Used system recovery dvd (not in the destructive mode)

I had a msg about corrupt win32 files. So I put in the system recovery dvd (as it's written on the disk) I did not use the destructive mode. I finished the process and computer restarted, but back to as new settings. I can see the files - My backup,recovery, my old owner/admin files, etc, but I don't know how to get them back to use them again.
I don't know very much about computers, just enough to be dangerous....
I have (had) my business e-mail on Outlook Express. Have I lost all information on that account? Just not sure where to begin.