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Share your quitting journey

What are you waiting on??

Mike.n.Atlanta
0 11 7

There comes a day when we just give up. We’re tired of making excuses & we’re fed up with stealing time from loved ones to feed our addiction. We finally admit that our smoking is not only a problem for us, but others as well. We’re tired of being sick & missing out on events that we should be enjoying. We’re done with making plans around our smoking. We’re nauseated by the smell of our own personal environment. We’ve grown tired of worshipping cigarettes at the alter of smoking. There comes a day when we have to find our own way, to meet our fears head on.

But what holds us back? We’ve watched loved ones & close friends die a terrible death because of smoking & yet we carry on.

Maybe...we're afraid we won't know what to do with ourselves, we’re afraid of the urges that are sure to come. How are we going to cope without this companion that’s been by our side through thick & thin, good & bad? We’ve been in situations where we couldn’t smoke & remember the panic we felt until we could light up again. We can come up with many reasons to fear quitting but let’s face it, urges and the anxiety that tags along are really at the top of the list. The best advice that was given me about fighting urges was this…relax. Just let yourself go and let em come, welcome them & let em wash right over you. Then as quickly as they came they're gone again. Now, if that means repeating every two to five minutes then so be it. The feeling that came over me when I did this was a feeling of power, a feeling of control over something that had ruled my life for so long. Finally I was driving this bus and the best part was the more I did this the weaker the urges got. Soon It was second nature for me to thumb my nose at a craving & say “BRING IT ON”.

Now this doesn’t work just because I say it will. It works only because you work it. I know you can do this because you’re really stronger than you think. It’s all about choices, make the right one...you will not be sorry.

Keep on keepin on,

M n @

11 Comments
About the Author
I began this quit journey on October 1, 2004. I'm not doing it for my wife or children nor in memory of the many family members or friends I have lost due to this addiction. I'm doing it for Mike. "The only real threat to your quit is between your ears" ~ Me "A smooth sea never made a skillful sailor" ~ English proverb "A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trial" ~ Chinese proverb I'd rather be a non-smoker who thinks about smoking once in awhile, than a smoker who's always thinking about quitting" ~ Anonymous ~