Diversity Newcomers The Only Day Being abstinent all of three whole days, I looked in my mirror to see if my body looked smaller. It didn’t. I was mad. “This…
Diversity Newcomers Recovery in the Middle I was so new to program I didn’t really know what this was supposed to mean: “It works if you work it.” I thought it was cor…
Literature Tools & Concepts Workshop Win We, eight compulsive overeaters and ordinary OA members, recently completed a sixteen-week workshop using the Overeaters Ano…
Anorexia & Bulimia Diversity From Loathing to Liking What is healthy self-esteem? It is self-confidence and self-respect; serenity; speaking up for myself; treating myself as we…
Relapse Relapse & Recovery When Choice is Not an Option Over the years, I’ve heard people in our Fellowship speak about having “choices” when it comes to food and eating: “the choi…
Service Tools & Concepts Give It Some G-A-S When I came into OA in 1983, I was taught early on about the G-A-S that makes the program run: Gratitude, Abstinence, and Se…
Share It Principle Placement I am a Lifeline subscriber and can’t imagine ever not being one. Everything about the magazine is wonderful. The talent and …
Higher Power Spirituality Craving vs. Conscious Contact I’ve long felt that, for compulsive eaters, one of our worst fears is simply being hungry and having to sit still and do not…
Tools & Concepts Writing Worthy of Writing I feel that writing is one of the most valuable Tools in our OA toolbox. It’s available twenty-four hours a day and is a way…
Fellowship Recovery Responsibility and Reward Service is both the responsibility and the reward for recovery through the Twelve Steps of Overeaters Anonymous. During my t…
How OA Changed My Life Recovery True Freedom When a fellow OA member suggested I reflect on what true freedom looks like for me, I discovered I could probably write a book. Before OA, I truly felt I already had it in the form of a solid career, … Read More
Higher Power Spirituality Stepping-Stones, Nuggets, and Gems Spirituality is the solution to our problem of powerlessness, and we find this solution in the Twelve Step program of recovery. I’ve experienced three stepping-stones in this process: Amen, Amends, Am… Read More
The Road Narrows My twenty-ninth birthday in OA is approaching, and it is cause for renewed reflection about my program. I spoke to my sponsor a week ago and mentioned to her that I was thinking of not taking a candle this year. Other OA members on their birthdays pitch about life changes: weddings, kids, jobs, financial gain, or acquisition of cars. I … Read More
Share It: Powerful Shares, Joyful Reading, Pages and Prayers Powerful Shares I wanted to share how sad I am to hear about the discontinuation of Lifeline. It has literally been a lifeline to me. I am one of the ones who answered your 2018 subscription appeal, and I recently renewed my subscription and will cherish every last issue. Thank you for the articles about “The Joys of Retreats and … Read More
Recovery Beyond Measure In a few days, I will celebrate thirty-eight years of recovery in OA. Today my goal is health, sanity, and wellness, not a size 8. Physically, my body has been a normal size for many years. G-d has removed the compulsion for what I call “the hard stuff”—the stuff you see at the grocery checkout counter. I have reached a … Read More