Newcomers
Download the Newcomers Guide: Where Do I Start?
New to OA?
Have you tried over and over again to control your eating and weight, but nothing has worked? Compulsive overeating, under-eating, food addiction, anorexia, bulimia, binge eating, or over-exercising … no matter your challenge with food or body image, you are welcome here. Let’s dive in and learn a little more about OA.
What is OA?
Overeaters Anonymous (OA) is a Twelve-Step fellowship of people recovering from compulsive eating. OA is not a diet club. We are dedicated to helping individuals recover from compulsive eating, anorexia, bulimia, food addiction, and obesity. If you are struggling, you are not alone anymore.
OA 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. There are no dues or fees for members; we are self-supporting through our own contributions, neither soliciting nor accepting outside donations. OA is not affiliated with any public or private organization, political movement, ideology, or religious doctrine; we take no position on outside issues.
Our primary purpose is to abstain from compulsive eating and to carry the message of recovery through the Twelve Steps of OA to those who still suffer.
Who Belongs to OA?
OA members are men and women from around the world. Some have been obese, while others have been anorexic, bulimic, or normal weight. We have been unable to freely live our lives because we have been so obsessed with food or weight.
OA members experience many different patterns of food behaviors. These “symptoms” are as varied as our membership. Among them are:
- obsession with body weight, size, and shape
- eating binges or grazing
- preoccupation with reducing diets
- starving
- laxative or diuretic abuse
- excessive exercise
- inducing vomiting after eating
- chewing and spitting out food
- use of diet pills, shots, and other medical interventions to control weight
- inability to stop eating certain foods after taking the first bite
- fantasies about food
- vulnerability to quick-weight-loss schemes
- constant preoccupation with food
- using food as a reward or comfort
Our symptoms may vary, but we share a common bond: we are powerless over food and our lives are unmanageable. This common problem has led those in OA to seek and find a common solution in the Twelve Steps, the Twelve Traditions, and the nine tools of Overeaters Anonymous.
Am I a Compulsive Overeater?
OA includes members who have experienced different manifestations of compulsive eating and food behaviors. Our fellowship includes anorexics, bulimics, and overeaters; ALL who struggle with food obsession are welcome and have found recovery in OA. Weight is not a criterion for membership. Whatever your problem with food, OA welcomes you.
To see if you’re in the right place, we suggest you take this quiz.
Does the Program Really Work?
Typically, OA members have tried numerous solutions to their problems with food, including (for many of us) years of diets or exercise. In OA, we have finally found a long-term answer. Many OA members have maintained a normal weight and found freedom from compulsive eating for many years. Overeaters Anonymous is patterned after the Alcoholics Anonymous program. Physical, emotional, and spiritual recovery are offered through attending meetings, practicing the Twelve-Step program, and helping others.
How Do I Start?
If you have concerns about your relationship with food, we hope that you’ll give yourself a chance for recovery in OA. Please browse our website and attend a local meeting. We recommend that newcomers attend at least six different meetings to help you decide if OA is for you.
What is an OA Meeting Like?
First of all: a deep breath. There’s nothing to be nervous about. You will be welcome. You’ll find you are not alone anymore. Everyone at the meeting knows where you’re coming from about food. Here’s what happens at a typical meeting, but all meetings are a little different.
Once you’ve found a meeting that you want to check out, you show up. Set aside an hour for your meeting. Consider this “you” time. You’ll meet others like you with a simple first-name introduction and be genuinely welcomed. Get yourself settled with the group to enjoy various readings, members sharing their journeys, and learning more about OA. Participate as much or as little as you want. You are welcome to share but you don’t have to. If you have questions, you can talk with individual members after the meeting. Congratulations—you completed your first meeting!
But, wait. What about the weigh-in? What about paying a membership fee? There’s none of that. When people become members, they often voluntarily contribute, but it’s never required. We promise.
So, to recap, at OA there’s …
- No weigh-in
- No membership fee
- No judgment
- No religion (we’re a spiritual group)
- A safe place for everyone (all genders, races, ages, sexual orientations, sizes)
- A program that works
- Hope
- …and there are people who will understand
To find the meeting that works for you we suggest you try a variety.
What is a Sponsor?
Sponsors are OA members who are living the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions to the best of their ability. They are willing to share their recovery with other members of the Fellowship and are committed to abstinence. Ask a member who has what you want from the program and how he or she is achieving it. A member may work with more than one sponsor and may change sponsors at will. A sponsor will work with you through the Twelve Steps of Overeaters Anonymous. Read more about sponsorship.
What Does “Working the Program” Mean?
OA is a Twelve-Step fellowship much like Alcoholics Anonymous. It’s our one-day-at-a-time approach plus our members that make us different from other solutions you may have tried. You may not be familiar with a twelve-step program—and that’s okay, we’re here to help!
Newcomer Meetings
San Diego Overeaters Anonymous has 2 meetings each week specifically for newcomers. Click here to see all the English language online meetings for Newcomers.
Monday, 6:30–7:00 PM (PT)
Beginners Intro
Join Zoom Meeting
Saturday, 8:00–8:30 AM (PT)
Newcomers Program Introduction
Join Zoom Meeting