The voice within

[Cyndie01]

I’m gonna make this as short as I can. I want to quit for obvious reasons. I’m a 48 yr old female w 1 grown son & husband. The smell is probably the second reason next to health reasons. I shame myself for every single cigarette I have. If you do the math, that is a lot of negative talking down to oneself. I have 2 personalities in my brain. The strong one who is over smoking, and the addict who allows it. The strong one can say “I’m so done with these things that I can go cold turkey and laugh in the face of cravings while the addict is reaching for a lighter and saying “this is gonna taste delicious, ignore the strong one, and hurry while she’s not looking”. I have gotten to a point that I have given up hope that I will ever quit....or even slow down.

i quit once before for 9 days. 9 days, that’s it.  I was in such a good place in my head like “this monster will no longer control me”. I know I got over confident and stopped using the patch too soon and that’s what ended it. I haven’t been able to even start to quit though. I believe being stranded on a deserted island would be the only way I’m gonna start. But I also think it would only make me a strong swimmer cuz my determination to get a cigarette when I’m out of them makes me go to great lengths. If I could use that energy to quit life would be great. Anyone ever find a starting point after they lost hope in their own abilities?

[Giulia]

I totally understand the dual personality chatter in the brain:  /blogs/Giulia-blog/2016/09/06/a-quit-dialogue-in-iv-acts?sr=search&searchId=00f5497b-f450-4894-b9a0-...‌.  

You have just listen more to that Best part of you, not the least part.  It's hard to quit, and it's harder when you've quit a couple of times.  I've often used the scenario of being on a desert island as an analogy as to where we need to put our heads.  If we really were on a desert island the possibility of smoking would not exist.  And I think we'd get over the hard part of the quitting process much more rapidly.  It's due to the fact that the option to smoke is still out there that we find ourselves in the incessant back and forth dialogue.  What we need to do is pretend that we're on that desert island with no hope for a cigarette rescue.  

Have you been a part of a quit community before?  

Here's a little video that may help you understand how nicotine works on our brain:  

What is the Single Best Thing You Can Do to Quit Smoking? - YouTube 

Hang out here.  You'll learn a lot.  The more we know, the better we go.  Welcome.

[sweetplt]

Hi and Welcome to Ex’s Cyndie01 

Donot give up on quitting or yourself.  Look around here, we are not superhuman’s and we eventually got this quit right.  For me, I found education, planning and hard work is what finally got me thinking I wanted to be free from addiction.  I had to admit I was an addict and that way truly hard.  I came here and read at My EX Plan | BecomeAnEX and planned for my quit day like no other...I read everything I could about smoking/quitting and diseases.  Then, I came here for support and to encourage others on this journey.  I kept busy, figuring out everything I could do instead of smoke.../blogs/Maggie_quit_8-1-2010-blog/2012/03/19/100-things-to-do-instead-of-smoking?sr=search&searchId=8... WE are here for you...infact, we are all in this together...You know how I know this...I was you 426 days ago...now get working and you can get quitting....~ Colleen 

[JACKIE1-25-15]

Anything worth having requires work and so does changing your mind. Education was the key for me to being successful in quitting smoking.  Having a support system was help in turning the corner for me. It can be done by coming here reading the suggested material.  Learning what nicotine does to the body.  Learning about nicotine addiction.  Learning how to deal with craves. You have a place to come if you are struggling and need support.  Blog, comment if you like.  Participating isn’t required but you get better results if you do. Today is the day to make the right choice.  Choose Freedom.  Hang tough, stay close, don’t quit on your quit, protect it.  If you need help we are here

[Barbscloud]

Welcome to the Ex.  I have to agree with the previous posts.   Education about nicotine addiction and have a plan made all the difference for me.  Previously, I would pick a date to quit without understanding the process and without being prepared with how I handle each step of this journey.  You can do this.  We're here to support you.

Barb