Diversity Newcomers My Replacement I began Overeaters Anonymous in February 2014 after becoming desperate. I was scheduled for a double knee replacement later in the year. At 240 pounds (109 kg), I was told I must lose at least 50 pounds (23 kg) for a successful recovery. I tried and I couldn’t, because I was depressed for three years after being fired from my … Read More
Abstinence Top Ten . . . Ways I Achieved Abstinence My sponsor asked me if I was willing to stop throwing up. I said yes and made a commitment. I knew that if I wasn’t going to throw up anymore, then I needed to quit bingeing too. God gave me the willingness and ability to keep my commitment. He continued to do so every day for the past twenty-three and … Read More
Relapse Relapse & Recovery One Thing I Did Right I’m sorry to say I’ve had many relapses during my twenty-two years in program. But the last five years have been much better: back-to-back abstinence based on putting together a program that uses all the OA elements. My program reminds me of my first relapse, how I got into it and how I got out. I had come into OA … 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
Fellowship Recovery Marking This Day The purpose of this special day, International Day Experiencing Abstinence, is to encourage members to establish or reaffirm their own abstinence. Many people ask what abstinence is, so we will look to the OA Policy on Abstinence and Recovery: “The WSBC 2019 accepts the following definitions: Abstinence: The act of refraining from compulsive eating and compulsive food behaviors while working … Read More
Relapse Relapse & Recovery One Small Change When I first came to OA in 1985, I was blessed to walk into a meeting full of recovery, love, fellowship, and fun. Abstinent sponsors were available, and a group of about eight of us ate lunch together afterwards, did things together, and gave service beyond the group level. (Our specialty was entertainment for OA events.) We had parties at … Read More
Recovery Doubly Troubled About the Ask-It Basket in the July 2019 issue, how could the trustee who responded, writing that OA does not offer food plans at meetings, not have read the new Where Do I Start? pamphlet? Pages 13–17 are devoted entirely to, perhaps not “food plans,” but “plans of eating.” How are these different? One plan of eating looks rather similar to old gray sheet. … Read More
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 into the program after watching from the sidelines for six months, I chose a sponsor who had a large weight loss, which was what I wanted. We focused on a daily schedule, a workable food … Read More
Fellowship Make My Needs My Wants I’ve been in OA since September 1983. I helped start a local retreat in the 1990s, which I’ve attended now for many years. In 1998, I heard someone at the retreat say that they could be abstinent 100 percent of the time, and somehow that really hit home. That same year, the retreat leader emphasized looking at my part in … Read More
Tools & Concepts Gearing Up for Recovery I began using the Tools of Recovery before I even knew they were the Tools. It started with the Tool of meetings: I attended my first one, then my second. As I listened to others’ shares, I kept hearing, “Find a sponsor.” When I made the decision to jump in, I found a sponsor (a second Tool) who had what … Read More