Like so many people who come into the FA program, I had been in several weight-loss programs. Like others, I came into FA to lose weight. I was pretty successful at losing weight in those other programs, and I don’t want to put them down; they work just fine for others. However, the important thing for me is that this program helps me keep the weight off; the other programs didn’t do that for me. I have lost enough pounds to bring me to a healthy weight, which I have maintained for over a year and half. In FA, I have gained a deeper spiritual connection to my inner self and a better connection to my emotional self. I now know that when I want to eat in my former unhealthy, addictive way, it’s because I want to avoid feeling something. Thus, when I don’t eat to avoid feeling something,... Continue Reading
February 13 is a day that I will always remember. This was the day that I received my early Valentine’s gift from God. On this day, I shared at a morning meeting in Sacramento, CA, an hour drive from San Francisco. I felt great about doing service and enjoyed the fellowship there. After the meeting, we continued our fellowship at a local café. After that, it was getting close to lunchtime. On the way home, I called a friend in FA from Fairfield, and I ask if I could eat lunch at his house. We ate lunch and conversed a bit. Then it was time for me to go back home, and I began to feel tired. Being a total addict, I was packing in too much in my day. I told my friend that as soon as I got home, I was going to take a nap. I hit... Continue Reading
For as far back as I can remember, I’ve been full of fear, anger, and resentment. The type of resentment I’ve had is not anything I would have called fear or self-centeredness at the time, and it always started the same way. First I would feel annoyed or bothered. Over time, the emotion would grow into agitation. What started off as a nuisance turned into a full-scale resentment, as it engulfed my thinking. I would have to escape from the feelings that were overwhelming me. I would eat, and the feeling would dissipate for a time. So on one particular day, as I sat isolated in the conference room at my workplace, I felt a growing sense of tension. My chest and shoulders tightened and simultaneously expanded into what felt like a never-ending parade of stress. I could feel the walls around me getting smaller; I felt that the weight... Continue Reading
As a child, my mother, (God Bless her), would break a wooden spoon over my head or crack a thick yardstick on my back. When she realized what she had done, she would calm herself down and ask me what I would like her to fix me for a meal. Consequently, I got used to feeling better when eating a meal or two. My mother would tell me to clean my plate because of the starving children in China. I cannot blame my mother for my problems, especially since once I reached the age of reason, I continued to eat the same way as I did in my childhood years. I grew up in a family where life always centered on food and drink. On holidays all of our family came to our home because of the good food, which we all found comforting. In my eighteenth year in the... Continue Reading
Since I came into Food Addicts in Recovery Anonymous, in September 2011, I have had an abundance of firsts: My first meeting was my first experience with the 12 steps; although, it was not a match made in heaven. However, it was also the first time a fellow helped me see the truth: At the break, a gentleman who was sitting next to me showed me his picture. Here was this skinny guy showing me a picture of an overweight man which could very well have been me. That night my Higher Power helped me experience the first time I made an FA commitment. I made a commitment to call another FA fellow, who “cornered” me at the literature table during the break (more later). That night was also the first time I complained about FA. After the meeting ended, I got into my car and immediately called my sister... Continue Reading
