Abstinence has changed my life physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Abstinence has stopped physical cravings and emotional swings. It has opened the doorway for acceptance and understanding as well as Step work around my powerlessness over food, people, places, and things. Abstinence has opened me up to Higher Power, inner growth, and open-mindedness. One day at a time, Higher Power and …

Every year at this time, I watch the neighborhood kids walk, bike, and skateboard back to school. They’re dressed in the newest styles and carry backpacks filled with colorful notebooks, art supplies, and new books to read. Maybe we can recapture some of that back-to-school feeling and boost our OA recovery program at the same time! With school supplies on …

I came to OA at age 25 with only 10 to 15 pounds (5 to 7 kg) to lose. That was twenty-six years ago. Before OA, there was darkness: guilt, remorse, shame, fear, paranoia. I built a wall to protect me. I even wore mostly black. I was bingeing, purging, and starving. I was smoking, drinking, and using drugs. There …

I haven’t written for Lifeline in a while, but today life got in my way. At least food didn’t, eh? But it tried to. Yes, even with fifteen years of recovery, the thoughts still sometimes make a plausible case for indulging. The Big Book says, “We are without defense against the first drink” (Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th ed., p. 24), and …

I had an interesting realization about color and clothing. Being overweight, I always heard I should wear dark colors, especially black, to hide my large figure. But when I wear black, I get hot and tend to sweat, so I rarely wear it. Plus, black is not my color. Now that I have joined OA and have lost over 60 pounds …

This morning I read a Lifeline article about raising money for a workshop (“We Need to Ask,”). What our intergroup found worked best was having a boutique. Everyone has lovely clothes they no longer wear. We also include jewelry, crafts, and more. This not only helps the intergroup with contributions but also helps the OA member who is losing weight but …

I tried a very simple exercise to try to quantify how I spent my money and time, showing what it’s like now in my recovery and the costs of my compulsive eating. I probably do give this level of service (about sixteen hours), but when it comes to money . . . looks like more is due in the pot …

For two months, I’ve been attending Overeaters Anonymous meetings. As I worked Step One, my denial started to crumble. I became painfully aware of the ways my life was unmanageable due to my eating behaviors. I could not deny that my closet and drawers were full of clothes that no longer fit me. Only larger-size pants let me breathe when …

After two years of denying I needed OA, I surrendered. Attending my first meeting was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, but I was desperate and out of ideas. I had reached my goal weight with a commercial weight-loss program a year prior; at first, I thought I’d solved all my problems. But the struggle to keep the …

“Come on in! We’ve been waiting for you!” That’s what I heard as I walked through the doors of an OA meeting in 2015. Two ladies were sitting in the meeting room, both long timers. One of them had moved to our small coastal town a year ago, found no OA meetings, and decided to start one. I struggled to …