Recently my local Intergroup inspired me to create a flyer that could be handed out to women attending their first SA meeting. An SA’s first meeting can be such a key moment of willingness and admission of powerlessness. And for those of us who are women, we often feel very, very alone during that moment as we look out over a sea of male faces and wonder how we’re going to get well here. It has taken me a couple of years in SA to figure out how to make a connection with other women in recovery, and my Intergroup was happy to collect and share some of that information in the flyer shown here. The flyer was drafted with input from the women at my face-to-face meeting and the men at my Intergroup. Please feel free to make copies of it, revise it for your local area, or use however you need. Take what you like and leave the rest.

Welcome Women! We’re Glad You’re Here!

Women newcomers who think they might have a problem with lust are welcome to any SA meeting that is not specifically marked on a meeting list as “men only.” In addition to coming back to this meeting, you will probably also want to find a way to connect with other women in SA recovery. Women in SA make phone calls to each other for support outside of meetings, ask other women to be their sponsors, and make plans to attend co-ed meetings together. Because there are currently more men in SA recovery than women, we know it can be a challenge to reach out if there aren’t any other women at your first meeting. Please know that there are sober women in SA. Following are a few tips for making a connection with them.

• Attend Local Women-Only SA Meetings. The closest face-to-face women’s meeting is in [City, State, Time, Location]. You can find directions on the SA meeting list (as well as directions to other co-ed meetings). If you would like to speak to one of the women who attend the women’s meeting, call the local SA hotline at [Number] and ask for a woman to call you back about the women’s meeting.

• Attend Women-Only SA Phone Meetings. A telephone meeting for SA women occurs every Saturday night from 8-9 p.m. Eastern Time USA. For directions on how to attend that meeting, please call 888-802-5376. An SA woman will call you back, tell you a bit about what to expect at the meeting, and give you the number and code to call to attend. If you don’t get a call back in a few days, please call again and someone will get back to you.

• Attend Co-Ed “Sobriety Renewal” Phone Calls. These daily calls occur throughout the day and are often attended by SA members from all over the world. A few women are usually present in addition to men. Some calls are men-only. Contact www.sa.org to find the up-to-date phone number, meeting times, and meeting descriptions.

• Contact SAICO. The SA International Central Office maintains a list of SA women who have volunteered to take calls from women newcomers and who may be available as sponsors. Contact SAICO at saico@sa.org or 866-424-8777 and ask for a copy of the phone list.

• Attend the SA International Conventions. These are held every January and July. Conventions are announced at www.sa.org and are always attended by women SA members from around the world. At these conventions, many women find sponsors, meet other women in recovery, and share stories and phone numbers with other women.

• Buy SA Literature. Literature is available for sale at face-to-face meetings or at www.sa.org. Literature that specifically contains stories from women includes Member Stories, the “Step Into Action” series, and the quarterly publication ESSAY, specifically the June 2007 ESSAY which focused on SA women. The fellowship is in the process of preparing a brochure for SA women. Watch for it at www.sa.org.

• Keep Coming Back to This Meeting. Even though you may be the only woman here tonight, you are not the only woman with the disease of sexaholism. Women and men alike have found recovery in SA. Many members have been helped by the suggestion to try six SA meetings before deciding whether the program is right for you. Keep coming back! SA works if you work it and you are welcome here.