It Works If You Work It... Even When You're Sick!

Hi Everyone. My name is Charlie, and I'm a compulsive overeater.

::Hi, Charlie!::

Thursday afternoon I got sick. I mean really, really sick. I was out to lunch with Mrs. Charlie, and I started to feel a little sluggish, a little woozy... Frankly, it felt like I was getting drunk. I couldn't articulate my thoughts. It was as effort to speak. My food didn't taste good. In fact, I had to basically force myself to eat it. This is not normal.

I was already feeling a little bit icky, but I chalked that up to the fact that I was on Day One of my caffeine abstinence. I had a low-grade headache, and I was definitely a little bit cranky.

Anyway, as I drove back to the office, I wondered whether I ought to be driving at all, and then I realized I was going to throw up. Well, once I was back at work it was only a matter of time before I was in the bathroom losing my lunch. I curled up on the couch in my office and slept on and off for an hour or so. Then I slowly started to drive home. I soon realized that I wasn't going to make it home... so I hurriedly pulled into a KFC and threw up in their bathroom. Nasty.

Then I got home and basically collapsed on the couch. It was awful. I threw up once again here at home before my stomach started to settle down.

I was concerned about my abstinence. I didn't want to eat anything! But I had committed to eating certain food for the day, and to eat more or less than that pre-committed food constitutes a slip in OA-HOW. I talked to a few sponsors before I could get mine on the phone. And I changed over to a "sick plan" that enabled me to continue to eat, but to commit things like "up to 2 cups of cooked green beans" rather than a definite amount. That put a ceiling on what I could eat but wouldn't force me to eat what I couldn't get down.

It worked! The program worked! I worked the program, and I'm still abstinent. I woke up yesterday after sleeping like a brick for nine hours, and felt so much better! My stomach was still a little rumbly, but I was much better. I could even go to work.

And today I'm back to normal, still abstinent. And now with a plan in place for the next time I get sick.

And here's a recipe my sponsor shared with me... It was really good!

1 cup V-8
1/2 cup cooked rice
3 oz. cooked chicken, cut up
1/2 oz. cheese, shredded
2 tbsp sour cream

It makes a great tomato soup! And it works for me in my plan. Dinner for me is 2 veggies, 1 starch, 1 protein, 2 fats... Perfect!