|
Planting Seeds of Recovery: Joint Intergroup Outreach at CCSAD 2026
The Cape Cod Intergroup and Ocean & Bay Intergroup extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone who supported our joint Overeaters Anonymous (OA) booth at the Cape Cod Symposium on Addictive Disorders (CCSAD), held August 6–8, 2026, in Providence, Rhode Island. Your time, energy and service helped us plant vital seeds of recovery among a broad community of healthcare professionals.
Click here for full article and photos (Click on photos to enlarge)
| |
“When we finish our amends most of us feel closer to our Higher Power than ever before.” — The Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions of Overeaters Anonymous, pp. 80-81. Wreckage from my past keeps me focused on others. This provides a distraction from my side of the street and my part of the story. Focusing outward means I am still driven by guilt, resentment, or shame. None of these emotions permit me to be centered or to stay in the moment. They distract me as much as compulsive overeating does. When I do a Ninth Step, I am facing my relationship problems head on. I can then say I have done what I can to right whatever wrongs I caused in the past and have changed my behavior towards people in the present. By doing this, I slowly bulldoze out the debris of shame, resentment, and guilt. I then have space to let lightness in. Spirituality is the essence of lightness.
Source: September 1, Voices of Recovery
|
Every slip has a beginning. Know your danger signals.
|
- Start missing meetings for any reason, real or imaginary.
- Become critical of the methods used by other members who may not agree with you in everything.
- Nurse the idea that someday, somehow, you can eat like “normal people” again.
- Let the other members do the Twelfth Step work in your group. You are too busy.
- Become conscious of your OA “seniority” and view every member with a skeptical eye.
- Become so pleased with your own views of the program that you consider yourself an authority.
- Start a small clique within your group, composed of only a few members who see eye-to-eye with you.
- Tell a new member in confidence that you yourself do not take ALL of the Twelve Steps seriously.
- Let your mind dwell more and more on how much you are helping others, rather than on how much the OA program is helping you.
- If an unfortunate member has a slip, drop them at once.
- Graduate to the point of no longer needing a sponsor yourself.
- Consider a food plan vital for new members, but not for yourself. You outgrew the need for that long ago.
For more info on oa.org click here
| |
Saturday, September 12, 2026
The parking lot at YANA will be closed for 24 hours for sealing & seal coating.
Seek parking elsewhere
LIMITED Pedestrian access to the building will be available
(PER OUR LANDLORD)
YANA WILL BE OPEN
| |
No, we didn’t actually buy a huge billboard. But, we made this graphic to convey the potentially big job these little cards can do to get the word out there to those who still suffer from this disease. We encourage all who are willing to put them in public places throughout your community.
To get some, text Nancy at: (401) 447-6467. She’ll mail some to you right away.
| |
I’m often inspired when I hear stories of difficult amends. Families reunited. Large sums of money repaid. Hatchets buried. Friendships resumed. Feuds resolved. I heard these from my fellow OA members. And I hope to do as well by those I have harmed as they have.
But like so many things in recovery, size doesn’t always matter. Quality matters as much as quantity. And consistency matters as much as that one big moment. I can’t undo the past. But in making amends, I commit to taking responsibility for the messes I’ve made. Maybe I haven’t done something as glamorous as getting arrested. Maybe, instead, I’ve slowly eroded relationships with others through a thousand tiny paper cuts I’ve given them in my addiction.
So instead of comparing my recovery to others’ experiences with amends, I can compare my own befores to my own afters. What was my home life like before I began making amends to my loved ones? What is it like now? What was my work life like before I began making amends? What is it like now? Same goes for any relationship I’m in.
But when I say “before I began making amends,” in many respects I am never done making amends. To amend something is to change it. When I make amends I don’t just say I’m sorry. I tell the other person I’m changing my behavior. And then I rely on my HP to help me live in a changed manner. And I become the changed person I committed to.
That means that each day I am making amends simply in how I conduct myself. If I used to passively watch my spouse do everything around the house, I pick up a sponge and start doing the dishes. If I gossiped about people at work, I stop self-serving conversations and ask how I can help a co-worker. If I used to ignore my long-distance family members, I pick up the phone. These are my everyday amends. The little things I do.
The weight loss has been great. But I know that if I don’t change as a person, my compulsive eating will return, just as it always has. People in my life have been on the receiving end of a lot of my depression, anxiety and resentment. Skinny or fat, they know the score with me. They know I’ve never been able to change.
I can’t prove them wrong. Only my Higher Power can. And just because I ask my HP to work through me doesn’t mean I just sit around waiting for inspiration to strike. I do things for others. I help where I didn’t used to. I fake it until I make it… with HP’s help. Because while the big things make great stories, it’s the little everyday amends that, moment to moment, help me stay on the broad highway of recovery.
—Anonymous
Source: Sacramento Valley Intergroup
| |
IMAGINE THE MIRACLES
2025 REGION 6 CONVENTION
Click here to listen to the Sunday Keynote Speaker.
For more recordings click here to make your selection.
| |
September 9
Minds, like bodies, will often fall into a pimpled, ill-conditioned state from mere excess of comfort.
—Charles Dickens
Excess kills the very qualities I seek in anything, be it possessions, activities or food. Compulsive overeating gives the illusion of comfort, but what begins as an attempt to fill unmet needs soon takes on a life of its own, demanding more and giving less in return. True comfort is to be found in the balance and sanity of abstinence. So deep and pure is this comfort that it is well worth whatever trouble or pain I might have to pass through to attain it.
For today: Abstinence from compulsive overeating is a state of mind, not a diet. God grant me abstinence today and, if need be, the willingness to go to any length to get it.
Source: For Today
| |
Come hear ideas on how you can encourage
service in your Intergroup.
We will also have time for you to
share your best practices, so be prepared!
SEPTEMBER 20, 2026 4:00 - 5:00 pm ET
Meeting ID: 883 1592 7438
Passcode: 088613
All OA members are welcome, but
PLEASE do not post on social media.
| |
A helpful OA newcomer resource is now available as an audiobook.
Where Do I Start?: Everything a Newcomer Needs to Know introduces newcomers to OA’s Twelve Step program and answers many of the questions that can arise when someone is beginning.
The audiobook, narrated by a virtual voice, provides another way to receive this information. Members and newcomers can listen at their own pace, revisit helpful sections, or use the audio alongside the printed or digital pamphlet.
It includes the Fifteen Questions, an abridged introduction to the Tools of Recovery, plans of eating, the OA Promise, “Welcome Home,” and answers to common questions about OA.
Visit the OA Bookstore to find the audiobook on Amazon and Audible.
The link is in the button below.
| You Will Not Be Fired From These Jobs! | |
In volunteer jobs there are no firings, no bosses, and no watching your back. Your “pay” is that good feeling you get from giving back what you have so freely been given - a solution that works. Overeaters Anonymous shows the way to stay abstinent and free from compulsive eating, bingeing, bulimia and other eating disorders. Help continue the good work of Ocean & Bay Intergroup and volunteer. There are more opportunities to volunteer and do service. Ocean & Bay Intergroup will accept nominations in October for two positions that will soon open up: Chair and Recording Secretary. Also, the position of Vice Chair is currently vacant. Apply today! Please consider nominating yourself or someone who you think will do a good job.
For position descriptions, click here.
| |
Find connection, recovery, and growth at our Overeaters Anonymous events—Step studies, retreats, anniversaries, and workshops. Think fellowship, humility, relapse-proofing, and the occasional spiritual epiphany.
Ready to join a meeting that might change your day—or your life? Click here to see upcoming OA events and grab your spot: friendly faces, real talk, and tools for staying well.
| Please consider writing down your thoughts and sending them to us. We’d love to print them in our newsletter. Thanks a lot. |
Ocean & Bay Sticker Store and More
| Ocean & Bay Intergroup has made use of an on-demand e-commerce store to sell a variety of items. What began as a simple idea to design and print a sticker to help spread the message of recovery has turned into an opportunity for you to purchase Ocean & Bay-branded merchandise. That's because every design we created can be applied to pillows, T-shirts, water bottles, community message boards, and so much more. So take a look at our store and feel free to take what you need and leave the rest. | |
Enhance Your Program with a New Journal
| | |
Welcome — this quick reference guide helps you find Overeaters Anonymous meetings worldwide, whether you prefer in-person, phone, or online formats. Use the step‑by‑step instructions to search by location, meeting type, language, and time zone, plus tips for newcomers, accessibility options, and how to contact meeting hosts or local service bodies. Keep this page handy to quickly connect with supportive OA meetings and resources whenever you need them.
You can find the quick reference guide here
| | Every OA meeting in the Ocean & Bay Intergroup is expected to send a meeting representative to the monthly Intergroup meeting. In the 7th tradition spirit of being self-supporting, this includes giving service. At your next business meeting, choose a member to represent your meeting at the Intergroup monthly meeting. Let your meeting’s voice be heard. Please contact Nancy at chair@oceanandbay.org if you have any questions. | | |
The PIPO Committee meets on the 3rd Monday of every month at 10:00 a.m. This month that’s Monday, September 21. All are welcome.
Here is the Zoom info:
Zoom ID: 875 7170 5051
Passcode: 776158
We’d love for you to join us.
| | Service Bodies here to help with your recovery. | | |
SPECIAL FOCUS MEETINGS
You are welcome at any OA meeting, and we hope you’ll try many of the meetings on our Intergroup and oa.org meeting lists! Some of our members find they also benefit from OA meetings with members who share similar experiences, so we are sharing this list of some of the special focus resources that are available in OA.
100 Pounders: Click Here
American Sign Language & Closed Caption – This meeting offers ASL interpretation Tuesdays at 8:00 p.m. Eastern: ASL Tues 8pm
Anorexics and Bulimics in OA – special focus meetings: Anorexics/Bulimics in OA
Asian-Pacific Islander OA: Click Here
Atheist, Agnostics, Secular - special focus meetings: Click Here
Bariatric Surgery: Click Here
BIPOC (Black, Indigenous & People of Color) – special focus meetings: BIPOC Intergroup
Health Issues: Click Here
LGBTQ special focus meetings for OA: bit.ly/ckslist and Click Here
OAMen.org is dedicated to distributing information about meetings, resources, and support for men in OA: Men in OA
Young People in OA – resources for those under 30 who suffer from compulsive eating include Meetings for young persons and https://oayoungpeople.org/
For more special focus meetings, you can go to OA.org:
-
go to Find a Meeting
- select a type of meeting (face-to-face, online, telephone, or non-real-time)
- click on "additional search options" and select the desired special focus
| | |
Mission & Vision Ocean & Bay Intergroup is dedicated to supporting individuals in need of recovery from compulsive eating (e.g.: overeating, bulimia, anorexia) through carrying the OA message and empowering all meetings within the Intergroup.
Strategic Goals
1. Help members strengthen their personal recovery
2. Increase the number of sponsors
3. Increase the number of newcomers
4. Increase the retention of newcomers
5. Help those in relapse
6. Inspire people to give more service
7. Increase outreach activities, including outreach to members and healthcare professionals
| | |
Please note that every effort has been made to adhere to OA's policy for newsletter publications. Opinions and experiences expressed within are those of the individual writer and not OA as a whole.
SUBMISSIONS: This is your newsletter! We welcome your contributions of news items or commentary.* Deadline: 15th of each month. Example: Deadline 9/15 for October newsletter.
Please email : newsletter@oceanandbay.org
*May be edited as space allows.
| | |
Ocean & Bay Intergroup
PO Box 2243, East Greenwich, RI 02818
Note: Make checks payable to Ocean and Bay Intergroup
| | | | |
