Janeane speaks with author Sara Somers about her memoir, “Saving Sara” (She Writes Press, May 12, 2020). Her memoir details her decades-long journey battling food addiction until she finally found the solution that would facilitate her recovery.

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PARIS – For nearly fifty years, Sara Somers suffered from untreated food addiction. In “Saving Sara” (She Writes Press, May 12, 2020) Somers’ intimate memoir, she offers readers an inside view of a food addict's mind, showcasing her experiences with obsessive cravings, compulsivity, and powerlessness regarding food, with the hopes of educating her readers and promoting life-saving conversations between loved ones and those suffering with addiction.


“Saving Sara” chronicles Somers’s addiction from childhood to adulthood, beginning with abnormal eating as a nine-year-old. As her addiction progresses in young adulthood, she becomes isolated, masking her shame and self-hatred with drugs and alcohol. Time and again, she rationalizes why this time will be different, only to have her physical cravings lead to ever-worse binges, to see her promises of doing things differently next time broken, and to experience the amnesia that she –like every addict– experiences when her obsession sets in again.


Even after Somers is introduced to the solution that will eventually end up saving her, the strength of her addiction won't allow her to accept her disease. Twenty-six more years pass until she finally finds her way back to that solution.


A raw account of Somers’ decades-long journey, “Saving Sara” underscores the challenges faced by food addicts of any age – and the hope that exists for them all.



“Read Saving Sara to see how bad [addiction] can get before it gets great – and find out just how she did it, so you can do it too. What a great read!”

– Judy Collins, New York Times bestselling author of Cravings

In an interview, SARA SOMERS can discuss:

Why she decided to chronicle her experiences with addiction into a memoir and how personal stories can be used to educate and heal others


Why food addiction is often viewed differently from other addictions and how she hopes to change the perception of food addiction


What the symptoms of food addiction are and why they may go unnoticed


What options are out there to help addicts heal, and how to keep hope when you feel like you've already "tried everything"


How those who haven’t suffered from addiction can support and stand in solidarity with those who have


Personal stories of food addiction in ‘Saving Sara’ help readers better understand addiction

“A riveting and deeply human memoir." 

– Anne Lamott, California Hall of Fame inductee, novelist, and nonfiction writer

SARA SOMERS suffered from food addiction from age nine to age fifty-eight; she has been in food recovery since 2005. In a double life of sorts, Somers worked as a licensed psychotherapist in the San Francisco Bay Area for thirty-four years. After finding recovery, Somers moved to Paris, France, where she currently lives. She writes a blog called Out My Window: My Life in Paris. When she’s not writing, Somers volunteers at the American Library in Paris, enjoys the cinema, reads prolifically, and follows her favorite baseball team, the Oakland Athletics. Most importantly, Somers devotes time each day to getting the word out about food addiction and helping other food addicts. “Saving Sara” is her first book. To learn more about Sara and her work, visit www.saving-sara.org.

Cultivating calm amid the coronavirus Susan Samueli Integrative Health Institute offers free online classes to relieve stress, anxiety during the pandemic

Cultivating calm amid the coronavirus

Susan Samueli Integrative Health Institute offers free online classes to relieve stress, anxiety during the pandemic

The instructor on the after-work Zoom call speaks slowly to the half-dozen participants.

“Tune into what it feels like to breathe – not thinking about the breath, just being with the breath,” says Amy Noelle, an instructor at UCI’s Susan Samueli Integrative Health Institute who has a master’s degree in physical therapy.

“Notice when your mind wanders, as minds do,” she continues, “and then kindly and gently return your attention to the physical sensations of breathing.”

The 20-minute virtual meditation session is among several free online courses the institute began offering to UCI employees, as well as the Orange County community, on April 13 to help ease anxiety and stress during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Targeting front-line healthcare providers in particular, the well-being initiative underscores the institute’s focus on the mind, body and spirit, says its executive director, Dr. Shaista Malik, associate vice chancellor for UCI’s Susan and Henry Samueli College of Health Sciences and a professor in the campus’s School of Medicine.

The initiative also includes eight mindfulness-based stress reduction courses. The two-hour weekly sessions were immediately filled to capacity. That translates to 5,280 hours of free instruction for 240 people, with a waiting list of more than 200.

“There are some acute stressors that have taxed our already busy healthcare system and really pushed the limits of our providers,” Malik says. “So maintaining an adequate healthcare workforce that can care for high volumes of patients at their full potential becomes critically important over what could be an extended period of time.”

Dr. Nicole Reilly, a former anesthesiologist, is one of four mindfulness-based stress reduction teachers participating in the initiative. A mindfulness instructor at the institute for more than six years, she leads two sessions.

“I’m not used to teaching online, but I’ve actually grown accustomed to it, and I think it’s working well,” she says. “It’s an especially great opportunity for some people who might not have felt comfortable coming into a classroom.”


Meditation and mindfulness

Joy Kliewer, director of development for the UCI Health system, is in Reilly’s Thursday evening session. “It’s a lovely chance to take advantage of a free course that settles my mind in this surreal, wild world we’re living in,” she says.

Kliewer says that the class, which incorporates meditation, yoga and other stress-management strategies, gives her balance and focus after long days of online meetings and phone calls from her home office.

She praises Reilly for exuding a sense of calm during a time of great uncertainty. “She’s a loving guide and teacher who radiates peace and comfort,” says Kliewer, who also participates in the initiative’s 20-minute virtual meditation sessions.

Stanly Tran, a psychotherapist at Mission Hospital in Laguna Beach, scored a slot in Reilly’s Saturday morning mindfulness-based stress reduction course on his third attempt. A colleague at UCI Health had told him about the well-being initiative.

“I’ve practiced meditation for a year,” Tran says, “and this is really my first time trying to integrate into a community of meditation practitioners. This class actually pushes the threshold of what I’m comfortable doing, which is usually about 30 minutes of meditation. It’s kind of like working out with a personal trainer instead of working out alone.”

The sessions, he adds, help tweak his perspective on the coronavirus crisis. “Worrying can become obsessive and intrusive, which at that point isn’t beneficial,” Tran says. “You end up creating a narrative that becomes much more doom and gloom than it really has to be.”

Reilly says that one of her course goals is to get participants to “meet the moment” – stay focused on the present – as they did in childhood, when it was natural for them to be curious and playful, and not become consumed by what’s to come.

“I think it’s especially helpful during this pandemic to acquire some new coping skills, to learn how to navigate everything in a way that’s going to make us feel more in control and able to meet the moment without feeling so overwhelmed,” she says.

“There’s always going to be stress. And right now, for many people, it seems insurmountable. We need to ask ourselves how we can address this stress with more peace and ease.”

About the University of California, Irvine: Founded in 1965, UCI is the youngest member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. The campus has produced three Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UCI has more than 36,000 students and offers 222 degree programs. It’s located in one of the world’s safest and most economically vibrant communities and is Orange County’s second-largest employer, contributing $5 billion annually to the local economy. For more on UCI, visit www.uci.edu.

Interested in voice-over, animation voice acting, learning dialects or narration? Janeane speaks with Pat Fraley, the most sought-after voice-over teacher in North America. As a teacher, he has guided more performers into meaningful voice-over careers than anyone in the history of VO Instruction

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Patrick Fraley is the most sought-after voice-over teacher in North America. He has been performing and teaching for over 40 years. As a performer, he has created voices for over 4,000 characters, placing him in the top ten of all time to be cast in animated TV shows. As a teacher, Pat has guided more performers into meaningful voice-over careers than anyone in the history of VO Instruction. He lives and works out of L.A., California.

Brad Garrett “Pat Fraley is such a gifted and passionate coach that immediately after taking his class I became a hand model. He's truly brilliant. Bring your wallet.”

www.patfraley.com

Coming up on KUCI - Janeane speaks to SoCal local, Steve Cederquist, about his story of survival and how he changed his mindset to success.

You know him from HGTV's hit show "Flip or Flop," but what you don't know is that he spent time in prison, was a drug addict, a gang member, and had a whole lot of crazy going on in his life before!

NOW - he's an Emmy Judge, runs a successful renovation and design company, is an award-nominated philanthropist, and a season regular on HGTV's show "Flip or Flop."

His new book "GET OUT ALIVE: Surviving and Thriving After Drugs, Guns, Gangs, Dysfunction, and Crazy" is out, and everyone is raving about it!


It's not only his memoir, but Steve is sending a message for spreading positive growth to everyone and contributing to eliminating addiction issues.

It will take you on a ride! Here's the trailer: https://youtu.be/DK1YF6_FoKQ


https://www.einpresswire.com/article/519378036/hgtv-s-steve-cederquist-s-book-get-out-alive-surviving-and-thriving-after-drugs-guns-gangs-dysfunction-and-crazy

Coming up this summer on KUCI 88.9fm - Michael Ashley Owner & Creative Content Specialist Ink Wordsmiths, LLC

Michael Ashley
Owner & Creative Content Specialist
Ink Wordsmiths, LLC

www.inkwordsmiths.com

ABOUT

A former Disney story consultant, Michael is a screenwriting professor at Chapman University. He has written over twenty books on numerous subjects, including four bestsellers. He recently coauthored Own the A.I. Revolution: Unlock Your Artificial Intelligence Strategy to Disrupt Your Competition (McGraw Hill). 

The United Nations hosted the book launch at its AI for Good Global Summit in May. It has since been named by Soundview as one of 2019’s top business books. Michael also recently published It’s Saturday Morning: Celebrating the Golden Era of Cartoons (becker&mayer).

A columnist with Forbes, Entrepreneur and Green Entrepreneur, Michael began his career as a reporter for the Columbia Missourian. He has been featured in Entertainment Weekly, the National Examiner, the United Nations’ ITU News, the Orange County Business Journal, and the Orange County Register. Michael serves as a professional speaker, delivering keynotes to business groups and guests on thought leader panels.

Janeane speaks to Terri Jay about her new book "Cowgirl Shaman." Jay exposes the Truth About the Psychic Realm

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For centuries, so called (and even legitimate) psychics, mediums and fortune tellers have preyed on the vulnerable, grieving and desperate. Even in this informed day and age, people still fork over thousands of dollars to so-called mediums to “get their loved ones to the other side.” Long-held religious beliefs have convinced some people of the horrors of what happens to the spirit after death, that you can go to hell and even worse, you can find yourself “stuck” between the realms.

In her newly published book, “The Cowgirl Shaman Way – Seven Easy Steps to Develop Your Intuitive Ability,” Nevada cowgirl, Terri Jay shares that science-based physics covers and explains the unexplained, the mystical, the paranormal, mediumship and more. “It’s simple. Everything is energy. Everything has a vibration and frequency. All I am doing in this work is picking up on vibrations and frequencies that other people miss. I am just like a big cell phone tower, receiving and relaying messages where appropriate.” Jay knows that there are only two types of energy – positive, high vibration energy and negative, low vibration energy.

Even more remarkable is that Jay states that anyone can learn to develop their intuitive abilities to pick up on these vibrations and frequencies. “We are all born with 10 senses – 5 physical and 5 spiritual or energetic. We have intuition, clairvoyance (clear seeing), clair-audience (clear hearing) clair-sentience (clear feeling) and clair-cognizance (clear knowing.)” “We are born with these abilities, but most people turn them off in childhood. All we need to do in order to use them again is to turn them back on.”

While this is Jay’s first book, she has already planned on writing a series of books, each focusing on a specific type of intuitive communication. The next book will be on communication with people who cannot such as those in a coma, persistent vegetative state, with severe Alzheimer’s, dementia, traumatic brain injuries, strokes and severe Autism. Since horses are Terri’s passion, a horse communication book will follow. Subsequent books will cover remote viewing, communication with pets, map dowsing, medical intuition, veterinary intuition, energy healing and more.

According to Jay, fear sells. Many who do this work prey on the fears of the victims, giving them negative information. “I have never talked with a person (or pet) on the other side who is stuck, upset, misses their loved ones, is afraid, confused or not 100% perfectly happy. You will never get an apology, an explanation, regrets or any negative feelings from someone on the other side.”

What about all the paranormal occurrences, ghosts, apparitions, etc.? Jay says, “It’s still just energy but it may be concentrated negative energy. Clearing can be done by safely burning Epsom Salts and either Everclear or denatured alcohol.” Jay explains, “The salt crystals can attract the negative energy and the flames release the negative energy to the ethers. We need to remember that it is just energy. You can’t destroy energy, but you can change it.”

Terri Jay laughs at the ghost hunter shows and the questions they ask when they believe they have connected to a deceased person. “I talk with dead people all day long with the lights on. I don’t need to go into a supposedly haunted place in the frickin’ middle of the night to connect to the spirits,” she says. “I see, feel and hear people and animals on the other side all the time, especially when I am out in public. I am always overwhelmed with information coming in. I keep my head down and don’t make eye contact whenever possible. Otherwise I get way too much information,” says Jay.



About Terri Jay
Terri Jay enjoys a solid reputation as an intuitive, medium and animal communicator. She is also renowned as a medical and veterinary intuitive. She regularly talks to spirits in the course of her work, particularly when helping people deal with the loss of a loved one. Along with her paranormal work on the “other side,” Terri also works with people who have communication disorders such as autism, Alzheimer’s, traumatic brain injuries, people who are comatose, and babies who have just not yet learned to talk.

A native of Cleveland, Ohio, she remembers being drawn to horses at an early age. She began riding lessons and by age 16, she was showing horses on a Class A circuit as a junior rider and also taught riding locally. She went on to attend Ohio State University where she studied Animal Science.

By the mid 1970s, Terri had moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, where she started a free, horseback therapy program for disabled children. In 1985, she moved to Reno to become the first Executive Director of the Nevada Commission for the Preservation of Wild Horses, a position she held until 1990 when she decided once again to offer a horseback therapy program. It was during this time that she discovered her gift for telepathic communication with disabled children that soon grew to include horses and eventually other animals.

Terri has always been in front of the media spotlight for her therapeutic riding program, which received local and national coverage. During her stint with the Wild Horse Commission, she was featured in an episode of "Unsolved Mysteries" about the killing of hundreds of wild horses in Nevada. She went on to appear on countless television news shows for her intuitive work, in national and international magazines and newspapers and on the TV series "Texas Justice" as an expert witness.

With encouragement from two spiritual mentors, Terri decided to fully pursue a full-time career in alternate and intuitive communication. In addition to personal readings, Terri does intuitive investigative work for several law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and Canada, although that is her least favorite use of her abilities. She much rather enjoys the area of animal and non-verbal human communication. She has helped clients in South Africa, Italy, Hong Kong, Canada, New Zealand, Malaysia, Chile, Great Britain, Scotland, Ireland and Australia for many years. Terri is presently working on publishing her book about her abilities and is also developing a television show for the future.

Coming up Monday 6/29/20 @9:00am pst - Janeane speaks with Anthony Williams, Founder and CEO - Mindwell LLC - Game-changing yoga, healing, and meditation experiences

Mindwell exists to bridge ancient wisdom and our modern lives. We empower the individual and provide the necessary tools to build self confidence and the self-awareness to perform at their best. Our goal is to change cultural behaviors through transformation of your body, mind, and spirit. Our practices go far beyond yoga and meditation practices, and have proven to transform lifestyles, performance, and impact in organizations and communities.

ANTHONY WILLIAMS

Founder and Practitioner

Anthony was a fellow classmate of Janeane's in Stamford, Connecticut. 

They talk about racism, white privilege, covid19, his travels to Africa, 

what it was like for him growing up as a foster child, 

racism while attending Tufts University and much more.

Anthony is the featured guest on today's entire show.

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Anthony has been a provider of individual and group holistic health programs for more than 17 years. Fluent in four languages, and informed by his studies and work in Africa, Asia, and Europe, he has developed a teaching process that leverages universal best practices drawn from the wisdom of a variety of human experiences.

Clients have included notable musicians such as Sting and Rick James, professional athletes Vernon Davis and Osamu Abe, executives from Nike, Google, and Intuit, doctors and health care providers, social workers, and incarcerated youth and adults.

Beginning with a check-in conversation, Anthony builds a tailor-made class based on participants' stories, addressing their emotional, mental, spiritual, and physical concerns, as well as sought-after goals. His signature playlists deepen the therapeutic experience, further opening the mind and heart. Steeped in a keen understanding of the body's meridian system, pressure points, and anatomy, he skillfully combines mindful movement and asana to bring the teaching into the body.