7 days free

[aheavyburdenlifted]

today is my 7th-day cold turkey (without any NRT's)of being cigarette-free.

Wow, One full week, I can even taste water, yes water,  it does have a distinct taste to it, very refreshing. Never liked water this much before.

I'm feeling much better about this quit, then any other's I've had in the  past 35 years.

I'm not as depressed about it

I don't feel any loss from it

I have replaced my smoking ritual to other things, Like crocheting and sewing, things I would go take a smoke break from, now I go  to these to get a break about my  thoughts or sudden withdrawal  idled  boredom, I do a lot more things with my  family, instead of taking a smoke break away from them lol I recently discovered why I did this:

It was a battle with each snuffed out cigarette. The instant I put it out, I was already thinking of my next puff, that's really sad, I felt out of control of my thoughts and emotions and myself, like some Heroin smack addict. I was missing out on my family, trapped inside a world I didn't want to be in, outside from them, looking in. This is what your family, your children, and Husband, will look like to you when you are dead.

a long time friend came to visit me, one I hadn't seen in over 25 years, wee just lost touch and got back in touch through  Facebook, When I picked her up and saw her, I was devastated to see her such poor condition. yes Time ages us,  but she looked 20 years older than me, and I quickly learned she was a heavy smoker, a much heavier smoker then I was.

The sound of her voice was very deep and crackly, she coughed all the time and it was a hacking  dry cough that  kept me awake  most  the night, for the 7 days she was here, it reminded me of my late Husband  who smoked 3 packs a day and it eventually killed him with kidney cancer

I held the hand of my Father in May 2007, who died from esophageal cancer, and then my Husband in Sept. 2013

I recently had  to put my best friend to sleep Aug 5 2020 and had him cremated,  Petey the Chihuahua, who was my emotional support pup for 11 years. The vet told me he had COPD and a collapsed lung from extended coughing and a deteriorated spine that rendered him crippled the last 9 days of his life, and I think he got COPD from my late husband who smoked 3 packs a day inside while on the computer while I was at work, while we lived in a 37' RV for 4 years. If cigarette smoking was not the cause, then it surely did not extend my furry companion's life either.

I had decided to just STOP!

a month ago too, I had a scare too, I found a lump on my neck,  having some tests done and had an ultrasound done, they said the one I feel is normal size then one behind it, one I can't feel, is much larger than normal, I'm still waiting for the doctor's to go over those results with me, and blood tests and probably more tests to rule out Lymphoma cancer.

Lymphoma Cancer I am learning is curable, but it comes with a cost. The cost of Radiation and Chemotherapy, which could kill you if the common cold doesn't. and now with Covid-19 to increase those risks of auto-immune disorders.

I stopped smoking a week ago. I am feeling really good about this, and Life seems much sweeter and divine and cleaner without the fog of the Devil's smoke clogging my life's vision with addiction. I  vow to protect my quit with whatever it takes for as long as I  am alive.

Thank you for listening.

--aHeavyBurdenLifted