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May 9, 2016 Hi {!firstname_fix} I have been working on our 2016 coloring book for Ranch. It has been an incredible experience to review all the old ones and think about from whence we have come. I am REALLY looking forward to Ranch. Lots to do and people start arriving on Tuesday!!!! I will not be starting any classes the week of Wednesday, May 11, 2016 because of ranch. This class will begin Wednesday, May 18, 2016. Please Signup and it will take you to the registration page:
This class will begin Wednesday, May 25, 2016. Please Signup and it will take you to the registration page:
Check the class list page for more information on how the classes work. See the the Class Schedule here. Be sure to visit our Radiant Recovery website and Community Forum regularly. Warmly, Kathleen **********************************************************************
**Quote From Kathleen**Words for feelings are not good or bad. They are simply a way to help you understand what is happening. **********************************************************************
**Testimonial of the Week**I know I lost opportunities, closed doors and went down roads that I needn't have if I was clearer. Before Kathleen's program, everything was too hard, or too sad, or too exhausting, or too upsetting, or too offensive, or too difficult, or too hopeless to solve. Now, everything seems more clear, more calm and even the crises aren't crises anymore. My life IS difficult, but so much more manageable than the old days of addiction. If you decide to leave or stay, you're going to need strength and perspective and a steady mind to work things out. I'm with Kathleen. Get yourself steady for six months and things will seem clearer and all the "what ifs" won't have as much power over you. In the meantime, doing the program concentrates your energies on YOU instead of the frustration of being with HIM. instead of focusing on the problems, focus on healing yourself. Become really strong and who knows what you'll decide from a position of steadiness and calm. Eliza :-) **********************************************************************
**Radiant Recovery® Store**A while ago I had reported that I asked David to order a new product. I want to let you know how much I LOVE it! I had hoped it would help my dry eyes. And man, it is fabulous. So we are putting it in the newsletter again. 
Here is a testimony to the impact of your input. One of our regular customers told us about a Nordic Naturals product she had tried. It is called ProDHA Eye. She said her ophthalmologist had recommended it for *dry eye* and it was having a huge impact for her. Kathleen read that email and asked me if I had sent in our Nordic order yet. I said, *No, I was doing it that afternoon.* Here is her response:As I have gotten older, the issue of dry eye has become more of a problem. Living in New Mexico, which is DRY, DRY, makes it way worse. You know I LOVE Nordic products, let's give it a shot. I know it is a bit pricey, but when I think about how much I am spending on eye drops, this sounds way better. Here is what Nordic Naturals says about it:
Please send questions and suggestions. I love hearing from you and truly want to help you do your program better. **********************************************************************
**Radiant Kitchen**This recipe comes from Joy Lynn. Spinach/Artichoke Delight
The mixture should be creamy and well mixed. Then place in casserole and either microwave for 5 minutes or bake in 375° oven for 10 to 15 minutes. Note: You can add a layer of cheese on the top at the end. This is great as a dip or eaten as a side dish This dish freezes really well
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**Radiant Your Last Diet**I loved this post from Regina. This is someone who is using the tools provided by Kathleen and letting the steps work their magic. (smile) Steph x My first time through the steps (I laugh that I actually claimed to be on step 6), I was focused on weight loss from the very beginning. I ended up restricting, losing 20 lbs., only to lose control over the holidays and gain it back. It was very humbling to say the least. Through this experience, I am getting a better understanding of having a beginners mind, open heart and faith in the program. If you would like to join us in YLD, come find us here **********************************************************************
**Radiant Living**This week marks my 4th anniversary on this wonderful journey. All week I have been thinking about the many changes in my life since I began to "do the food." One of the biggest changes for me is that I am satisfied with just three meals and my spud. I no longer keep going back out to the kitchen to look for "something" to eat after dinner. I no longer get up in the middle of the night and go out to the kitchen to eat. Usually if I wake up I don't even go out for a drink of water. I have begun to keep a bottle of water beside my bed. I never eat between meals except on a rare occasion. That will happen if I for some reason I do not eat enough food at my meal. Then I will have a program friendly snack because I don't like feeling hungry. Last night I slept through for six and a half hours. This is happening more and more often. Before I began the steps I would wake up every forty- five minutes to make a trip to the bathroom. Many times I would then go out to the kitchen and have a snack. I have worked on the same job for over thirty years. For the last few years before starting the steps I hated my job. Now I wake up every morning excited to go to work. I love my job again and that makes me very happy. From the time I was twenty I took medicine for high blood pressure. For the last two plus years I have had normal blood pressure and I no longer take medication to control the pressure. I suffered for years with migraine headaches. Now I never even get a regular headache. I used to have swollen feet and ankles that just about brought me to tears. Sometimes my feet swell up a little. Usually they are fine now. I even have space between my toes. No longer do I suffer from backaches or IBS. Both of which I suffered with for many years. I am not cranky and my moods are very steady. All along I thought I was cranky because I was getting older. My choices in clothing colors has changed quite a bit over the last two years. Before starting on this journey I wore black all the time. I would have a black blouse with some color in it, but for the most part black was my color choice. Now I choose bright colors and pastels. I had some highlights put in my hair and doing that made me feel like a million dollars. For the most part I take care to dress and look my best. Of course I still have some days where I don't care so much how I look (smile). That is an indicator that I need more rest or more protein. I have energy and enjoy life. I love to get up in the morning and watch the sunrise. I find joy in the smallest of things. I socialize more than I did in many years. Life is good and as I work the steps, it keeps getting better. I laugh frequently and rarely cry. The total opposite of how I was before I began this journey. I can pass up dessert and not feel deprived. I can walk past a bakery and never even glance in the window. That is what I call freedom! When I was told all of these things were possible I didn't really believe it. I didn't really believe eating breakfast would make such a huge difference in my life. Every night I say a prayer of thanks that Kathleen has done this work and given us all a chance at radiance. Hugs, Ann If you would like to join us in Radiant Living, come find us here **********************************************************************
**Going Off of Sugar**Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D.
The very first consideration in going off of sugar is to NOT do it until you have worked through the steps slowly and in order. If you do it too soon, you will put your body into shock which is exactly the WORST thing you can do for your healing. Do some planning. And then follow this process: Start by CLEANING YOUR KITCHENGo into your kitchen, open your cabinets, and take out all the foods with obvious sugars in them. This includes leftover Halloween or other candy, high-sugar comfort foods, soda, sugar cereals such as Frosted Flakes – you know, all the high-temptation stuff. Throw it away or give it away. Ideally, see if you can get every last bit of it out of the house.If your family will go nuts if you give away their sugar foods, arrange with them to put all the sweet things into one place. Choose a cupboard or cabinet that you do not usually use. Call it the sugar stash. You will know what is there, but at least you can make the choice whether to go and look at or eat what is in the cupboard. By separating the sugar stash from the other foods, you will at least minimize your bumping into such foods while you are trying to be “clean.” Set The Stage by TALKING TO YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDSThe next step is an emotional housecleaning. So far, your family and friends have probably seen the positive change in you as you progress with this program. They may have seen that overall you have more energy, are more upbeat, relaxed, and sympathetic. They know you aren’t “fixed” yet, but they are interested in the change that is taking place in you. Some family members may have rolled their eyes at first when they heard you were on another diet, but they have probably changed their tune by now.But now that you are going to stop eating sugar, their reactions may well change again. They may be worried that you are going to expect them to stop eating sugar, too. They may be fiercely resistant or totally uninterested in anything that has to do with your eating more regularly and giving up sugar. They may even actively subvert your commitment to the plan. Your husband may ask, “Are you still doing that stuff?” as he orders chocolate mousse for dessert. Your kids may unconsciously try to sabotage you as well. Remember, sugar sensitivity is inherited. The chances that your family is sugar sensitive are really high. You know this. They know this. And they may not be in the same place you are, ready to move toward a sugar-free life. You may also have close friends who are sugar sensitive. And friends who are still very attached to sugar and with things may warn you of the dangers of a “high-protein diet.” Telling them that this food plan is not a high-protein diet will have no impact, because the concern isn’t really about protein. They are worried that if you change, they may feel pressured to change as well. And many people are not ready to. You can’t clear out your husband or unsupportive best friend the way you can clear out your cabinet, but you can be clear with them and clear in your own mind and commitment. And you can actively add other people to your support group. You need support from people who understand your program. Talking with folks who are supportive is absolutely critical to your success. You could do this by doing the program with a friend or finding a way to get online and talk to the great folks on the website. However you choose to find support, make a real effort to do so! It will make a world off difference to the success of your program. Having personal connection to others doing the program will help you stick with it. The Last Part: HOLDING THE SADNESSA key part of getting ready to take the sugars out is acknowledging the intensity of the emotional cues associated with sugars in our culture. Many of your childhood memories of support and love are connected to food, usually sweet or white foods. They hold a very big emotional charge for you.But the foods you think of as providing comfort are the very things that have contributed to your problems. In other words, oftentimes the reason you need comfort is due to the very sweet or white food you are eating! This is a very difficult concept to explain to someone who is still using comfort foods. When you are caught in the middle of these foods, it is almost impossible to understand how big a problem they are creating. An alcoholic who is still drinking will often tell me, “I would stop drinking if I could just get my life squared away.” And she will struggle and struggle and struggle to fix her problems, but they still surround her and create her need for a drink. Using sugars and white things acts in exactly the same way. I used to feel I needed a hot fudge sundae every night after work because my work was so stressful, so demanding, and so tiring. I had no idea that it was the hot fudge sundae that was significantly contributing to the stress of my life. My sugar-laden brain could not in any way make that connection. Because you have been doing the plan for a while now, I know this concept is starting to make sense to you. You can see more clearly the huge effect that these sugar foods have on you. You recognize that your down times are directly correlated to what you are eating. So, on an intellectual level you are ready. On an emotional level, though, you may continue to be scared about having to give things up that have so much tenderness associated with them. After all is said and done, ultimately you will be making a choice about what you want more. I still miss those green-iced Christmas cookies. I still want them every Christmas. Time has not made it easier. But experience has. I want my recovery more than I want the ‘illusion’ of comfort that those cookies would give me. You will grow into this place, too. The longer you do the program, the more this will make sense to you. **********************************************************************
Thanks for reading! If you know someone who could benefit from this, feel free to forward it to them. Not a subscriber yet? Like what you have read? Sign up to get future issues delivered straight to you: http://www.radiantrecovery.com Until next time!
Here are the folks who are helping put the newsletter together:
Gretel, our webmaster, puts it all together. David runs the Radiant Recovery® Store. Mosaic contributes to the Notes from the Forum column. ©2016 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://radiantrecovery.com/learn/newsletter/ |
