Today as I celebrate four months of smobriety I wanted to share a really cool experience that I have had the privilege of having. If you're like me you probably have a lot of smoker friends and/or are closest to the people in your family who smoke. Because, duh, I hung with them the most since I wasted so much time outside or hiding to suck down carcinogenic leaf sticks. So when I decided to quit....or start living....which ever way you prefer, I made sure to share my experience with those smokers around me. I really tried to stay conscious and focused on sharing my experience and not lecturing or complaining about how disgusting smoking is. I really went out of my way to share my experience with my little baby sister. I made sure I let her know that wow...quitting really is not as horrible as I expected it to be....I thought I would die if I quit so anything other than that was easier. I told her about reading Alan Carr's book, The Easy way to Quit Smoking, and the support on this site and how surprised I was that shoot, it's actually way easier to NOT smoke than it was to smoke. Anyway she is now 8 days smoke free!!! How bout that?! I think that's why this site is so helpful too, sharing your experience is way more meaningful than educational stuff or lectures from doctors, dentists, parents, spouses, children, etc.
So if you're struggling remember someone's probably watching you and just sitting through a few minutes of craving and discomfort could make the difference between them thinking...hey I think I could stop too OR thinking oh' man if she/he can't do it then there is no way I can.
Unfortunately example isn't 100% full proof. My husband is still smoking, although not as much and he has stopped smoking in his car so that's something. That might be more from lecturing than example though...sorry universe I'm human.
Have a beautiful day!
Danielle
