I began this quit journey on October 22, 2021. After 4 months, I am still not sure what inspired me to begin working in a “forever quit”. I did the reading, I worked in the plan, and I struggled mightily with defining “reasons to quit”. They just didn’t resonate. So, I decided that for me it doesn’t really matter. In the early days I resented how often I thought about smoking, especially since I didn’t have nicotine craves - just desire for the activity. I thought that by now that the smoking thoughts would have substantially diminished. I was wrong. If I gave in every time I thought “I’ll have a smoke”, I would be smoking at least 30 cigarettes a day - more than I ever actually smoked. What has changed recently is my reaction to the thought. While I used to resent it, now I just smile, remind myself I don’t do that, and get on with my day. Maybe (hopefully) that means that my journey is finally evolving some and one day I will be able to share that those smoking thoughts have diminished. In the meantime I will admire the beautiful sunshine, watch birds at the feeders, knit, read, do my jigsaw, write in my journal, drink my water, etc. - The many things I do instead of smoking.
