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Rating: 
Summary: Core-level healing of emotional eating issues
Review: Beyond the Food Game will never replace any of the quick-fix diet books on the best seller list. Its intention, rather, is to delve deeper, much deeper into the very underpinnings of our personal (and cultural) obsession with food, eating, and body appearance and, still deeper, into our estrangement from our Core Essence. As Jane points out, we live in a mentalizer culture that does not honor the wisdom of our bodies, discourages expression of our emotions, and does not recognize the spiritual nature of our Being. Our participation in this culture results in a deep wounding, and we become cut off from our very Selves, separated from the Oneness and unity of all things. Adrift in the dark, we create false selves as coping mechanisms and choose from a wide range of compulsions and addictions (food, alcohol, drugs, television, shopping, caretaking, keeping busy, etc., etc.) to ease our anxiety and mask our wounds.Beyond the Food Game describes the three false-self prototypes and provides step-by-step guidance for full healing. It's a pretty simple process, hardly easy, but definitely worth pursuing! I strongly resonate with Jane's perspective that disconnection from Spirit is at the root of all addictions. It is pointless to jump on the current carb-free diet bandwagon when what we really need is to heal the wound of separation. Jane facilitates workshops and a program for women that support the concepts in this book. Her BodyWay program (www.bodyway.com) is conducted as a weekly conference call with women worldwide. Herself recovered for many years from a disabling "eating disorder", she has walked this path herself and emerged on the other side. I feel grateful to have attracted her work into my life and honored to know her, and now, happy to share this review with you! PS: BTW, Beyond the Food Game dovetails nicely with The Continuum Concept by Jean Liedloff, in which Liedloff compares childrearing customs in our wacky Western "civilization" with that of the Yequana culture of South America--and the resultant personalities and levels of happiness/anxiety of each group.
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Summary: True healing
Review: If ever there was someone who knows about healing from the inside out, that's Jane Latimer, who, in my opinion, is a true healer. She is an example of a woman who lives her life at the edge of her authenticity, utilizing her innate talents to weave a life that is rich with self-expression and creativity, of benefit to all who come in contact with her. I am fortunate to have worked with Jane in her support and meditation groups, in private counseling, and have many of her books. Each book is wonderful in its own way, for its message, and also because of Jane's gift for writing-down-the-bones. Beyond the Food Game is one example of Jane's ability to put down on paper an entire process - in this book it's healing from emotional eating - that enables the reader to reach deep inside themselves to extract what needs to be revealed, illuminated and healed. This dis-ease of eating restrictively, or bingeing/overeating compulsively is ingrained, rampant, and condoned in our society. We try to manage our lives - our feeling or lack of feeling - through ever increasing compulsive behavior - restricting or bingeing - only to find that the result of this type of behavior is self-annihilation. To quote Jane "I don't see individuals who suffer from emotional eating as pathological. I see us as expressions of a pathological culture that has replaced true aliveness with soulless, empty shells of existence." If you're looking for just another diet or quick fix to entertain yourself until the next quick fix comes along, this book is not for you. If you're motivated to do some deep work that will richly bless your life in ways you cannot even imagine, then this is the book and process for you. You read the book at your own pace...ditto the homework exercises. The chapters and exercises in the book are like treasure maps that point the way to a life of full recovery from food obsession. Even if you consider yourself hopeless, all you need to do is read the book, and do the exercises, one chapter at a time. Jane shows us how to use the tools - we are the artist and life is our canvas. We learn step-by-step how to create our paint-by-number self-portrait that is more vivid and real than we ever imagined. If you have dreamed of full recovery - or - even if you are skeptical, afraid that full-recovery will always be just beyond your reach, this book is for you. I also encourage you to check out Jane Latimer's website for classes and workshops which provide even more in-depth support to move you beyond the destructive games we play with food and eating behaviors. Her other books nicely supplement the homework/exercises in Beyond the Food Game. I have found the meditation exercises in The Healing Power of Inner Light-Fire to be especially helpful.
Rating:
Summary: It's not really about food...
Review: Jane Latimer really gets to the heart of it all in this book. Eating disorders are really about the wounded SELF. She gets beyond the obsessive calorie counting. This book is more about healing the wounds of the wounded self, than counting calories. Jane's voice is a gentle, caring one; she comes from a place of knowing, as a recovered bulimic herself. The "Good Parent Messages" and other healing techniques are incredible. The author sees eating disorders as "Portals to Self-Discovery" ...Wish I had this book years ago!! I would love to take one of her workshops.
Rating: 
Summary: Lots on why we overeat, not enough on practicalities
Review: Reading the first chapter was all it took for me to be convinced Jane Latimer was talking directly to me. Her description of the experiences, and resulting thought processes, that shaped my relationship with food was validating. I felt more at peace with who I am. I thought I had healed my Inner Child. But as I've completed the "assignments" she suggests and followed her recommendations to use journaling and a source of spiritual support, I have identifed some previously unconscious beliefs and needs that were being expressed through compulsive eating. The compulsions are all but gone, and food is no longer a major focus in my life. Thank you, Jane!
Rating:
Summary: Breakthrough Insights
Review: Reading the first chapter was all it took for me to be convinced Jane Latimer was talking directly to me. Her description of the experiences, and resulting thought processes, that shaped my relationship with food was validating. I felt more at peace with who I am. I thought I had healed my Inner Child. But as I've completed the "assignments" she suggests and followed her recommendations to use journaling and a source of spiritual support, I have identifed some previously unconscious beliefs and needs that were being expressed through compulsive eating. The compulsions are all but gone, and food is no longer a major focus in my life. Thank you, Jane!
Rating:
Summary: Lots on why we overeat, not enough on practicalities
Review: The author's own life experience is with bulimia, and mine is with plain old overeating. So maybe I just don't get where she is coming from. Be that as it may... The author seems to be dead-set against counting calories or any other mechanical method of controlling eating. Therefore, she just doesn't discuss those topics. We are just supposed to do psychological work and then trust our bodies to tell us what we should be eating. I'm all for working on emotional issues. But say you had a spending problem and were told to only work on your Inner Child issues--not try to balance your checkbook anymore, or worry about how much you were putting on a credit card. Sounds a little ridiculous. Most people need some kind of concrete record and feedback to know if they are spending within their limits. IMHO, it's the same with food intake--you need to have some idea how much you are eating, whether you are counting calories, points, or carbs. You don't want to get *obsessed* about counting money OR food intake, yet it must be done to some degree. The author does give a useful-sounding technique for when you feel an emotionally-based binge coming on. But I have found similar techniques online, for no cost. There is nothing about forming habits, building motivation, or general stress-reduction. The whole thing revolves around connecting current emotions with old wounds from childhood. If you are into Inner Child work in general, the book may well appeal to you. But it certainly isn't my cup of tea.
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