We apologize if you are receiving a duplicate copy of the eNews, however we needed to make several corrections. A Place For Hope had an inaccurate web link, and some of the book descriptions were not correct. Please enjoy the eNews and have a Happy Thanksgiving!

- Welcome!
- Holiday Book and Video Sale- 30% off select titles
- Eating Disorders Today
- Featured Treatment Facilities - A Place of Hope, EDC Denver
- Help Support the Body Positive!
- NEDA Auction
- Inspirational Corner

Dear Friends,

As many of you know, Gürze had to close its office last month during the devastating fires in San Diego County. Thank you so much to everyone who sent love, prayers, and emails our way.  We are fine, although a bit traumatized, and encourage everyone to direct any future support to those families who lost their homes. This month’s inspirational corner, titled, “Are You Ready?” was written by our own Lindsey Cohn, while she and Leigh waited for the evacuation call that fortunately never came.

Thanks, also, for the many thoughtful suggestions for next year’s catalog. Some of them will definitely be listed.

Finally, our annual Holiday 30% Sale has begun and we are offering a wide variety of books from many different publishers. We hope you find something here that you have been looking for.

We give thanks for you this season!
Happy Turkey Day!
The Gürze Staff

The Fall issue of Eating Disorders Today will be arriving in mailboxes within the next few weeks, and here are some of the featured articles:

• Identity, Passion, and Eating Disorders
• Interventions and Eating Disorders: A Resource for Families
• Genetic Risk Factor for Eating Disorders
• When Your Parent Has an Eating Disorders…

To subscribe to the EDT, click on one of the links below, or call 1 800-756-7533

The Center for Counseling & Health Resources, Inc-A Place of Hope Edmonds, WA 1-888-771-5166 www.aplaceofhope.com

At The Center for Counseling & Health Resources, Inc., Dr. Gregory Jantz and his team of highly trained professionals recognize and value each and every individual seeking assistance.  The Center provides a confidential setting in which each person receives an individualized, targeted program with customized solutions to address many life challenges.  Our clients come to us for stress/burnout, addictions, weight/eating behaviors issues, alcohol/drug abuse, depression, grief & loss, anxiety, chronic pain, compulsive behaviors and other concerns.    
 
Our clients enjoy the transformative value of individualized attention, the latest in advanced treatments and technologies and exceptional quality of care.  Many of our clients have achieved great success in their lives, but now find that what helped them in achieving this success is no longer working for them.  The Center is for the person looking for a new, more complete life-changing treatment experience.  Our specialty is to help you achieve real life results, regain your power to pursue your passions and change your life for good.

EATING DISORDER CENTER of DENVER 866-771-0861 www.edcdenver.com

The Eating Disorder Center of Denver is the only facility in Colorado that offers partial hospitalization while providing the highest level of care for adult males and females with anorexia, bulimia and related disorders.  Its partial hospitalization program provides comprehensive treatment on an outpatient basis, 7 days a week, 11 hours a day.  The center also offers an evening intensive outpatient program three days a week, 4 hours a day, and outpatient services/aftercare for those patients who do not require a more intensive treatment program. 

A multidisciplinary team of physicians, clinicians and dietitians are dedicated to helping patients bring about change through empowerment.  Working together, they create specialized treatment plans that fit each
patient’s physical, emotional, social, spiritual and nutritional needs.  Patients learn to practice and internalize recovery skills until they can incorporate these behaviors into their way of life.  For more information, call 866.771.0861 or visit the center's web site at www.edcdenver.com.

Treatment Facilities, would you like to be featured here? Contact amy@gurze.net for details.

Congratulations to Connie Sobczak, activist and founder of The Body Positive, a non-profit organization that promotes healthy living and body acceptance, who is a semifinalist in the Volvo for Life award. Every year Volvo selects a few "real-life heroes" who are striving to make our world a better place, and winners receive $25,000. Click on the link below and vote for Connie to help support the Body Positive, she deserves it!

http://www.volvoforlifeawards.com/cgi-bin/iowa/english/vote/quality/index.html

It’s time for NEDA's 3rd Annual Every BODY is Beautiful Auction, and our own Lindsey Hall Cohn has created and donated an original Gürze doll just for this auction. Let the bidding wars begin! The auction will be held from November 1 - December 2, and your donation or purchase of auction items will benefit NEDA and help fight eating disorders. Click here to view the auction homepage.

Are You Ready? By Lindsey Hall Cohn

I’ve had a Disaster Preparedness kit in my “to do” pile for about two years. It’s got sections for local emergency numbers, locations of my gas and water lines, what to take in case of evacuation, etc, all in a neat little brochure. Less than a week ago, with our suitcases, cat carriers, important papers, some cash, and an armload of photo albums stacked and ready by the front door, I finally filled it out.

The change of seasons is different in the West than it is in the East. Although, we have our share of color, fall in Southern California really means Santa Ana winds. These raging storms of air originate in the high deserts and build up momentum as they race down the mountains through local canyons to the sea. They are hot, dry and merciless. They whip up allergies. They dehydrate your skin. They create electricity. And when coupled with acute drought conditions like we have this year, they can be extremely dangerous.

You have probably heard of our California fires. Although they usually don’t make headlines like earthquakes, they are serious, sometimes deadly affairs. In 2003, the Cedar Fire in San Diego made national news when it roared like a freight train through neighborhoods and wild areas both, consuming over 280,000 acres, destroying 2, 232 homes and killing 15 people. Although we lived 40 miles from the closest burn area, we couldn’t see the sun through the smoke for days. It rained soot and ash and we were confined to our home for lack of breathable air. Fortunately, we were never called to evacuate.

This year, however, the hot winds were so wild, the drought so bad, and the humidity so low that several fires broke out stoked by changeable, raging gusts up to 60 mph. Twenty-four hours later, flames 20 miles away became a very real concern. Suddenly, both our home and office were in a “voluntary evacuation” zone, which meant we should get ourselves and our life packed up in case we got a “reverse 911” call telling us to get out. We got on it.

Although my husband, Leigh, complains about how annoying our cats are (which is true), the very first things he grabbed were the cat carriers.  Computers, cell phones with chargers, important papers, first aid kit, photo albums, some clothes and toiletries—these, too, were obvious choices. Less obvious was which of the “belongings” to take. There was only so much room in the car. And we could hear homeowners on TV who had already lost everything saying, “It was just a house. Just stuff. The most important thing is that we are okay. We have each other.”

And yet, there I was faced with Leigh’s paintings, my late mother’s needlepoint, musical instruments, our children’s pasts, items inherited from loved ones, first editions of the books we have written, and so many other precious, “meaningful” things. Oy vey and a half! How could I choose? It was as though taking one item would open a material floodgate and I wouldn’t be able to stop myself! Although my motto has always been, “She who dies with the least stuff, wins,” the thought of leaving it ALL behind was a stunner. Compassion rushed over me: so many people escaped with only the clothes on their backs. Then guilt: here I was with the luxury of premeditation.

A few things seemed like too many. How much is a few, anyway? Where do I draw the line? I certainly didn’t want to waste time wandering from room to room, agonizing over every thing and giving it the thumbs up or thumbs down. Awful. The fact that most what we own is inherited from beloved family members made that job even less appealing. We’d be saying goodbye to them again at a whole new level. Oh boy. Breathe.

Then the solution came to me: take just one. Whatever first popped into my mind or heart. And it would forever represent how much I loved and appreciated it all, and could be called on to release those feelings anytime. It didn’t really matter what the thing was, really, just that it inhabit a special place in my heart now and be a good ambassador for love, joy, beauty, and security in the future. I would trust it to carry me through. Maybe this is what those innocent fire victims are looking for when they sift through the ashes of their homes—something to remind them of the past that they can consecrate and use as a foundation on which to rebuild.

I added my item to the pile by the door, and Leigh, who had independently come to the same conclusion, added his. At that moment, I felt calm and ready. My lessons were many: I can do this. Other people have it worse and I can help them. I am deeply grateful for life. Love is everywhere and in everything. Even if I lose all I own, I love now, and will love again. I am love and belongings are a bonus. Welcome thoughts for a potential evacuee.

Although it’s not really important, I will tell you what Leigh and I took (because my editor says I have to) if you promise to think about what you treasure. At the very least, this assignment will fill you with gratitude. Nice. I chose my harmonium, which is an Indian keyboard instrument, and mine has a particularly beautiful voice. Leigh took a banner (he stole) and his ticket from the 2005 World Series, won by the White Sox…and a litterbox for the cats.

Finally, I urge you to fill out that disaster preparedness kit ahead of time, and while you’re at it, tell your loved ones you love them!

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