May, 2021
Volume 2, Issue 1

Quick Tip of theMonthStrength & Hope
A message in support of emotional well-being.

A Look Back —Scott J, Board President,

When I’m going througha rough patch, I take amoment to consider how
far I’ve come emotionallysince I started EA.

Over the last 5 years, we have seen many improvements at EAI. Thesehave included updated technology, stronger finances, new trusted servants, and more literature.

Your Trustees

There’s been a huge expansion of virtual meeting options due to the pandemic. We now have members connecting with each other globally on
conference calls, Zoom, and other platforms. We hope these meetings
continue - perhaps in hybrid fashion (combined face-to-face/virtual).

Scott J.— MN
507-276-0323
sdjakel@gmail.com
President

Financially we’re in a much better financial state now than we have beenfor years. We operated with deficits of $20,000-$40,000 annually for along time. Now we’re breaking-even and we hope to end this fiscal yearwith a positive bottom line, but we need continued support from groups
and individuals to continue this positive trend..
There were staff changes - in bringing on Claire and Sandy to offer accounting and technical expertise. We’ve also been fortunate to retain
Carleen and to keep our excellent Executive Director Elaine Weber Nelson these past 5 years. Other changes include the Trustees - now expanded to 8 current members and meeting monthly. Trustees are highly engaged, meeting monthly and working between meetings - all focused on
EAI’s mission.
Finally, we celebrate all the new material available to the fellowship
throughout the world. These include 3 workbooks: A Guide to Working
the 12 Steps, Taking the Fear Out of the 4th Step, and Welcoming theSpiritual Awakening Within Me - plus more than a dozen great new pamphlets that individuals have submitted. Good stuff!
As I formally rotate off the board, having fulfilled my 2 three-year terms,
I give thanks for the chance to serve. I’ll continue to be a contact personfor 4 EA virtual meetings, volunteer to support the ISC with follow-up
emails/calls, and support the board in ways that are helpful to trustees
continuing on the board. My heart is full of gratitude. I invite you to practice the principles of EA in all your affairs and to join me in our goals to
help all who desire to have a more balanced emotional life, better relationships with a H.P., others, and themselves - to be at peace.

John W.— MN
612-760-0313
johnwerner52@gmail.com

Vice President
Colleen C.— MN
651-245-5461
coyne2003@hotmail.com
Secretary
Paul N.— NJ
929-399-6515
aibtikarfoundation@gmail.com
Treasurer
Derita P.— OH
216-624-3559
deritapippen@gmail.com
Steve B.— CA
909-438-4938
stevebell_28@yahoo.com
Kelsey W.— IL
618-334-6658
knlweez@gmail.com
Behzad Arabpour Dahouei —Iran0098 913 341 4015
Behzad_7761@yahoo.com

MAY’S TOOLS FORRECOVERY
Step 5Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact natureof our wrongs.
Promise 5

The feelings of uselessness
and self-pity lessen.
Just for Today 5

I will do somebody a goodturn and not get found out.
If anyone knows of it, it
will not count. I will do atleast one thing I don’t
want to do, and I will perform some small act oflove for my neighbor.
Slogan 5First things first.
Helpful Concept 5

EA is not a sounding
board for continually reviewing our miseries, but a
way to learn to detach ourselves from them. Part ofour serenity comes frombeing able to live at peacewith unsolved problems.
Tradition 5

Each group has but one
primary purpose: to carryits messages to the person
who still suffers fromemotional problems.

Surrendering to Unsolved Problems— Glenn R.

Suffering from a severe,
sometimes crippling, form ofComplex PTSD, it became
my practice for decades tocontinually review my misery, both internally and withothers. Although this might
have alleviated symptoms
temporarily, it never yielded
an iota of legitimate recovery.
In fact, it seemed to actually
reinforce the agony.
I had always thought I would
first have to completely heal
from my emotional shortcomings before I could enjoy life.
But after coming to Emotions
Anonymous and reading Concept #5 a number of times, it
occurred to me I could now
detach from my pain and thenegative mindset associatedwith it. That didn’t mean mysymptoms would disappear,
but rather I could somehow
learn to live a productive life
despite them, instead concentrating on all the good existing in my life.
However, what really opened
my eyes was the second partof our fifth Helpful Concept:"Part of our serenity comesfrom being able to live at
peace with unsolved problems."
Frankly, major anxiety has
always resulted for me whena problem couldn’t be resolved on the spot. My tendency has been to force a solution, believing if I didn't,
the list of unfinished businesswould become insurmountable and ultimately destroy me.
Yet, the truth of the matter isthat life is actually a long sequence of unresolved problems. I guess that's why wetry to reduce the stress in recovery by living one day at atime. Quite often, though, one
day is still too much for me,and I end up only taking on
what's in front of me the moment. Subsequently, the moments add up to minutes, theminutes to hours and thehours to days. This is how I
approach surrender as prescribed by the Second, Thirdand Eleventh Steps. And it isdoable!

EAI needs you! Can you write a reflection or a pamphlet?
Start a new meeting? Make a contribution? Tell someone
else about the program? There are many ways to be ofservice!

You can find the Trustee Reflections on the website,www.emotionsanonymous.org.
This month we focus on Step 5.
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Contribution Gratitude

Priorities — Gail R.

EAI could not operate without donations and we deeply appreciate yoursupport! Recent gifts have been received from:It helps me so much to remember that "Serenity is my number
one goal." To me, that means my recovery has to be at the topof my list every day. Using the slogan, "First things first"
helps me to have perspective on things happening in my life
and around me. My efforts toward serenity - which is, for me,
is having healthy emotional and spiritual habits, including
prayer, meditation, journaling, and meetings. When my selfcare and well-being are my first priority, I am more likely tohave peace, no matter what else is going on.

Brainerd, MN

Ukiah, CA

Burlington, IA

Bend, OR
Rialto, CA

Midwest City, OK
Aibtikar Foundation, NJ
Burks Falls, ON Canada
Wellesley, MAAnaheim, CA TuesBrevard, NC
Virginia Beach, VA TuesIn Memory of:Jude, Anonymous
Patricia Van Wagner, Hilary G

Administrative News
We continue to create new literatureand help new groups form. We continue to grow connections across theworld, and more and more EA literature is being translated into differentlanguages.
A recent effort has been to encourageboth sponsor and co-sponsoring relationships. We’ve received responses
from folks interested and are in theprocess of making matches with thoseseeking a sponsor or co-sponsor.
We are continuing to lift up EA’s 50thanniversary this year and will be asking for special donations from themembership. This organization needs
your support to be able to keep goingstrong! We operate on a shoe-string
budget with very part time staff andlimited resources. Your contribution
will help us bring the EA program toothers. Please consider a contribution
this month. Thank you.

Real Honesty — Steve O.
Step 5 seemed like it would be easy since I already admitted
the hard part in Step 1 – that I am powerless. However, I
underestimated the difficulty of being truly honest and accepting within my own self. Being authentic with others has
always been easier than opening myself up to my past. Owning up to who I legitimately am has presented a challengethat would be impossible if not for years of therapy and EA
group meetings. Only with the help of God, and other people
keeping me honest, can I risk admitting the exact nature ofmy wrongs to myself.

A Worldwide Service Opportunity!
EA has offered holiday meetings at Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day for the past several years. We’redeveloping a committee to expand the current holiday meeting schedule into EA Through the Holidays Worldwide andoffer meetings during more holidays throughout the year.
Coordinating these efforts is great 12th Step work as theyserve to build up current members and provide encouragement for newcomers who are often searching for support
during the holidays.
Responsibilities include finding moderators, speakers andhosts; developing and distributing flyers; updating and distributing the schedule and script; developing holiday email;etc. If you're interested, please contact Greta at 734-3830686 or oagreta@gmail.com.

Office Information
EAI P.O. Box 4245 St. Paul MN 55104-0245
Office Hours: M-TH 10a.m.—3 p.m. CT
Phone: 651-647-9712
www.emotionsanonymous.org
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