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what's wrong with me???
Good morning to all. I'm new here. I've smoked for almost 50 yrs & have lost count of how many times I've tried to quit. I feel as though I am hopeless & not working hard enough. I thought when I was put on Inhaler, that would b enuf to make me quit. Nope. Starting my 3rd week of Chantix, yet, I still smoke. Can't seem to make it more than 2 1/2 days without nicotine. What is wrong with me???? I feel like if I could figure that out, quitting would b easy. Thanks for listening to my little rant here.
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Education is the key to a successful quit. Quitting takes work. With a no matter what is happening your life is not an EXcuse to smoke. Here you will find support
https://whyquit.com/FFN/chapters/FFN_01_Nicotine.pdfwhyquit.com/FFN/chapters/FFN_01_Nicotine.pdf
and https://whyquit.com/FFN/chapters/FFN_00B_TOC.pdf
Also another easy Read Allen Carr's book Easy Way to Quit Smoking PDF Can be found online or purchased
Read the blogs here. Read the articles and watch the videos My EX Plan | BecomeAnEX
Learn how to navigate the site Community Help Take the Daily Pledge Daily Pledge
Stay close, hang tough when times get tough, Learn your triggers and prepare for them. Quitting smoking is doable.
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What is wrong with me????
Hon, the only thing "wrong" with you is that you are addicted to nicotine, and to the psychological aspects of smoking. We are all addicts here, I'm not insulting you personally. Smoking cigarettes is an addiction. It takes time, and work, and commitment, and desire to be free of the addiction, along with KNOWLEDGE of what it is all about.
Learning really has been the key for me. There is lots of information on this site, about the addiction and importantly what you will go through to rid yourself of the addiction and find freedom. Keep reading. Commit to reading here (and not smoking while you do it.) I did not use Chantix, but I understand it is a process that doesn't start in one day, as far as smoking less and finally putting down the cigarettes. I also understand that it can take the edge of withdrawals, but will NOT do the work for you.
Support is another key to the freedom you seek. We can provide that here. Come here and write about it whenever you feel you might just say "Effit, I'm gonna smoke". Write it here, yell at us, vent your anger, cry to us... someone will be here to talk you through it.
Always keep in mind... "This craving will go away whether I smoke or not"
and the corollary "Cravings will go away permanently only if I DO NOT smoke. Otherwise, they're here forever."
Best wishes to you!! Follow the directions on your Chantix prescription, and come here often!!
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You have the answer...you are an ADDICT...ugly word for an ugly disease. The more you know about it, the stronger you are going to be. Quitting is not an event, it is a journey. NO ONE and NO THING is going to quit FOR you, it is not easy, at least it wasn't for ME. I worked really hard to keep things in today, one day at a time. I committed to not smoking, got rid of everything that reminded me of it and I stayed very close to this site and asked for help, I commented, I blogged, and I LISTENED to the people on this site who have been successful and who learned how to live their lives without the drug, nicotine. I smoked for 47 years and did irreversible damage to myself...I really hope you stop before you are suffering the consequences every single day with every single breath. YoungAtHeart will offer more support with her welcome but JACKIE1-25-15 and marciem have given you a great start.
Welcome to EX,
Ellen
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Welcome to our community!
There is nothing wrong with you that education, planning, preparation and commitment won't cure!! We can supply all but the last, and with the other things we will give you, I think you will feel more confident in your commitment. You must, however, decide you will not smoke another cigarette NO MATTER WHAT.
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 also highly recommend Allen Carr's “The Easy Way to Stop Smoking.” You can search for it online or get a copy at your local library. Here's a link to a video here on the site which describes nicotine addiction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpWMgPHn0Lo&feature=youtu.be.
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, quitsmoking.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 recommended here on the site.
The idea is to change up your routines so the smoking associations are reduced. Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand in a place different from when you smoked. Maybe switch to tea for a bit. 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. Keep a cold bottle of water with you from which to sip. 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-instea...
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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A little primer on addiction:
Head into this journey with an attitude of "I'm opening myself to the best part of me that I can be." Take it as a beautiful challenge of growth and empowerment. There is nothing wrong with you. /blogs/Giulia-blog/2018/03/01/quitting-is-a-skill-that-can-be-learned?sr=search&searchId=2bb53d23-e4... I think of this journey as a rite of passage. If you want to walk on the smoke-free side, you have to go through the tough side. But the tough side is a lot easier when you understand the journey ahead and have the right mindset to begin with. For how you look at quitting is pretty much how your quit will go. Chin up, have heart and just be willing to go through whatever it takes to get to where you want to go. You can do this.
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Awesome video Giulia! Loved it! Thanks for sharing! I'm going to share it with someone at work tomorrow!
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SaraCorinne It's a good one isn't. Just lays it right out there so simply. Nothing like visuals to make things stick! Glad you liked. I wasn't the first to bring it here.
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Nothing is wrong with you-your addicted to NICOTINE-good job hanging in there and TRYING to learn more about RECOVERY FROM NICOTINE! Please remember it is ONE day-just for today-ONE minute at a time-and WE ALL HAVE BEEN WHERE YOU ARE TODAY-YOU ARE NOT ALONE-please keep reading the blogs and dr hays blogs and educating yourself about NICOTINE ADDICTION! Thank you so much for your courage and self honesty-God loves you and so do WE!
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Well I smoked religiously (addicted) for a long time, 15 to 32 cigarettes a day (middle of the night too) depending on my frame of mind. I wanted to quit, yet I didn't. While smoking, quitting seemed like a good idea. While quitting, it seemed like a terrible idea --withdrawal and ending a dependency are hard. For one thing, the future seems to hold nothing more than abstaining from smoking --a joyless, awful future. But really, in quitting, it's about letting go of the addiction and getting on with life.
I quit just about five years ago at the age of 54. I was a basket case for a while, but now...I know I'm well-- the decision was the right one and I know that I do not ever have to go looking for a cigarette to feel good. I was smoking those things all day long--I had little choice.
I hope that you stick around Ex (welcome!!!) because here you'll find lots of support, good listeners, plenty of quitting experience.
