All his life, Majid from Alborz, Iran, aspired to be like others, including other OA members. After trying all suggestions to find and keep abstinence, he finally came to understand that only by looking at his own experiences could he write a Plan of Eating that helped him find abstinence.
I opened my heart to my Higher Power’s will and discovered I was a part of the worldwide Fellowship. I walked into my first OA meeting alone and afraid. I had been defeated by food, weight, and life. I was desperate. In the meeting, I found OA members who wanted to help me. They reached … Continued
An upcoming knee replacement surgery was the catalyst for Stephanie to take a really good look at using the action plan Tool. The result of her preparations and efforts? “I am no longer afraid of what is to come or whether I will be able to remain abstinent. . . . Now I am a Spiritual Light.”
When our job is stressful (or even when it isn’t), an announcement of snacks in the break room can create a moment of weakness. When it happened to Linda, she reached for two Tools, literature and the telephone, to keep her abstinence.
Ten years into her program, Diane from Washington, D.C. USA found a Power greater than herself. When she started writing her Higher Power, she found the response was “exactly what I needed to hear.”
“Without a sponsor,” says one OA member, “I would be unable to continue to recover.” But this OA member’s journey has meant working with many sponsors, and she has learned something from each one along the way.
After ten years in OA, Diane found a Power greater than herself, and eventually started writing letters to her HP. To her amazement, her Higher Power started writing back. “It was slow and thoughtful and always—I mean ALWAYS— exactly what I needed to hear.”
“Most of us are used to the Fellowship as the place where we are listened to unconditionally, supported, and loved,” says Samantha. “Then we come to intergroup, and suddenly we are met with competing needs, desires, and ideas.” Sam reports the lessons she has learned from working with others in her intergroup.
“In our area, we are struggling to attract and retain new members,” says Heather from New Zealand. “I have been mentored over the years . . . to share the solution. This writing is the service I can do today.” Read how Heather works her program daily.
Feeling grumpy due to a bout with Covid, H.E. from New Zealand knows the best thing to do is to use OA’s Tools of Recovery to find acceptance. “I know the only way out of this space is to get out of my own head and take action.”