Share your quitting journey
On day one I read my first smobriety book. It was A Walk in the Woods and was written by Bill Bryson. Funny thing is, I chose it for its nature theme (Appalachian Trail south to north) but it turned out to be a comical story about a man and friend who were ill prepared for the big journey they were undertaking. So relevant to my situation. I learned later that I didn't need to know everything about quitting to quit.
I laughed about their escapades on day one. The medicine worked if only for a half hour. I knew I’d come back to the book when each day when I got ansy.
Reading books was a part of my quit plan--knew it before day one, hoped it would help. It did and I kept on reading. The picture above is my book collection over six years--primarily nature books. Walking was another quit tactic that I embraced fully and as I read more nature books, I started noticing parts and pieces of the natural world more and more--photographed and did pencil drawings of birds, trees, landscape.
The art was yet another part of my quit kit. They all tied in together and my experience grew richer and more important to me over time. But at first nothing occupied my mind more than knowing that something was missing and that I did not like it. There wasn’t anything that could replace the sense of security I got from smoking--not right away. But I was lucky enough to know (thanks to the wisdom of others passed on to me) that one step at a time was the way I’d make it out. No falling apart about the what ifs of tomorrow, next week, next month, next year. Here today had to be my focus. It was hard. Day one passed. Next day arrived, started the same--I had to keep going.
If you are thinking of quitting, please don’t let feelings of being unsatisfied distract you from your commitment. Follow your plans--do whatever it takes, get and keep support. One day you will look back and know that day one was the sweetest gift.
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