Have you ever wished you could lose ten pounds (5 kg)? Twenty (9 kg)? Forty (18kg)? A hundred(45kg) or more? Have you ever wished that once you got it off you could keep it off? Welcome to OA; welcome home!
Have you sometimes felt out of step with the world, like a homeless orphan without a place where you really belonged? Welcome to OA; welcome home!
Have you ever wished your family would get to work or school so you could get busy eating? Welcome to OA; welcome home!
Have you ever awakened first thing in the morning and felt happy because you remembered that your favorite goodie was waiting for you in the fridge or in the cupboard? Welcome to OA; welcome home!
Have you ever looked up at the stars and wondered what an insignificant person like you is doing in the world anyway? Welcome to OA; welcome home!
Have you ever cooked, bought, or baked for your family and then eaten everything yourself so you wouldn’t have to share? We know you in OA because we are you. Welcome to OA; welcome home!
Have you ever wanted to hide in the house, without going to work, without getting cleaned up or even getting dressed, without seeing anyone or letting anyone see you? Welcome to OA; welcome home!
Have you ever hidden food under the bed, under the pillow, in the drawer, in the bathroom, in the wastebasket, the cupboard, the clothes hamper, the closet, or the car so that you could eat without anyone seeing you? Welcome to OA; welcome home!
Have you ever been angry, resentful, defiant—toward God, your mate, your doctor, your mother, your father, your friends, your children, the salespeople in stores whose looks spoke a thousand words as you tried on clothes—because they were thin, because they wanted you to be thin, and because you were forced to diet to please them or shut them up or make them eat their words and their looks? We welcome you to OA; welcome home!
Have you ever sobbed out your misery in the dark night because no one loved or understood you? Welcome to OA; welcome home!
—A Taste of Lifeline, pp. xiii–xvi
© Overeaters Anonymous