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Give and get support around quitting

jeanniebee
Member

New to Ex

Good morning everyone I am new to EX I quit smoking 13 days ago I would like advise on how to combat cravings thank you

26 Replies
Jennifer-Quit
Member

My advise - stay busy! Do things that don't remind you of smoking.  My go-to thing the first couple of months was reading.  I could start reading an interesting novel and not have a single thought of smoking for hours.  Here is a link to a blog by aztec‌ that lists 100 things to do besides smoke.  Maybe you will find it helpful.

100 THINGS TO DO BESIDES SMOKE

PS - Welcome to the community!

Mortalzeus
Member

Congratulations on your 13 days of freedom  I was able to beat back my worst cravings with "Box Breathing."

boxbreathing.png

Stay Strong and Embrace the Journey

Darren

jeanniebee
Member

Thank you Darren I will definitely try this 

0 Kudos
minihorses
Member

Good morning and welcome to the BEST online quit smoking group you'll ever find! You've got a great start at 13 days already. You made those days on your own too, that's a huge hurdle! First two weeks are pure hell for me and I wouldn't have made it through without the love and support of everyone here. Read as much as you can, take "The Daily Pledge" to not smoke today(under celebrations and events), hop on board "The Freedom Train", post, blog, ask questions, whatever you need you will find here. Keep going, you can do this even if it's one minute at a time.

Julie

17 Days Of Freedom From Smoking

jeanniebee
Member

Thank you for the encouragement.. up until the past few days I have been feeling like giving in to the cravings that one day would not hurt that’s when I searched the web and found this site ... thank you for your suggestions.   Jeannie 

ahhshucks
Member

Welcome! 

0 Kudos
maryfreecig
Member

Wow, that you said halt and searched the web says so much about your desire to find the solutions you need to keep your quit on track. Way to go.

0 Kudos
TW517
Member

My favorite, in order, are:

- deep breathing

- chewing on a cut coffee stir straw

- yelling really loud! This could have been my favorite, but rarely was it practical  

Congrats on 13 days!!!

elvan
Member

Congratulations on 13 days and welcome to EX.  I think the best thing to do is to accept that the craves are going to come no matter what...they are really intense in the beginning but they DO get weaker and less frequent the more time you have behind you.  I suggest that you acknowledge the crave...figure out why you are having it and then ask yourself what having a cigarette would do to change whatever is happening.  The only thing a cigarette will do is to take away the crave for a very short time and then the nicotine level drops and you want ANOTHER cigarette.  That's how it works and in the meantime...nothing has changed, cigarettes do not relieve stress, they actually feed it, cigarettes do not help with depression or sadness, they make us feel more isolated and increase our depression, they do not help with physical pain, they distract us for a very short time and there are much healthier distractions...see Jennifer's comment to you.  They do not help with anger...I remember smoking FURIOUSLY when I was angry...I would visualize the person or thing I was angry about incinerating.  Clearly, that did not happen.  I always felt angrier and angrier, I actually had arguments in my head..you know the I should have said, should have done things?  Smoking does nothing FOR us but I can tell you that it sure can do a lot TO us.  No crave ever killed anyone...no one can say that about smoking.  I suggest that you do all of the reading about nicotine addiction...read blogs here, comment, write blogs like you just did...ask for help if you feel that your quit is at risk.  Write a blog and put the word HELP in the subject, we will do everything we can to help you to get past the trigger.  I used the mantra NOPE all the time at the beginning of my quit...Not One Puff Ever.  It was simple, easy for me to remember, and it helped me to keep my commitment to myself.  You CAN do this and there are lots of people here who will help you and who will hold your hand when you need it, we ALL want you to succeed and to be an active member of this community.  I am adding a couple of links here for you, one is a blog written by SkyGirl‌ and it is really helpful.../blogs/SkyGirl-blog/2017/10/29/here-s-what-smoking-doesn-t-do-for-you  The next was written by JonesCarpeDiem‌ and I read it over and over again when I first quit.../blogs/jonescarp.aka.dale.Jan_2007-blog/2011/06/26/what-to-expect-in-the-first-four-months  This should give you a good start.

Again, welcome to EX and please let us know if we can help in any other ways.

Ellen