Thirty Days! I’ve reached my twenty-ninth day of abstinence. Tomorrow will be my weighing day and my highly anticipated thirtieth day. I’ve never gone thirty days without weighing myself, but the experience has been interesting! It really takes the focus off numeric results and has made me realize other subtleties of physical, emotional, and spiritual recovery. Thirty days ago, I wrote a … Read More
Push from Within I am working through Step One with my sponsor. She suggested that I submit these two responses to her prompts: Write on the need not to push a person until they are ready. “Rock bottom” is a tricky concept. In AA’s Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions they had to “raise the bottom” (p. 23) for functioning alcoholics to benefit from … Read More
Thanking My Lucky Stars In the past, whenever I got into a rut, had problems, felt angry, or couldn’t cope with stress, I would eat and eat and eat. Eating used to help, especially that first bite. But after that first bite, I would just automatically shove food into my mouth, and I wouldn’t stop until my jaws were tired. I was always hoping … Read More
Waking Up I walked into OA because all I could see before me was cycles and cycles of weight gain and loss, misery and short-lived false joy. I had to admit I did not want to live. I could not see the point of anything, and my only desire was to sleep or not be conscious because even excess sugar could not … Read More
Young, Now Hopeful I always have to applaud newcomers because coming into my first OA meeting was one of the scariest experiences of my life. I was 15 years old when I started, and I had a monstrous fear of being judged or laughed at. I could already hear what other members would say about me: “You’re too young! What could you possibly … Read More
My Replacement I began Overeaters Anonymous in February 2014 after becoming desperate. I was scheduled for a double knee replacement later in the year. At 240 pounds (109 kg), I was told I must lose at least 50 pounds (23 kg) for a successful recovery. I tried and I couldn’t, because I was depressed for three years after being fired from my … Read More
Dear Newcomer, Welcome to OA. You are a valuable asset to us. Your abilities and talents will not be overlooked in this Fellowship. Do not be hesitant to jump into service work. You will not be alone. Even if you think your idea is silly, say it anyways. Remember, Higher Power is in our group conscience. You will be heard. Remember the … Read More
Core Connections I have been attending OA for about ten months. From a friend, I had some idea of what to expect coming into my first meeting. I have a tendency to deeply connect with the emotions of other people in any room. Sometimes this is a blessing, sometimes it’s a struggle. In that first OA meeting, I immediately felt the openness … Read More
The Great Miracle Recently, I was asked to write a response to a newcomer’s question: “What can OA offer me?” I suffer from two problems that make me powerless over my compulsive eating: a physical problem and a mental one. Certain foods, ingredients, and eating behaviors trigger me to eat uncontrollably. Many times while eating trigger foods, I tried to will myself to … Read More
Long Shot Win Overeaters Anonymous seemed like a long shot to me. How could it help me? I didn’t have serious weight issues—but my eating was out of control. I certainly was a compulsive eater. I spent most of my day obsessing about what to eat. Should I eat some protein or maybe more greens or perhaps just give up and eat potato … Read More