JimF_2012_07_22

You’ll want to keep your notepad handy when you listen to Jim share a wealth of wisdom on how to be successful in OA. He tells you how he avoided an early death due to eating normally during the day but compulsively eating all evening. You’ll enjoy how he shares things such as his definition of abstinence, how he communicates with his higher power and deals with spirituality (which he didn’t originally want to believe in!), why he believes compulsive eaters are not addicted to food nor have an eating disorder nor a psychological problem, what vital thing you are missing without a food plan, why a gaining weight doesn’t cause the medical problem anymore than losing weight removes it, and you will laugh when you learn what word  he uses as a substitute for “exercise”. You’ll likely relate to his denial about being a compulsive eater, which was so deep he would eat things like a huge bag of M&Ms with a Diet Coke thinking that they would cancel. He explains how he didn’t know he had a disease, so he tried endless diets and exercise, leading into the demoralizing realization that he had no power of choice. He’ll tell you details of how his sponsor in another 12 step group, who was an M.D., became alarmed as he watched Jim in endure heart operations and onset diabetes, eventually referring Jim to OA. Jim will tell you the things that his sponsor said he needed to do to be successful in OA, one of which Jim was sure would not work but was absolutely amazed to find out was a key to successfully being absent and normal weight for the past 14 years. Don’t miss Jim’s share!