Good morning EXer’s!!!
I hope everyone is secure in their quits! There are so many elements involved in a successful quit. One of those elements fits right at the foundations of our quits. It’s something that isn’t just there, but rather it’s something that must be first discovered and then nurtured throughout our quits.
That element is belief. We have to know in our hearts that what we’re trying to achieve can be a reality. We have to believe that we’re no longer smokers. We have to believe that the addiction is weaker than we are. That we can beat up any urges or triggers that come our way.
In fact, I don’t think any of us would even try to quit if we didn’t first believe that we could. So that means that core element is there for all of us. It’s an element that can be grabbed onto, helping us to achieve our ultimate goal of freedom.
I found this one element to be a Godsend for me. Every morning I would bolster my belief not only in myself but in the quit itself. Every morning I would take a moment to reaffirm that yes, I will be smoke free today. Similar to our daily pledge groups on this site except for me, it was a private moment for myself to bolster my beliefs of the day.
This started with my quit but since then has become a daily ritual of mine. The reason for this is that I believe that when we first wake up in the morning, we have an opportunity to determine the nature or attitude of the day. We can believe that it’s going to be a great day and bounce out of bed rather than believing that the day might not be so good, and dragging ourselves out of bed.
We can wake up feeling insecure about what the day might bring, but we can change that feeling right away so long as we believe that things can be different. So long as we take a moment to assess our ever changing beliefs first thing in the morning and remove the negative beliefs so that they can be replaced with more positive ones, then we have the opportunity to change the day simply because our outlook on the day will have changed along with our beliefs.
With the right attitude, amazing things can be accomplished!
So if you ever wake up feeling like it’s just not worth getting out of bed. If you ever find a morning where you lose your belief in yourself or your quit, then take that as an opportunity to change that day simply by finetuning your belief of the day.
Before you ever get out of bed, assess your beliefs and take a moment to tweak the beliefs that aren’t the right ones. We can easily torpedo a day without even trying simply by the attitude that we face the day with.
If we choose to believe the day will be filled with discomfort and endless urges, then that’s probably what the day will be like. But if we realize that this is our belief then wouldn’t it make sense to try to change it?
Try to remember that each day is an opportunity. What those opportunities are is up to us. When I was quitting I always created a burning desire every morning to remain smoke free. I would spend a moment visualizing myself without cigarettes. This became easier to do with each day that I did it.
Each day, even now when I live in the land of freedom, I assess my feelings and take a moment to remove the negative ones. Then when I get out of bed, I understand that I’m living a new opportunity. A new chance to make a difference whether it be in my life or perhaps another. I focus on what’s going to make my day better. Which positive attitude do I need for this day.
Once I feel secure in the fact that I’m going to make the day as positive as I can, then I get up, ready to face a new and exciting day!
We don’t have to dread our days of quitting. We can instead reach inside of ourselves, find the right belief for the day and ride that positive opportunity all the way into the next one! And in the end, not only do we find peace from the effects of addiction, but we learn a lesson that we can carry with us for the rest of our lives!
ONWARD TO FREEDOM!!!
