Day 2 help

[Mon2]

On day 2 of not smoking.  I try not to think about cigarettes, however, it has been apart of my life for 40 years.  I have read Allen Carr, I am using the patch and in the book he states use nothing.  Please provide any information that can help me through this.  I am truly trying not to smoke, any advise will help.

[Tabbiekat]

Congrats on your quit. This is your quit and as is with everyone your quit is yours. Each quit is unique in the journey, but the result that we all celebrate is that we have quit. I am using Chantix to help me quit and it has worked for me, but I also know it does not work for everyone. The first couple of weeks I thought about smoking a lot- it is the addiction and years of habit. Think about it, don't fight the thoughts, but then think of other things you can be doing and do them. Then celebrate and be proud of yourself for each time you don't light up. I used breath mints as my go-to for times when I was thinking about smoking, but did not want to smoke, because I no longer did that. You can do this, keep reading, blogging and asking questions.

Tabbie

[elvan]

Welcome to EX, this DOES get easier, everyone here has been where you are so we all understand.  I remember wondering if I would ever think of anything BUT smoking.  I will not tell you it is easy because that was not my experience.  I will tell you that staying close to this site and making a quit plan and a quit kit were vital to my success...I will celebrate 4 years of freedom in January after smoking for 47 years with the exception of pregnancies and some short term, failed quits when I did not have the education and support that I got from this site.  You CAN do this, read blogs, comment, see how people have dealt with things in their early quits and how they maintain them...it is worth every minute of discomfort.

Best,

Ellen

[KMC56]

I'm 61 and smoke free after smoking for over 40 years of smoking!  It wasn't easy, but I wouldn't be smoke free for this long if it wasn't for the GREAT support of this site.  Still keeping real one day at a time, but I am comfortable being a non smoker!  YOU CAN DO THIS!  Just stick around with this site and all of these wonder family/friends to support you during this journey!

~Kathy 613 DOF

[Giulia]

Many people will state many things about how to quit.  It's all based on their personal experience.  You will have your own personal experience.  Use what works for you and let go of that which doesn't.  It may work for someone else.  Point is, if the patch is working for you - keep using it according to the directions.

We can't just stop thinking about cigarettes after 40 years of smoking.  Ain't gonna happen.  But we can begin to discover the right way to think about them.  And that's all about educating ourselves.  Just read.  Reading will give you the necessary knowledge to overcome this addiction.  The strongest and longest quitters on here have a vault of wisdom to offer.  Though you may not always like what they have to say - listen to them.  Keep an open mind and sense of humor about you.  And believe you CAN do this.  We know you can.  Because we all were in your shoes and thought the same way you do.

[susan_m]

So many people on this site used the patch successfully....and just like you, they had to navigate the first few hours and days of the emotions of quitting.  I know at times you're miserable, I know you think about smoking constantly. I know you're tired and cranky and I know you feel lost.  Guess what else?  You quit smoking.  Everything you're experiencing is your addiction's temper tantrum.  Try to remember that you choose how you react to it.  It's not easy; here's my blog about this period of time: https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/community/conversations/blog/2017/03/13/diary-of-a-madwoman?sr=se... 

It will get better.  It does not help at his point to hear that time will fix this for you, because you want instant relief, so I'll just remind you that you never have to to day one or two again.  Never again, because you quit smoking. You did it.  

Hang in there. Reach out if you need support; this site and these people will not let you down.

Susan

[JonesCarpeDiem]

Don't eat the bark off trees and you'll make it!

[Roller831]

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[Tra119]

Keep a positive mindset, keep telling yourself that you can do this and you will do this. We all know how hard it is but stay focused on your quit. I found that cleaning kept me occupied (My house has never been so clean and tidy) as well as a cinnamon mint when I felt a crave coming on. Everyone is different in how they cope. This site also is a great help and has kept my mind focused on the positives. Please stick around and vent as you need to. We are all in this together and we are you routing for you!!! Welcome aboard!!

[Thomas3.20.2010]

It's OK to have the thoughts - you will. So now what? Also add thoughts about Sickerettes that challenge those thoughts you are having. If you can't distract then get educated. Understand if not viscerally - at least logically what Sickerettes are and what they are not. Understand what Nicotine is and what it is not - what it does to you and not for you. Examine your thoughts and feelings and challenge their validity. Delve deep into your relationship with tobacco. Find out what is believable and then let go of those thoughts that make no sense. They'll come back and you can let go of them again... and again. Eventually they'll slow down and down the road - stop. 

[elvan]

Mon2  Those thoughts come and go and they don't do any damage...unlike cigarettes. There will come a time when you are in an hour long class and you realize that at the end of it...you are not among those racing for the door so you can smoke.  Freedom is amazing, it opens all kinds of door to us and FOR us.  We get to feel things we did not feel for years...sometimes that is really challenging because those feelings seem SO intense...after all we did not allow them to come out for as many years as we smoked.  It IS a journey and it IS one day at a time, oftentimes it is one experience or event at a time. Stay close to the site...I cannot begin to tell you how much it helped me.  

Ellen