KelliRose90's Status Update on 06/15/2018

[KelliRose90]

I’ve been quit for 5 days now... and I feel like I’m dying. I wasn’t ready to quit and felt pressured by my partner to quit. I REALLY enjoy smoking. I bought a pack 24 hours ago and haven’t opened it... but I think I am going to. I don’t know. I have said that like 30-40 times today already so who knows? But I’m really really really struggling 

[CommunityAdmin]

Hey  KelliRose90.  Glad you made it here.  Sorry you're struggling. How are you holding up?

[CommunityAdmin]

And where is Crete? 

[KelliRose90]

Crete is near Chicago. I ended up smoking and continuing to smoke. Idk what to do right now 

[CommunityAdmin]

KelliRose90  Sorry I missed responding sooner.  Get back on the site and do some reading.  Read posts from others and get to understand your addiction.  There are lot of experienced quitters here.  YoungAtHeart , Giulia Daniela2016 MarilynH Sootie  kristen-9.7.15 JonesCarpeDiem and countless others come to mind.  This is a great support system only fingertips away.

[kristen-9-7-15]

Sorry Kelli! Apparently we all missed this post!! I really hate the “Status Update” choice Mark. I always seem to miss them!  I am about a 30 minutes away from Crete 🙂 
​
​Kelli~ It’s a good idea to hang out here and read the blogs and blog yourself.  Have you read the Allen Carr book The Easy Way? I highly recommend it. In regards to your partner pressuring you to quit, you have to want to quit. Do you have a quit plan such as cold turkey or NRT?

[kristen-9-7-15]

I feel terrible that we missed your post Kelli!!!

[YoungAtHeart]

​Welcome to our community!
​
​I am also sorry I missed this.  Apparently, "Status Update" doesn't show on the homepage feed I get.

The most important thing you can do right now is to educate yourself on what nicotine does to your body and mind. To that end, I highly recommend Allen Carr's “The Easy Way to Stop Smoking.” This is an easy and entertaining read. You can search for it online or at your local library. Here's a link to a video here on the site which describes nicotine addiction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpWMgPHn0Lo&feature=youtu.be.  You should also read the posts here and perhaps go to the pages of folks who you think might be helpful. You might visit whyquit.com, quitsmokingonline.com and livewell.com for the good information contained there. @https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/groups/best-of-ex has lots of blogs written by members of this site with their experiences and guidance. You should also do the tracking and separation exercises suggested in My Quit Plan http://www.becomeanex.org/my-quit-plan.php After you have completed the recommended reading, it will be time to make an informed choice of the quit aid, if any, you will use. If you go that route, I personally recommend the aids that don't let the addict control the dose such as the available prescription drugs or the patch. If used properly, gum, lozenges and inhalers are fine, but they need to be used only as a last resort.  I have seen folks become addicted to them if they substitute them for every cigarette they used to smoke - just trading one addiction for another.  I do not recommend the e-cigarette for three reasons: 1) the vapor has been compared to the polluted air in Bejing on a bad day, 2) they just provide another nicotine delivery system while continuing the hand to mouth smoking motion, and 3) the batteries can spontaneously catch on fire. . But – any method that you think will work well for you will be best for you. The idea is to change up your routines so the smoking associations are reduced.  Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand in a place different from when you smoked. Maybe switch to tea for a bit.  If you always had that first smoke with your coffee, try putting your tennies on right out of bed, going for a quick walk, then taking your shower and THEN your coffee! Rearrange the furniture in the areas you used to smoke so the view is different. Buy your gas at a different station. Take a different route to work. Take a quick walk at break time where the smokers AREN'T. You need to distract yourself through any craves.  You can take a bite out of a lemon (yup - rind and all), put your head in the freezer and take a deep breath of cold air, do a few jumping jacks, go for a brisk walk or march in place, play a computer game.  Keep a cold bottle of water with you from which to sip. Don't let that smoking thought rattle around in your brain unchallenged. Sometimes you need to quit a minute or an hour at a time.  You will need to be disciplined in the early days to distract yourself when a crave hits.    Get busy!  Here is a link to a list of things to do instead of smoke if you need some fresh ideas: https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/blogs/Youngatheart.7.4.12-blog/2013/02/25/100-things-to-do-instea... The conversation in your head in response to the "I want a cigarette" thought needs to be, "Well, since I have decided not to do that anymore, what shall I do instead for the three minutes this crave will last?"  Then DO it.  You will need to put some effort into this in the early days, but it gets easier and easier to do. Stay close to us here and ask questions when you have them and for support when you need it. We will be with you every step of the way! Nancy

[elvan]

So sorry that you smoked but you need to decide that you are willing to go through the hard times when you quit...it's a choice to quit and you don't have to be ready...you DO have to be willing.  I suggest reading a blog written by JonesCarpeDiem  that helped me a LOT in the beginning...What To Expect In The First Four Months You have gotten the best possible advice from YoungAtHeart and the best thing you can do for yourself is to make a plan, set a date, and go forward.  We are all here to support you and we have all been where you are.
​Ellen

[Sootie]

Hi Kelli---as the others said....sorry we missed your post. Usually, a post like that and 50 of us would "come running" to help you through. I did not see this until today. Thanks Mark for tagging us and letting us know.
​So, the question is......what DO you do now?
​As many have, you could ignore us and continue to smoke for another 20 years.......but that sounds like a lousy plan!
​So, how about you at least do the readings suggested by Youngatheart/Nancy above. Education is the key to beating this addiction.
​Then-----just jump on in and QUIT! It's kind of like getting into cold water......jumping in and continuing to swim is easier than trying to walk in by inches.
​Will it be easy??....no it will not. But it is doable. We all did it and there is nothing special about us. We are the same as you.
​Do it day by day or minute by minute......but please do it.
​It is SO GREAT once you have beaten this addiction and I hope you get to see life from this side.....cause it is so worth the effort!
​Stay strong.