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Share your quitting journey

The buzz kinda sucks

Pacifica12
Member
6 8 161

I keep thinking about what, if anything, I liked about smoking. Depends. Depends on which version of me you ask. The 37 year old me, more mature, pays bills, works, has commitments, would say... NOTHING! The tightness in my chest when I inhale, the taste of ashes and tar in my mouth, how disgusting an overflowing ashtray looks at 4am.... I really can live without that. But man, 20 years ago I loved it! Hanging out at coffee shops with my friends, smoking breaks between class in my car, I felt more mature and cool.

I feel that a lot of people have changed their views on smoking, including me. But I just have to say, and please this is just what I think... the buzz when you take that hit of nicotine is not that great and not a strong buzz but a physical and psychological addiction... at least that's what I have to tell myself. I'm trying to get into replacing those daily and mostly hourly hits of nicotine with another replacement... one that's good for me hopefully. Exercise, going out to the pool and getting some sun, reading something inspiring...etc. 

I do feel a little better at this point in my quit. I'm waiting for the day I can say and feel like a nonsmoker....but every day is a journey....

8 Comments
indingrl
Member

Please take what HELPS and let go of the rest to be HELPFUL is MY only aim - thank you - Thanks for sharing and CONGRATS -  Your a NON SMOKER NOW- WAY TO GO - Yahoooooooooo - each BREATHE YOU take TODAY is YOUR NEW life to NEVER TAKE ANOTHER PUFF EVER over you or YOUR life and for ME - I thank MY God - I am NICOTINE FREE TODAY - TODAY is all I have- yesterday is gone and tomorrow ain't here yet - THAT HIT OF NICOTINE WILL KILL YOU sooner or later - YOUR OWN CHOICE - it's ALL on YOU! gentle hug❤

Thomas3.20.2010

Hi, Sam!

Welcome to BecomeanEX! We do know that sense of feeling cool even tho you don'y get much of a buzz. Nevertheless, Nicotine is more addictive than heroin or cocaine. Understanding how it works in conjunction with other additives to sickerettes, NRTs, and e-cigs can really help you with your recovery journey! Read up and stay steady One Day at a Time! 

Nicotine - The Nerve Poison

How Nicotine Changes your Brain

Get started then put nicotine in the search window and see what articles pop up that you might find helpful.

Best Wishes!

gregp136
Member

You have some good thoughts there.  Is part of the attraction to smoking the attraction to lost youth?  I feel very old this last week, so I may be able to relate to your comments more as I sit bored in the house.  We look back at the wonder and fun of being young and having the world ahead of us, believing anything is possible.  But, we were mistaken.

But at 45 days of Freedom, with a beautiful summer's day outside, I think maybe anything IS possible!

meWisconsin
Member

Everyone's perspective changes as we get older. You are correct when you say smoking was so cool when we were younger. But then we became hooked and it was an addiction we could not control. Now as we are older we realize it was all a big lie. Quitting is not easy but it is worth it. Stay the course in your quit. We are here for you.

Terry

Thomas3.20.2010

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cd_Fdly3rX8

Our character is not defined in the good times, but in the hard times.

Paul Brodie - 1934-2007 - Canadian Saxophonist

sweetplt
Member

Hi and Welcome to Ex’s Pacifica12 

Keep working towards that quit date...and Congratulations on finding healthy replacements...that is so much what it is all about ... be sure to keep close to this support site to offer others encouragement in their journey and to ask for help...we are in this journey together...Keep working it...~ Colleen 239 DOF 

YoungAtHeart
Member

Welcome to our community!

Understanding that you are withdrawing from a two part addiction - physical AND psychological, and thinking of new ways to get past the times you used to smoke are very important steps towards recovery.   I applaud your awareness!  I cannot tell for sure if you have already quit or are preparing, so I assume for this response that you are still preparing.  If you have already quit, the reading makes a great crave buster!

The important thing you can do right now is to educate yourself on what nicotine does to your body and mind. To that end, I highly recommend Allen Carr's “The Easy Way to Stop Smoking.” This is an easy and entertaining read. You can search for it online or at your local library. If you do nothing else to get ready for your quit, please do give this a read.


 You should also read the posts here and perhaps go to the pages of folks who you think might be helpful. You might visit whyquit.com, quitsmoking.com and livewell.com for the good information contained there. @https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/groups/best-of-ex has lots of blogs written by members of this site with their experiences and guidance. Here is a video to inform you further about nicotine addiction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpWMgPHn0Lo&feature=youtu.be.

After you have completed the recommended reading, it will be time to make an informed choice of the quit aid, if any, you will use. If you go that route, I personally recommend the aids that don't let the addict control the dose such as the available prescription drugs or the patch. If used properly, gum, lozenges and inhalers are fine, but they need to be used only as a last resort after you have tried to delay and distract.   I have seen folks become addicted to them if they substitute them for every cigarette they used to smoke - just trading one addiction for another.  You need to start out with a plan to reduce use of them over time - which the patch does by decreasing the dose contained in them..  For the gum, you can start by cutting each piece in half, then in quarters, then sub regular gum of the same flavor in between, adding more and more regular gum.  For the lozenge, you need to start subbing a mint in between to begin, increasing the number of them over time.  I do not recommend the e-cigarette for four reasons: 1) the vapor has been compared to the polluted air in Bejing on a bad day, 2) they just provide another nicotine delivery system while continuing the hand to mouth smoking motion,  3) the batteries can spontaneously catch on fire and 4) you can become addicted to that and it has not yet been proven safe .
 

It will be informative if you do the tracking and separation exercises recommended here on the site. As you track each cigarette smoked, note its importance, and what you might do instead. Put each one off just a little to prove that you don't NEED a cigarette just because you think you do.
 

The idea is to change up your routines so the smoking associations are reduced.  Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand in a place different from when you smoked. Maybe switch to tea for a bit.  If you always had that first smoke with your coffee, try putting your tennies on right out of bed, going for a quick walk, then taking your shower and THEN your coffee! Rearrange the furniture in the areas you used to smoke so the view is different. Buy your gas at a different station. Take a different route to work. Take a quick walk at break time where the smokers AREN'T.
 
You need to distract yourself through any craves.  You can take a bite out of a lemon (yup - rind and all), put your head in the freezer and take a deep breath of cold air, do a few jumping jacks, go for a brisk walk or march in place, play a computer game.  Keep a cold bottle of water with you from which to sip. Don't let that smoking thought rattle around in your brain unchallenged. Sometimes you need to quit a minute or an hour at a time.  You will need to be disciplined in the early days to distract yourself when a crave hits.    Get busy!  Here is a link to a list of things to do instead of smoke if you need some fresh ideas:


 https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/blogs/Youngatheart.7.4.12-blog/2013/02/25/100-things-to-do-instea...


The conversation in your head in response to the "I want a cigarette" thought needs to be, "Well, since I have decided not to do that anymore, what shall I do instead for the three minutes this crave will last?"  Then DO it.  You will need to put some effort into this in the early days, but it gets easier and easier to do.

Stay close to us here and ask questions when you have them and for support when you need it. We will be with you every step of the way!


 Nancy

JACKIE1-25-15
Member

The buzz you get when you are quitting is much better.  Feel the return of your nerves to your lips.  Feel your taste buds being restored.  Feel how it really feels to breathe deep.  Feel the buzz when you go through a crave, yeah you can make it like a buzz.  A lift, a buzz like riding a wave, feel your body cleansing itself. 

 You are young.  Glad you have decided to quit at such an early age.  Most of us here did not come to our senses so early in life.  We disregarded the packaging that says smoking causes cancer and kept puffing.  You are at the right place to get support to quit smoking. Congratulations on your quit, it gets better.