[patd]

I thought it would help myself and some others if we discussed the steps.

Step one states.

We admitted we were powerless over food-that our lives had become unmanagble.

Are you on this step? Have you alread accepted this step? If you are on this step what are your thoughts and if having a problem why? If you've already accepted this step how did you do that?

I'm on this step. My block is I still think there has to be a "diet" out there that I haven't tried that will work! What I don't know as I've tried them all it seems. I still am buying magizines that will give me the answer and now that the 1st of the year is apporching there will be more of them to buy!

So does one have to give up the bringing to take this step and that's why I'm having a problem or do you take the step first?

thanks for all who post.
hugs
patd

[bargoo]

Absolutely take this step first. It is the first step ,after all and is essential to achieve success.

[marny]

Pat-
I re-posted a couple of old threads on these topics. Hope they help.

[tommy]

Writing about my history with food was very helpful to me at Step One. For example write about your first food memories, your various attempts at weight loss, the pain and humiliation you have gone thru over your weight, the lengths you have gone to to get food, hide food, etc. Then when my "smarty-pants" self starts to think she has it under control I take my journal out and re-read the pain I put in ink.

[sidhe]

I take step one every day, pretty much. Lately there have been things every day that remind me of where I was, how frustrated and hopeless I was, and how lost I felt.

I absolutely accept that I do not have the answer myself. If I did, with all my education and all my reading and all my studies and all my attempts, I'd be thin by now. I came to this program accepting that EVERYTHING I knew and everything I understood hadn't worked, and there had to be something I was missing. There had to be some missing component. Simply understanding nutrition and exercise wasn't enough, having the 'right' combination of macronutrients wasn't enough, eating a certain amount wasn't enough. I came to OA completely accepting the idea of the 'ghost in the machine', and completely willing to accept that I was missing something.

[Artemis__]

I'm doing my first real in-depth work on this step currently.
I've taken time out to write my food history. This is going to take me quite a while, though!
I started to write about my experiences with food and what it meant to me during my early life. I completed this yesterday.
Next I'm going to start to write my 'diet history'.
I first discovered OA around 25 years ago, but I fell at Step One because I did not believe that I was powerless. If I'd believed it then, the last 25 years of my life would have been very different. However, I have to look forward now.
OA is the way to go for me, and Step One is the place to begin.
I'm in no hurry.
One Day At A Time

[marny]

Artemis-

Great work with the history writing-- that it's taking a long time means that you are being fearlessly thorough. Can't ask for more than that.

[Artemis__]

Marny, I am being fearlessly thorough, and it's bringing up some really horrible stuff that I've packed neatly away for years. I feel it is cathartic though.
Sometimes I have to stop to cry, or feel angry, or feel some other emotion, but it's really helped me.

Day 3 of abstinence today. This is the first time I've managed 3 consecutive days for many, many months.

[marny]

Hey there-

You've already started writing your food history-- I forgot!

Yep, there are a lot of feelings there. When we are in the food, we aren't feeling. When we begin abstinence it's like feeling for the first time. It hurts, we cry, we feel shame, anger, fear, and often loneliness.

We find that we've been eating over all kinds of old wounds. The awesome thing is that now we're shining some light on those scars, we're letting others touch them, and we can finally let them heal. We find that after some time, we don't feel the need to eat over them anymore.

It's a lot of work. It hurts. But, being an obese compulsive overeater hurts worse.

3 days is something to cheer about. Hurray.