in program 15 years with intermittent abstinence until I found my current one.

My first meeting in 78 but resisted the God talk.

Married, one child maintaining weight. No so for second child.

I realized I could start my abstinence mid day.

After my First OA Retreat I left food on my plate and experience grief.

Retreat in 98 asked what I was bringing rather to  than what I was getting from the meeting and the program.

Today I am a service junkie at all levels of OA.

I often bookend my meals with a phone call as a reason to reach out and to stay on track.

First 10 minutes of recording failure. recording starts @ 9.40 into pitch. First few notes about it

It all started with a new years resolution to loose weight.  In November I joined OA.

Richard Burton is my higher Power.

My anger issue got much better. I did not want to make amends.

A half gallon of ice cream did never got its lid put back.

I began to consider what others a might be going through. Acting the same at work as in meetings.

I do not eat white flour, white sugar, white potatoes, and cheese.

My credit card debt got handled by my abstinence.

I set up Thursday Live meeting and get to share with people every week. Great community.

Before; I was extremely shy, no social skills, compete introvert.

My grandmother made three bowls of M&Ms for me and my sisters. I always compared who had the most until I found the 1 lb bag.

I really discovered amazing food in college and there was no monitor. I studied and 'mastered' Bulimia.

Food and alcohol were my paired vices. 

I joined the beverage program but still purged to handle my food- sort of.

Finding OA I was asked if I was willing.....  I thought "No', said "yes and did it.

Today I have a program, Do service to insure I go to meetings. 

I have an appropriate amount of personal drama to keep my life interesting maintain my abstinence.

OA - Topped out at 285 

I have tried to use exercise to outrun my compulsion.

I tried fasting. diet pills, protein shakes, all failws quickly.

In 2014 I came back for the third time and embraced OA Recovery adjacent.

I finally embraced the concept of red light foods and held to it... for 4 years.

A workshop called 'Sober Eating' really buttoned up my current recovery,

I have a sponsor, I have service commitments, I have sponsees, I have a daily ritual focusing in my recovery.

Tech issue this week, No promo details.

A great speaker and has spoken several times in the past year.

I am not a 100 pounder so I would compare (I'm not that bad)  in the beginning. 

I used food to anesthetize myself and it worked in my youth.

I was known in my family as a sneak eater.

Somewhere I knew it wasn't all about the food but I still thought it was about the food.

I was a sneak eater even when I didn't have to. Holidays were a time when I didn't have to sneak. But I still did.

Relationships were a trigger for weight gain.

I was clear that God could not help me with my food.  But he did.

I spent a long time just dipping my toe in the program confidant that I already had it because of my other program.

Finally getting a sponsor, listening to him, working the steps through the the lens of OA. 

Eventually things were happening that I could not do. Thus a higher power became present for me.

The box In which I placed my HP  continues to get bigger,

Grew up in a small town.

Married and unmarried at 19. Married once more in 2014 until present.

I called OA and the conversation just calmed me. She is still my sponsor today.

I cleaned my pantry of any foods I would be sad about loosing. 

I learned alternative ways of handling my emotions rather than binging.

I lost 80 lbs.got pregnant and lost that weight.

Maintenance has been a challenge. The traditions are important fore recovery. I personalize them and use them as the basis for my relationships.

My relationship with my HP has helped my emotional stability and to make better choices. 

Skinny until 15.

My family was full of chaos. Food was my friend for home and school.

I was always hustling to get money to buy what I wanted. I was a very unskilled thief.

I was over 260- was prescribed diet pills and made it down to 190.

Food was only one of the bad choices I made which cost me my marriage. 

In mid 30's I got almost to 300.

First introduced to How and it worked for a while as a diet for the wrong reasons. got up to 350.

OA has hooked my up with a higher power. Today I live OA, Use the tools.

When moving, I would clean the refrigerator with my mouth.

They asked me to read at my first meting. What I read did not resonate with me.

I was told to 30 in 30 and being an over achiever I complied but still didn't really get the program. and it didn't last long.

I finally asked God for help to get home with eating and it worked. My eyes, ears and heart began to open.

I did the steps in a week and a half. full time and thoroughly. however 9, 10 and 11 were hard for me to grasp. If something was defective a wanted to throw it a way.

Eventually I embraced that I was the problem. 

Great recovery for 14 months, then relapsed in 1990. A spiritual experience brought me back for good.

I began my journey onto my food addiction at 18 years old

I always felt different and like I didn't fit in.  Food was my friend.

My pattern was binge and purge

I left home at 20.

I married my 'project' to change my behavior.

Each of my pregnent was a major weight gain followed by dramatic  weight loss.

Started OA in '88 but abstinence didn't start until I did treatment in '90

Multiple long term relapses became my story. driven by My Will.

When I finally connected with my higher power my life really got better.