set of Guidelines for Participating in Radiant Recovery document which governs how the list will function. These guidelines are sent out to the list once a month. When the leadership members need help in interpretation of the guidelines , they discuss that with one another on the mentor leadership list. The leadership tone of the community is outlined in this directive given to leaders when they sign on. The core of the leadership style is empowerment. We have tried to be clear, fair and appropriate in setting these up. One thing that still remains a surprise to me is that no matter how often we send these out, no matter how carefully I try to be clear, I get get regular mail from people who are furious with me for saying no to their posting an inappropriate message advertising something that I cannot support or do not agree with. Cross a sugar-sensitive person in early recovery and get an inflamed note castigating me for being a controlling bitch, for running a cult that will soon pass out kool aid, for censoring free speech or being enraged at the idea that I might get to decide the parameters of what we choose to publish when. Yesterday I got a note demanding why I would not put up a recipe for chocolate chip cookies since it ONLY had a little sugar in it. And then, heaven help me if I say no in public. Most of the time, I just figure this stuff goes with the territory. I think we all have been in places of enraged self righteousness where we demand what we perceive is justice when really what we are doing is fanning drama for the BE hit. I think perhaps it is time for us to speak to this issue and to talk about it. It is good practice, this learning how to set and to accept boundaries. It is good practice to take responsibility for learning the culture and expectations of a community we wish to participate in. So this is an invitation. We will talk about it at chat, we will discuss it on the chat study list, and if you don't come to chat we can talk about it on the forum. But before you express your opinion. please be kind and go read the guidelines! 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. Tina tells us what's happening on Facebook. ©2010 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/ |
