Tag: Sugar Addiction

Sugar Addicts in the San Francisco Bay Area: Let Me Liberate You Sat., April 13

Connie celery_clean copySugar and carb addicts, get help to free yourself from your potentially deadly habits on Sat., April 13 at 7 pm at Book Passage in Corte Madera.
Indeed, it’s now my honor and privilege to personally guide, coach, educate and empower sugar and carb addicts in the San Francisco Bay Area on Saturday, April 13, which is, coincidentally, two days before a momentous time for me.
Yes, on April 15, I will have gone 15 years sugar-free (mostly)! Bear in mind that I wasn’t perfect, and not beating up on myself too much or slipping is one of the keys to my success. (You’ll find out how you, too, can be imperfect but still triumph over your sugar addiction.)
The program at Book Passage is being presented, thanks to the remarkable organization, Left Coast Writers, a fabulous group that supports new and established writers.
Please note that this appearance at Book Passage is my first talk and book signing since the publication of my book, Beyond Sugar Shock: The 6-Week Plan to Break Free of Your Sugar Addiction & Get Slimmer, Sexier & Sweeter.
The reason that I didn’t do any book signings or give any solo talks in 2012 (other than one appearance as part of a group of authors) is because I wanted to spend as much time as possible with my terminally ill Mom before she passed away. Recently, I lost her. (In fact, I moved from the East Coast to the West Coast to be near her and be of service to Mom before she passed away. (One of our most fabulous moments during our last year together was when two boxes of books arrived from my publisher, Hay House, and my mother raved, “Absolutely terrific” and “Beautiful.” I have a video of the special occasion.)
Anyhow, during my first Beyond Sugar Shock appearance on April 13, I’ll give you insights and simple starter secrets so you can:
Activate the positive power of one of procrastination. (Huh? Trust me — it’s a simple, calming tool.)
Quickly decode and then welcome (really!) your annoying sugar cravings.
Remember the sour scoop about sugar (that it can lead to cancer, type 2 diabetes and even kill you early) when you’re overcome by must-have-sugar-now! feelings.
Pick yourself up after you’ve “slipped” and fallen off your less or no-sugar plan, especially after emotionally trying times.
Dissolve your desire for dangerous sweets but still enjoy tasty chocolate treats. You’ll even find out how to get recipes for healthy choco-goodie and get to savor tasty sugar-free desserts.
Stop being duped by innocent-looking, seductive foods that are actually sugar traps.
Laugh at my — and your — silly-on-sugar behavior. (You’ll chuckle at my former Sugar Shrew ways!)
In short, in our time together, you’ll get to Turbocharge your Sugar-Free Power.
The event on April 13 takes place at:
Book Passage
51 Tamal Vista Blvd
Corte Madera
For those of you who don’t know my background, here’s a short bio:
Bestseller Beyond Sugar Shock BSThe Sugar Liberator Connie Bennett is transformational speaker and author of the international bestseller Beyond Sugar Shock: The 6-Week Plan to Break Free of Your Sugar Addiction & Get Slimmer, Sexier & Sweeter. The Hay House book has been praised by a Who’s Who of health and empowerment experts, including Dr. Wayne Dyer, Dr. Christiane Northrup, and Dr. Daniel Amen.
Connie’s second book is the eagerly awaited follow-up to her acclaimed bestseller, Sugar Shock! How Sweets and Simple Carbs Can Derail Your Life—And How You Can Get Back on Track, which has been praised by America’s Favorite Doctor, Dr. Mehmet Oz.
Connie’s sour-to-sweet journey began in 1998, when she was pummeled by 44 ailments, including crushing fatigue, brain fog, horrible headaches, rollercoaster mood swings, and severe PMS. When Connie’s new doctor blamed every single symptom on her excessive sugar habit and ordered her to quit consuming her cherished sweets, she reluctantly complied. Much to her surprise, all her ailments vanished, and Connie became energetic, focused, and free.
She succeeded, because while shedding her dangerous habit, Connie created cool tools to ease her dreaded and difficult transition and turn it into a positive, fun-filled, life-changing adventure. Since 2001, Connie has been coaching, guiding, and inspiring thousands of people worldwide on how to easily triumph over their carb addiction so they can discover that Life is Sweeter When Sugar Doesn’t Seduce You.™
Now, Connie runs her popular Sugar Freedom Now Retreat (virtual, recorded, and live), which is the companion program to Beyond Sugar Shock. She is also host of the Gab with the Gurus Radio Show, for which she interviews top names in a variety of fields from health to the Law of Attraction. Connie studied at the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC), the Institute for Integrative Nutrition (IIN), and Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Get free gifts to help you reach Sugar Freedom at www.Connie-Bennett.com

Are You Addicted to Sugar?

Do tempting cookies, candies, and cakes “call out” to you?
Do you yearn for potentially deadly sugary treats or its quickie-carb cousins (chips, corn nuts, and popcorn) when you’re somber, angry or down — in other words, S.A.D.?
In other words, are you a victim of sugar seduction?
Please take a moment now to laugh at your sugar habit. It’s actually funny if it wasn’t so sad!
First, enjoy this fabulous cartoon, which was conceived by Mike Adams and created by talented artist Dan Berger, smile and chuckle, if you can.
Now, do what I call Sugar Soul Searching™, which is a powerful process I created to help you discover dispassionately–without any emotional attachment–how enslaved, ruled, and directed you are by your sugar or carb addiction. (You can learn more about this fun technique in my book, Beyond Sugar Shock.)
How are you like these trapped, caged people? Count the ways.
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
Are You Addicted to Sugar

Northern Californians: Get Sweet Help to Shed Your Sugar Habit on April 13 at Book Passage

Sugar and carb addicts in the Bay Area or northern California, come meet me personally and get help so you can triumph over your potentially deadly sugar and carb habit.
Thanks to the amazing group, Left Coast Writers — which supports new and established writers — you can get simple tips and tools to free you from your addiction on Sat., April 13 at 7 pm at Book Passage in Corte Madera.
FYI, the timing for this event is fortuitous. It takes place two days before my 15-year anniversary of being mostly sugar-free!
The Left Coast Writers Book Launch at Book Passage officially marks the start of The Sugar Freedom Tour, during which I’ll personally help sugar addicts nationwide and later worldwide. (To bring me to your area, submit your request here.)
In this April 13th program, “Break Free of Sugar with Ease and Glee,” you will get “A hah” moments and easy information to put to use immediately.
You’ll discover simple, but powerful starter secrets to:
Become the master of your sugar cravings — and then turn them into your reliable allies.
Turbocharge your Sugar-Free Power.
Dodge the #1 mistake nearly everyone makes when quitting or reducing sweets.
Activate the positive power of procrastination.(Huh? Trust me — it’s a simple, calming tool.)
Pick yourself up after you’ve “slipped” and fallen off your less or no-sugar plan.
Dissolve your desire for dangerous sweets but still enjoy tasty chocolate treats. You’ll even find out how to get recipes for healthy choco-goodies.
Stop being duped by innocent-looking, seductive foods that are actually sugar traps.
Laugh at my — and your — silly-on-sugar behavior. (You’ll chuckle at the former Sugar Shrew ways!)
You’ll also get to try tasty, sugar-free Power Balls and a Coco-Mousse, that will melt in your mouth! I’m bringing these yummy chocolate delights, courtesy of my friend Naomi Tomoda from the farmer’s market. (Check back here, on this Sugar Shock Blog, for photos of these delicious treats from Naomi’s company, Mami’s Crunch.)
Special thanks to Left Coast Writers founder Linda Watanabe McFerrin, who invited me to this event. (Stay tuned to learn about Linda’s sugar story.)
In case, you don’t know my story, here’s my short bio so you’ll learn why I’m so committed to helping you break free.
Why I Want to Free You from Sugar: My Bio & Tale
Bestseller Beyond Sugar Shock BSConnie Bennett is a charismatic transformational speaker, bestselling author, life coach, health coach, and self-mocking former sugar addict, who is now known as The Sugar Liberator. An experienced journalist, Connie is author of the new book, Beyond Sugar Shock: The 6-Week Plan to Break Free of Your Sugar Addiction & Get Slimmer, Sexier & Sweeter, an international bestseller that has been endorsed by Dr. Wayne Dyer, Dr. Christiane Northrup, and Dr. Daniel Amen. Her first book, Sugar Shock! How Sweets and Simple Carbs Can Derail Your Life—And How You Can Get Back on Track, was a bestseller that was praised by America’s Favorite Doctor, Dr. Mehmet Oz.
Connie’s sour-to-sweet journey began in 1998, when she was pummeled by 44 scary ailments, including crushing fatigue, brain fog, horrible headaches, roller-coaster mood swings, heart palpitations, and severe PMS. When Connie’s new doctor blamed every symptom on her excessive sugar habit and ordered her to “Quit eating sugar or die young,” Connie very reluctantly shed her habit. Much to her surprise, all her ailments vanished, and Connie became energetic, focused, and free.
Connie finally succeeded in shedding her dangerous sugar addiction after years of failing, because while transitioning from sugar-gorging to becoming mostly sugar-free, Connie created or discovered simple, cool tools, which helped her transform the dreaded, difficult undertaking into a positive, fun-filled, life-changing adventure.
Since 2001, Connie has been coaching, guiding, inspiring and uplifting thousands of carb junkies worldwide to easily, playfully release their addiction to discover that Life is Sweeter When Sugar Doesn’t Seduce You™.
Connie runs the popular Sugar Freedom Now Retreat, a virtual and/or live event, which is the companion program to Beyond Sugar Shock. She also hosts the Gab with the Gurus Radio Show, for which she interviews top names in a variety of fields from health to the Law of Attraction.and hosts the Gab with the Gurus Radio Show. Connie studied at the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC), the Institute for Integrative Nutrition (IIN), and Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Get free gifts at www.Connie-Bennett.com
Connie is now on The Sugar Freedom Tour, which celebrates her 15 years of being mostly sugar-free. It is dedicated to her recently deceased mother. To invite Connie to visit your area, apply here.

Join Me on a Mission to Forgive

On a Mission to Forgive. Moving forward from grief. (My mother passed away in the fall after valiantly defeating stage 4 lung cancer for a year.)

Letter to Anne Lamott: Tempted by Sweets or Quickie Carbs? Read Me First! 10 Ways to Continue to Savor Sugar Freedom!

Letter to Annie Lamott
Tempted by Sweets or Quickie Carbs? Read Me First! 10 Ways to Continue to Savor Sugar Freedom!
For the past six weeks, I’ve had the pleasure of doing text-coaching with talented writer Anne Lamott, who I had the pleasure of meeting after the fabulous talk she gave at her church to launch her new, fabulous book, Help, Thanks, Wow. Anyhow, as a Sugar Freedom Coach, I don’t want to leave Annie in the lurch with no encouragement while I’m away for 10 days on a transformational retreat. So I came up with a way to support Annie while I’m gone. I wrote her this letter, which she now has given me permission to share with you.
Dear Annie,
I really want to be there for you while I’m off healing and taking back my power. (As you know, I desperately need to go on this transformational retreat until Feb. 10 to recover from My Bittersweet Last Year with Mom, which, as I shared with you and on my Sugar Shock Blog (www.SugarShockBlog.com) and my new Bittersweet Blog, www.BittersweetYear.com), was utterly grueling, draining and heartbreaking.)
To support and stand by you so you can continue to Savor Sugar Freedom, I’ve decided to create a 10 Ways to Continue to Savor Sugar Freedom Checklist for you. I invite you to bring this along with you wherever you go so you can whip it out if temptation strikes.
Whenever health-harming, tempting sugary non-foods—what I call Sweet Baddies (certainly not “goodies” or “treats”)—seem to tauntingly plead, “Eat me, eat me,” I urge you take the following steps first.
1) Follow Your Own Smart Advice. Holler Help!
Put a Sugar Freedom spin on the wisdom you eloquently impart in your book, Help, Thanks, Wow. When you can’t quit obsessing about a gorgeous cupcake, a chocolate-chip cookie or whatever sugary non-food or Sweet Baddie you want right away, lean on God, divine intelligence, or, as you playfully put it, “Howard.”
Just imagine: You’re so close to shoving a Sweet Baddie in your mouth. Your favorite dangerous, culprit-carb non-foods—which, for you and many others, are sure-fire gateways to glutting, depression and Sugar Slavery—keep taunting and tormenting you. They seem to be whispering, “It’s time to stop feeling deprived. Go ahead, put one in your mouth. Now.”
Annie, when temptation like this strikes, it’s time to prove those Sweet Baddies wrong! Let Providence whisk you to Savory Sugar Freedom instead.
You might want to pray like this. “Dear God, I could use a hand. Please help me. I feel out of control when it comes to [name of Sweet Baddie you want]. I know that I shouldn’t have them, but I want them anyhow. Please, Divine Wisdom, show me exactly what steps to take so I have the strength to turn away from [type of Sugary Temptation]. And, God, please help me to remember that this [cake, cookie, etc.] is so very bad for me and can lead to overeating, self-loathing and disease.”
2) Eating Sugar Makes You Unspiritual.
Over-indulging in sweets, as you’ve been discovering, makes you so much less than you can and want to be. Specifically, sugary non-foods can take you down a path to non-spirituality. They can rob you of your sublime, divine-loving essence. People who haven’t gone sugar-free (or close to it) don’t understand this subtle connection, but you “get it.” So please ask yourself before you cave in to sweets or culprit carbs, “Is a piece or bag of [name of Temptation] worth straying off the spiritual path?”
3) Remember How Clear-Headed & Better You Are When You Limit the Sugar.
As you know, eating lots of sugary non-foods can muddy up your thinking, mess with your moods and strip you of your power. When a sugary non-food is bugging you, instead delight in how wonderful you feel when you stick to such wholesome foods as lentils, organic veggies, organic meats, and healthy fats. Now ask yourself, “Is this [Name of Sugary Temptation] really worth losing my clarity, energy, and peace of mind? Wouldn’t I rather be my best self?”
4) Revel in Your Former Success & Then Challenge Yourself to Recreate it.
Think of the accomplishment of which you’re the most proud. Is it that you’ve stayed away from alcohol for so long and enjoyed sweet sobriety? Perhaps you’re delighted that you made your last book deadline? Now, stretch yourself. Realize that, “Hey, if I did [quit alcohol or whatever else you picked], then I can surely stay away from sugar, even if it is addictive.” Annie, you can even have fun and quip, “I continue to choose Savor Sugar Freedom. It’s a piece of cake!” (Pardon the pun!)
5) Do Sugar Procrastination. (Delay).
As we’ve discussed, one very effective sugar-avoidance approach is to procrastinate on purpose. By that, I mean delay eating your temptation of the moment. To refresh your memory about this simple tactic, just read this blog post I wrote about the power of delaying. http://www.sugarshockblog.com/2011/05/delay-away-your-sugar-cravings-.html
6) Write Away Your Cravings and Have Fun With It.
One of the most powerful ways to kick your pesky cravings is to get in touch with the feelings behind them. Journaling is highly effective, research shows. So take 10 minutes before you put anything sugary in your mouth and write about it. And be playful, too. You, of all people, could write the most amusing, entertaining, enlightening Sugar Danger poems or musings. When I return, I’ll look forward to reading what you write. (Even if you weren’t a writer, I’d recommend this. Jotting down your thoughts and feelings is that powerful. Anyone—writer or not—can do it.) Also, read this article I wrote about cravings. http://www.healyourlife.com/author-connie-bennett/2013/01/wisdom/inspiration/craving-sugar-and-carbs
7) Power up with PFF.
As you know, one sure-fire way to become vulnerable to sweets is to skip eating something healthy when you get up in the morning. Temptation also has a way of getting to you when you don’t re-fuel your body at least three times a day with ample protein, fiber, and fat. So make sure to fill up regularly on those quality foods.
8) Ask Yourself the 5 W’s & 1 H.
Of course, knowledge is power. So whenever you’re tempted, ask yourself the questions every journalist needs to answer when writing a story. You want to discover the Who, What, When, Where, Why and How. In doing your sugar discovery or Sugary Soul Searching, ask yourself, “Who do I become when I indulge? What is it I really want? When do my sugar cravings get most powerful? Where could I go instead (someplace more nurturing and fulfilling)? Why, oh why, do I want those sugary non-foods? And how would eating those Sweet Baddies make me feel? (Read more about this process in pages 65 to 66 of my book, Beyond Sugar Shock, which I gave you.)
9) Scare Yourself with the Sour News. Then, Create Your Sugar-is-My-Foe List.
Whenever you really, really, really want something sugary, I urge you to get the sour news first. Just take out Beyond Sugar Shock, and read Chapter 3, which tells you about “The Big Preventable Killers: Your Sweet Tooth Can Kill You.” Then write down 5 Reasons Why Sugar is My Foe. In other words, what are the worst things that can happen to you when you eat the sugary stuff. Then rewrite your reasons to avoid Sweet Baddies on a 3-by-5 index card and carry it with you wherever you go so you’ll remember why it’s important to overcome those cravings.
10) Text Me & Then Text Yourself, Too.
Finally, since I can’t read your texts for the next 10 days, text me anyhow when you’re having a challenging time. Just pretend that I’m there on the other end of the phone and that I’ll be replying shortly. Then, until I return on Feb. 10 or 11, reply to yourself with what you think I’d say. Now, if you’re unclear as to how I’d text-coach you, pull out your copy of Beyond Sugar Shock, shut your eyes and open a page. That’s what I’d say to you. In other words, your inner wisdom will guide you to the exact page with the exact information you need. (By the way, I do this technique a lot with your book, Help, Thanks, Wow and with books by Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, Louise Hay, and Dr. Ken Druck. Just trust that you’ll be guided to get the advice or guidance you need. It has worked every time for me.)
11) Share your challenges on my Facebook page.
If or when something sweet tempts you, just rely on people who understand how dangerous it is to go down that sugary path. Post something on Facebook—on both my (www.Facebook.com/SmartHabitsFans) and your (www.Facebook.com/AnneLamott) fan pages. I’ll bet you that someone who “gets it” will write to you with just the wisdom you’re seeking. Make sure to dash me an email each time (marked high importance) so that I can read these inspirational words upon my return and thank the person.
Annie, I know that you can continue to Savor Sugar Freedom.
Remember, you have the power to say no. Remind yourself that eating sugar and other quickie carbs is a choice. It’s yours to make—or not make. What you put in your mouth helps create your future and the way you handle it. Why not choose the path of joy, inner peace, and health?
I’ll be with you in spirit and rooting for you to continue to Savor Sugar Freedom. Talk to you soon.
Warmly,
Connie
Connie Bennett
P.S. Since you like to share your musings and inspirational thoughts on Facebook, feel free to post this entire letter from me to you. It would be my honor to help your sugar-addicted fans. And feel free to take tidbits and tweet them, too.
P.P.S. Thanks again for your very kind words and letting me share them here.
“I was so sick and tired of feeling sick and tired beyond my sugar. With the help of Beyond Sugar Shock and Connie’s smart, caring text-coaching, I am beginning my 6th week of being off sugar. To me, that is a miracle. I feel so much happier and healthier, more energetic and free.” …I most like to know you are on the other end of the phone and get my texts, help me through temptations, remind me what works and why I am trying a new way of life.” –Anne Lamott

Embrace Cravings as Your Allies, Not Enemies

Are you hit by cravings in the morning, afternoon, and night, as well as in between?
How-to-fight-sugar-cravingsAnd do you detest when your cravings for sugar, carbs or something rich get the best of you? Especially when the number on the scale keeps getting higher?
What if you changed your attitude about your cravings?
What if instead of dreading them, you welcomed them and even invited them in?
Just think how much easier your relationship with food would be if you embraced your cravings as your allies!
You want to welcome your cravings, because they’re giving you valuable messages. And once you decode your cravings, you’ll be able to give yourself what you really want.
Confused? Discover 20 messages your cravings may be telling you.
Just read my new article on Heal Your Life, “Craving Sugar and Carbs? Make them your allies instead!”

Connie’s Confession: Taking Back My Power & Healing My Broken Heart

After a loss—whether it’s the death of someone you love or the end of a relationship—have you ever felt suspended in limbo? Plus, you just couldn’t find your mojo again?
Well, I feel ready to come clean with you. Ever since my dear mother passed away recently, I’ve been a grieving, heartbroken, stymied health coach and wellness author in crisis. In short, I’ve been feeling “off.”
While I’m working to get closer to being “on” so I can serve you again, I’m now ready to make a confession.
Broken Heart Pieced Back TogetherMy mom’s death and my subsequent discoveries about things she did or didn’t do have hit me hard. Recently, I’ve been crying at least once or twice a week—like the time I found NO mention in her datebook that I was moving nearly 3,000 miles to be with her in her dying days. Ouch!
Plus, Cheerful Connie isn’t around as much anymore. Not only that, but I’m not sure where I should live now.
A little bit of history is in order. Slightly more than a year ago, I gave up my apartment in New York City (where I’d been for a decade) and moved back to California to be of service to my dear dying mother, who had stage 4 lung cancer. (But she decided to let the disease progress at its own course — she choose to forgeo chemotherapy and meds for fear of horrible side effects.)
Now that I’ve lost my mother, I’m all alone in another part of the country, without her and without my friends in the Big Apple.
Loss, I’m discovering, can wallop you. It can toss you into turmoil and turbulence. And if your dear mommy died, that can send you whirling.
I’ve also been in a quandary. I’m a health coach, life coach, and bestselling author (Sugar Shock and Beyond Sugar Shock). How can I share with you my intense pain and sad truth that I’m just not back to being my best me?
And why is Cheerful Connie taking so long to return? While she’s starting to make a comeback, she’s still often frustratingly elusive.
Previously, I didn’t tell you the full truth about how Mom behaved badly in her last year, how horribly she treated me at times, and how My Last Year with My Mother was an utterly grueling ordeal.
The reason I told you a half-truth before is because I was simply too embarrassed, hurt, and heartbroken.
What’s more, I want to honor, respect, and put the best foot forward on behalf of my Mom, whom I dearly loved, admired, and respected.
I really, really adored my mother, and I was very, very reluctant to share her weaknesses.
Before, in this blog post, I offered only glowing praise for my mother and how she taught me—and you—how to leave Planet Earth with spunk and style.
Yes, fall 2011 to fall 2012 was a charming, wonderful, poignant time, during which my beloved mother shared valuable lessons with me. She blazed (often with me along) through her impressive culinary and cultural bucket list, and we had many pleasant moments together.
In other words, My Last Year with Mom was full of sweetness. But it was glutted with bitterness as well. That’s why I now call this time My Bittersweet Last Year with Mom.
Now, I feel ready to tell you a little about the bitter part.
What made My Last Year with Mom especially gut-wrenching and tear-jerking for me was that the calm, coherent, often-poised mother I loved and knew vanished.
Instead, as her brain and body were invaded by cancerous cells, she became Crabby Cancer Mom, someone who could be accusatory, angry, argumentative, confrontational, controlling, cruel, demanding, difficult, distrustful, hostile, insulting, irrational, manipulative, mean, and vindictive.
For reasons I still don’t quite understand—other than that dying people take it out on people they love the most—Crabby Cancer Mom displayed a particular vengeance and viciousness towards me. That was especially tough to take since I’d given up my apartment in New York City and relocated for her. (I’m now living in a cramped but peaceful place I hurriedly took after Mom angrily threw me out of her home for the umpteenth time.)
In other words, during My Bittersweet Last Year with My Mother, I was a victim of Mom Abuse.
Bear in mind that my mother’s mistreatment of me was unintentional. It was the cancer’s fault.
Real Mom was in the dark. She didn’t know what she was doing. At least I don’t think she did.
But although I knew Crabby Cancer Mom was NOT my Real Mom, I still often felt confused, frustrated, exasperated, aghast, helpless, devastated, sad, downright shattered, and absolutely frightened to be myself.
Of course, experts recommend that you set limits in your relationships.
“Speak up for yourself,” they suggest. That’s good advice, but when you’ve made a strong commitment to yourself to be there no matter what for your angry, dying mother, you can’t set boundaries, especially if—as her disease infects her thoughts and behavior—she treats you abysmally. (In fact, she treated me so horribly that some people who witnessed her putdowns were shocked that I stood by her.)
Anyhow, I’ve been reeling in aftershock for the past four months. And I’ve had enough.
It’s time to take back my power. I’m determined.
To get to a centered place where I can serve you again, I’ve now mapped out my comeback.
I’m taking time out every day to nurture myself, including going to the gym, meditating, attending a grief support group, listening to James Twyman’s The Moses Code, or reading inspirational passages from authors such as Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, Dr. Ken Druck and Anne Lamott. I’m also back in therapy, and I work with a coach from time to time.
I’m cleaning up my food. In particular, I’m limiting or steering clear of quickie carbs such as sweet potato chips, corn nuts, and popcorn. (More about that later, but suffice it to say that I haven’t been perfect since Mom died. I did, however, stay away from the sugar so for those of you wondering, I am still sugar-free.)
I’m healing and getting perspective, as well as honoring my mother, by writing a new book, which I’m tentatively calling, Bittersweet: How to Stand by Your Difficult, Dying Loved One and Learn from My Rollercoaster Last Year with Mom. (The book title may change.)
At long last, I’m going on a 10-day transformational retreat from Jan. 30 to Feb. 10 to get my act together, so to speak. Please note that I’m NOT taking a vacation. Rather, I’m going to dig very deep so that I can become a better me and be better able to serve you.
I’m going on e-mail and phone silence. Admittedly, this is a requirement for the program I’m attending, but I would do it anyhow.
I’m turning many times a day to the endearing, inspirational best-selling author Louise Hay for help. For instance, I’m listening over and over again to the forgiveness track on Louise’s CD of I Can Do It. “Forgiveness of yourself, and of others, will release you from the prison of the past,” she knowingly says. Later, she charmingly puts it, to “it’s time to move with joy into the now.”
I’m honoring myself and my need for healing time by allowing myself to postpone presenting my Sugar Freedom Now Virtual Retreat and delay taking on new coaching clients.
Of course, you want me to be there fully so right now, I’m dedicating myself to “refueling,” regrouping, rediscovering my true calling, uncovering my strengths, finding inner peace, and reaching a higher plane.
I invite you to join me. Go on your own voyage of healing and rebirth so you can Take Back Your Power.
Even if you aren’t grieving the loss of a loved one, you can become dedicated to rediscovering your own beauty and wisdom.
Please let me know what transformational methods work best for you to Take Back Your Power. I’m eager to explore tactics that I may be overlooking.
By the way, please stay tuned.
On April 15, I will be celebrating 15 years sugar-free (mostly). Yikes!
In honor of that landmark, I’ll be giving lots of radio and TV interviews about my most recent book, Beyond Sugar Shock, which came out while Mom was dying. (I’m so grateful that before Mom passed away, she saw and was very proud of me for my new book.)
I’m also planning a newly improved six-week Sugar Freedom Now Virtual Retreat. It begins March 6.
Thank you kindly for your patience during this challenging, but transformative time.

A Look at Sugar Consumption over the Years

Special thanks to Online Nursing Programs for this special graphic, “Nursing Your Sweet Tooth,” which illustrates our massive increase in sugar consumption over the years.
By the way, the figure for today’s total is too low — the average American consumes more like 150 or even 170 pounds of sugar per year, according to my research — but this chart still gives you an idea of the massive upswing on sugar consumption from the early 1800s.
Nursing Your Sweet Tooth
Created by: www.OnlineNursingPrograms.com

Reformed Sugar Addict Alec Baldwin Interviews Dr. Robert Lustig on “Here’s the Thing”

Alecbaldwin560Did you know that the formerly overweight actor Alec Baldwin is now a reformed sugar and carb addict, who used to consume “a fish-tanked sized bowl of pasta” and other sweets but now is a sugar-free crusader?
Alec Baldwin also now has a fascinating podcast, Here’s the Thing.
Learn more about Here’s the Thing now.
Check out this intriguing interview Alec Baldwin had with Dr. Robert Lustig, a pediatric endocrinologist at UC San Francisco, about our country’s addiction to sugar.
You can watch Alec Baldwin talk about his journey here.