Day 3

Discussion created by DonnaMarie on Feb 21, 2018
Latest reply on Feb 22, 2018 by MamaCanuck

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I'm gritting my teeth and pulling out all the stops. No smoking today. Not one puff. I want and need to stay clean.

There is no reason to smoke. There are only reasons to quit.

It's that simple and yet this addiction is so complicated. The nicodemon whispers in my ear that "it's okay." but it's not. Smoking is never okay. Not in my book.

Plan for today:

Run errands, or at least go to the bank. That's close and it has to be done.
Cut fabric strips for my kitchen stuff.
Walk outside (it's going to be gorgeous here today in Virginia).
Eat simply.
Fold laundry... again.
Go to my volunteer thing tonight. It's also close and I won't stop for cigs, daggumit!
Brush my teeth.
Break out some of the mints I bought for this occasion. It is an occasion, after all. A celebration. It is not a wake. It is not a funeral.
Reread the how and why of it all as much as I need to.

I feel a cranky time coming on. I don't feel deprived. I do feel like I need to be completely on guard today.

I know I'm not alone when I say I wish I had never started smoking.

Okay, off the pity train and back to reality.

Outcomes

23 Replies

Chuck_Quit_2-20-2011 Feb 21, 2018 11:18 AM
Wow! Day three!

Kind of a hump day for you. This is the day that the last of the nicotine leaves the body, and the physical part eases. Good job! Next comes the commitment. The physical cravings will ease, but the internal argument remains. Please be careful today. I'll be thinking of you!

ONWARD TO FREEDOM!!!

Chuck
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elvan Feb 21, 2018 11:39 AM
You certainly are NOT alone when you say you wish you had never started...I cannot count the number of times I have said that out loud and to myself. You are doing well...planning your day is a positive thing. I also live in Virginia and I would LOVE to get outside and go for a walk, I used to do that all of the time but then my COPD progressed and I simply cannot exercise outside because I cannot breathe. I DO exercise indoors and I take better care of myself than I think I have at any other time in my life. This is a journey, it DOES get easier, we need to celebrate our smoke free experiences.

We are here for you, my friend.
Ellen
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- DonnaMarie @ elvan on Feb 21, 2018 11:55 AM
  You live in a beautiful part of the state. I hope you're able to go on the porch and enjoy it before the pollen sets in. Get that bottle of bubbles ready My husband is headed for Roanoke in a couple weeks for a car show. I'm not ready for that kind of car ride yet, but I will be!
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anaussiemom Feb 21, 2018 11:45 AM
I wish I had never started smoking. " DonnaMarie

Always wished my parents were smarter and educated me and my sibling on smoking. I blame them!! LOL

But day 2 and 1/2 almost cold turkey. I'm kinda diggin" the cold turkey way. (for myself).

Know if I could get some house work done....

Donna your doing fabulous. Kudos!!

Hugs
Kim
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- anaussiemom @ anaussiemom on Feb 21, 2018 11:45 AM
  NOW*
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- DonnaMarie @ anaussiemom on Feb 21, 2018 11:57 AM
  We're at the same point Come holler at me instead of smoke and I'll do the same, okay?
  
  I'm 62. If you do the math, everyone smoked when I was a kid and it was almost a rite of passage to smoke and then smoke in front of your parents and then smoke everywhere, including stores, hospitals, and doctors' offices. Both of my parents smoked and so did my older sisters. I, like most people, snuck one here and there, stealing them from my parents' packs. You know the story.
  
  We got this - 2-1/2 days will be a week before we know it, and I'm not gonna bust a week quit!
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Daniela-3-11-2016 Feb 21, 2018 12:11 PM
I had the same conversation with mom just the other day. When I started I was about 20, I was hiding it from my parents, but one day I asked her, and she said I was a good kid, doing well with school, not getting in any kind of trouble, and at that time, everyone else was smoking (not my parents though), so she said, go for it. She is now sorry she did not know more about how the addiction, if she had said no, I probably would have obeyed. So I am free to blame her, but I know better now.

I know it is on me to stay an EX, I know it is feasible, I know every one here is here to help.

And you should rely on us for help, but you'll be the driver of your quit! Congratulations on day 3, please try not to be scared of the craves; they come and go, they are not invitations to go buy cigarettes, you can deep breathe through them, and will find yourself at the end of the day a happy EX for making it!

You can do it DonnaMarie, we'll be here to help!
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- anaussiemom @ Daniela-3-11-2016 on Feb 21, 2018 12:41 PM
  Well of course I don't really blame, my parents. I dont know what possessed me to pick up a cigarette???? Anyway..
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  - Daniela-3-11-2016 @ anaussiemom on Feb 21, 2018 4:53 PM
    Kim, anaussiemom please don't take it the wrong way, of course I don't blame mom. But you know how addicted people find all kind of EXcuses for the behavior. And maybe for years, in my mind I thought "if only mom said NO back then", but no one will never know. She might have said "NO" and I could have been already addicted at the time and would have not stopped anyways.
    The point I was trying to make is that our own mind, if we can get it straight (and I am not that much ahead of you, after all I quit just a little less than 2 years ago), is going to help us see the clear picture, the picture of us being the only responsible party for the addiction, as well as our quit. Why did we start? For me it was pure peer pressure; I was going to University, and was amongst the very few kids (18-19 years old) who did not smoke; I wanted to fit in, I wanted to be accepted and not being made fun of as "daddy's good little girl"! Another factor was the extended family, most of them were smoking, and mostly women. My husband used to smoke but quit before we got married. I smoked 33 out of our almost 35 years together, how crazy is that???
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    - anaussiemom @ Daniela-3-11-2016 on Feb 21, 2018 7:33 PM
      NO. Daniela-3-11-2016 xo
      
      I don't think anyone knew how deadly they were at that time. Just been thinking of it as of late. I lost my mom when she was 56. She smoked, also in her past had other cancer bouts. Hard to say which cancer, actual killed her. But final was in her lung.
      
      RIP
      Momma.
      
      DonnaMarie keep pushing forward.. Baby steps....
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      - Daniela-3-11-2016 @ anaussiemom on Feb 21, 2018 7:43 PM
        I am sorry for your loss Kim, my mom is 86, living with us, and if some days I feel it hard to be her sole caregiver, most of the time I am so thankful to still have her in my life.
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        anaussiemom @ Daniela-3-11-2016 on Feb 21, 2018 7:51 PM
        Not to go off topic Donna. You deserve every ounce of support here.
        
        Daniela, The hardest thing in life besides being a mom. Is a 24 7 caregiver. Exhausting, guilt, love, dutiful, and very stressful.!! Kudos to Mom for having you xo.
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        DonnaMarie @ anaussiemom on Feb 21, 2018 8:14 PM
        Off topic is exactly where you needed to go and I'm fine with it. The quit process is so multilayered. It's emotional, mental, physical, behavioral, and all the other "...al"s that it can be.
        
        I had bladder cancer in July 2015. I had surgery and the cancer was fully removed. Unfortunately, I had complications from the surgery, but fortunately, I made it to the other side. Bladder cancer is caused by smoking (not always).
        
        You would think I would have quit that day and stayed quit forever. I see the urologist every six months still, and yet, until last October, I smoked. I came here when I quit in October and disappeared after a few days. I didn't make it. I am absolutely am going to make it this time. I have my quit smoking rock, my cinnamon sticks (only chewed on one so far!), and I have all of you here in my arsenal.
        
        I'm so sorry that you lost your mom. My daughter says to me that she doesn't want me to die that way. Do I listen? No.
        
        I'm quitting for me right now. I hope you and I can stick to this for a long, long time. We deserve it.
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indingrl.01.06.2011 Feb 21, 2018 12:14 PM
CONGRATS 3 DAYS NICOTINE FREE keep on keeping great day planned breathing and loving YOUR NEW LIFE NICOTINE FREE!!!! Tadah your doing it DonnaMarie for YOU that is wonderful keep on keeping on
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maryfreecig Feb 21, 2018 4:57 PM
Fantastic!
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elvan Feb 21, 2018 6:25 PM
Great job DonnaMarie, the pollen absolutely bothers me but humidity is the worst thing in the world. I cannot stand it because I feel as though even getting from my house to my car is overwhelming. I am not looking forward to summer. Oddly enough, I am able to work out pretty enthusiastically in an outdoor poor without feeling that I am being suffocated. My husband was in Roanoke Memorial Hospital for several days following his coronary bypass...it is beautiful but if I never had to make that drive again, it would not break my heart.

You WILL be able to make that trip and you WILL not even have to worry about it, you are growing and you are doing a great job.
Ellen
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Marilyn.H.July.14.14. Feb 21, 2018 7:37 PM
You are so right, this addiction is complicated and the old nicodemon is a royal pain in the butt but you staying busy and making a plan for the day is smart and yay for another Day WON with many more to come it's going to get easier and easier with time under your belt but first you have to get through the rough patches but you are doing it one precious Smokefree Day at a time and boy oh boy it's so worth it to be Free....
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DonnaMarie Feb 21, 2018 8:28 PM
A few updates: I volunteer with the local police department and was on call for an event tonight. This morning, I thought about asking a friend to cover me and that I would just stay home. I nixed that negativity and went. I put on my nametag and my "uniform" and greeted and registered people like a champ. I had my quit smoking rock in my pocket and found I didn't need to refer to it at all. The guy I was working with, well, I did show him my rock and it turns out he quit 5 years ago. We didn't go into it too much, but it was good to talk to him.

After the cop event, I got a fish sandwich at McDonald's. No cigarette in the drivethrough!

Then, miracles of miracles, I drove home and didn't smoke. I pass a number of places that sell cigarettes on the way to and from the police station, so to me, not having cigarettes didn't matter; I could get them at any time. I didn't!

I have to go get fitted with a shoulder immobilizer tomorrow. It's a pretty good hike out of town. I'm not sure why I'm so obsessed with driving, but it's a former weakness for sure.

Tonight, I'm in pretty good shape. I have a minor headache, but that's okay. It's better than coughing and wheezing.

Good night, all! Thanks for your help and support. Day 4 is coming up.
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- elvan @ DonnaMarie on Feb 21, 2018 9:28 PM
  DonnaMarie I had issues with driving too...serious issues and then I needed to drive to NY State for my granddaughter's graduation from high school...I made it smoke free...did a whole lot of praying along the way and I was seriously annoyed with other drivers but I made it there and I made it back and I am stronger for it. You are going to do fine, really glad you were able to connect with someone who quit five years ago and who knows exactly where you are coming from.
  
  Hang in there, kid. You've got this. BTW, what kind of surgery are you having and WHEN?
  Best,
  Ellen
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  - DonnaMarie @ elvan on Feb 21, 2018 9:48 PM
    Subacromial decompression on the left. There is a teeeeeeny tiny chance that there is a rotator cuff tear, but you can clearly see the bone mess on the x-ray. I like to swim and haven't been able to swim backstroke for a couple years. This should fix it. I thought I was done with surgeries. Thank goodness, though, that we live in a time when stuff can be fixed. I could barely walk and had both knees replaced (one of them twice for various reasons). Since then, I've lost a considerable amount of weight and walk all the derned time. I can't wait to swim again. And without smoking, I should be able to work up to swimming more than just backstroke. I hope
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    - elvan @ DonnaMarie on Feb 22, 2018 11:19 AM
      Great deal...I have RA and I also had a bone defect that actually caused my rotator cuffs to tear because of a claw like protrusion that kept rubbing against the rotator cuffs on both sides. Now, I no longer have a ball and socket and the solution would be a reverse shoulder replacement. I love working out in the water but I have not been a strong swimmer in years...I use a noodle to support myself and do all kinds of movements as if I am swimming. I know that water aerobics are the best, they help my back so much that I can ALMOST forget how bad it is. Unfortunately, I cannot use an indoor pool because of the chlorine and the way it affects my breathing. I CAN, however, work out at a friend's house when the weather allows so I can get my best work outs during the summer.
      
      Thinking of you, it's actually rather exciting that they are able to do this. Youngatheart.7.4.12 is also a swimmer...she comes to life in the summer.
      
      Ellen
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    - anaussiemom @ DonnaMarie on Feb 22, 2018 12:20 PM
      I love the thought of swimming again too!
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MamaCanuck Feb 22, 2018 12:30 PM
"Nicodemon" I like that! And Day 3 is when Nicodemon really starts to panic that this time you're breaking up with him and sending him packing for good! Don't let him fool you. He's gone, he's out, he's finished! Soon it will start to seem more like it was all just a bad dream. Onwards!
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Day 3

Outcomes

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