Meetings Tools & Concepts Just Like Me Attending my first OA meeting was the result of seeing some dramatic changes in a close friend. We had known each other long enough that we knew each other’s big secret: We were compulsive eaters. It was fine to share such an intimacy on a personal level, but the thought of doing it in a room full of strangers seemed … Read More
Tools & Concepts Tooling through Recovery Please keep stepping. I am following you, watching. Please keep serving. I am needing you, calling. Please keep sharing. I am learning from you, listening. Please keep praying. I am kneeling with you, awakening. Please keep reading. I am quoting you, speaking. Please keep confiding. I am counting on you, protecting. Please keep planning. I am writing with you, abstaining. … Read More
Meetings Tools & Concepts Group Project Having a spiritual awakening meant admitting my need for other people. Before OA, I was convinced it was up to me to stop eating compulsively. But having a group that works together potentiates any project’s effectiveness. Hearing others share about similar issues with food and feeling the group’s support have both helped my recovery. Also, by changing my relationship to … Read More
Steps Traditions Trigger Food Taboo Q. Why is mentioning a specific food or restaurant considered a trigger in an OA meeting? Is there an official OA stance on this subject? A. OA does not have an official stance, and mentioning or not mentioning trigger foods is not addressed in OA literature. Tradition Four gives groups the autonomy to make this decision for themselves, but the … Read More
Recovery Relationships Laugh In It’s such a blessing to laugh at myself, to see humor in the midst of misery. There’s so much laughter in the rooms, laughter at how ridiculous we are in the disease. The laughter is healing. It connects us—all of us, we all relate. We relate and we laugh and we know we’re not alone in these experiences, these thoughts, … Read More
Traditions Of Our Own Accord Today, I attended a meeting of a monthly group conscience. The main issue under discussion was whether to start using a timer to limit each member’s share. This was quite a hot topic! It came up because, at our last meeting, a member refused to stop sharing even after they were cut off. Conflict ensued and feelings were hurt. In … Read More
Traditions Opinion-Free Tradition Ten – Overeaters Anonymous has no opinion on outside issues; hence the OA name ought never be drawn into public controversy. When I first joined OA in 1990, I assumed all members thought the way I thought and believed what I believed. I was sure we all felt the same about religion, politics, and social action. My first clue … Read More
Literature Lifeline Makes a Meeting Recently I went to visit a meeting to bring flyers, newsletters, and other materials from our intergroup. When I arrived, I couldn’t find the meeting or the members. They had been denied access to their regular meeting space because the facility was hosting another event. I found them huddled around a table in the rear of the dining room. Although … Read More
Tools & Concepts Sharing Stories Thank you for Lifeline magazine. My latest issue arrived two days ago, and, as always, it gave me insight, contact, Tools, and a feeling of connection. About fourteen years ago, I lived in Houston, Texas. I was sick of my obsessive eating behavior and sick of resorting to strict diets or fasts to make up for bingeing. I had heard … Read More
Higher Power Act As If What kind of a fool do you think I am? What’s the point of praying to God? But you say I need do no more than “act as if,” and he will respond? Such nonsense I have never heard; I close my ears to those willful lies. But you say, “That is his will; Try! You will see with your … Read More
