A Celebration of Freedom I have had the good fortune of attending two World Service Conventions since I became a member of Overeaters Anonymous in 1980. My first was in New York City in 1997, and the venue was an iconic hotel. Although I lived in New Jersey, I’d never had the opportunity to stay at such a landmark in the heart the city … Read More
Practice Space I’m not entirely sure what OA unity means to me, but a specific memory early in my program comes to mind. After a meeting, one member said to another, “I love you if you’re eating. I love you if you’re not eating. I love you because you are a compulsive overeater.” This was one of the kindest things I’d ever … Read More
The World’s Longest String In the summer of 1979, I, along with three other compulsive overeaters, none of whom weighed less than 225 pounds (102 kg), jumped into my subcompact car (talk about a low-riding chassis!) and drove twelve hours from Durham, North Carolina. Our destination? New York City, home of the 1979 World Service Convention. What do I remember? I remember the show … Read More
Let’s Ask Permission I have been in OA for nineteen years. Recently, after a Big Book study meeting, another member of the group told me I never share on the portion of the Big Book that is being read and that I always just share on whatever I want. Well, I was shocked and felt attacked. What I want to ask of everyone … Read More
Correcting and Cross Talk Despite six years of OA and maintaining a 90-pound (41-kg) weight loss, I still sometimes feel attacked in OA. This was the case recently at a meeting where we read from OA literature and then opened the floor for sharing. As I began to read, someone interrupted with a loud demand: “What’s your name?!” I stumbled for a few seconds … Read More
Together, We Have I have been in the rooms of OA for several years now, quietly waiting for my miracle. Like a student yearning for answers, I have listened, watched, and learned. I have listened to your stories and shares, hearing nuggets of wisdom that come from living a life built on the Principles of the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, a life … Read More
Chairing is Difficult I’ve had personality conflicts in the past. Once, I was chairing my home group’s business meeting, and it was not clear how the meeting should be conducted. A couple of people criticized me because I was not using Robert’s Rules of Order. I was not familiar with them. I asked if anyone would like to take over, but no one … Read More
Doing What I Can I had wanted to give service in any way I could. When there were no abstinent people available for a position on the intergroup board for our region, I offered to take up a position that I had thought I could do. I did not think my attention deficit disorder would be a problem, because I knew how to write … Read More
Serenity in a Recovery Desert I recently visited Vermont, where I grew up. I was there for two weeks to see my mom and a few other family members and friends. Coming from Tucson, where there is a very strong OA community, to a place where there are only two OA meetings was challenging. So, I thought I would take the opportunity to share ten … Read More
Turning to the Tools When being judged negatively for belonging to OA, I have experienced the same emotions that I used to reactively eat over. But using the Tools of the program has helped me stay in the solution. Reading Conference-approved literature, writing, telephoning a sponsor and other members, receiving phone calls from sponsees, attending meetings, doing service, and having an action plan has helped … Read More