​I have a great life! Beyond my wildest dreams, in fact.

Butt (I always spell it with two t's since it is a big BUTT) when I must transition from one routine to another or try something new or move in a new direction, I still go through a lot of foot dragging, internal "NO!!" screaming and other less-than-attractive behavior.

That's where my sponsor and my meetings really help me. Without fail, when I own the situation as tough and speak about it, it reduces the load. When I do not deny my issue butt share on it, it is easier to cope.  Even when I don't want to feel the way I feel and I am embarrassed that I feel the way I feel, if I can share on it, it gets better.

I say to myself and my sponsees that I don't believe HONESTY takes me anywhere I shouldn't go. Of course, that is my truth about ME not anything I may want to think is true about you! 

So my experience is that working the 12 Steps of OA helps me see what's true more and more clearly. My OA fellows and HP help me see my way through.

Thank you. I could not do this alone.

Aloha,
Pat O'C

Happy New Year Region 1 OAers! We are now fully into 2020. I don't know about you but I am shaking off the sparkly dust from a wonderful holiday season and getting back to my worthwhile everyday routines. They feel good after the "time off for fun behavior."

I struggle with holidays every year as all the normal eaters try to eat like compulsive eaters (amateurs!).  I so want to be a "normal" eater this time of year. BUT I ain't. So I am glad to have thrown away the last of the left over treats and have a recovery pattern to follow to get back in the groove. Here's mine to restart in the new year:

• First thing in the morning, I read OA literature  and write a little in my journal after my first cuppa coffee meditation. 
• I see my sponsor once a week and my sponsees once a week.
• I go to two OA meetings a week.
• I write a question to my HP every night and jot down HP's answer.
• I do service in OA and in my community. 
• I am grateful for all my blessings and try to never take them for granted.
• In 2020, I have a resolution (I don't have to have the "lose weight" one anymore). This year I am going to clean up my speech--no more lazy curse words. Region One Board members will be able to see how I do with that one!

What are your recovery routines? Are you doing well with them or do you need to step it up? Is there something special you have been putting off for...whenever? Is it time to do that in 2020?

Wishing you joy and freedom in 2020.  

Aloha,  Pat  - Region 1
​

How do I keep my abstinence when everyone around me is eating so many things I’m “not supposed” to eat?  What about those food pushers?  “I made this just for you.  You have to try a little bit.” 
 
The Twelve Step program of Overeaters Anonymous tells me that my compulsion will be removed if I work the Steps and have a spiritual awakening which is sufficient to change me so that I no longer crave foods which are not good for me.  I have experienced this removal of the compulsion.  And the last several holiday seasons I have had no compulsions and no temptations.  Of course, over the years I have trained my family, so they don’t expect me to eat those things and they don’t push them on me.  I am grateful.
 
However, the first few holiday seasons I was in Overeaters Anonymous I was not free of the compulsion.  And sometimes it was very hard to stay out of the food.  I have found several things that work for me to help me keep my abstinence.  
 
First, I try to remember that my abstinence and my OA program are the things that help me have sanity and peace in my life.  I remind myself that really spending time with the people I love is much more important than the temporary high I get from the food.  I discovered that when I tell people I am allergic to certain foods, they want to know more about that and try to help by offering solutions to those things.  They keep asking questions and trying to talk me into things I know don’t work for me to eat.  I finally decided that simply saying one thing over and over works as well as anything.  I say “No, thank you” and indicate that I am full.  I can just keep saying “no thank you” over and over. 
 
Sometimes I just find some little kids and play with them; I can go for a walk and invite others to go; I can call someone (from the bathroom works well).  Sometimes I just pray or help with the dishes.  Another great trick is to help by passing out plates of the dessert--no one notices that I didn’t eat any when they see me with a plate of it in my hands. 
 
I read something this week that made lots of sense to me.  Someone shared that she tells people that she doesn’t eat foods that cause her to feel bad physically.  And she has found no one urging her to eat foods which make her feel sick.  (Those aren’t exactly the words she used but that was the idea). 
 
I need to remember how important my abstinence and sanity are to me every day one day at a time. 
​
Happy Holidays to all,
Margie - Region 1

Each holiday season I am abstinent is sacred for me.  When I used to focus on the food, Food, FOOD, I never had time to really connect with my family and friends.  Since OA and an abstinent way of life, I have much more time to devote to making connections that enrich my life in a deeper way. Even family who may like to "talk about others" gives me a chance to let them know how much I appreciate them and move conversation into a healthier topic.  Lessons I've learned in program about listening instead of being so ready to give advice (or my opinion) have supported my effort to have deeper friendships...even within my family. 
 
I usually try to book-end (call an OA buddy before and after) holidays events so I have a quick connection to remind me why an abstinent way of life is so important every day of the year.
 
So as you head into the holiday season I encourage you to focus on the people at the event and listen to them as they speak from the heart.  It will warm their heart as well as your own.
 
In OA Service,
Sue B. - Region 1
​

Anonymity has two separate meanings in Overeaters Anonymous.

• First, protecting those in OA from being known as OA members at the public level.
• Second, it has the spiritual meaning of remembering that we are all the same in OA – no one has greater worth than others.

Today I wish to talk about anonymity at the level of public media or social media such as Facebook.  On the Region One webpage when Board members write an opinion piece called a blog, I can post that blog without including their last name or email address.  I can also post that same blog on Facebook, as the administrator to the Region One page.  When people respond to the blog on the Region One website, they can put their first name and last initial, or a fake name if they want to do so. They do have to include their email address, but it does not get published. Therefore, they remain anonymous. 

However, when anyone posts a comment in response to a posting on the Facebook page, Facebook does not allow the person posting the comment to remain anonymous.  They include the person’s first and last name and, as in my case, my maiden name – since that’s the way I signed up for Facebook. 

Because Facebook’s whole purpose is to connect people with each other by name and they do not allow comments or even “likes” without full names, Region One has an obligation to protect members' anonymity.  That is the reason Region 1 will not allow any responses to Blog posts or events which are on the Region 1 Facebook page.

If you have a comment about a blog post, I encourage you to visit the www.oaregion1.org website.    Check out the whole website and the blog postings are on the Board Blog page.
​
Margie G. - Region 1

​​“Meetings give us an opportunity to identify our common problem, confirm our common solution through the Twelve Steps and share the gifts we receive through this program.  In addition to face-to-face meetings, OA offers telephone and online meetings.”  Overeaters Anonymous – The Tools of Recovery (abridged).

I’ve been “stuck” at home lately while work is being done on my house.  I’m used to being able to go to local OA meetings pretty much any day I want to, but right now I’m almost three weeks into a stay-at-home experience filled with the sounds of noisy tools:  hammers, power saws, nail guns…. 

It took me a full week to realize that I could pick up an OA tool I rarely use—phone meetings.  When I finally dialed in, I lucked into a really good speaker meeting and heard an inspiring story of recovery – an OA member sharing “what it was like, what happened to change that, and what it’s like now.”  I was filled with gratitude for the ability to join a meeting right from my home, and for a fellow OA member willing to share her story of HOPE.  It turned my noisy day right around!

On another phone meeting, there were 25 people on the line, but the moderator had to ask several times for someone to give service by reading the 12 Steps.  Everyone stayed silent.  This is something I’ve not experienced in my face-to-face meetings, so I was surprised.  I felt like a “visitor” to the meeting, and waited, assuming a “regular” would jump in to do service.  Then I realized that perhaps others were multi-tasking (as was I) and could not unmute to read.  I quickly dried my hands on a dishtowel, rushed upstairs to get an OA book, and was back in time to read the 12 Traditions for the meeting.  Magically, that very small act of service (another OA Tool) made me feel useful and changed  my day for the better.

After the workers left today, I noticed a nail in the driveway.  Then another, and another…  My story of hope is this:  In the “old days” I would have called the contractor and demanded they return immediately.  Then, because this was what I always had to do with anger, I would have gotten something to eat. 

But the 12 Steps have taught me a better way of living…one that allows me to give myself and others a break.  I went into the house, got a small bowl, and spent the next thirty minutes outside in a light rain, carefully scanning the ground.  I filled the little bowl with nails, feeling a small sense of satisfaction as I spotted each one.  Somehow, I actually enjoyed the task!   :)

So grateful for OA!

Beverly M. – Region 1