Here I go Agaiin...

[wanttoquit21]

Not sure what the reason is but i have slipped up again! Therefore i am on day one for the umpteenth time!!! I do really well for the first week or so, which makes no sense since its suopposed to get easier as time goes on, but after the first two weeks, something happens, and I smoke. Its not even a criaving, its more of a.....'a cigarette would be really good right now!' or the first time i relapsed after 2 weeks, was just becasue they were available to me and no one was around so i thought ' now is my chance if i want to smoke, they are right there and no one will know'.

So this time around, i have to STAY QUIT!!! Quitting cold turkey has been sooo much easier than i thought, but staying quit is soooo much harder!! Any advice or if anyone has been in this positition before, i could sure use some help!!!

[joyamber]

I really feel for you. I totally relate in the past I have taken for granted that I have made this positive decision and I relapse totally. I wish you luck and that this time will be different read about nicotine and how bad it is and addiction. If you go to my message board you can find the links to good reading material. The first three weeks are supposed to be the hardest. I am on day 6 and day 21 is what I am looking forward to besides one day at a time. It is a really hard lesson to learn that you can't just have that one cigarette or piece of nicorette gum in my case because we are addicts. I don't feel that I am one to give good advice but I hope that helps a little. You Can Do It and don't beat yourself up. You have the right idea and you care. I know it can be frustrating to start over again with the time I totally get that.

[Courage]

Hey there, I decided to go "smart turkey" as they call it these days.  Have you done your reading?  Yes, it's pretty easy to quit smoking, but staying quit is the hard part.  Why?  It's an addiction, that's why.  It's going to try and pull you back in, especially in the early days and you literally have to say outloud I DON'T DO THAT ANYMORE or whatever works for you.  I tell it to leave me the ef alone, I'm done with you, but you have to find something that works for you.  Getting the nicotine out of our system is the easy part, learning all there is to know aobut this addiction is the key.

You must go to jonescarp page and read, read, read and even read more, it's the only way.  It gets easier, but you have to tough out these urges.

Remember, this urges are not caused by the quit, it's caused by the addiction, a/k/a nicotine. 

Hope this helps, please, go read....

Fannie

Day 92

[JonesCarpeDiem]

Its a process and quitting takes a  reasonable amount of time.

[wanttoquit21]

Thanks everyone!! I will refer back to your comments, when the urge strikes again! So far so good....like 12 hours or so:)

[Giulia]

I suggest you relapsed because you haven't yet stopped permission for yourself to smoke.  Once you are totally committed, nothing - and I mean NOTHING will allow you to put a cigarette in your mouth.  If you leave the option to smoke door ajar, you will head through it, because you're keeping the thought of smoking alive in your mind.  You must close, lock, seal up that door and throw away the key.  When you accept that the possibility to smoke no longer exists in your world, you will cease relapsing. 

Think about this:  we know smoking is bad for us.  How bad?  Smoking kills FIVE MILLION people per year world wide.  That's a LOT of people.  And on average smokers die 10 years earlier than non smokers.  But it's a slow death.  It sneaks up on us.  If you knew that the next cigarette you put in your mouth would kill you, would you smoke it?  Hold that thought the next time your addictive mind thinks "a cigarette would be really good right now."  Cigarettes only relieve the symptoms that they cause.  Quitting also relieves the symptoms.  But it takes TIME.  Keep at it.   

http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fast_facts/

[annb]

Hi there. 85 days for me today and just wanted to let you know sometimes it does seem like it gets harder before easier. But I've learned (several times, ugh!) it pays off big time to keep pushing through. Don't give in to the nicocreep because then it will start all over again. Do the reading about how this addiction changes your brain chemistry. No matter how "strong" you are you cannot control your brain receptors! But we can "retrain" them!! Be willing to put the time in that it takes to do the retraining. 🙂

[linda.mustafa]

You have got some excellent advice here, keep focused and keep remembering why you quit!

All the best:)

[Deena-A-Yenni]

I have had several quits in my past.  Not until I was committed medically to quit did I do so.  What are your reasons to quit??  I'm still a newbie but have some experience in relapsing.  You must be committed to your quit no matter what.  NEF works for me. (Never Ever Forget) my chest hurting for the 1st 11 days of my quit.  NEF the fact that I can't catch my breath when I walk.  I also like "keep them away from your face".  I also read everyone's blog daily and sometimes have input.  Work your program daily here and come here 1st before you have that next drag on that cigarette.  The elders here will have you coming away feeling strong and not needed that cigarette...and it doesn't necessarily have to be the elders.  Everyone's input is valuable because they've been there too.

[Strudel]

The reading has helped many of us change the way we thought about smoking and understanding this addiction......Undertanding meant not falling back into the trap! Please check out the free course at http://quitsmokingonline.com/ and Carr's "Easy Way to Stop Smoking" -http://media.wix.com/ugd/74fa87_2010cc5496521431188f905b7234a829.pdf

Also - never forget that we must live by - N.O.P.E. - Not One Puff Ever! Write it down - carry it with you! Believe it!