No, I don't work for Tropicana.
However, I have found that something about the acidity in orange juice is somewhat soothing when going through a withdrawal episode.
A nap helps too.
If you feel like a zombie for the first few days, no problem. BE a zombie. Think of quitting smoking as the most important thing you will do for the rest of your life. With that in mind, losing a week or so of the ability to concentrate isn't such a big deal, right?
Other things you can stuff in your face and not worry about: raw carrots (man they're good!), ice bars (my preference is grape -- your mouth will probably freeze before you actually get fat from eating these), Campbell's tomato soup or some kind of spaghetti sauce right out of the jar (heated a bit first of course), steamed zucchini, microwaved sweet potato, grapes, microwave popcorn, and apples. I'm also a fan of cold cereal (if you want to be healthy, check the side of the box and avoid cereals that have sugar in them), and I'll throw in some raisins or a banana and I prefer to use soy milk instead of cow's milk. Lucky for me, I tend to like healthy foods. But I would rather put on some pounds than smoke. If I quit smoking, I will get my heart and lungs back. And if they're working well, then it will be easier to bike or run or walk and shed the pounds later.
I've finished day 5 without cigarettes or nicotine of any kind. My mind is completely in the right place so I don't feel any temptation to smoke again. First, I hate the thought that every time I smoke, fat men in some board room at some cigarette company look into their crystal ball (like the one the Wicked Witch of the West used to spy on Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz) and see me and LAUGH at me and high-five each other. Second, I am EXTREMELY curious to see how I will feel after I haven't smoked for a year. Will I feel more energized? Will air taste different? Will I think differently? What? What will be different? Since I have now been a smoker for such a long time, there are a lot of things that might happen now that I've quit. So I am curious about that. Were I to start smoking again (I won't this time), I wouldn't find out.
Sometimes, change for change's sake and no other reason, is a good enough reason to do something. For those of you still on the fence, not sure if you can quit or not, turn yourself into your own guinea pig. Experiment for a year as a non-smoker and then see if you want to go back. If you worry that you can't make it through a year, there are plenty of people who have already done it and they're no better or smarter or stronger or good-looking than you are. We just got our heads in the right place and decided to rebel against the tobacco companies and take back our free will, not matter how painful or inconvenient. Life goes by too quickly. Don't waste your life living in darkness, enslaved by nicotine and cigarettes. Want a cigarette? Say to yourself, "Tough shit. I don't get one." Deny yourself. See what happens. Cry. Stomp your feet. Howl at the moon. But don't smoke. See what happens. Write it down. Get on the floor and pray. Or get on the floor and do a push-up. Don't smoke. See what happens. Feel shitty. Don't smoke. See what happens.
Is it killing you to not smoke?
Or is it killing you to smoke?
