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Give and get support around quitting

joelwsteiger
Member

My last stand

Hello,

I am on day 2 for the 15th time over the last 10 years, I have quit once or twice a year from 2-6 months each time average 4 months one year I made it 9 months then let myself be put in a bad position doing a friend's son a favor then I circumb to the temptations with 1 cigarette. Later that day I bought a pack and never looked back for about 6 months until I tried again, it was a short quit. That was during the 4th year. I am now 54 had I quit the first time I would now be out of the woods. My Dad quit at 44 and lived to be just short of 90, do to his passing I am now financially set for life and I want it to be a long one. This must be my last attempt and won't know if I am out of the woods until I am 64 if I am, (it worries me). One year I called everyone to do with cancer and smoking cessation to receive books pamphlets and CD's and now I have a library of information (they don't give as much away now as they used to) but to you first timers it is worth the journey, it will keep busy and not smoking, don't stop until you have turned every rock over. I am going to get my library of information out and use it to keep me on the right track haven't done that for 5 years.

I will also look around the room to single out something particular, then read (I am a poor reader (comprehension) but it won't stop me. I have the resources and advice. This must be my last attempt to be smoke free, on day 2 I am going to start washing everything, close, drapes or curtains, walls spray fabric refresher on furniture, vacuum and deodorizer carpet, wash throw rugs, wash Windows, clean out car including Windows and deodorizer. This should take a week or so plus flip through my library for advice and information on why to quit. I WILL DO IT THIS TIME, I promised my Mom and that is the greatest motivation of all.

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8 Replies
joelwsteiger
Member

Me again, I forget to add: 

I started smoking at age 12 now 54 I have smoked for 42 years with breaks the last 10 years. It's a part of my life, but I must do it, I am glad I found this website the chats and the gum will help. In the past I have tried hypnosis, patches, herbs and this time I am going to use Essential Oils, I have a good rep and she is setting me up well, diffusers, inhaler and roll on, with all the right Oil.

Gods help to us all.

Sandy-9-17-17
Member

Welcome to EX!  You have great resources right here, as well as great people who will support and guide you in the right direction.  I myself have only been here 46 days now, with great success! 

Essential Oils are great, I use them myself.  You are doing all the right things, but there is only one more thing that I

can suggest......

There is just a little bit of doubt in what I read, so all I can say is start telling yourself several times a day, whenever the urge to smoke strikes or a craving is really strong.....

"I don't do that anymore!" 

And you WILL SUCCEED !!!   You got this!

Welcome to Ex Joel!  Where S.I.N.A.O. and N.O.P.E.  are a couple of really good keys to staying quit! 

I'll see you around! You will be informed by the Elders and many others real soon! 

Sandy 46 DOF

YoungAtHeart
Member

Welcome to our community!

You can be successful, even after many failed attempts!  You might spend a bit of time thinking about what caused you to make a decision to smoke during your last couple of attempts and plan NOW what you will do differently THIS time.  I will give you some MORE reading that I think is helpful!

The most 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. Here is a link to a free PDF version of it:

http://media.wix.com/ugd/74fa87_2010cc5496521431188f905b7234a829.pdf

 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, quitsmokingonline.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.

The idea is to change up your routines so the smoking associations are reduced.  Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand. 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.  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

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bonniebee
Member

I tried many times to quit but finding Ex really helped me do it I am heading for 1000 days any day now You will do it ! 

welcome to the community. Holler if you need help or anything. We will do our best to help.

elvan
Member

Welcome to EX...you certainly sound like you are working to make this successful.  I believe that education is very important in this journey, realizing that it IS an addiction is HUGE.  It is not just a habit, it is an addiction and recovery is one day at a time.  NOPE was my mantra for a long time...Not One Puff Ever.  I told that to my daughter and she quit using that and the patch.  I used no nicotine replacement, it is not that I am against it, I was just so sick that I HAD to quit.  I quit over and over again and always went back to smoking, usually because of a trigger I had not prepared for...anger was a rough one for me to get past.  Remember that cigarettes do not do anything FOR you...not ONE thing, they don't FIX anything, they don't make anything better...they do just keep doing their sneaky work destroying your body in all kinds of ways.  Quitting is something to prepare for and to commit to, no matter what.  Stay close to the site, pledge every morning, here is the link:  The Daily Pledge November 2017  and ride the FreedomTrain click on celebrations and events at the top of the page and select the date and celebrate the success of others on this journey.  Read blogs, comment, write blogs, ask for and then listen to advice...you cannot go wrong.  You will get all of the education, support, and help that you need on this site...you will make friends and you will celebrate the successes of others and grieve for those who lose their quits.  We are a community dedicated to helping each other in any way that we can.

Again, welcome.

Ellen

maryfreecig
Member

     Welcome. Thanks for sharing your smoking and quit history. Support matters, so please keep coming back to read, talk, share your quit journey. There are a lot of former smokers here who smoked for a long time, but found a way to recover from the addiction. I'm one of many, and can tell you with certainty, one day at a time you can put cigarettes behind you, relearn life without the smokes. 

minihorses
Member

Welcome! I am on day 16 of my hundredth time quitting. I was with my mother-in-law in hospice for 9 days due to emphysema and was alone with her when she died. Watching her decline was scary so I promised my husband I'd quit. That was over 2 years ago. This time is the last time for both you and I because we WILL succeed as long as we keep NOPE (Not One Puff Ever) at the forefront. It has become my 'mantra'. You've got a great deal of information, love and support here so use it! Keep going, you can do it. Today is 16 days smoke free for me and I wouldn't have made it this far if it weren't for the support of the people on this site! My your 3rd day be easier.

Julie

15 DOF