Hi there, I’m Phil, and I’m a compulsive overeater and food addict. I’ve been abstinent for about two months now. It doesn’t sound like a long time, but it’s a miracle for me, given how much I’ve struggled with food over the years.    The current definition of abstinence, as defined by oa.org, is:   “The action of refraining from compulsive eating and compulsive food behaviours while working towards or maintaining a healthy body weight.”   When I first started out in OA, I drew up a list of foods that I felt needed to be on my abstinence list. These were things like po ..read more

​Hello, I’m Phil, a compulsive overeater and food addict. I started this blog a year ago and told myself I’d do an update each month. I lasted about a month, which is pretty typical for me, especially when I’m not in recovery!    I spent the best part of last year “off the waggon” and binge eating. I initially worked the steps, but then gave up. Why? I guess I figured that once I’d lost the weight, I’d be able to keep it off without doing any of the work. I also thought I could get away with eating foods on my abstinence list. That wasn’t the case. I took one, then another, and then ..read more

Hi there, I’m Phil, a compulsive overeater and food addict, and I’ve been part of this fellowship for about five years now. During that time, I’ve found a solution to my insanity when it comes to eating. I’ve also changed my relationship with food and people. I’m now living the life I feel I deserved, which isn’t controlled by food. Even better, I now have a way of dealing with my anxiety, stress, fears, resentments, and anger. And that’s one of the reasons I’m sticking with OA as a way of life.    When I came into OA, I was pretty desperate. I couldn’t stop eating certain foods. I f ..read more

Hello my name is Zayna and I am a recovering compulsive overeater and food addict. This morning I was listening to a podcast on the forward to the 1 st Edition of the Big Book. The podcaster was focusing on the purpose of the Big Book and the importance of following directions. Ah, directions, it’s something I continue to wrestle with, given my ego and belief around my status as special snowflake in recovery. In the Big Book we are asked to pay particular attention to italics, so when Bill wrote “precisely how we recovered” I need to take him at his word. Precisely. I need to follow the sim ..read more

Hi everyone, my name is Phil and I'm a compulsive overeater and food addict.    In my last (and first) blog post, I shared a link to the OA bookstore. I wanted to share this as it has some amazing resources you can order online from the U.S., even if you're in Canada.    Last year, I invested some money in ordering a bunch of stuff from the bookstore. I ordered a lot to save on shipping, and in total, it came to about $100 CND, which included import fees.    It sounds like a lot, but I ordered almost all of the pamphlets, and the For Today workbook, twelfth-s ..read more

Hi everyone my name is Phil and I'm a compulsive overeater eater and food addict. I've been a member of Overeaters Anonymous since early 2020. Since then, I've completed the twelve steps a few times, and I have experienced a new life. I'm far from perfect but I'm practicing the steps every day now.    I'm starting this blog as a way to put more effort into my twelfth step:   "Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these Steps, we tried to carry this message to compulsive overeaters and to practice these principles in all our affairs." - Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th ..read more