mjnewell1989 WOW, you started smoking at age 7 and you are now 27, I must admit that you took my breath away when I read that...AND you have COPD. So do I but I didn't start smoking until I was 17, I smoked for 20 years longer than you have been alive. I quit for pregnancies (my youngest child is 27)...I also had more than one quit that was unsuccessful. I can't say that I tried a bunch of nicotine replacement ( I think I chewed the gum a couple of times, I was terrified of Chantix and the possible side effects). I just tried to quit...I did hypnosis, I just quit on my own...there was always something that gave me an excuse to smoke. My COPD is pretty advanced and, let me tell you, I would not wish this on my worst enemy. I am short of breath, I am constantly exhausted, I cannot do even a fraction of what I used to be able to do. I don't recognize myself...I don't mean my looks...I mean my ability to bring tasks to completion. I mean my ability to not have to take a nap...to be able to walk a short distance without having to grab my chest and use a inhaler because I can hardly breathe. I can tell you that I let this go a long ways and I allowed smoking to do irreparable damage to my lungs...I ALLOWED it, that makes me incredibly angry. COPD progresses whether or not we smoke but we can SLOW its progression, we can take care of ourselves. I came to this site and I followed the Quit Plan...My Quit Smoking Plan | A Program To Help You Stop Smoking: BecomeAnEX I documented every single cigarette and WHY I felt a need to smoke it, what were my triggers? I made a plan for what I would do INSTEAD of smoking when those triggers happened and they WILL happen...that is called life, it has good days and bad days...stress is part of life and not all stress is bad. I rated how strong my triggers were and then I got honest...that's what YOU need to do. When you smoke...be HONEST about what smoking does FOR you. Does it really relieve your stress? REALLY? If so, how long does that last? By smoking as little as you are, you are just FEEDING your addiction, you are keeping it alive, you need to accept that smoking really does nothing FOR you, you are already dealing with what it does TO you. It's a horrible addiction and you are proving that every time you smoke. You do NOT have to smoke to get through stress...you do not have to smoke to get through ANYTHING and you will grow stronger and stronger because you DON'T smoke. Stay close to this site, read blogs, comment, tell us what you are feeling and ask for ways to help. No matter what...don't smoke. It's called SMART TURKEY.., not just COLD Turkey...read this: /blogs/SkyGirl-blog/2013/11/15/be-a-smart-turkey-a-very-timely-repost-eh You CAN quit, no one can do it for you and no one and no drug can make it completely smooth, you have to feel some growing pains..."The only way out is through." Remember that quitting is a JOURNEY and not an event, it takes time, one day at a time, one step at a time and baby steps count. The phrase that got me through was Not One Puff EVER...called N.O.P.E.
If all of these people here can and DID quit...so can you, you are not MORE addicted, you are not unique, you are an addict, just like the rest of us. You CAN quit.
Welcome to EX,
Ellen
