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Share your quitting journey

Staying Accountable

Maki
Member
1 2 67
‎10-25-2020 12:57 PM

How ? Why ? 

Because staying accountable pushes me to get to my goals . How ? For me that was staying accountable first to me and when necessary to others as well . 

Staying accountable puts me in the position of control over my goal if it's quitting smoking , losing weight , or getting a task done . 

Daily I decided to not smoke and to do something different . To take charge over my thoughts . 

Daily , since this pandemic I committed myself to walking . I did so for three reasons .

1) to help get through the pandemic  

2) at the very least maintain my weight rather than having a gain through the pandemic  

3) to help my lungs . I have moderate / borderline severe COPD due to smoking cigarettes .  

How did I take accountability ?

1) by taking responsibility , advocating healthy behaviour self talk , then action by doing .

2) by joining a get moving group right here for inspiration , incentive and accountability and a quit smoking site for the same.  

Here  there was opportunity to walk the journey with others free of judgement . Here there was loads of understanding amongst ex smokers. 

Here was where success stories were the encouragement.

Then to be able to stay here , and give back that much needed hope to others was just icing on the cake.

So folks , that so impossible "to do " what we think you "can't do " , can be done ! 

What were the benefits of this accountability for me ? 

1) I quit smoking and stayed quit . 

2) I began to love walking .

3) My lungs did improve over last winter tremendously .

You are right l COPD will not go away but excersise helps to keep them awake and active l and quitting smoking keeps the gunk out. Healthy decisions , healthy lungs . 

4) I lost weight 

5) I gained confidence 

6) I feel better , younger , healthier and happier than ever before .

1) So my advise to any newcomer is to stay accountable to you , stay accountable to your quit , to your walk , and to others . 

Stay accountable , stay the course , stay quit and keep walking . 

                                       Maki 

 

 

 

 

2 Comments
About the Author
Smoker of 28 years . COPD recipient . My biggest help to quit was to read other successful quitters testimony . I’ll have a thirteen years quit June 30 , 2024 . Biggest lesson learned : I learned the “Just one” lesson . You can never have just one .It is the the key to everyone’s quit . Having “ none” is the easy way to quit smoking . Quit tools : Made use of my strengths and improved upon my weaknesses . Quit benefits , more time with my family , better quality of life , better self image . How I kept the quit : one day at a time , one step at a time . I told myself like a broken record : “ Don’t smoke ; Do something different “ then literally went and did something different other than smoking “ . Quitting is not complicated , nope is it , however it will be the process of self discovery for you to find that out for yourself . How long will that be ? Up to you . We are all different and we come from different backgrounds and smoked for different reasons so no one can really tell you when it will get easier for you only that it will . Be patient with yourself . Who cares how long it takes anyway because we all came to quit forever . This quit is for life , your life , so embrace it , welcome it , it’s the best thing you will ever do for yourself . The money you save get a bucket list of little rewards and big ones and do them . Change the things you can . Life is worth living . This gets easier , oh my gosh , so much much easier . Give it a season , give it two and you’ll never want to let go of your quit I promise you that . It’s wonderful , absolutely wonderful to be free . Quitting btw was the hardest thing I’ve ever done just like everyone here . I shed buckets of tears for weeks , yelled into a pillow , stuck my head into a cold bucket of water and paced aimlessly in head fog . Was it worth it , every bit of it ! Biggest improvement : , my health , the relationship with my family ( all non smokers thank goodness ) and finances . When I started 2011. I was walking three blocks with the use of inhalers for copd . Latest accomplishment : still on the inhalers no further advancement of copd . June 1 2023. Did my first 10 k . Next goal is my second 10k by the end of 2024 . I’m 68 years years young and I’m an Ex smoker . I was able to take three trips ( out of country ) with my family because I quit smoking . Time I never would have had had I not quit . Money from quitting paid for them . I want to say you are in control , take your power back from cigarettes from vaping or any addiction you might have . Life awaits you , don’t let it pass you by . Make the decision to stop and one day that light will shine upon you and make you a whole new you . Thank you to Quitnet members and Ex members for the support and encouragement to quit and stay quit . That along with my desire never to smoke again has given me a life long successful quit . No turning back , ever .