Food Addiction – Renew. Refresh. Recover.

November 2025 Edition

“Gratitude isn’t just for the good things, it’s also for the things that grew you.”

A Note From Your Editor

November is known as the month of gratitude but real gratitude in recovery goes deeper than thankfulness for blessings. It means finding meaning in the pain, strength in the struggle, and humility in the hard things that shaped us.

If we’re honest, most of us didn’t grow when life was easy. We grew when we were forced to face ourselves when something broke, when we fell apart, or when we had to start again from scratch. Those were the moments that stripped us of illusions and built the foundation of who we’re becoming today.

The thorns: those sharp, uncomfortable experiences have been our greatest teachers. They pushed us to surrender, to call for help, to admit powerlessness, and to discover grace in the process.

This month, we’re giving thanks not only for the roses but for the thorns that taught us how to bloom in the first place.

Recovery Radar – Finding Gratitude in the Hard Things

Pain is not the enemy. It’s a messenger.
It points us to what still needs healing, what still needs honesty, and what still needs surrender.

We often try to control or numb it, but recovery teaches us a different way to lean in, to listen, and to let pain do its work. Because when we allow pain to teach instead of torment, it becomes a path to transformation.

When we stop fighting the thorns, we realize they were never there to punish us. They were guiding us toward truth.

“Gratitude doesn’t erase pain. It gives it meaning.”

So this month, as we gather in gratitude, let’s not just list what went right. Let’s thank the moments that broke us open. The ones that forced growth. The ones that made us turn to our Higher Power. Because those are the moments that made recovery possible.

Healing Highlights Through The 12 Steps

Step Ten: Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.

Step Ten reminds us that healing isn’t a one-time event. It’s a practice a continual pruning process. Each time we take inventory, we’re trimming back what no longer serves us. Pride. Fear. Resentment. Denial.

And pruning can hurt. But just like a rosebush, the cutting away creates room for something stronger, healthier, and more beautiful to grow.

The thorns are not signs of failure. They’re signs that growth is happening. They show us where the disease still tries to hide and where grace is still working.

Each time we pause, take inventory, and tell the truth, we transform pain into purpose. That’s recovery in motion.

Affirmation:

“I am grateful for what challenged me. Every thorn I’ve faced has made me stronger, softer, and closer to freedom.”

Member Spotlight: Monthly Mirror Reflection

Thanks for the Thorns: Finding Freedom in Surrender

When I look back on my years in recovery, I can see that the moments I resisted the most, the ones that required real surrender and discipline, were actually the ones that saved my life.

I’m not what you would call a naturally disciplined person. Planning ahead, sticking to structure, asking for help… those things never came easily to me. But life has a way of giving us what we need, even when we do not want it. When I went through a move, home repairs, and a major surgery that left me on a liquid plan for months, I found myself relying on the very habits I used to fight against. Connection, structure, and spiritual surrender became my lifeline.

My journey with recovery began decades ago. In January 1998, I attended one of Kay Sheppard’s retreats in New Jersey. I had been abstinent from 1992 to 1996 but lost my footing after moving from Houston to Atlanta before the days of phone or Zoom meetings. Houston had strong face-to-face groups, but Atlanta at that time did not, and I slipped back into my disease. Those next years were the worst of my life, a roller coaster of addiction and despair.

At Kay’s retreat, I realized what a precious gift I had given away. I vowed to never do that again. I surrendered completely and committed to working through all twelve steps as soon as I could. Kay temporarily sponsored me, and that guidance was a real God send.

The next five years tested that surrender more than I could have imagined. Each year brought a major catastrophe:

Year One: My new car was totaled in an accident.
Year Two: My schizophrenic stepson was murdered.
Year Three: I got divorced.
Year Four: My townhouse flooded on the anniversary of that breakup.
Year Five: My home was struck by lightning and set on fire.

Through all of this, I stayed abstinent. That commitment kept me sane. I could not crawl into bed and hide. I had promised God I would keep this gift, and I did.

It is now twenty-seven years later, and I’m still abstinent. At 86 years old, I am a walking miracle of God’s grace and the power of connection. Abstinence didn’t just give me freedom from the food; it gave me stability, serenity, and strength to live through life’s storms without collapsing under them.

I’ve learned that when life gets hectic, staying connected matters even more. I join phone meetings, check in with program friends every day, and spend quiet time with God. Those small actions keep me grounded.

On my desk sits a small white block that reads

“Good morning. This is God. I will be handling all your problems today. I will not need your help.”

That little reminder is where peace begins for me. The discipline that once felt like a thorn has become one of my greatest gifts. It brings serenity, freedom, and the strength to face whatever comes my way.

I am deeply grateful to know that I am not in charge, and even more grateful to know that I never have to walk this path alone.

Imperfectly in fellowship,
Peggy – a fellow food addict

Freedom in Action: Tools for Real Recovery

Tool of the Month: Gratitude Through the Thorns Exercise

Use this reflection to turn pain into perspective:

1. Identify one “thorn” from your recovery journey. Maybe a challenge, loss, or experience that still stings when you think about it.
2. Ask: What did this experience teach me?
3. What did it reveal about me or my relationship with my Higher Power?
4. How can I honor this growth by sharing it or helping someone else who’s there now?

Remember: Gratitude isn’t denial. It’s the courage to say, “Even this has purpose.”

Song Lyrics (this is sung to our higher power, could also be a prayer/meditation): 

VERSE 1

I bring you my pain 
I give you my sorrow
I offer my shame
The threat of tomorrow
I’ve heard that You’re close to the brokenhearted
And near to the cries of the poor
Prove it, I’m on the floor
I’ll wait

VERSE 2
Should I thank you for pain?
Do I thank you for sorrow?
I’ll bring You my shame
The threat of tomorrow
Thank You for all that can finally grow
In the soil of death and despair
Thank You for meeting me here
Thank You for meeting me here

VERSE 3
Thank You for doubt
Thanks for despair
When options run out 
The mercifully unanswered prayers 
Thank you for all that is possible
In the space that pain can create
I cling to amazing grace
And wait, and wait

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