Steps One… and… Two… and… I have been in OA for six and a half years. I have struggled with relapse but also have had long stretches of abstinence. I believe a Power greater than myself can and will (in time) restore me to sanity. My sponsor asked me to write down the actions I take for Step One and Step Two. My goal for … Read More
Fellowship Let's Meet at Convention Truly Empowering I have been a proud member of OA for more than thirty years; I’ve had many relapses and also a lot of recovery in this Fellowship. I attend my region assemblies each year, but last year I was thrilled by the opportunity to go to Boston, Massachusetts USA in September 2016 for my first World Service Convention. I had booked my … Read More
Fellowship Let's Meet at Convention How Great It Was I mostly attend business assemblies and rarely get to the recovery events, but this time it would be strictly recovery. A friend in California suggested we meet at the 2016 Convention in Boston. We have been friends for decades as a result of our recovery and service to OA, but too much time passes between our visits, so this became our … Read More
Fellowship Let's Meet at Convention Powerful Surprise About 1,200 OA members from around the world met in early September to celebrate recovery with four days of festivities in Boston. Several folks from Alaska USA made the trip, and what a wonderful experience it was! There were seventy-two workshops, skits (with a revolutionary theme), and keynote speakers. Hospitality and fellowship abounded. It was sometimes hard to decide what to … Read More
Steps Powering Through Came to believe in a Power greater than myself—that’s where I got stuck. I couldn’t get past me. I was all wrapped up in my old beliefs about religion, God, and church. I became a prisoner of my beliefs, my parent’s beliefs, and other people’s conceptions. I never truly felt a positive connection with a God of my understanding. My … Read More
Steps First Love I’m in love! I’ve been in love for almost twenty years now. I’m in love with the First Step! While others may find comfort in prayers or religious passages, I find comfort in these words: “We admitted we were powerless over food—that our lives had become unmanageable.” My romantic history is almost as chaotic as my battles with food. I’ve … Read More
Steps Step 12: Someone to Protect Having had a spiritual awakening in this program, I now view myself as a unique and precious child of God. It has transformed my approach to myself. But when I compare myself to others, I feel “less than.” Since I am unable to eat the foods they eat and perform the simple behaviors they do, I conclude there’s something wrong … Read More
Steps Step 11: Learning to Listen My first Step sponsor told me I could begin to practice Step Eleven early in my OA program. I did not need to wait until I had worked the preceding ten Steps. Prayer for me, until then, had just been asking God for things I thought I needed; basically “God, please give me _____.” But my sponsor had me stick … Read More
Steps Step 10: Dirty Laundry I was in the launderette flicking through one of their magazines when I saw something I quite liked. “This is just a secondhand magazine,” I thought. “It won’t matter if I rip this page out and take it home.” I tore out the page discreetly, hoping no one would see. (The first sign of dishonest activity: secrecy!) That evening as … Read More
Steps Self-Subtraction In a meeting many years ago, people with strong long-term recovery shared on the topic of placing Principles before personalities. They said they had learned, over the years, to focus on what was shared rather than who was sharing it. This reminds me of a slogan my spiritual teacher shared with me: “Peace equals this moment minus my opinion of … Read More
