“That does not help me because I cannot stop. It just makes me hate myself more to know I’m killing myself.” --Taste of Lifeline, page 177
The title of the story is “Letting Go” in Taste of Lifeline on page 177. I could not do this for the longest time in OA. I have been around the rooms for many years and even though I had lost over 50 pounds twice in program I could not keep my abstinence after my Dad died in 2011 for any long period of time. My friends were concerned, and my family saw me with many medical issues that kept stacking up against me. I knew the OA program was my answer, but I didn’t see how it could work for me. My diet mentality was back, and my spirituality was out the door. I needed help and I needed to find serenity again in my life.
I have learned over again that I need to let go and stop trying to control the outcome. HP is in charge, and I am not. I had met a Nutritionist that I could relate to and tell my truth. I didn’t find anyone before this person who would listen and understand my pain. She made recommendations
and I followed most of them. She is still part of my support system today. There was one thing she said that I just put out of my mind because at that time I didn’t have insurance that would cover the surgery. I also thought it would go against what I heard in the OA rooms and didn’t want to go there. I was very stubborn!
HP did not give up on me. People, places, and things were put in front of me and showed me the way. It took years, good insurance, the right medical staff, and the support from OA members to get me to accept help and a solution to this baffling disease that we call compulsive eating. I had to let go of my old ideas and be open to the grace of my Higher Power to find abstinence and a new way of living.
I have released over 110 pounds and have been abstinent for 21 months. I feel better and have a lightness of heart that makes me want to sing the praises of Overeaters Anonymous and what it has done for my life. My spirit is free, and my life is fabulous. This has nothing to do with weight loss, but everything to do with letting go and letting HP give me what I could not do for myself. I am still working on letting go of things I have no control over and that is a work in progress. Today I can say “I love you, Martha!” and that was very hard two years ago. This program continues to save my soul, and I am grateful for the journey!
Martha R
Second Vice Chair
The title of the story is “Letting Go” in Taste of Lifeline on page 177. I could not do this for the longest time in OA. I have been around the rooms for many years and even though I had lost over 50 pounds twice in program I could not keep my abstinence after my Dad died in 2011 for any long period of time. My friends were concerned, and my family saw me with many medical issues that kept stacking up against me. I knew the OA program was my answer, but I didn’t see how it could work for me. My diet mentality was back, and my spirituality was out the door. I needed help and I needed to find serenity again in my life.
I have learned over again that I need to let go and stop trying to control the outcome. HP is in charge, and I am not. I had met a Nutritionist that I could relate to and tell my truth. I didn’t find anyone before this person who would listen and understand my pain. She made recommendations
and I followed most of them. She is still part of my support system today. There was one thing she said that I just put out of my mind because at that time I didn’t have insurance that would cover the surgery. I also thought it would go against what I heard in the OA rooms and didn’t want to go there. I was very stubborn!
HP did not give up on me. People, places, and things were put in front of me and showed me the way. It took years, good insurance, the right medical staff, and the support from OA members to get me to accept help and a solution to this baffling disease that we call compulsive eating. I had to let go of my old ideas and be open to the grace of my Higher Power to find abstinence and a new way of living.
I have released over 110 pounds and have been abstinent for 21 months. I feel better and have a lightness of heart that makes me want to sing the praises of Overeaters Anonymous and what it has done for my life. My spirit is free, and my life is fabulous. This has nothing to do with weight loss, but everything to do with letting go and letting HP give me what I could not do for myself. I am still working on letting go of things I have no control over and that is a work in progress. Today I can say “I love you, Martha!” and that was very hard two years ago. This program continues to save my soul, and I am grateful for the journey!
Martha R
Second Vice Chair