Abstinence A Change of Purpose When I came to OA, I heard “We are not a diet-and-calories club.” “Oh really?” I thought. “Of course it’s a diet-and-calories club. Who are they trying to fool?” I had spent years joining every dieting, calorie-counting, television-infomercial club out there. They all promised weight loss. We’re all here, I thought, because we want to lose weight. Lose weight, lose … Read More
Recovery Working the Program Discipline for the Day With enormous gratitude, I celebrate nineteen years of OA recovery this month. However, it is not the number of days abstinent that defines me today. What matters most is taking actions to manifest outwardly the changes inside me. This does not simply come about by following a food plan. It is also not enough to say, “God, do your thing.” … Read More
Recovery Working the Program Strong Weave, Durable Fabric I have been working with the Voices of Recovery Workbook and my sponsor suggested I submit my response to the questions of January 8: “How would I describe my recovery tapestry? What are the program threads I’ve used to weave it?” (p. 4). I am so lucky to have found this program. I would have to describe my recovery tapestry as … Read More
Tools & Concepts Writing Sharing on Paper When I came into OA in the mid-1970s, sponsors gave their sponsees assignments or topics to write about. They encouraged sponsees to read at meetings to help the newcomer open up and share in front of the group. Today if we write something—trace it, face it, and erase it—and our sponsors ask us to share it, why not submit it … Read More
Abstinence Gut Check Before I came home to OA, it didn’t take much to send me to the food. While stress and other emotions were obvious reasons for me to bury myself in junk food, other feelings— physical ones like being tired or in pain—also gave me all the excuses I needed to overeat. I had no spiritual life either, so I only … Read More
Gratitude Recovery From “Brattitude” to Gratitude Gratitude—I am filled with gratitude for the two sponsors I’ve had in OA over the last twenty years. The first one got me going and supported me as I learned to work the program and use the Tools. We prayed together, wrote in journals, and worked through the first Eight Steps. We didn’t have the same religion or even the … Read More
Tools & Concepts Writing Worthy of Writing I feel that writing is one of the most valuable Tools in our OA toolbox. It’s available twenty-four hours a day and is a way to connect with our own thoughts and feelings and be nurtured and nourished, which is what I’m always seeking as a compulsive overeater. At any given time, I have on hand several journals for writing, … Read More
Tools & Concepts Writing Feeling Intentional I write this as the food is calling to me.” This quote from page 13 of A New Beginning: Stories of Recovery from Relapse strikes me as very intentional. The author has made a choice to pick up the pen instead of the fork. The story, “Caring for Myself,” first shares gratitude, then acknowledges the author’s need to do their … Read More