Are You a Compulsive Overeater?
This series of questions may help you determine if you are a compulsive overeater.

1. Do you eat when you're not hungry?
2. Do you go on eating binges for no apparent reason?
3. Do you have feelings of guilt and remorse after overeating?
4. Do you give too much time and thought to food?
5. Do you look forward with pleasure and anticipation to the time when you can eat alone?
6. Do you plan these secret binges ahead of time?
7. Do you eat sensibly before others and make up for it alone?
8. Is your weight affecting the way you live your life?
9. Have you tried to diet for a week (or longer), only to fall short of your goal?
10. Do you resent others telling you to "use a little willpower" to stop overeating?
11. Despite evidence to the contrary, have you continued to assert that you can diet "on your own" whenever you wish?
12. Do you crave to eat at a definite time, day or night, other than mealtime?
13. Do you eat to escape from worries or trouble?
14. Have you ever been treated for obesity or a food-related condition?
15. Does your eating behavior make you or others unhappy?

Have you answered yes to three or more of these questions? If so, it is probable that you have or are well on your way to having a compulsive overeating problem. We have found that the way to arrest this progressive disease is to practice the Twelve-Step recovery program of Overeaters Anonymous.

What is OA?
Overeaters Anonymous is a fellowship of individuals who, through shared experience, strength and hope, are recovering from compulsive overeating. We welcome everyone who wants to stop eating compulsively. There are no dues or fees for members; we are self-supporting through our own contributions, neither soliciting nor accepting outside donations. OA is not affiliated with any public or private organization, political movement, ideology or religious doctrine; we take no position on outside issues. Our primary purpose is to abstain from compulsive overeating and to carry this message of recovery to those who still suffer.

Is OA for You?
Only you can decide that question. No one else can make this decision for you. We who are now in OA have found a way of life which enables us to live without the need for excess food. We believe that compulsive overeating is a progressive illness, one that, like alcoholism and some other illnesses, can be arrested. Remember, there is no shame in admitting you have a problem; the most important thing is to do something about it.

Questions and Answers

How does an individual join OA?
No one “joins” OA in the usual sense of the word. There are no membership applications to be filled out. Once we have heard about OA and believe we have an eating problem, we simply attend local OA meetings of our choice. Anyone who says he/she is a member of OA is a member.

What are the requirements for membership?
Our Third Tradition states, “The only requirement or OA membership is a desire to stop eating compulsively.” Nothing else is asked or demanded of anyone.

How much does OA membership cost?
There are no financial requirements to be a member of OA. This recovery program is available to all who want to stop eating compulsively, no matter how much or how little money they may possess. We are self-supporting through members’ voluntary contributions and literature sales.

Is OA a religious society?
No. OA is not a religious society, since it requires no religious belief as a condition of membership. OA has among its membership people of many religious faiths as well as atheists and agnostics. OA is, however, a spiritual program based on each member’s personal interpretation of a higher power.

© 2008 Overeaters Anonymous, Inc. All rights reserved.

What You Can Expect from OA
When you arrive at the meeting, you will find men and women who share a common malady—compulsive eating—and have found a common solution: the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions of Overeaters Anonymous. You will see anywhere from three to 30 people at the meeting. An average meeting has about 10. You will be warmly welcomed.

The meeting usually opens with the Serenity Prayer, and you may hear a reading called "Our Invitation to You," which describes the disease of compulsive overeating and the Twelve-Step solution. Meeting formats may vary, but all OA groups are the same in that they seek recovery on three levels—physical, emotional and spiritual—through the Twelve Steps, and the only requirement for membership is a desire to stop eating compulsively.

You may hear a speaker open the meeting and speak for 10 to 15 minutes about what life was like before OA, what happened, and what he or she is like now; or someone might read from OA or AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) literature. Other members will share their experience, strength and hope. You will have an opportunity to introduce yourself as a newcomer, if you like. You will find that you are not alone, that there is a way out of your desperation. Because anonymity is a critical principle of the OA program, you are assured that what you share will be held in confidence. This provides the safety you need to share your experiences honestly.

You may recognize your own story when you listen to others share. Listening will help you find others who have what you want, whether it be weight loss, clarity, joy or recovery from the obsession. You may want to ask someone to be your sponsor. A sponsor will help you work the Steps of the program to achieve the recovery you seek.

When members share, you may hear them refer to a Higher Power or to God. OA is not a religious program and does not subscribe to any specific religious ideology. It is a program that practices spiritual principles, and members individually approach these principles with a Higher Power of their understanding.

A list may be passed around for all to sign their names and phone numbers, so people can offer each other support between meetings. Someone from the meeting you attend may call you to answer any questions you may have about the program, and you will also have an opportunity to get phone numbers yourself to reach out for help. The telephone is an important tool in OA for getting and giving support and reminding you that you are not alone.

Meetings usually last between one and two hours, and they often include a break. During the break, feel free to ask questions and pick up some OA literature to help you learn about the program. By asking for help, you are taking an important step toward recovery.

Because OA is self-supporting through member contributions, a basket will be passed for donations.

You will notice that some members volunteer to help keep the meeting going, such as the group secretary, the treasurer and greeters. Members find that doing service in OA helps keep them from eating compulsively. Service is important to their recovery and allows them to give back to the Fellowship that has saved their lives. Service opportunities exist in all levels of the Fellowship, from making coffee and setting up chairs at a meeting to being on the Board of Trustees.

The meeting usually closes with a reading like the OA Promise, "I Put My Hand in Yours." If you find that the meeting you attended does not feel right, try a different group at another time and location. It is a good idea to attend at least six meetings before deciding on a meeting that is right for you.

What you WON'T find at OA meetings are weigh-ins, packaged meals, dues, fees, "shoulds," "musts" or judgment.

What you WILL find at meetings is:

• Acceptance of you - as you are now, as you were, as you will be.
• Understanding of the problems you now face - problems almost certainly shared by others in the group.
• Communication that comes as the natural result of our mutual understanding and acceptance.
• Recovery from your illness.
• Power to enter a new way of life through the acceptance and understanding of yourself, the practice of the Twelve-Step recovery program, the belief in a power greater than yourself, and the support and companionship of the group.

If you decide that you are one of us, we welcome you with open arms. Whatever your circumstances, we offer you the gift of acceptance. You are not alone anymore. Welcome to Overeaters Anonymous. Welcome home!

About the 12 Steps
The Twelve Steps are the heart of the OA recovery program. They offer a new way of life that enables the compulsive eater to live without the need for excess food. The ideas expressed in the Twelve Steps, which originated in Alcoholics Anonymous, reflect practical experience and application of spiritual insights recorded by thinkers throughout the ages. Their greatest importance lies in the fact that they work! They enable compulsive eaters and millions of others to lead happy, productive lives. They represent the foundation upon which OA is built.

The Twelve Steps
1. We admitted we were powerless over food — that our lives had become unmanageable.
2. Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
5. Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
6. We’re entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed and became willing to make amends to them all.
9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.
11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
12. 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.
Permission to use the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous for adaptation granted by AA World Services, Inc.

Welcome Home!
Have you ever wished you could lose 10 pounds, 20, 40, or 100 or more? Have you ever wished that once you got it off you could keep it off? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you sometimes felt out of step with the world, like a homeless orphan without a place where you really belonged? Welcome to OA; welcome home!
Have you ever wished your family would get to work or school so you could get busy eating? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever awakened first thing in the morning and felt happy because you remembered that your favorite goodie was waiting for you in the fridge or in the cupboard? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever looked up at the stars and wondered what an insignificant person like you was doing in the world anyway? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever cooked, bought or baked for your family and then eaten everything yourself so you wouldn't have to share? We in OA know you because we are you. Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever wanted to hide in the house, without going to work, without getting cleaned up or even getting dressed, without seeing anyone or letting anyone see you? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever hidden food under the bed, under the pillow, in the drawer, in the bathroom, in the wastebasket, in the cupboard, in the clothes hamper, in the closet or in the car so you could eat without anyone seeing you? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever been angry, resentful, defiant-against God, your mate, your doctor, your mother, your father, your friends, your children, the salesperson in the store whose look spoke a thousand words as you tried on clothes-because they were thin, because they wanted you to be thin, and because you were forced to diet to please them or shut them up or make them eat their words and their looks? We welcome you to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever sobbed out your misery in the dark night because no one loved or understood you? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever felt that God (if God existed) made the biggest mistake when God created you? Can you see that this is where such feelings get turned around? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever wanted to get on a bus and just keep going, without once looking back? Did you do it? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever thought the world was a mess, and if others would just think and act like you, the world would be a lot better off? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever thought that OA people must be a bit nuts? That they might be compulsive overeaters, but you just have a weight problem, which you can take care of beginning tomorrow; they might be one bite from insane eating, but you are just a little, or a lot, overweight? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever told anyone who would listen how great you are, how talented, how intelligent, how powerful-all the time knowing they would never believe it, because you didn't believe it? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever lost all your excess weight and found that you were thin-unhappy instead of fat-unhappy? Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Have you ever worn a mask or hundreds of masks because you were sure that if you shared the person you really were no one could ever love or accept you? We accept you in OA. May we offer you a home?

Overeaters Anonymous extends to all of you the gift of acceptance. No matter who you are, where you come from or where you are heading, you are welcome here!

No matter what you have done or failed to do, what you have felt or haven't felt, where you have slept, or with whom, whom you have loved or hated-you may be sure of our acceptance. We accept you as you are, not as you would be if you could melt yourself and mold yourself and shape yourself into what other people think you should be. Only you can decide what you want to be.

But we will help you work for the goals you set, and when you are successful we will rejoice with you; and when you slip, we will tell you that we are not failures just because we sometimes fail, and we'll hold out our arms, in love, and stand beside you as you pull yourself back up and walk on again to where you are heading! You'll never have to cry alone again, unless you choose to.

Sometimes we fail to be all that we should be, and sometimes we aren't there to give you all you need from us. Accept our imperfection, too. Love us in return and help us in our sometimes-falling failing. That's what we are in OA-imperfect, but trying. Let's rejoice together in our effort and in the assurance that we can have a home, if we want one.

Welcome to OA; welcome home!

Lifeline magazine. November 2003. Edited and reprinted from Lifeline Sampler,
p. 173

Hear Overeaters Anonymous members
talk about their struggles with compulsive eating and their recovery through OA. Click on the links below to download a 15-minute excerpt from "When to Say When," an interview that aired in 2002 on more than 300 radio stations across the US.

• "When to Say When" excerpt - (Real Audio)
• "When to Say When" excerpt - (Windows Media)
• "When to Say When" excerpt - (Quicktime)

OA Literature
All OA literature is available from OA World Service and may be ordered on-line. Click here for the literature page.

Lifeline - our “meeting-on-the-go”
Lifeline, OA’s international magazine, serves as an indispensable “meeting-on-the-go.” Since 1962, when the first issue debuted as the OA Bulletin, Lifeline has offered encouragement and hope to thousands of readers. Tucked in a purse, a suitcoat pocket or a lunch bag, Lifeline accompanies members around the world, ready to provide inspiration and support when needed. Visit the Lifeline page on oa.org and learn more or subscribe.