Vanity....anyone??

[zen-blondism]

As I wander around this site and others I have not seen one mention of quitting because of how it affects our appearance. Ya know...yellow teeth, smokers lines around the mouth, wrinkles.
I am going to go get my teeth cleaned and start a whitening program with the idea that I won't want undo my pearly white shine.
I ultimatley want to live longer and feel better but, is anyone out there interested in looking better too? Am I the most shallow want-to-be-exer ever??

[sherri10]

I'm a Starbucks junkie! I love it so much that I decided to get a job there while I'm going back to school! Oh god don't tell me coffee causes cellulite!!!!!!

[sherri10]

I'm like you Paula. I like water. I drink more water than anyone I know! The only draw back is the I have to pee a lot! The only other thing I drink is cofffee. And very strong coffee at that!

[breathless]

I keep telling myself to get off my butt & get moving & I will feel better but ever since I quit (3 1/2 days) I have felt like poo. My chest feels heavy, congestion, sleepy all the time. Does anyone know about this? I keep thinking maybe tomorrow I will feel better & I think maybe I'm starting to. I used to run & rollerblade most days & I felt great (during a previous quit). This time I'd be happy if I felt like a walk around the block. Did anyone else experience this their first few days? Surely it will pass.......right?

[sherri10]

YES!!!

I was exhausted the first week. I'm on the patch and everytime I go down, I go through it again. I tried to just go off of it completely, but it's just too bad for me to do all at once. My sleeping routine is really off since quitting and I guess it will be this way until I'm completely off or I get that job I applied for. I don't have the heavy feeling chest, but I've heard several people talk about that and that it passes. One girl I talked to started taking N-Acetyl Cysteine and the heaviness was better after.

[jaylah]

If that's being shallow, I must be a tiny puddle on the sidewalk then.

How's this for shallow?

I used to be a gamer. Played World of Warcraft for over a year. (Yup, if you can get addicted to something, I'll be the one that does it.) Now being a gamer requires that you sit on your fat @$$ in front of your computer for hours at a time. So I used to force myself to do 2 hours per day on my treadmill so my butt wouldn't end up not fitting through the door. Would it have made more sense just to stop playing the game? Of course! But I was addicted. However, even in the middle of my addiction, I was that concerned about physical appearance.

I have, for many years, been almost a fanatic about making sure I have my (large) sunglasses on when I go outside. Everybody knows that squinting in bright sunlight causes crows-feet, right? (Ummm, like smoking isn't even a greater cause of them???)

I do regular manicures, not because I care about the color of my fingernails, but to hide the yellow staining.

I have a full tooth-whitening kit just sitting there on my bathroom vanity waiting for me, and an upcoming appointment for a thorough teeth cleaning and polishing. (My quit date is July 1st.)

One of my separation techniques is to hop on my treadmill. One of the few places I don't (usually) smoke....mostly because there's no good place to put an ashtray. *blush* Hopefully that will even out any extra food I start putting in my mouth as a result of quitting.

Am I looking forward to just being able to buff my nails and not having to wear nail-polish all the time to hide the yellow nails? You bet?

This whole discussion about caffeine is bothering me though. I found I couldn't seem to play World of Warcraft without a cup of coffee next to me. (And my cigarettes, of course.) Since I was often up until the wee hours of the morning playing, I finally had to switch from regular coffee to decaf, or I literally wouldn't sleep all night. I'd finally crash into bed at about 10:00 in the morning, and then not wake up until it was time to log into the game and keep going. Now it looks like I'm going to have to give up coffee altogether. Grrrr! 🙂

[sherri10]

We're 6itchy enough around just quitting smoking! I suggest no one give up coffee as well! We'll be at each others throats!

[jaylah]

*grin*

[nikkie-noodle]

You are soooo not alone! I have a very warm and cheerful smile, but cannot smile to the fullest. I have gum disease (periodontal disease) from smoking. I am finally going to have the guts to have this taken care of, but one step at a time for me. I delayed everything, because I know alot of my issues was because of smoking. I remember having two teeth pulled, and still smoking!!! Yes, I cannot wait to have a REAL smile, and hopefully close to white teeth again! You are on the right track!, and NO you are not alone!! I cannot wait for my EX-TRANSFORMATION!!.......................Nikkie Noodle

[megan2]

my teeth are yellow from smoking cigarettes, I went to the dentist some time a go and bought the teeth whitening kit for only $300.00. I used it a couple of times, but right now im not so concerned with my smile as i am getting rid of this hovering addictioin!!!!!

[jaylah]

For me, I don't think it's even just what we are (I think) calling "vanity." Like wrinkles, yellow teeth and nails, etc.

I have also, over the course of the years I've been smoking, ended up isolating myself more and more. As more and more people quit, my list of smoking friends has grown smaller and smaller. I typically ended up losing touch with a lot of friends. Partly because I felt embarrassed because I couldn't seem to quit, and partly because I knew my smoking bothered them. And, of course, because I couldn't smoke when I was with them. I have never smoked in non-smoker's houses, and my non-smoking friends were never keen on finding one of the few places to eat where you could still smoke. (Essentially a bar that also served food.) I never even considered inviting them to my house. The place reeks like a dirty ashtray!

And I'm tired of being alone so much. If that's also vanity then I stand guilty as charged.