Dreams about smoking?

[Dani_2017]

Hi everyone!

Hope you all are doing well. Today marks 15 days smoke free for me and I couldn't have done it without all of you. 

Today I wanted to ask about dreams. I've been having dreams about myself smoking cigarettes a lot recently. For context- I'm not on Chantix, I quit cold turkey. 

I know there are probably other posts like this already on EX, but I just wanted to see if anyone has dealt with anything like this. 

Thanks for reading. 

[Giulia]

Glad you found it helpful.  And yes, I had a phenomenal Sunday.  On a friend's boat for hours, stopping to  swim and soak up the beauty of the Tennessee hills.  What a gift it was to my soul.  A rare and beautiful treat.  And not ONE THOUGHT of a cigarette.  That's Freedom!  Keep aiming for it.

[Dani_2017]

Do you find that you have many days on end where you don't think about smoking?

I guess I am wondering if it will always be this difficult to keep my quit. 

I have some sort of idea of NML, but what is it like to have so many years under your belt? Do you ever miss cigarettes? 

[Mike.n.Atlanta]

Going on 13 years & like Giulia‌, I have them quite often. Yes early on in the dreams I would not smoke & wake so relieved that I had kept my quit. Now I smoke & have questions. When did I start smoking again? How long have I been smoking? Did I post a blog about it? What will they say at EX? Where did I drop the cigarette on the bed? I can feel the smoke burning my lungs my breathing is labored & I tell myself that I HAVE to quit smoking.

Maybe that's one thing that aides my quit. When smoking is that fresh on your mind you don't wanna go back.

Keep on keepin on,

M n @

[elvan]

Mike.n.Atlanta WOW, those are SOME dreams.  I have awakened and been angry with my husband all day and not able to figure out why and then snippets of a dream start coming back to me and, of course, he had done something horrible in the dream. Hahahaha.

[Dani_2017]

I wanted to ask you the same question that I just asked Giulia- 

I have some sort of concept of NML, but what is it like after that?

Do you ever miss cigarettes? Do you find that most days you don't think about smoking? 

[elvan]

Dani_2017  I don't think about smoking any more...other than to try to help other people survive this horrible addiction.  Every once in a while, a weird thought of smoking crosses my mind but it doesn't stop to talk to me...it just keeps on going.  I am so glad that I quit, I wish I had done so a long time ago but I did not have this site or the support and the education about nicotine addiction that I needed. I am a retired RN so I have no excuses, I took care of patients who were dying from lung cancer or some other smoking related illness. I just thought I was immune, apparently, that's the only way I can explain it.  I just commented to you and TW517  on a blog I think you wrote.  It's a journey, Dani, it's not an event, it is one day at a time, one experience at a time...every day and every experience that you get through without smoking,  you get stronger and you will begin to have more and more confidence in yourself.  NML is not horrible, it is just part of the journey, it is a time of learning and experiencing.  I wasn't sure I wanted to leave NML because I felt so supported there.  It was a wonderful part of my journey, with the exception of three days in the 60's when I went on a crying jag and I could not, for the life of me, explain WHY.  I just cried over everything and then JonesCarpeDiem‌ told me that was a good thing, that I was "watering my cheeks."  Somehow, that put it into perspective for me and I KNEW it would not last.  Hang on...if one day seems too long, make it one hour or one minute.  Remember what OldBones-Larry‌ says, "One step and then another will get you to where you want to be."  I found that incredibly comforting as I took one step at a time and I still do.  

We are here to help you, Dani, please remember that and if you think you are going to relapse...write a blog with HELP in the subject line and wait to see how many people respond and help you to get through it.  We have ALL been there...some people are headed there, we learn from each other.

Ellen

[Dani_2017]

Thank you for taking the time to write this and to write your comment on my other post. I appreciate it so much! I know that this will be a process, I remind myself of that fact over and over. I just cannot wait for the first day where I don't think about cigarettes or having a craving. I'm also hoping that second hand smoke won't be difficult for me anymore. I avoid it at all costs currently, but whenever I smell it, it always makes me want a cigarette. At the point i think that smokers smell gross, but second hand smoke is still extremely appealing to me. 

[elvan]

You CAN do this, seriously, you can.  You are the ONLY one who can do this for you.  I hate the smell of cigarette smoke...maybe part of that comes from the fact that smoking did so much damage to me.  I did so much damage to myself by smoking...now, I don't want to inhale the waste products of other people.  

Hang in there, it will get easier.  I remember feeling exactly the way you do and I remember praying to God to remove the mental obsession.  I did that on the advice of my husband who is a recovering alcoholic...I got down on my knees and I prayed and it WORKED.  I had to do it more than once but it works, so does saying NOPE.

Ellen

[JonesCarpeDiem]

/blogs/jonescarp.aka.dale.Jan_2007-blog/2013/12/05/the-two-sets-of-seasons 

It's not remembering smoking that's dangerous, It's considering it.

[Dani_2017]

Thank you, Dale! That post was very helpful for me.