For Today: July 6th

If you are reluctant to ask the way, you will be lost.

Malay proverb

If I knew what to do to arrest my illness, I wouldn’t be here.  Recovery requires a change of ways, a willingness to go to any length.  I need to ask directions:  How do I stay abstinent?  How do I avoid becoming obsessed with diet and weight loss?  I have to ask questions, even when I think I know the answers---or, perhaps, especially when I think I know the answers.

Step by step, I will find my way, asking for help, using telephone numbers, getting a sponsor, listening and sharing at meetings.

I will do what is necessary to be restored to sanity.

For Today:  May I continue to discard more of the pride and arrogance I put aside when I came to OA and asked for help.

How do I stay abstinent? I follow my Food Plan which means I eat at scheduled times throughout the day and stick to a meal plan that is very simple & straightforward:  No trigger foods meaning nothing too salty or sweet, no processed foods, and no sugar. That means I eat lean meats, fish, low fat cheeses, seeds, all vegetables, some fruit, air-popped popcorn (for whole grains) and that’s pretty much IT.  If it’s not the right scheduled time to eat, I do not eat.  If I want to eat a food that is not part of my food plan, I do not eat it. I ask God to help me stay the course & He comes through every time I ask for His help.  If I do not ask for His help & instead use my OWN will, that is when I run into trouble.

How do I avoid becoming obsessed with diet & weight loss?    By sticking TO a structured Food Plan & a timed, regular exercise program.  The rules dictate what I eat & how long I exercise.  This, to me, constitutes abstinence.  A structured Life Plan that prevents me from using my will & keeps me on track for doing God’s will.  Commitment is the key to success; staying committed to such a Life Plan changes my age-old habits and eventually, the bad ones are replaced with good ones.  Having no choice in the matter is what relieves the obsession with diets & weight.  I weigh in once a week, or once every other week, and I treat the number indifferently.  My only goal in weighing in is to know that my Food Plan does not need to be changed, and that I am on target with my healthy lifestyle.

Abstinence = A Life Plan = Rules = Commitment = Willingness = Prayer & Meditation/Working the Steps

While I do not have 'all the answers' by any means, I do have a plan to follow which keeps me sane and balanced. Sanity and balance do not come to me naturally, as a compulsive overeater, so I take the steps necessary to force them upon myself.