Atheists & Agnostics Higher Power Port of Call My spiritual journey in OA started like a ship in a sea of confusion. How could I understand God’s plan for me, or take Steps Three and Eleven—surrender to, and maintain conscious contact with, God as I understood him—when I don’t believe that I, as a human, can understand God? My ship visited many ports of discovery. In Port One, … Read More
Gratitude Recovery Rediscovery and Realizations There are so many things I am grateful for in my recovery. Here are a few: First and foremost, not doing that compulsive hand-to-mouth behavior. Early in my recovery, a large part of the “pink cloud” for me was euphoria at being released from decades of abusive eating. When qualifying, I shared that I was amazed at how many of … Read More
Higher Power Power by Committee Three years ago, I came in the doors of OA as a 500-pound (227-kg), spiritually bankrupt King Baby. Either God was a jerk or didn’t exist, so “whatever” was my spirituality. It was all about me and what I wanted, anyway, so why let that get in the way? While I had no real issue with Step One, finding a … Read More
Recovery Relationships Light in Real Life First, I had to get past the mourning stage. I arrived at OA grieving the loss of my best friend, lover, and confidante—my go-to for any emotional relationship. Compulsive overeating had replaced many important relationships in my life, leaving me in a turbulent, one-sided, love-hate situation. OA was gentle in guiding me to a healthier state of mind, putting food … Read More
Keep Coming Back Relapse One Thing Changed I have not always had a weight problem, but I’ve always had the disease of compulsive overeating. Before age 13, the disease did not show up on my body, because I was using the fuel to grow. But it was definitely at work between my ears, manifesting mentally through my obsession with sweets and other binge foods and spiritually through … Read More
Keep Coming Back Relapse Twinkle in My Eye Most folks who know me only see my weight loss over the last few years, but the most significant changes in my life happened on the inside. It’s what cannot be seen, but seems to be sensed. It’s all due to OA. I came to OA in 1994 looking for a solution to my recent weight gain. I had kept … Read More
Atheists & Agnostics Reliance, Not Defiance When I came into Overeaters Anonymous almost twenty-one years ago, I came for a diet. I needed to lose a lot of weight and keep it off! Countless doctors had assured me of the dire necessity of this; plus, my weight was impeding my interactions with my husband, children, friends, and professional life. What I didn’t think I needed was … Read More
Atheists & Agnostics Living Instead My psychologist recommended I go an OA meeting, but it took three months before I actually set foot through the door. I told him I didn’t think I could give up sugar and didn’t believe in god, so OA wouldn’t work for me. He laughed and told me that was the addict speaking. It took me those three months of … Read More
Abstinence Threefold Abstinence Keeping things simple is helpful. Using OA’s definition of abstinence, I had to decide what I could refrain from, one day at a time, no matter where I was or what was happening. Two ingredients that repeated in my food inventory were sugar and white flour. So my definition of physical abstinence was simple: no sugar and no white flour. (My food plan … Read More
Keep Coming Back Relapse Different Ways of Finding Recovery Editors note: Below are two world service contributions from OA members in support of our Strategic Plan. In August 1999, I was desperate and obese. I was still pleasant at work but not at home. I had reached the point where I couldn’t stop eating but the food was no longer satisfying, so I had nothing to live for. A … Read More