Diversity Life Journey I joined the OA program in the fall of 2014. I knew I needed help. I was morbidly obese. I’d tried every diet I knew about— diets would work temporarily, but then the weight I’d lost would find me (along with a few more not-so-friendly pounds). I finally turned to my Higher Power, whom I choose to call God. I … Read More
Recovery Working the Program My Whole Sum Value Most of my life, I have lived in the extremes of my insanity. I have starved myself, used pills that are known to cause heart attacks, exercised for hours daily, and binged to the point of purging. I thought if I looked a certain way, weighed much less than I did, and acted nice and polite, then others would see … Read More
Recovery Relationships Connecting to Hope and Help I’ve always been a loner, happy in my own company, where I write, create, talk to myself, and can completely be myself with no mask, no pretenses, and no judgement. I had been a misfit throughout my life, always extremely self-conscious around other people. In the company of others, I would feel an element of forced politeness and false cheerfulness; afterwards, … Read More
Steps Traditions When Desire Works Tradition Three works. I believe the best way to show it is to share what I was shown when I first arrived in OA. All I wanted to do was lose weight while eating all my binge foods—was that too much to ask? I hated that I was unable to eat like my friends: they were skinny, yet here I … Read More
Diversity Newcomers What OA Is Not I realize after six months in OA that when I ate in the past, I was searching for the good feelings I had as a child. I remember happy family gatherings centered on food: family reunion picnics, camping trip cookouts, holidays, and celebrations. The fun and happiness had disappeared from my life. Why? I ate the same foods as I had … Read More
Gratitude Recovery Sweet and Simple I’ve struggled with my weight since I was 5 years old. At that time I heard my father comment, “No fat daughter of mine will ever be seen in a tutu!” Those words would haunt me for fifty years. At the time I heard them, I didn’t know I was fat; I was only in kindergarten. I had not yet … Read More
Gratitude Recovery I Did Everything Possible My first day of program was November 3, 1983. How could I ever forget it? That day not only changed my life, it saved my life. At my first meeting, after the welcoming remarks and introductions, the OA Preamble, and the Steps, Traditions, and Tools, they read the passage “Welcome to Overeaters Anonymous. Welcome home!” I started to cry—softly, of course. … Read More
Relapse & Recovery Different Perspectives In 1994, I hit bottom. Food no longer filled the hole in my soul. A sense of hopelessness and futility was constantly with me. I had reached what was my heaviest weight of 335 pounds (152 kg) and doubled my size in just four years. I was a graduate assistant working as a tutor at my university’s writing lab. One … Read More
Abstinence Phone Connection I have been a compulsive eater since birth, seventy-six years ago. I first came to OA thirty-seven years ago, and though not always abstinent, I was able to maintain a reasonable weight. In 2005, I retired and moved to western Arkansas. While this is a beautiful place, the move was a big mistake as far as my OA recovery was … Read More