Fellowship Better Defined After reading about the new definitions for “abstinence” and “recovery” approved by the World Service Business Conference 2019, I had a couple of questions: 1) What were the original definitions? 2) What were the reasons for changing the definitions? The 1988 WSBC approved this first Statement on Abstinence and Recovery: “According to the dictionary, the word ‘abstain’ means to refrain … Read More
Relapse Twelfth Step Within Twelfth Step Within Works In 1985, it took a strong, concerted effort to get World Service Business Conference to accept some Twelfth Step Within suggestions from a group of women from Region Two. These members fought for five years for something they believed in: the need to “carry the message to those already in program,” to members who were still struggling, maybe people whose … Read More
Literature Tools & Concepts Writing Voices of Recovery OA literature plays a large part in my recovery from compulsive eating. We’ve made many changes, and helping with the development of Voices of Recovery connected me with OA members around the world. It was my chance to express myself through writing and to read other members’ ideas. Creation of this publication started in 1998, when members were asked to … Read More
Abstinence Using Help “You have cancer!” Those were the first words I heard after coming out of surgery. My first thought was “Oh, good. I can eat now, and no one will judge me for it.” I’d been abstinent for almost three years at that point, but once a compulsive overeater, always a compulsive overeater. I didn’t like the thought of not being … Read More
