Tony talks about and names specific foods so he will not forget the compulsion he had for those foods for so many years.  At age 7 he started to gain weight very rapidly.   His parents created an abstinent household but when they would go out he would steal their money and go to the local market.  When he didn’t have money he would go to the same market to steal whatever he fancied.  Whatever it took to get his fix!  He liked sweets because of the effect the sugar produced, even though it only lasted a few minutes.  In those few minutes he felt as though all of his troubles were gone.    At age 11 he went to his first OA meeting but felt uncomfortable around all of the adults.  He didn’t return to meetings until he was 21. When he began to sponsor other people he found that the people he sponsored gave him exactly what he needed to look at in himself.  Today, going to meetings, the tools, prayer, meditation and sponsorship are a very big part of his life. He realized that through the years he has been able to get through so much and has been given so much thanks to the OA program.  He is a very grateful, and very happy recovering compulsive overeater.

Bob H. will give you a smile and some things to think about as he shares with his folksy, open, and practical style about his struggle and success with compulsive eating. He talks about what he used to eat in gallon cans, and the unpleasant kind of chocolate he ate before he went to Hometown Buffet. Bob tells how a non-OA 12-step group member offered to sponsor him, even though he didn’t like Bob at the time! Bob shares his wisdom on the 12 steps, such as why a diet isn’t enough for us, an unusual analogy of what it is like if we don’t follow the steps will following a food plan (hint: it has to do with apes), what he uses to follow the steps, why many people in 12 step don’t talk about their higher power, why following the steps is the most loving thing you can do for yourself, what happens to your issues if you don’t follow the steps, and how he develops the discipline to follow the steps and tools. Finally, he shares what he believes character defects are, and the wonderful benefits you will receive by being willing to have them removed.