Although I never admitted to this before coming to Overeaters Anonymous, I struggled for decades with uncontrollable nighttime eating. Recovery from compulsive eating and sugar addiction was but a far-fetched dream for the vast majority of my life. It was a secret longing, but never something I would talk about out loud – especially not […]
Category Archives: 12-Step-program
Overeaters Anonymous Freed Me From Feelings of ‘Not Enough’
Today is a good day. Why? Because, just for today, I am ‘enough.’ For as long as I can remember, I NEVER felt enough. Not enoughness, inadequacy, feelings of being a failure or a disappointment, ruminating thoughts of being ‘broken’ or ‘a mistake’ – all of this ‘head junk’ forever repeating itself between my ears […]
Comparing Weight Loss Drugs to OA’s Twelve Steps
You’ve likely noticed the multitude of news headlines and social media posts regarding “easy” and “dramatic” weight loss resulting from “a simple weekly injection,” along with the promise of that injection being made available “in the near future” as a simple little pill. Such a “magic pill” was once the ultimate dream for this compulsive […]
Practicing the Principles: Finding Recovery in Fiction
Reading program literature is an essential tool of recovery in Overeaters Anonymous and other 12-step programs. Alcoholics Anonymous, aka The Big Book, is an essential guide to recovering from addiction in all its forms. Overeaters Anonymous recommends replacing “alcohol” and “alcoholic” with “food” and “compulsive overeating” when reading AA literature. The 12 Steps and 12 […]
Falling Into My Higher Power
I am sitting in the shade of a tree overlooking the water of the Niagara River as it rushes toward the American Falls. It’s the last day of my vacation, so I came back to this park to meditate for a few minutes, to connect with serenity, and capture my thoughts before I finish getting […]
Miracles of Recovery: Following Doctors’ Orders
A recent conversation with a fellow OA member had me thinking about the miracles of recovery in Overeaters Anonymous. One of those miracles enables us to follow doctors’ orders regarding changes to our food and action plans to support our health. Even after 30 years of abstinence in OA, I still can resist making changes […]
Two-Way Prayer
Two-plus years into my abstinence and recovery, I began to struggle. My food was in order, I was attending meetings and sponsoring, but something was missing. Using food to manage my emotions was pretty much a thing of the past, my life was much simpler and less stressful, and I found more possible to accept […]
Aspects of Abstinence
Compulsive overeating is a substance addiction like addictions to alcohol, drugs, nicotine, etc. In fact, we often refer to certain foods as “alcoholic foods.” As a compulsive overeater, I define my addiction as the inability to not eat something I know is going to hurt me. The harm goes beyond the emotional and social damage […]
Achieving Fit Spiritual Condition
OA’s 12 step program of recovery from compulsive eating promises members “a life beyond our wildest dreams.” While that promise appears in various forms in our literature, the expression “fit spiritual condition,” comes at the end of the 10th step promises on pages 84 and 85 of the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous: “And we […]
Compassionate Self Awareness
“I can develop a non-judgmental awareness of myself, accept what I discover, and be fully willing to change. But I lack the power to heal myself. Only my Higher Power can do that.” Courage to Change, Jan. 31. I love the recovery I have found in Overeaters Anonymous. In the 11 months I’ve been in […]
Seventh Step Plea
Oh, God of my understanding, Higher Power of my fathers,Understand my cries tonight. Hear my call to you for help.This is the first and greatest of my defects. My characterSuffers so from independence. It was once a necessaryEvil, but today I must put away the shards of glass that myChrysalis has become. It is my […]
Living Life in the Solution
I’m a compulsive overeater; what some might consider a “garden variety” overeater. In my disease, when I start eating, I cannot stop. I would graze constantly throughout the day, take multiple servings of food at mealtimes, and nibble on leftovers during clean up. Of course, my day wasn’t complete without something sweet before bed. I’m […]