Relapse If Only Before OA, I thought I was so unique with my secret of using compulsive eating to cope with fears, regrets, selfishness, and inadequacy. I also suffered from “if onlys:” “if only I would be more outgoing,” “if only I had a faster metabolism,” “if only I enjoyed exercising.” I felt so incompetent as a wife, mother, and employee. A friend … Read More
Higher Power New Resonance When I first came to OA, I was aware the Twelve Steps required belief in a Higher Power, but I felt spiritually broken after a traumatizing event with my church. I wanted nothing to do with religion or God. Still, I was desperate for hope and help with my compulsive overeating, so I went to meetings and tried to keep … Read More
Higher Power Tools & Concepts All of This Is Okay I’m afraid I’ll do it wrong. I’m afraid my sponsees will find out I’m a fraud. What if they don’t like me, won’t do what I tell them, or don’t become abstinent? What if I have to dedicate all my free time to them? What if they contact me constantly and I can’t say no? What if they ask questions … Read More
Recovery Working the Program Bitter is Better I am a 62-year-old male, and since I came into program at the end of March 2015, my marriage has been restored and my family is mostly on good terms with me. My depression has lifted. I have excellent friendships inside and outside the Fellowship, and I feel a joy in daily living I had not felt for forty or … Read More
Steps A Spiritual Gauge The June 1 readings in For Today and Voices of Recovery are both about Step Six. The way I practice and understand this Step today involves my perspective. As I grow in relationship with my loving Higher Power through the process of surrender and trust, I see myself differently. Instead of seeing myself as flawed or defective, I see myself … Read More
Steps Cleaning Out the Closet My first sponsor pointed out that the promises of the program are clear: If we clean up the past (Steps Four through Nine) and continue to take daily inventory (Steps Ten and Eleven), ever relying on God, then we can be free of cravings, restored to sanity and power, and find our will becoming aligned to that of our Higher … Read More
Steps Facing It, Feeling It There it was. I had done the first three Steps with my sponsor and we both knew what was coming next. He knew it was going to be a big step in my recovery, but to me it looked more like a pending emotional breakdown. Turns out he was right. I had built a pretty good system of denial and … Read More
How OA Changed My Life The Antidote “Well?! Are you?” asked a raspy, aggressive voice. Even though the woman stood about two feet shorter than me, I took a step back. I’d been walking the aisles of the grocery store and it took a few seconds to register what she wanted to know. My shirt had the word “fearless” in block letters across the chest. I hadn’t … Read More
Working the Program Show Me the Ropes The recovery Tools I have learned in OA have recently enabled me to overcome one of my greatest fears. I had always been terrified of heights, so when I heard that my coworkers and I would participate in a ropes course as part of our staff training—climbing sixty feet up in the air and balancing on ropes and small pieces … Read More
Abstinence Controlled Response After ten years in OA, a cancer diagnosis pushed me to realize abstinence is a matter of life or death for me. Doctors told me my best defense was a normal body weight, regular exercise, and a healthful diet with lots of fruits and vegetables. Unfortunately, even though I had been in OA for a decade, I was unable to stay abstinent or reach … Read More