I have been an OA member for thirty-five years and abstinent from sugar and wheat products for thirty-four years. Yes, that is miraculous, but the real miracle is that this bratty girl who didn’t want to have anything to do with the spiritual part of our Twelve Step program now can’t seem to live without her Higher Power. … Continued
I’ve been thinking that a list of the common characteristics among longtime abstainers and maintainers in Overeaters Anonymous might be very revealing and helpful. In my mind, I picture all these members attributing everything on the list below to working the program—the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions—into their daily lives: They have a healthy and conscious relationship with … Continued
Mindy shares how Overeaters Anonymous transformed her life through surrendering to her Higher Power, working the Twelve Steps, and embracing a supportive community, leading to profound physical, emotional, and spiritual growth.
Today is it. I don’t have to do more than that. I’m grateful to my first sponsor for drumming into me the concept of “one day at a time.” When I worried about the future, she’d remind me to look down at my feet and say aloud 1) where I am standing, 2) what day it is, and 3) “That’s all there … Continued
Here is a simple question that has helped me numerous times: how important is it? Asking myself this helps me reframe how I think about problems and situations and spurs me to ask myself these follow-up questions: Is it worth my sanity and my abstinence to keep obsessing over a problem? The answer is always “No, it is not.” Without spiritual, emotional, and physical recovery, I cannot maintain contact with my HP, who helps me … Continued
One of my favorite passages from the OA Twelve and Twelve is this from Step Five: “Most of us find that fear is at the root of many of our damaging emotions and actions. As we grow in the Twelve Step way of life, we learn that our fears usually stem from our inability to trust that our basic needs will be met. Perhaps we have … Continued
“I ate when I was anxious, fearful, lonely, or tired” (Voices of Recovery, p. 254). I can add more to that list: I ate when I was excited, happy, with people, or wide awake. Food gave me confidence and allowed me to act happy in deplorable situations. I was in a job I didn’t like and a sick marriage, and my … Continued
A couple of months ago, I had an evening when I was feeling so much frustration, irritation, resentment, and disconnection from myself and those around me. I texted my sponsor and said, “I don’t know how to allow a Higher Power to help me. I just have too much resistance. I know that the Power of love in the world exists and could help, but … Continued
After four and a half years in OA, Rachel had experienced both solid abstinence and a period when life’s challenges had her surviving but not thriving. “What really propelled me through,” she says of this challenging time in her life, “was working another set of Steps.”
OA invites DIVERSITY and promotes UNITY. In this episode, one OA member describes their experience with weight-loss surgery and another OA member shares their rock bottom moment and coming back to achieve a 100-pound (45-kg) weight loss.