Good for you Sara - you know you need to quit, and you really understand how bad it is for you. Quitting is a process and it sounds like you are taking all the right steps in the process.
It has been a month for me now!!! After the first three days, it got better. It is a major change, but one I was happy and waiting for. Cigarettes really annoyed me the last few days that I smoked. They disgusted me. My behavior disgusted me. After 40 years -
It is not easy. This website is excellent for support. Do some google searches for other sights as well - whyquit.com is another good one.
For me, i had to re-learn most of my habits. I stopped smoking in the car. Stopped smoking after eating. Stopped smoking in my bedroom. ETc. Etc.
I designated 2008 as the year for me to quit. I had a couple of trial runs, and then did it...on 12/30/08. I am very very happy i did.
It was hard, and I started doing things without a cigarette in my hand. I smoked a half a cigarette most of the time. I also switched brands to American Spirit. They do not have the chemicals that the commerical cigarettes do. it was easier for me to not smoke them...even tho they were very satisfying cigarettes. I also created some new non smoking rituals. Like, sitting in my dining room with my laptop, instead of staying in my bedroom with my laptop, as I smoked. I made myself smoke in the kitchen, garage, or outside.
I also thought about the layer of crap I was putting on my lungs every time I took a drag, and all of the poisons I was injesting. It is scary to quit because cigarettes have always been there - but for me now, it is scarier not to quit.
I did the tissue trick with a cigarette a couple of days before I quit. Put a tissue between my mouth and the filter of the cigarette, and took seven drags moving the tissue each time. EWE!
You will quit when you are ready. And, coming here is a great place to start to quit.
