Higher Power Actions That Help I came into program pretty mad at an HP who seemed not to care about me and let all the bad things happen both to me and in the world. When I started working Step Two, my Step work started demonstrating to me how limited my belief was. I began to explore and experience something greater than my limited imagination. … Read More
Relapse Relapse & Recovery Help Through the Tools As I sit here at day forty-five of my abstinence, I am amazed and grateful for what has turned out to be like a joyride! I’ve had a couple days of waking up crabby, but I told my sponsor, put it out on calls, surrendered it to God, and soon found myself back on my joyride again. When I think … Read More
Higher Power Instant Gratification It was Saturday night, and I was on my own. I was driving home to have my dinner, but I was accompanied by plenty of thoughts about food and finding a way to have just a little something sweet. After I got home and ate, I brushed my teeth and left my house to meet some friends at a social … Read More
Abstinence Blessings and Opportunities I have been maintaining my abstinence through illness, one day at a time, for the past eighteen months, and I am so grateful to other abstinent fellows who had shared with me, prior to my diagnosis, that they faced chronic health conditions. I thought it was a miracle they were abstinent despite their ill health. Then I was diagnosed with … Read More
Abstinence Relapse Only Abstinence Food was my best friend for a long time. I had a troubled childhood, and excess food numbed the difficult emotions and gave me comfort. I managed to comfort myself up to 292 pounds (133 kg) by the time I was 26 years old, and I stayed close to that weight for five years. I tried every diet out there, … Read More
Literature Tools & Concepts Truly a Gift My first sponsor was a temporary sponsor, and as a newcomer, I felt funny talking to a stranger about my issues with food. I didn’t want a sponsor, but he was there for me. I started emailing him my meal plan. I read articles from Lifeline magazine and then wrote to my temporary sponsor. I was obsessed with everything food, even … Read More
Steps Traditions Light Reaching Out Why would you care about a visibly overweight stranger? A person who needs a chair to sit on during long strolls through a department store? A person whose breathing you can hear as you travel close by them in an elevator? Do you understand a person who never seems to gain weight yet always eats or a person who shows … Read More
Relapse Slipping & Sliding No-Apologies “Carefrontation” Is there anything more heartbreaking than listening to and watching people in program who simply can’t seem to get and stay abstinent? Day after day, month after month, they show up at meetings, but the gift of abstinence eludes them. Compulsive eaters can become so physically sick that they will swear off the abuse for a little while, but a … Read More
Steps Soul Food Step Five is where we begin to learn how to love ourselves. Most of us know something is wrong in the way we’re living, but we have no idea how to address it. When we allow ourselves to get vulnerable with another human being in Step Five, we open a door that creates greater understanding of our personality and character—the … Read More
Telephone Tools & Concepts Call, Read, Write, Share I was sitting at my kitchen counter doing job-related work. I’d been struggling with food, and I had spent a lot of that day crying as I thought to myself, I am never going to be free. My phone rang, and I didn’t recognize the number. I contemplated not answering, but something prompted me to pick it up. I was … Read More
