Tool of Sponsorship

Tool of Sponsorship

“We ask a sponsor to help us through all three levels of our program of recovery: physical, emotional, and spiritual.”
– Tools of Recovery Pamphlet

The first time I heard about OA, I said, “Is that a group thing? Groups don’t work for me.” I thought I had all the answers and believed that self-reliance was the best plan for me. Give me a book, and I’ll read it and figure things out all by myself. If I could have done this on my own, I would have. I tried everything. It didn’t work. But reaching out to ask someone else for help? That worked miracles.

I have been in OA for many years, and I have had many sponsors. Sponsors move away, I move away, but my program stays constant. No matter how long I have been abstinent, I have to have someone I turn to for guidance and input, for help with step work and gentle nudges to stop trying to do things my own way. And by sponsoring others, I reinforce my own program and remember that I cannot do this on my own.

Journal Prompt: Am I following the guidance of my sponsor or still trying to do things my own way?

Please send your blog submissions to blog@oasv.org. We look forward to hearing from you and to sharing your story of experience, strength and hope with others on this amazing journey of OA recovery from compulsive eating through the Twelve Steps.