Day 1

Blog Post created by Mac2222 on Nov 5, 2017

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Today is day one of my 7th quit. I had 9 months last time (its been 10 months of smoking since my relapse), 4 months the time before, 3 months the time before, and sometime between 12 days and two months the first few times. I had my last cigarette at 10 am. I am very happy to be trying again. Excited to feel as good as I felt last time. I am so ready and not scared of these first few days and weeks. What I'm so scared about is that I will lose it again. I keep thinking about it. But, I keep trying to focus on today. And how grateful it is that I am not smoking every minute. I already feel a difference in my lungs. I've drank water today! I excercised, went to a play, are good food, and told some people around me. I've never had an active community to talk to about this, but I think I need to. I just found this place. So hi!

Outcomes

11 Comments

minihorses Nov 6, 2017 9:20 AM
This is my millionth time trying to kick these things for good. I'm taking Chantix which is working well for me but only this site that I stumbled across has gotten me through. I am 8 days without cigarettes and know that I wouldn't have made it this far without everyone here! Take the Daily Pledge, hop on the Freedom Train, read and post! We're all in this together, so welcome!

J.
8 DOF!!!
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ahhshucks Nov 6, 2017 10:53 AM
Glad to see you here. So much support and information here! Looking forward to seeing your progress.
Joy
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maryfreecig Nov 6, 2017 5:02 PM
Welcome. You've come to the right place for continued support in staying off the cigs. I'm glad you are here. Keep showing up, reading and participating. One day at a time, yes you can.
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elvan Nov 6, 2017 7:41 PM
Mac2222 Welcome to EX, we are a very supportive community and we are all in recovery from nicotine addiction. Many of us have quit several times...I lost track of how many failed quits I had...some people quit once and that was it. Most people who are successful with their quits have started with education, I read everything I could find on nicotine addiction and I accepted the fact that quitting is a journey and not an event, it helps to accept that. I planned my quit and tracked my cigarettes but in the months before my "forever" quit, I had two failed attempts. One time was following hypnosis and the next time was trying to track cigarettes and figure out my triggers. One the first page of EX there is a link to My Ex Plan...I read it and I followed instructions. I identified my triggers and planned for what I would do INSTEAD of smoke when I quit. I KNEW that the triggers weren't going anywhere and I wanted to have something in mind that I was going to do...I didn't cut back on my cigarettes, I just planned for different things to do when I would normally have smoked. I also paid attention to what smoking did FOR me when I felt a trigger. It was through doing this that I became aware of the fact that smoking did not relieve my stress, it did not take away my chronic pain, it did not make me feel happy when I was sad, it did not take away anger or frustration...it did not do ANYTHING FOR me but it was becoming clear to me that it was doing lots TO me. I was getting more and more short of breath, I was coughing the most vile sounding cough so frequently that I was embarrassed. I got really sick in January of 2014 and I have not smoked since. I seriously did not think I was going to survive. I am on oxygen at night now, I exercise every day, I eat a healthier diet than I used to, and I avoid things that are irritating for me to inhale...some cleaning products, allergens, anything that has a strong smell. My quit is 3 years and 9+ months old now, it is the longest quit I have had since I started smoking. I strongly recommend that you do the recommended reading...I am going to link you to a blog written by JonesCarpeDiem that I went back to over and over again What To Expect In The First Four Months YoungAtHeart writes a lovely welcome to new people and I will paste it below:

Welcome to our community!
Congratulations on your decision to quit smoking and your Day Won. To answer your question, the first couple of weeks are difficult - but doable. You will have good and bad days (mornings, afternoons, evenings, moments!). Just get through them however you can. Following is some advice on how to do that!

The most important thing you can do right now is to educate yourself on what nicotine does to your body and mind. To that end, I highly recommend Allen Carr's “The Easy Way to Stop Smoking.” This is an easy and entertaining read. Here is a link to a free PDF version of it:
********************************************************************

You should also read the posts here and perhaps go to the pages of folks who you think might be helpful. You might visit whyquit.com, quitsmokingonline.com and livewell.com for the good information contained there. @https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/groups/best-of-ex has lots of blogs written by members of this site with their experiences and guidance. You should also do the tracking and separation exercises suggested in My Quit Plan http://www.becomeanex.org/my-quit-plan.php

After you have completed the recommended reading, it will be time to make an informed choice of the quit aid, if any, you will use. If you go that route, I personally recommend the aids that don't let the addict control the dose such as the available prescription drugs or the patch. If used properly, gum, lozenges and inhalers are fine, but they need to be used only as a last resort. I have seen folks become addicted to them if they substitute them for every cigarette they used to smoke - just trading one addiction for another. I do not recommend the e-cigarette for three reasons: 1) the vapor has been compared to the polluted air in Bejing on a bad day, 2) they just provide another nicotine delivery system while continuing the hand to mouth smoking motion, and 3) the batteries can spontaneously catch on fire. . But – any method that you think will work well for you will be best for you.

The idea is to change up your routines so the smoking associations are reduced. Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand. If you always had that first smoke with your coffee, try putting your tennies on right out of bed, going for a quick walk, then taking your shower and THEN your coffee! Rearrange the furniture in the areas you used to smoke so the view is different. Buy your gas at a different station. Take a different route to work. Take a quick walk at break time where the smokers AREN'T.

You need to distract yourself through any craves. You can take a bite out of a lemon (yup - rind and all), put your head in the freezer and take a deep breath of cold air, do a few jumping jacks, go for a brisk walk or march in place, play a computer game. Don't let that smoking thought rattle around in your brain unchallenged. Sometimes you need to quit a minute or an hour at a time. You will need to be disciplined in the early days to distract yourself when a crave hits. Get busy! Here is a link to a list of things to do instead of smoke if you need some fresh ideas:
https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/blogs/Youngatheart.7.4.12-blog/2013/02/25/100-things-to-do-instead-of-smoke

The conversation in your head in response to the "I want a cigarette" thought needs to be, "Well, since I have decided not to do that anymore, what shall I do instead for the three minutes this crave will last?" Then DO it. You will need to put some effort into this in the early days, but it gets easier and easier to do.

Stay close to us here and ask questions when you have them and for support when you need it. We will be with you every step of the way!
Nancy YoungAtHeart

My name is Ellen, I came to this site every morning and every evening to read blogs, to comment, to ask for advice and to LISTEN to it. I take the daily pledge every morning and then I ride the Freedom Train and celebrate the milestones of all of our members. Stay close to this site...get to know the members and accept advice that is offered.

WELCOME,
Ellen
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Mac2222 Nov 6, 2017 10:41 PM
Thanks so much everyone. I am doing good. Just hit hour 36. Had a pretty good day at work even though I had a hard time sleeping the first night. Did feel a really intense anger that surprised me. I actually slammed the phone after a phone call. Went to a restorative yoga class and that helped reset the day, calm me. Mornings and right after work is the hardest for me so fa. My stomach just started cramping a bit, and I am tired, but not tired. My thinking is a bit cloudy and all I am focused on is not smoking.
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- elvan @ Mac2222 on Nov 7, 2017 10:20 AM
  The beginning is all about focusing on not smoking. I promise you that it does get easier but there are no short cuts, there is no way to tell you WHEN it will get easier and "The only way out is through." I used the acronym NOPE over and over and over again, Not One Puff Ever. You know what? It's okay to slam down the phone sometimes, it's okay to get angry, we all stuffed that down when we smoked and when we quit, all kinds of emotions surface and we have to learn to accept them and deal with them. You are DOING this, CONGRATULATIONS.
  
  Sleep disruptions are pretty common, some people CAN'T sleep, other people are really tired and want to sleep all of the time. The nicotine is still getting out of your system. Be patient with yourself.
  Ellen
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  - Mac2222 @ elvan on Nov 7, 2017 11:14 AM
    Had my first argument with my fiance this morning. He is upset that I chose to quit now so close to his birthday and the holidays. We have reservations for dinner on Friday for his birthday, and his birthday is next week. He thinks we are going to argue and I am going to ruin his night. I don't want to argue or ruin his night. I am sad that he thinks I will. I didn't pick a quit date. I just woke up ready to quit on Sunday. I'm feeling like I should have waited and starting to think about smoking seriously. I'm at 49 hours.
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OldBones-Larry Nov 7, 2017 11:26 AM
Welcome to our little community. Ask for help as needed and we will do our best.
The best advise is read, read, read.
Always remember .....
One step, and then another, will get you to where you want to be.
Larry
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elvan Nov 7, 2017 4:06 PM
Mac2222
So sorry I just saw this, I was out and just got back on line. I really hope that you AND your fiance realize what a wonderful gift this is that you are giving to yourself AND to him. As a nonsmoker, you will learn to deal with your emotions the way people who never smoked did all along, they learned gradually, we learn as we go through withdrawal and we start to feel things without the anesthesia that was provided by nicotine. I am so sorry that he feels that you will "ruin" his night, at the risk of sounding critical, is HIS night more important than YOUR health and YOUR life? Quitting is a journey, it is one day at a time and one experience at a time...it's not easy, especially at the beginning. You are doing a great job so far...I am sorry that you don't feel the support of your fiance. He really needs to understand that you are making an effort to recover from an addiction...RECOVER and ADDICTION are things that have to be remembered. Does he smoke? I think he is being pretty selfish to not offer you unconditional support. I DO have to advise you not to drink alcohol in the early parts of your quit. Many quits have been lost because of a few drinks and a quit is a terrible thing to lose.

I don't know how much preparation you put into your quit...usually, is it wise to do the reading about addiction and set a quit date. I did the "My Ex Plan" on the first page when you sign in. I tracked my cigarettes and what the triggers were. I didn't try to cut down on them, I just wanted to know WHY I was smoking. I was pretty surprised at many of those triggers...I planned for what I would do INSTEAD of smoking when those triggers occurred. I KNEW the triggers would occur, that's life, there are always going to be good days and bad days, after we quit we learn to deal with ALL of our feelings. There is a lot of reading that you can do to reinforce your a blog written by JonesCarpeDiem What To Expect In The First Four Months I read that over and over again at the beginning. I stayed very, very close to the site, came here first thing in the morning and last thing at the end of the day and any time DURING the day when I had time. I read blogs, I commented, I blogged, I asked for advice and I listened. There are people here who have been quit since before the site even started. I credit this site for the success of my quit. I tried many times in the past to quit but I was not successful for any length of time, except during pregnancies. At the top of the page, click on the little pencil and write a blog, if you feel as though you are going to smoke, put the word HELP in the subject line and EXers will come to help you, they will suggest things that worked for them or others and you will find that the collective wisdom of this site is very powerful.

I am glad you are here, please know that we all want you to succeed in your quit and we will do whatever we can to help. Your fiance needs to be educated about the addiction to nicotine and what the horrendous risks are to those who keep smoking. I have COPD, I have no idea how many years of my life I have lost because of smoking but I know that my life has been shortened. You can do this, you can quit, it HELPS to have support.

I tried to copy and paste YoungAtHeart's welcome but the site would not allow me to, for whatever reason. I will ask her to try to contact you. Hang in there.

Best,
Ellen
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YoungAtHeart Nov 7, 2017 4:44 PM
Welcome to our community!

The most important thing you can do right now is to educate yourself on what nicotine does to your body and mind. To that end, I highly recommend Allen Carr's “The Easy Way to Stop Smoking.” There is a free PDF of it on the internet.

You should also read the posts here and perhaps go to the pages of folks who you think might be helpful. You might visit whyquit.com, quitsmokingonline.com and livewell.com for the good information contained there. @https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/groups/best-of-ex has lots of blogs written by members of this site with their experiences and guidance. You should also do the tracking and separation exercises suggested in My Quit Plan http://www.becomeanex.org/my-quit-plan.php

After you have completed the recommended reading, it will be time to make an informed choice of the quit aid, if any, you will use. If you go that route, I personally recommend the aids that don't let the addict control the dose such as the available prescription drugs or the patch. If used properly, gum, lozenges and inhalers are fine, but they need to be used only as a last resort. I have seen folks become addicted to them if they substitute them for every cigarette they used to smoke - just trading one addiction for another. I do not recommend the e-cigarette for three reasons: 1) the vapor has been compared to the polluted air in Bejing on a bad day, 2) they just provide another nicotine delivery system while continuing the hand to mouth smoking motion, and 3) the batteries can spontaneously catch on fire. . But – any method that you think will work well for you will be best for you.

The idea is to change up your routines so the smoking associations are reduced. Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand. If you always had that first smoke with your coffee, try putting your tennies on right out of bed, going for a quick walk, then taking your shower and THEN your coffee! Rearrange the furniture in the areas you used to smoke so the view is different. Buy your gas at a different station. Take a different route to work. Take a quick walk at break time where the smokers AREN'T.

You need to distract yourself through any craves. You can take a bite out of a lemon (yup - rind and all), put your head in the freezer and take a deep breath of cold air, do a few jumping jacks, go for a brisk walk or march in place, play a computer game. Don't let that smoking thought rattle around in your brain unchallenged. Sometimes you need to quit a minute or an hour at a time. You will need to be disciplined in the early days to distract yourself when a crave hits. Get busy! Here is a link to a list of things to do instead of smoke if you need some fresh ideas:

https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/blogs/Youngatheart.7.4.12-blog/2013/02/25/100-things-to-do-instead-of-smoke

The conversation in your head in response to the "I want a cigarette" thought needs to be, "Well, since I have decided not to do that anymore, what shall I do instead for the three minutes this crave will last?" Then DO it. You will need to put some effort into this in the early days, but it gets easier and easier to do.

Stay close to us here and ask questions when you have them and for support when you need it. We will be with you every step of the way!

Nancy
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- elvan @ YoungAtHeart on Nov 7, 2017 6:08 PM
  Thanks, Nancy.
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Day 1

Outcomes

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