Overeaters Anonymous (OA) is a community of people who come together for support and encouragement around shared struggles with food. Founded in 1960, the OA approach is based on the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), which focuses on physical, emotional, and spiritual elements.
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Does Overeaters Anonymous still exist?
Available in 35+ Countries. Welcome to Overeaters Anonymous (OA)—a community of people who through shared experience, strength, and hope are recovering from unhealthy relationships with food and body image.
Who goes to Overeaters Anonymous?
In Overeaters Anonymous, you’ll find members who are extremely overweight, even morbidly obese, moderately overweight, average weight, underweight, still maintaining periodic control over their eating behavior, or totally unable to control their compulsive eating.
Is Overeaters Anonymous a 12 step program?
OA is a Twelve-Step Fellowship much like Alcoholics Anonymous. It’s our one-day-at-a-time approach plus our members that make us different from other solutions you may have tried.
What happens At Overeaters Anonymous meetings?
We gather around a table or in a circle of chairs. Our meetings follow a format (like a script) that a volunteer leader reads. The format usually includes reading the Overeaters Anonymous Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions. Other OA literature may also be read.
What is the success rate of Overeaters Anonymous?
Survey results show that 90 percent of OA has responded that they have improved “somewhat, much, or very much” in their emotional, spiritual, career and social lives.
How much does Overeaters Anonymous cost?
Overeaters Anonymous (OA), a fellowship based on the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous, is one of the oldest and most accessible resources for people with eating disorders, and it’s free.
What is the OA diet plan?
OA has created a Plan of Eating to help people recover from compulsive eating behaviors. The plan aims to identify specific eating patterns and guide healthy eating decisions. The plan is individualized. It doesn’t provide any specific suggestions for foods, calorie totals, or other restrictions.
How long do OA meetings last?
Meetings usually last between one and one and a half hours. Before and after the meeting, feel free to ask questions and pick up some OA literature to help you learn about the program.
How do you introduce yourself in Overeaters Anonymous?
“Who would like to read the Twelve Traditions of Overeaters Anonymous?” [Pause for reading.] “Are there any compulsive eaters here besides myself? We will now go around and introduce ourselves. Please introduce yourself by first name only.”
What is the first step in Overeaters Anonymous?
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.
Is there a medication for food addiction?
Lisdexamfetamine dimesylate (Vyvanse) is the first FDA-approved drug to treat binge eating disorder in adults. It’s also used to treat ADHD. It is not clear how the drug works in binge eating, but it’s thought to control the impulsive behavior that can lead to bingeing.
How do I get over an overeating addiction?
- Decide that you want to change.
- Precisely articulate what triggers your cravings.
- Make a meal plan.
- Find yourself a distraction tactic.
- Write out and regularly re-read your goals.
- Don’t keep temping food in the house.
- Get you’re family & friends on board.
- Keep a food diary.
What is the difference between OA and EDA?
In OA, food addicts are required to abstain from specific foods that may be triggering and to adopt specific disciplines around eating. In EDA, any rigidity around food is avoided. Members are devoted to helping each other build more resilient relationships with themselves, others and food.
What is the difference between OA and OA How?
HOW-OA is a subgroup of OA. It is considered a special focus group that offers a structured approach to working the 12 Steps of OA. What is the difference between OA and HOW-OA? HOW-OA is for people seeking a structured program.
Can you do OA without a sponsor?
Sponsors share their program up to the level of their own experience. They pass on what they have, often in the same way that they received it. Although there are no specific qualifications for sponsorship in OA, it’s best to work with a sponsor who is committed to abstinence and to working the Steps.
Are OA meetings free?
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.
What is a GREY sheeter?
Distributed by Overeaters Anonymous to its members until 1986, the Grey Sheet Diet was a meal plan that received its name from the grey-colored paper on which it was printed. The plan was designed to help control food addiction and promote weight loss.
What does abstinence mean in Overeaters Anonymous?
Abstinence: The action of refraining from compulsive eating and compulsive food behaviors while working towards or maintaining a healthy body weight.
Is Overeaters Anonymous religious?
OA is not a religious organization. OA members are people of many religious faiths as well as atheists and agnostics. The OA recovery program is based on acceptance of certain spiritual principles.
How do OA meetings?
HOW Overeaters Anonymous is a fellowship of individuals, who are recovering from compulsive eating through shared experience and mutual support. We welcome everyone who wants to stop eating compulsively. There are no dues or fees for membership.
What can you not eat on Overeaters Anonymous?
Wheat and sugar. The OA program doesn’t promote any particular diet, but wheat and sugar so pervasively spark compulsive eating that many members make abstinence from them the turning point in overcoming their addiction.
Can I do Overeaters Anonymous online?
Yes. Go to our Find a Meeting page for information and assistance in finding an online or telephone meeting.
What are the 9 tools of OA?
- A Plan of Eating. A plan of eating helps us abstain from compulsive eating.
- Sponsorship. We ask a sponsor to help us through our program of recovery on all three levels, physical, emotional, and spiritual.
- Meetings.
- Telephone.
- Writing.
- Literature.
- Action Plan.
- Anonymity.
What is the difference between an open and closed OA meeting?
Closed meetings are for A.A. members only, or for those who have a drinking problem and “have a desire to stop drinking.” Open meetings are available to anyone interested in Alcoholics Anonymous’ program of recovery from alcoholism. Nonalcoholics may attend open meetings as observers.