Overeaters Anonymous Remains Source of Hope for Compulsive Eaters
Compulsive overeating, or food addiction, can be a tough battle to win. For millions of compulsive overeaters, the messages and reminders concerning food are never-ending. Unlike drug or alcohol addictions, the addict needs food for survival – and the temptation to overeat can be great. It is also a destructive addiction that many people keep secret for years.
Founded in 1960, Overeaters Anonymous (OA) offers a recovery strategy for overcoming food addiction that uses the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, and may help some food addicts recover their health and well-being. With approximately 70,000 members in chapters nation-wide, OA is becoming more popular as a tool for food addiction recovery.
In contrast to fad diets and highly-marketed quick plans for weight loss, the OA program maintains complete recovery from addiction to food as its goal. Through meetings, books and group conferences, a person’s needs can be considered on all levels: physical, spiritual and on the feelings/emotions spectrum. People with eating disorders like anorexia or bulimia are also encouraged to join, and contrary to public stereotypes, members can be of all weight levels and ranges.
Also known as compulsive eating, the food addiction problem is called a disease and can quickly escalate to put a person’s health in jeopardy. Members of OA carefully maintain an attitude of constant healing and recovery – realizing that like alcohol addiction, many people can remain addicted to food for life. For many compulsive overeaters, food has become a powerful tool for responding to stress or avoiding negative feelings.
Some hallmark characteristics of compulsive overeating include frequent eating without hunger, repetitive binge eating, and feelings of sadness, anger or guilt after eating. Some food addicts will anticipate or plan their next food binge, and seek opportunities to eat by themselves. The problem can be masked for years if the person eats normally when in public, but binges at home – especially if they maintain a normal weight.
The Twelve Steps used by OA chapters begin with the declaration that the person has lost control over eating. OA members also discuss their obsessions with food, particularly the abnormal amounts of time they may spend thinking about food or preparing it. Specific tools, like a food plan for the day and frequent contact with an OA sponsor, are among strategies used worldwide.
Similar to other addictions, compulsive overeaters recovering with OA can have a relapse. This may be a binge and/or purge or over-consumption of foods considered trigger foods, such as sugar or carbohydrates.
Writing out feelings or emotions is also cited as a helpful tool by OA chapters and members, which can lead to greater understanding of the life situations that lie at the root of the compulsive eating behaviors. Anonymity among members is critical, as is service to the community. Acts of service, such as volunteering or helping a fellow member by acting as a sponsor, are longtime foundations of OA recovery strategies.
Abstaining from overeating is a daily challenge, but members say they do not have to rely merely on willpower once they become connected to an OA group. Tools like chapter meetings, focused literature, food plans and sponsorship have helped thousands of food addicts find freedom from the compulsion.
