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Sorry to the old timers out there - you've seen this letter many times but I want to put it up again for the newbies. I saw several posts today about smoking family members - what a pain! This letter may help.
Dear______,
I am about to make a huge change in my life for the better. I am going to quit smoking.
I have a quit plan that I am confident with and I want to let you know what to expect for the next couple of weeks. I also want to give you some ideas on how to help me. Most people do not realize it, but nicotine is one of the hardest drugs to stop, even harder than heroin and alcohol.
Everyone reacts to the withdrawal symptoms differently and during the first two weeks, don't expect much from me. I will not behave like my normal self. All of my energy will be focused on fighting the physical and mental cravings of smoking. I may cry, I may yell, I may ignore you. Worst of all, I may be hurtful to you, but I want you to know that is the nicotine talking, not my heart. I WILL apologize afterwards, once the poison has left my body and my mind has cleared, but for the moment, please, PLEASE remember that I love you, and do not hold my actions against me.
My mind will play some very cunning tricks on me to try to convince me to start smoking again. It’s a very nasty addiction. I may rationalize that "now is not a good time to quit". I may talk about feeling a sense of emptiness and loss. My body may develop aches and pains. I may not be able to sleep. I may act like it’s all your fault. If I do, I apologize now because I don’t really mean it.
I am doing this for me, not for you. In this one important way, I have to be selfish, so that I cannot give the nicotine a reason to put the blame on anyone else. You must not feel responsible for my discomfort or depression in any way. Even if you feel you can't stand to see me this way, whatever you do, do NOT tell me it's okay to smoke just to stop the pain. You need to be strong when I am weak, so please do not agree with any rationalizations I may come up with. I am counting on you.
Here are some things that will help me:
I hope you will find these suggestions helpful because I know that you are behind me 100%. No more second-hand smoke for my loved ones and pet(s). I will be free from the prison that smoking creates for us. I will be free of the smell of stale tobacco. I am looking forward to living my new smoke-free life. I will be around longer for those I love. Not smoking will begin to improve my health immediately.
Thank you for loving me and helping me through this.
Love, _______
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It's always gret to read this, Thanks for re-posting it says ALOT
Great quit inspiration you are!
love to you
Aztec
That is a great letter just what I want to tell my loved ones! Thanks
Shelley
This Letter will most certaintly Help ALOT! Thanks so much for reposting and sharing 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing this! New to this I hadn't yet read it...so helpful
I love this one! How can I save this ,,? I'm new to this my quit day Sept 25, ,
@Redhead101 I agree this was a fantastic post!! To bookmark it, just click on the three dots at the top right on this page and then click on the bookmark option. 😊
Welcome to the Ex!!
Thank you for posting this letter. It definitely gave me more of an idea of what I was supposed to be doing. This will definitely help my family understand more about what I am going through so it's easier to support me through this journey. I appreciate all the help from you and the others on the site with your wisdom.
thank you for sharing I needed that letter today. Trying again to stop and need all the support i can get
Thank for you sharing this. It made me tear up because I know right now in the early stages of quitting my temper is much shorter and I hate taking it out on my partner. He is my rock and I can't wait to get over this hard part of being grumpy.