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Share your quitting journey

The Most Effective Way to Quit

SimplySheri
Member
4 6 104

~~The most effective way to do it, is to do it.~~ Amelia Earhart

When I was on the merry-go-round of quitting circuit, I used to honestly wonder how others managed to quit.  20 days quit....200 days quit....2 years quit.....how?  And here I was, a loser.  Weak.  Stupid.  Addicted.

Of course I used all the words that pointed to "I can't quit".  "I will try again", "I hope I can", "Maybe this time".  Scared.  Anxious.  Terribly sad.

After a failed attempt when I hated myself for caving once again, I had a serious talk with myself.  I had to know why.  Why couldn't I quit?  What was wrong with me?  Was there something wrong with me or was I just a smoker forever?  I didn't like the fact that I smoked even while feeling relief as I sucked in the smoke.

Then my 'ah-ha' moment came.  The secret to quitting, I decided, was never to smoke again.  Ever. Close the door on it totally and forever.  Not just "I hope", but not to open that door ever again.  So all I had to do was not to smoke.

And I decided I could do that.  I didn't try to figure out the rest of my life, I didn't cement my plan into stone, I didn't even announce to anyone I was quitting.  I quietly shut the door and refused to open it ever again.

I was flexible in my approach to making my days bearable.  I did a lot of yoga, deep breathing, meditation.  I took long walks, I slept A LOT, I drank some water, I painted.  I was loving to my children and kind to my friends.  In other words....I simply got on with life.  The most effective way to do it is to do it.  So I did.

Now I know some of you struggling are thinking "She makes it sound easy and it's not".  But truly, the only way to quit smoking is to quit smoking. Whether it's easy or hard.  Quitting means never smoking again.   You can struggle, you can make it hard, you can have fun with it, you can have a combination of both easy and hard.  But the only thing you HAVE to do is to not smoke.

The merry-go-round of quitting and relapsing can be very wearing on a person.  Discouraging.  Tiring.  Hard.  But you can get off that ride whenever you want to.  It's entirely in your hands.

 The only thing you'll ever have to do to keep your quit is to....not smoke.  

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