Having gone past the Day 7 mark without any real difficulty (all of these nicotine free, by the way) I've been trying to think about WHY the quit is going so smoothly, in case any advice I can come up with helps anyone else.
First, I think the most important thing is that I REALLY wanted to quit this time. In the past, I might have thought more along the line of "I really SHOULD quit". That's significantly different than "I really WANT to quit." I was able to withstand all of the nicotine withdrawal and mental withdrawal because the alternative -- smoking -- was something I didn't WANT to do. For me, I have no nostalgic feelings about smoking, don't feel like I've lost something dear to me, don't feel like life will never be the same or that I've made some sacrifice.
Secondly, writing blogs has been helpful, both in focusing my thinking about the process of quitting and by having a good outlet to complain to people who are going through the same thing and care about each other. In past attempts to quit, I didn't have that.
Third, I am on the lookout for the proverbial devil on my shoulder who has presented himself to many ex-smokers ten days, two weeks or even later into the quit, with his congratulations for quitting and offer to celebrate with just one itsy-bitsy cigarette. Oh, I'm watching for you buster! Don't waste your time. Or, better yet, come on. Your wiles have no power over me any more.
Fourth, I was thinking today about another trigger, that I haven't seen mentioned on this site before and which I think I could be seduced by (that is, if I wasn't aware of it). That trigger is "fatigue". Sometimes, I find I have some work to do and I'm feeling tired and I think, "If I have a cigarette, it will help to push the fatigue away, and I'll be able to finish what I have to do." If the choice now is cigarettes/finish important work OR sleep, I'll choose sleep. If I can't choose sleep because that thing HAS to be done, well at least now I'll still stay away from cigarettes because I've identified the trigger. As I have written in other blogs, and repeating here because I think it's important, the "become an ex" philosophy of identifying triggers (like their brilliant commercials about drinking and smoking or driving and smoking) has great validity. I am a cold turkey quitter, so it was important for me to get beyond the physical withdrawals before I could focus on the triggers. Others who use methods to slowly reduce their dependence on nicotine need to modify their own quits to whatever suits them. In any case, I like the become an ex approach overall and urge you all not to poo-poo it. If you are struggling with nicotine withdrawals, then EVERYTHING is a trigger. But once you get beyond the physical addiction, the concept of triggers has great utility.
Fifth, I was thinking today about how I FELT. I realized that I don't know HOW I'm supposed to feel since I've been smoking for so long. I've forgotten what normal feels like. So, I don't know if my fatigue is from not smoking OR is it from being genuinely tired? I don't know if I feel a little off because I'm not smoking or whether it's because I haven't been drinking enough water. I don't know if my deep breaths are lungs begging for tobacco smoke or if they are from lungs that sense they have been freed. Either way, because I'm dedicated to quitting (see point one above), I'm willing to go along for the ride and take whatever comes, tobacco free.
I feel great being able to tell people that I've quit smoking (without any doubt as to my ability to stay smoke-free). I feel great when my lungs fill up with air. And I feel great that I've been able to do this which, as we all know, can seem next to impossible.
