Steps Traditions Guardian of My Recovery My understanding and appreciation of anonymity has gone through several evolutions. At first, I clutched onto the security a…
Recovery Working the Program No Choice I was not willing to let go of the food. Therefore, I was not willing to trust. I didn’t want my sugar addiction to be taken…
Steps Life is Great I’ve been in program for four years and abstinent three. Every day is a miracle. I use a special email signature: “Life is g…
Fellowship Print Preference I got my voice in Overeaters Anonymous. No one wanted to listen to me at 304 pounds (138 kg). They seemed to think I had no …
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— …
Fellowship A Great Help I just wanted to tell you that I got abstinent reading the March 2019 issue of Lifeline, having not been abstinent in three …
Tools & Concepts Leap of Faith Having come to OA weighing 330 pounds (150 kg) at age 38, I just wanted to look normal and be thin. When I finally plunged i…
Service Tools & Concepts Service Put Me There Service above the group level was never in my plans, but as I write this, I am the treasurer for my region. Thanks to my reg…
Traditions Guarding the Traditions At OA meetings, I often hear shares that include social issues. We members are products of our environment, after all, and t…
Higher Power Tools & Concepts So That’s What the Tools Are All About After five years in program, it was just this year that I came to understand the Tools. For a long time, I thought they were…
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
The Sunlight of the Spirit When I began to explore ideas of a Power greater than myself, I readily conceded that nature is majestic—I often found peace among the redwood trees or in the Pacific surf—but praying to nature didn’t work for me. Then, in the quiet of meditation, I recalled a childhood memory: calling ‘God’ the beauty of the sun’s rays peeking through rainclouds. There … Read More