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Im absolutely scared outta my mind as i approach my quit date of 01/01/2018
I desperately need some encouragement as I approach my quit day. 01/01/2018. Am I THE only one who has or had anxiety before my quit date?
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I desperately need some encouragement for my quit date. It' quickly approaching and I am scared to death. I LOVE TO SMOKE TOO MUCH! I love ttaste, smell and most of all the feeling that I get when I light up. I'e found myself smoking more as my quit dat quickl approaches. HELP ME PLEASE!
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You own your quit date, it doesn't own you--quitting is somewhat difficult for a good number of quitters but that is no reason to run away from a planned quit.
I'm curious though, if you love smoking so much, then why are you planning to quit? I'd really like to know. Of course quitting is what you ought to do, but only you can convince yourself to face up to it.
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I'm quitting because, I want to improve my health, I'm sick of our money
literally going up in smoke, I want to set an example to my children who
smoke and I don't want to be THAT grandma who smokes, I'm sick of always
having to step away from my family to feed MY ADDICTION!!!!! I'M SICK OF
NICOTINE CONTROLLING ME & MY LIFE.
On Dec 25, 2017 2:32 PM, "BonnieBee.quit.2.8.15" <
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You have some rock solid reasons to quit! Those reasons alone should quiet the anxiety, but I totally understand how it does make one feel anxious to know that they won't be doing that anymore! And how to replace all those moments when you would do it.....I would strongly recommend you write those reasons down as a list and keep reading them over and over again, and know you are doing a really good thing for yourself....because you are! It may be rough for a couple of weeks, but it does get easier, and you are already reaching out for support. That is something you will find plenty of here at EX!!! You will start out receiving support, but then you will find yourself offering support! It really is a win win here! For you, for us, for everyone all around! Give it your all! We got your back! Welcome to EX!
Sandy
107 days of freedom!
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Hi there. First of all, welcome to Ex! I don’t think there’s one simple advise that works for everyone. I can tell you in my experience I quit and failed many times. Each one of these times I took notes of what made me fail and compared with what makes me want to quit. In the end, like you, I was so fed up of cigarettes controlling my life. What I did to cope with anxiety, I took one day at a time and read my notes every night before praying.
We’re here for you.
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Oh my gosh! I am in the EXACT same boat as you, so let's row on together!
I've set my quit date for Jan 2 and I've never been so ready to quit but the thought of quitting FOREVER is making me want to smoke more now.
My plan for today is to prep myself a bit. I've ordered patches but they won't be here for another week, so I'm going to buy the patch today as well as nice bottled water, fresh lemons, a new toothbrush, a big calendar to mark my progress (with fun stickers) and a candle or two.
We can do this! I can use all the encouragement as well, so keep in touch.
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Welcome to Ex. If you are scared about your quit date, you are in the right place for support. Please talk a bit more about yourself, your smoking, what made you decide to quit. And keep blogging about how you are doing. Let us get to know you.
Well, you are not alone in anxiety about quitting, but by learning about the addiction, planning and getting the support you need, quitting does not have to be a horror show--not at all.
In pre-quit and early quit, change your routine a little and be willing to do what you need to to stay smober---but doing what you need to do has to be defined by you (gleaning ideas from everybody is good, so are your own ideas). The reason for this is that you know yourself best, so find things to do or to concentrate on that you are really willing to do. As for routines, if you have some that are strong triggers for a cig, then avoid. And keep coming around as much as you need to.
As a reminder of what smoking is, try saving all your smoked butts in a clear jar and leave in the open. Those spent butts have a story to tell and it is this: one cigarette will never be enough. Please stay tuned in to the reasons you are planning to quit, focus on the future gains and there will be many--- and they will be all yours.
Yes you can, one day at a time.
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Welcome to our community!
It's absolutely normal to fear the unknown. You have been an addict for awhile; your life revolved around smoking for awhile ---- this quit thing is totally new territory for you. I pretty much chain-smoked the night before my quit date - and I am now 5 1/2 years FREE!
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. You can search for a free pdf of it on the net (copyright enforcement won't allow me to post the link here).
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:
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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Hello there!
Glad you've made the most important decision of your life and all I can say is, fear can be the cornerstone of success if we treat it right. Don't get me wrong. I was terrified at the thought of quitting at first. But you know what? That fear was of failure, and I think that's what it is for you as well. And on the upside if you fear the upcoming quit, then that shows that you're committed!!
Quitting is a process and one that starts long before we actually quit. I remember the first time I thought seriously about quitting. Just the thought of it terrified me! I remember that day well. How the thought of quitting appeared quietly in my mind. How it stayed there in the background until I realized that I was serious! That's when the fear began and I can tell you it was so bad that I had cold sweats. My heart was pounding and I was shaking uncontrollably, and this was just from the THOUGHT of quitting.
I understood that this fear was both a blessing and a curse. It was a blessing because the fear actually made me realize that I was serious. It made me understand that this was a thought that I intended to make a reality. The curse was that if I thought about the fear, it made me think that I might fail.
In the end, I realized that if I was ever going to quit, I had to understand my fear. Where the fear was coming from and what I was actually afraid of. I know, it's easy to think that it was simply a fear of quitting, but it was more then that. I was actually scared of change.
To quit smoking, we have to be able to accept change. We have to be able to understand that the change is a positive one. We have to accept that it's going to be a fight, but one that's worth fighting. We have to understand that we're choosing life over an otherwise slow and agonizing death.
I spent a good part of my preparation time learning what I was actually afraid of and for me the fear boiled down to the one thing. Change! I think as humans, it's in our genes to fear change. We build scenario's in our mind about how it will be. And usually, we find the change to be an awful one when we build these scenarios, simply because of our fear of change. You might, in the end discover like I did on the day that you quit that you are more ready than you ever thought you would be! That the fear is something you can rise above.
The main thing to remember is that the fear you feel right now will lesson as you learn to live smoke free. And I can tell you that the freedom you'll feel when you get through the process is nothing short of amazing!! You're about to start an incredible journey. Don't look at it as a New Years resolution. Instead, look at this quit as the first step into your future. See it as the first day on a journey to take your life back from addiction! See your life as a non smoker as your new and wonderful reality! Go for it!! There's so much on the other side if you can just get past those first days!!
Sorry for rambling. Below are a couple of entries that I made to my blog as I approached the quit date. I did a lot of blogging in those days, and perhaps you can learn from some of them. Sorry my response is so long, but you remind me of myself during the preparation journey. If it helps, I'm approaching seven years smoke free in February. YOU CAN overcome your fear and I believe that you will!!
ONWARD TO FREEDOM!!!
Chuck
