pcolaflorida, thanks for the comment. It makes me feel good to consider myself a positive "example." Thank you for that. Please know, stopping was a struggle. I "played" at stopping many times over the years. It seems like the "stars" were in the perfect alignment in 2017 and that something shifted within me (emotionally and/or mentally) that allowed me to put cigarettes down with the intention of never smoking again. I believe in synchronicity. I had an emotional meltdown about smoking during a physical. My nurse practitioner's understanding and prescription for an anti-depressant helped. I searched the internet on "How do anti-depressants help with smoking cessation?" which led me to this community. Learning about nicotine addiction was invaluable. I followed many of the suggestions: identifying my triggers, prepare a toolkit, and set a quit date. I flubbed on my quit date: I thought if I went to bed the night before I would wake up with hours of not smoking under my belt. It didn't work. I was in withdrawal and it wasn't pretty. I bought a pack, took out 5 and decided I was going to stop at noon. I knew I needed to face my withdrawal and not think I could sleep my way through it. There were times I couldn't come to this community because all of the discussions were more then I could handle. Yet, through it all, I've remained smoke-free. I've paid attention to the stories of the long-timers that relapsed. I understand that if I want to remain an Ex, I'm going to have to stay on it and remind myself that I'm not special when it comes to nicotine. I want everyday to be a "day won" and not "a day one."
Sending light and love and a whole lot of support!
Michele
