Today is day 40 of my quit! I still have moments when my brain says "its time for a smoke", but I have been able to squash those thoughts fairly quickly. Interestingly enough, today I treated myself to a Starbucks Tazo Chai. I never smoked with a Tazo Chai, but, today it started a crave! Weird!
When I hit 30 days, I wondered what physical changes were coming. I was not able to find any documentation. Every site I checked seemed to jump from 2 weeks to 1 year. So, here are a few things I am noticing at 40 days.
1) I used to fight a bad taste in my mouth non-stop. It isn't so bad anymore. I even forget to brush my teeth sometimes (not a good habit, but nice to know my mouth doesn't feel so bad that I run for toothpaste!)
2) still fighting a lot of indigestion. I've heard this is part of the process.
3) I think my eyes are a little stronger - which is great since I know I need new glasses and don't know where the money is coming from! My eyes have gotten weaker every two years for the last 6 years. Is this due to smoking? I don't know for sure, but I'm not doing any more damage if it is!
4) I still want to sleep a lot. I think this may be due in part to the time of the year. I typically get a little depressed this time of the year.
5) I love smelling perfumes. I didn't use to wear any because I couldn't tell how strong I was putting it on. I like smelling nice.
6) If I go into a store, I can tell who smokes and who doesn't. What is really sad, is walking by someone smoking and taking a good long whiff. I know I'm not supposed to like this smell. At this point I think it is nostalgic.
7)To offset the extra eating (i wasn't about to fight myself on two fronts!), I started working out on the Nordic Trac Skier. At first, 4 1/2 minutes had my legs hurting and me out of breath. Tonight I did 10 minutes. My legs felt the workout, but I wasn't out of breath. This is good! I'm trying to get into some shape just in case my youngest rents a top floor apartment at JMU for her Junior year.
😎 My face has mostly cleared up. Just before I quit smoking, my face broke out and wouldn't heal. It has healed a great deal and is looking healthier. My hair is stronger and shinier also. Did smoking increase healing time? Did smoking make my hair weaker and dull? Did I pick at my face worrying about my next fix or other stressors? I don't know for sure, but if it did, it won't any more!
9) I am learning to discuss my feelings instead of smoking them away. It is so much healthier. I have a lot more support than I thought I would (and so much of it is coming from this web site!)
10) Today I looked at the cigarettes behind the counter in the grocery store while I was waiting to check out. The prices went up again. I'm so glad I'm not in the market to buy!
11) I have a brown, uneven spot on my arm about the size of a dime, that showed up around September. I need to schedule a doctors appointment to get it checked. I feel certain the doctor is going to want to remove it. At least I can tell the doctor I'm not smoking anymore! In my mind, smoking was the source of any and all ailments. I can just hear non-smokers discussing a smokers diagnosis of anything "Well you know she smokes. She'll have a hard time healing...." uuuggghhh!
I suspect there will be more observations coming. Have a great smoke-free night!
