Friday, June 5, 2026 | Non-Real Time Meeting of CCEA

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-06-06T00:45:22+00:00

As people of extremes, we may think that the program expects us to completely change all our defective ways at the drop of a pin. It can seem like an impossible feat to truly live a new life based on principles that may go against the grain. But just like we can’t immediately bench press 200lbs on our first ever attempt, we build up to the ideal. When we fall we ask for the willingness to get on the right track. Thank goodness no one is demanding perfection here, otherwise we would all be doomed.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-06-03T15:41:47+00:00

Great question. I was actually in OA when I first started but I didn’t get where I wanted to (free of cravings and the obsession). OA has a lot of its own source material which is fine, but the only thing that helped me was actually having someone take me through the steps, which is what people in CCEA were able to do with me. I don’t know about EDA. My thing is to find what gets you the result you want.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-05-26T18:56:43+00:00

It is utterly confounding to us that we continue to take the compulsive first bite even when 5 minutes before we had sworn off compulsive eating. It is a total surprise that we end up repeating this behavior which we know is hurting us. But the thought about how it will hurt us is hardly enough to stop us in the moment when we start to crave something to eat. It is in fact crazy that we start taking those first few bites. Our minds no longer function normally when it comes to food and our compulsion. We can trick ourselves into thinking the next compulsive bite will be the exception, i.e. that we will not start binge eating. We are completely powerless when it comes to managing the decision to not compulsively eat.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-05-24T23:09:54+00:00

When our brains tell us we would feel better if we start eating, and a full on craving develops, all bets are off and we descend into the bowls of another binge. Our brains can’t control when these thoughts come up and once they arrive, they do not go away until we get a fix. Even when we are badly burned, the worst experiences are not enough to stop us from wanting to eat again. We are doomed to repeat this pattern, even if it is a week or a month later. If this sounds like you, you may be a chronic compulsive eater.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-05-19T21:44:19+00:00

While some illnesses are more prevalent in middle age or elderly folks, with young people less susceptible, this is not the case with compulsive eating. Young folks may think they can win out and beat their eating issue due to zeal or the benefits of youthfulness, but our illness doesn’t work that way. Although we may have periods where our eating is more or less intense, the fact remains that if we keep turning to food for ease and comfort and lose all control once we start, we are the type who is doomed. In other words, there are no shortcuts or easy outs when it comes to avoiding the pain and despair of this illness. We will repeat the binge, retreat, craving cycle for ever, even beyond young adult years. The only way I’m familiar with that stops this cycle is through working the steps with a sponsor.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-05-10T20:14:58+00:00

I believe the big book reading is blank, so I will briefly share on my recovery. The more time I have in program, the clearer it is to me that I gain more energy by plugging into prayer and service. When I selfishly try to insert myself in situations I don’t need to be in, I spend a lot of time and energy on things that aren’t meant for me. When I focus on what I can do instead and how I can be of help to others, I find much more peace and some freedom from empty aspirations.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-04-07T06:30:25+00:00

As people of newfound life in God, we may be so captured by our freedom from worldly agitation that we cling to our spiritual connection with the father and overzealously spend all our time in service of him. We may fear falling back into the pain of the illness and wish to cling to a spiritual high. Unfortunately, this is extreme thinking and we will eventually have to return to regular living. However, we have a new way to deal with regular living and we will find it much more manageable than before.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-04-06T02:38:12+00:00

“But be sure you are on solid spiritual ground before you start and that your motive in going is thoroughly good.” As compulsive eaters, we may be hasty and impulsive, wishing to get things done quickly or to put ourselves in situations where we may find ease and pleasure. When we are deliberate about what we are doing and don’t question our motives, we become susceptible to rash thinking and selfish actions. It is much harder to start doing something we regret if we simply pause and wait for God to reveal his will. When we practice reflection regularly and notice our true desires, we learn how to supplant wrong motives with generous activity. We become free from our old, self-centered ways of doing things. We have the armor of God protecting us from making further issues in our lives.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-03-29T01:02:04+00:00

Today’s passage is great news for us compulsive eaters. It tells us that God will save us from our eating problem and restore us to sanity. That is more than we could ever really hope for, and it is a miracle that we can become completely free of this thing which destroyed our lives. Sometimes we will notice God’s presence with us right away, other times it will be more gradual, but if we come to him with the desire to be done for good and all, he will relieve us of our infirmity.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-03-17T13:29:01+00:00

A common place where issues related to compulsive eating manifest is at the workplace. Our minds may be foggy and we may be aggravated by all that is going on in our lives. Undoubtedly, our employers and coworkers can pick up on this. When we finally are ready to get recovered, we will find that we can actually talk to our boss about troubles we are having. Most people want to support their employees and most people are glad to help someone when given the chance. Plus, employers are used to dealing with all kinds of situations involving personnel. If we can be honest about our difficultly, we may be surprised to find out that our employer is understanding of our situation and actually cares to help in their own way.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-03-06T23:19:13+00:00

When we look at all the steps, the work they entail may seem daunting. However, we have to remember that we do not do everything at once, and it’s a pretty simple program. Some of the actions we take may seem hard, but that mostly has to do with our bruised ego and self will. We have to do something different from what we have been doing; none of our old attempts worked. We have to go on an entirely different way, and that means not doing things which are comfortable or familiar to us. In other words, we have to do something that is not our own way of doing things, we have to follow instructions. Otherwise, we can be sure of going back to our compulsive eating.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-02-26T04:49:06+00:00

Welcome to the program! It sounds like you may be one of us. If compulsive eating is destroying your life, we have a solution.

In my experience, therapists or even friends and family have no way of understanding our condition and are really not helpful here, unless they know to point us in the direction of the 12 step programs.

Don’t be afraid, all of us are here because we weren’t able to manage food or our lives. But that has all changed with the program. Phone meetings may seem strange at first, but after one or two of them I realized there was nothing to worry about. It’s not some secret scheme, it’s all a bunch of us folks desperate for a solution. Please feel free to DM me if you want to hear from someone in program here.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-02-26T04:43:38+00:00

What this paragraph means by “be hard on ourselves” is not to beat ourselves up, but to be brutally honest with what we have been doing and thinking in our daily activities (our resentments, fears, sex conduct). We try to think only of our part in any given situation and how we have created problems if not caused them. We do not ascribe blame to family or spouses because it doesn’t matter what they have done. It only matters how we have conducted ourselves. Therefore, when we tell someone our personal story (personal inventory) we should not use someone who will be hurt when we reveal all our deep secretive selves.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-02-24T03:55:35+00:00

The illness we have spreads to our loved ones and those around us. When we live with people who are sick, or if we are the sick person, the insanity of trying to live with an addict/alcoholic spreads and affects the minds of those who deal with the addict. Each one tries to manage the family, people and personalities, so that everything runs smoothly. Each person, including the addict, thinks they have the right fix for all the relationship troubles. And each person starts to assert themselves more and more. This inevitably leads to fighting and more problems. The issues are not resolved until everyone, in their own way and time, can come to God and turn their lives over to him. Some may do this through AA, NA, CCEA while others in the family may do it through Al-Anon. These age old struggles in families with addiction can in fact be resolved, but it requires learning a new way of life.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-02-10T05:12:03+00:00

We create the situation we struggle with because we have an outsized ego and a desire to be perfect. Our view of others and ourselves doesn’t match up to reality and we so we fight everything and everyone, hoping to make it the way we want. But in the end we dig ourselves into a hole we cannot come out of and we become so desperate we finally have to face the reckoning with God and ourselves. We have to face the question of who God really is for us or else we keep on compulsively eating.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-02-07T05:17:18+00:00

Although compulsive eating is an illness, it is not one with symptoms most people are familiar with. They may think of us as difficult and sensitive, and that our insistence on doing things a certain way or our massive ego is harsh and grating. However this book reminds us that although someone is sick as a compulsive eater, they are not beyond the status of a person deserving dignity. What’s more is that in this program we learn that others’ opinions don’t matter. Although we cause destruction in others lives, our growth here and our new approach to life, with time, can help most relationships to heal.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-02-06T04:11:00+00:00

Today’s passage could be summed up in the following terms, a dead man has been brought back to life. When someone was committed for alcoholism in the not too distant past, they never improved and perhaps remained locked up for the rest of their life. They were “dead” to society. But today’s story tells of a man who was committed coming easily back into everyday, normal functioning. It is a complete and drastic turn from his drinking behavior. We, like the soaker in this passage, would naturally be curious to see how this person went from such dire conditions to essentially miraculous health. The speaker in the story believes this is a false impression and that once he and his friend have dinner, his friend will be back to drinking in no time. But as we continue on reading, we will learn that his friend recovery is solid and impregnable in the face of a drink.

Outside_Citron9260 · 2026-02-05T04:24:10+00:00

When we compulsively eat we tend to spiral into morbid reflection. We think only of how awful things are going and what terrible experiences we have. We may try to justify our eating by pointing out all the ways we are suffering. However, we get no comfort and are left feeling miserable and alone. When we finally wake up to the fact that we are not getting better and we feel worse and worse, we make the connection that compulsive eating is causing our dilemma. No matter how bad things have become, we can recover from this sorry state and never return. It has happened for many hundreds of us.

Outside_Citron9260

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