Overeaters Anonymous (OA) is a community of people who support each other in order to recover from compulsive eating and food behaviours. We welcome everyone who feels they have a problem with food.
Overeaters Anonymous
Overeaters Anonymous is a Fellowship of individuals who, through shared experience, strength and hope, are recovering from compulsive overeating. We welcome everyone who wants to stop eating compulsively. The OA Programme is based on the twelve step recovery programme of Alcoholics Anonymous. In OA we admit that we are powerless over food and cannot manage our eating behaviours alone. In OA we find others who can help us to find a saner and more beneficial way to deal with our eating problems and our living problems.
How much does OA cost?
There is no 'charge' for attending an OA meeting. However, the meetings do have to pay rent to the venue in which they meet and pay for other expenses such as literature, tea, coffee and supporting the various service boards and committees, which help OA to function and reach new members. Many meetings therefore have a suggested donation, which roughly covers the running expenses of the meeting. This amount is not obligatory; it is a voluntary contribution only and members are encouraged to give what they can to help the meeting function.
Who belongs in OA?
Primarily, whether an individual belongs in Overeaters Anonymous is a decision for that individual alone. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop eating compulsively. This may include compulsive overeating, under eating, dieting, starving, over exercising, vomiting, laxative abuse or any other of a number of symptoms related to eating and measures aimed at weight management. Whatever your problem with food, you are welcome in OA. The terms compulsive eater and compulsive overeater are used interchangeably throughout our literature.
How do OA members lose weight and maintain a healthy weight?
The concept of abstinence is the basis of OA’s programme of recovery, and we do have a formal definition:
Abstinence in Overeaters Anonymous is the action of refraining from compulsive eating and compulsive food behaviours while working towards or maintaining a healthy body weight
By admitting inability to control compulsive eating in the past and abandoning the idea that all one needs is “a little willpower,” it becomes possible to abstain from overeating—one day at a time.
While a diet can help us lose weight, it often intensifies the compulsion to overeat. The solution offered by OA does not include diet tips. We don’t offer any diets, counselling services, hospitalisation or treatment; nor does OA participate in or conduct research and training in the field of eating disorders. OA members interested in learning about nutrition or who require professional advice are encouraged to consult qualified professionals. We may freely use such help, with the assurance that OA supports each of us in our efforts to recover.
How does OA work?
We in OA believe we have a threefold illness—physical, emotional and spiritual. Tens of thousands have found that OA’s Twelve-Step program effects recovery on all three levels.
The Twelve Steps embody a set of principles which, when followed, promote inner change. Sponsors help us understand and apply these principles. As old attitudes are discarded, we often find there is no longer a need for excess food. Those of us who choose to recover one day at a time practice the Twelve Steps. In so doing, we achieve a new way of life and lasting freedom from our food obsession.
Overeaters Anonymous Great Britain | For anyone with eating issues