Before OA, Courtney neglected and abused her body. “I have taken better care of my car than of you,” she writes in a message to her own body. Now after a few years of abstinence, she is ready to make an Eighth Step, add her own body to the list of persons she has harmed and become willing to make amends.
After one year of abstinence, Elena is challenged by thoughts, emotions, and feelings that can no longer be numbed with food, and this is her opportunity to practice surrendering so many things to a higher power. “But I never found these more difficult than going the experience of letting go of busyness and being faced with boredom,” she says.
“The Fifth Step: what a daunting Step it was for me as a newcomer,” says Anonymous. “But I can remember the feeling when I was done . . . I was relieved.”
OA member Tony illustrates why Tradition Five matters in this short share. “It helps us stay on track so when others enter the group as a whole, the message of program is not waived or lost in confusion,” he says.
Melissa, an OA member, understands “Even experts in the medical fields are not capable of knowing about everything.” Read how she was able to carry the message to professionals on three different occasions.
Jo shares about spending a few summer days staffing an OA booth at a local health fair. “It gave several intergroups the chance to reach out and help change the lives of strangers,” he says.
When a local radio commentator voiced one of the usual criticisms about overweight people, OA member Lori felt compelled to carry the message, which was read aloud on the radio the next day.
Lisa shares a few simple ways she carries the message to the still-suffering compulsive eater and healthcare professionals.
What does it mean to balance group autonomy and support for OA as a whole? “In my years in program,” says one OA member, ”I’ve seen several examples of group autonomy being liberating and energizing and also of it being taken too far.”
“When I first came to OA thirty-three years ago, I was a bundle of resentments, says Carrie. Today? “I can honestly say that I no longer have resentments . . . I marvel every day in this program how the Steps really work.”