I have had every intention on quitting smoking soon. My lungs have felt tight, I feel sluggish and my family has been praying for me. Let me explain how I was SHOVED into quitting...NOW.
In 2009, I had bariatric surgery. The full operation...not the sleeve. I have been in and out of the hospital for ulcers and stomach ruptures, with each surgery meant opening my stomach from below my breastbone to right below my navel. Which lead to incisional hernias that had to be repaired. My surgeon flat-out told me that if I don't quit smoking, I'll be back and he was running out of stomach to work with.
Things have been going well and I've felt pretty good until about a few months ago. I thought my stomach hurt because of something I had eaten that I knew better not to! But..Mylanta or Tums were not working and it began to hurt worse even I drank water! So I've been chewing a lot of ice and water that is room temperature. (weird, I knpw) When I would hurt soo badly that I couldn't sleep, I would smoke more. I've been stressed from fear that I'll need another surgery. I went to the ER twice, where they gave me a CT scan that showed nothing. They didn't know what to do for me! The second time, the results were the same EXCEPT they made it seem that I was only there for pain medicine! I told them that not everyone who comes to the ER is only hoping to get pain medicine...and that I needed answers on the extreme pain I was having, and I walked out...lighting up a cigarette as soon I hit the door.
I finally got up the courage to call my bariatric surgeon again and was told that he is no longer doing bariatric surgery...on patients past and present!! I WAS DEVASTATED!! And ANGRY! I wasn't even told...soo my stress level SOARED! I was up to about a pack and a half a day for about 2 weeks. I slowly backed off to a pack a day...still too much!
Soo I called a new bariatric surgeon and he set up a virtual video appointment for yesterday. I was nervous but sooo ready! I liked him right away and was instantly comfortable in the fact that he could fix me! PRAISE GOD!! He said that it sounds like my ulcers are back. I wondered myself that too not very long ago. Then came the question....DO YOU SMOKE?? I told him that YES...I do. He said that it is VITAL that I quit because, with ulcers that I've had for quite a while, and ruptures of my stomach with repairs several times, that I could DIE IF IT RUPTURES AGAIN! He ALSO said that if I choose to continue smoking, he and I are going to have to have a talk about reversing the whole bariatric surgery! And THAT CAN'T HAPPEN! So...Like the title of this blog...it's DO OR DIE!!!
My son is buying me the patches and they help soo much! While not wearing one, I've had a puff here and a puff there until the consequences enter my mind and I put it out. So..with the puffs I've had maybe a total of TWO cigarettes! I'VE GOT THIS! ONE DAY AT A TIME!!!!
