[Snoopy4801]

My name is Amy, I am 29 and I am a binge eater.

I am 5'4, and i just had a baby in November. The horrible thing is i used the pregnancy as an excuse to eat more food. I gained 70lbs.

My life is consumed by food. I have a wonderful husband children and job, but my day is controlled by food. I think about what i'm going to eat the next day when i go to bed at night. I can't wait to leave the house so i can get what i want on my way to work. I hide my eating from my husband. I eat "good" in front of him but then sneak bad food when he runs errands. I throw fast food wrappers away before i get home because i'm so ashamed of my behavior. I eat what i want and then tear myself up with guilt afterwards.

I have accepted that i am a food addict and i need help. So any suggestions? I thought I'd start with the forums but i definitely need a sponsor to help me navigate the 12 steps.

[dannyb]

Hi, Amy, and welcome to OA!

Congratulations on taking the first step! Whether you realize it or not, that's what you did when you wrote: I have accepted that i am a food addict and i need help. The OA approach can help you control your addiction.

I suggest that you start by going to the OA Website. That'll give you some very basic information. There, you'll find links to where you can find a local meeting. If there isn't a meeting nearby you, you can also find links to telephone meetings and on-line meetings.

I attend a weekly meeting that is in my town. I also consider myself part of an on-line fellowship that is part of OA called The Recovery Group. It is a great resource with lots of information for newcomers. They have on-line meetings every 3 hours, including 3 meetings a week just for newcomers. They have newcomer email discussion groups and they even have a Newcomer Orientation that begins every month.

If you post questions here, I'll be happy to help you. Best wishes as you begin your journey to recovery.

Dan

[dannyb]

By the way, as far as finding a sponsor, The Recovery Group can help you with that; that's where I found my sponsor. Some people prefer to go with a sponsor who they meet at a face to face meeting.

Some people have 2 sponsors - a program sponsor that helps them with the 12 steps and a food sponsor who helps them develop a plan of eating.

You may want to start out first by figuring out a plan of eating. OA doesn't do that for you - it isn't a diet program. The approach that I took was to eliminate the foods that I knew caused me to binge-eat. I'm basically following the South Beach Diet, which is flexible. When I stick to reasonable meals of healthy foods in modest portions, and I limit myself to healthy snacks (eliminating the triggers), then I consider myself abstinent.

[SCMOMMY11]

Amy, your post is an eye opener for me. I sometimes do the same thing. I mostly feel ashamed. Thanks dan for the info