Hello Exs. I am 1117 days into my quit, or about 3 years, 3 weeks. For the first 7 months, I kept a sleeping bag over in the corner at this site. I brushed my teeth here. I tucked myself in with quotes from you all in my head. The advent of badges on this site changed that. Maybe because they arrived as I was wandering around no-man's-land, or maybe because I already knew that this quit is the quit of my life, but I got very steeped up when the badges came.
Frankly, they offended me. They suddenly just appeared, like it or not. And so full of themselves, huge. They took over my friends' pages. My page! Like a stinking badge could help me quit. My friends here got me through the many rough stages of my quit, I didn't want a ration of gold stars from Admin. So even though I knew that everyone's quit is their own and some quitting aids work for some people even if they don't work for me, I huffed off. Mostly.
I come back from time to time to say hello and see how the gang is hanging. It's exciting to see all the quitters who have joined this site and who are achieving their quits. I say, "Yes!" to every one of you.
I also am compelled to say, "Get over it." Get on with your life. You quit, didn't you? Be quit in your head. Take that big drag of fresh air when you inexplicably get a craving, and grin at your success. Step into the mindset of having quit for good. That's the mindset that will move you past your addiction. The process of quitting is a doorway; there's more life to come.
I bring this up now for personal reasons. My sister-in-law is dying. Pancreatic cancer. Inoperable. Just found out a few days ago. All the doctors say she has two years at best. She never smoked. We are dazed.
My sister is dying. My heart, my joy. One day she is being treated for severe Meniere's Disease (an inner ear condition causing extreme vertigo) and the next day she is told that hepatitis C (that she's had for 30 years) has caused her liver to fail. She is not a candidate for a liver transplant because of other health concerns. Inoperable. Just found out this morning. Her doctors are saying she has a year, at best. She smoked briefly, 30 years ago.
This life is finite. Please don't waste any of it smoking. You've got so much more to live and time is short.
