Community
Hi. My quit day is tomorrow and I am terrified. I am trying to make it today. I have answered the questions and have an avatar but I don't know what to do next. Feeling kinda stupid about how to get connected. And to navigate around.
Tess
Getting Started Guide Will also take you through how to post blogs, ask questions (which you've already done). I'm sure there will be others along with more information for you
WELCOME to the Crazy EX Family......I am a newbie and if you just stick to your guns you are going to TRANSFORM your ENTIRE LIFE......!!!
The BEST is yet to come.......Every SECOND from the moment you stop smoking is going to take you to the path of HAPPINESS, HEALTH, LAUGHTER and a few surprises mixed in.....LoL
PLEASE take advantage of US.
We all need YOU as much as you need US !
Miles of Smiles....................
Hi and Welcome! It will be ok! Community Help is a great place to learn how to navigate as well as the Getting started link you will see towards the top of the page if you click HOME. 
There is a great blog out there for our new quitters. For Our New Years' Quitters (and community members, too) You may also want to check out posts in Best of EX. We are here to help you on this journey to freedom!
Welcome! I know when I first found this site, many Elders told me to read read read….and I did. Elders are those with one or more years of being quit. If you like what someone has to say, then you may want to read their blogs. I have some listed below.
A list of our Elders ELDER'S LIST
So here's the thing.....and you may not like what I am about to say....and that's ok. I get it. You need to accept that this is an addiction. Before you do that, it will be much more difficult to quit and stay quit.
Read read read. Do the steps to PREPARE yourself to quit. Do the steps so you are PREPARED on quit day and for the days AFTER quit day.
Some of the things I read in my first few days that helped me:
Dale’s Welcome to New Members Re: My Welcome To New Members (10 Years Of Watching)
Youngatheart.7.4.12 Nancy’s Blog 101 Things to Do Instead of Smoke
jonescarp.aka.dale.Jan_2007 Dale’s Blog What To Expect In The First Four Months
Visit Best of EX
And read what has been posted there.
JACKIE1-25-15 gave me the link to Alan Carr’s book, “Easy Way to Quit Smoking”. I actually didn’t read the online PDF, but purchased a book on CD from Amazon and listened to it in my car over and over again for the first two weeks of my quit.
Keep this site close and keep posting and asking for help. You will get it. You will get things you like and things you don't like, but don't give up!!! We have been through similar experiences and can share our strength and hope. We are here to support you!
Congratulations on making the decision to quit smoking. It is normal to be a little nervous but rest assured you have come to the right place for a new day and a new beginning.This is all about you and what you are willing to do to be smoke-free. Quitting smoking requires hard work. It can be challenging at times but you will learn that it is doable if you adhere to NOPE not one puff ever no matter what.
Start first, by educating yourself about nicotine addiction.
Education is the key to a successful quit.
Read: Freedom from Nicotine My Journey Home and Nicotine Addiction 101
Here are the links: http://whyquit.com/whyquit/LinksAAddiction.html and http://whyquit.com/ffn/
I also encourage you to read. Allen Carr’s book, “Easy Easier Way to Quit Smoking”.
Go to http://www.becomeanex.org/how-to-quit-smoking.php#thl and get started.
We will support you.
Welcome tessoshea , you've made the best decision that you'll ever make in your lifetime so please read all of the links suggested above me and keep reading everything you can about quitting smoking and remaining quit because there's a wealth of information here to strengthen your resolve to kick the nicotine poison to the curb and start living a life of Freedom because S.I.N.A.O Smoking Is Not An Option anymore, congrats on starting your precious Day ONE tomorrow, stay close because we're all here to help you in any way we can and tomorrow evening you can look yourself in the mirror and say yay for Day WON with many more to come you can do this quit believe it deep breaths and start your quit journey .
Welcome! No worries, it takes time to navigate this site but you will do fine and someone will always come help you when you ask questions
Meanwhile, so glad your here. We are here to help. Your gonna do just fine
Welcome tessoshea. Don't be anxious about using the site. In the morning go to the Daily Pledge to start your day off. Then just post or blog whenever you want. In the beginning I was on the site constantly and found it to be a lifeline. I still check in at least twice a day. There is always something to talk about and to share. Welcome to the community. You can do this one day at a time.
-Michelle
Just wanted to say Hi and welcome. My pals above pretty much covered everything.
Welcome to EX...we are a pretty friendly bunch and we all want to help so just ease into this and we will be there for you. You have gotten lots of great advice already.
Welcome,
Ellen
Welcome to our community!
Here is another link to some getting around instructions written by an elder you might find useful: EX to EX INSTRUCTIONS.
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 also ighly recommend Allen Carr's “The Easy Way to Stop Smoking.” This is an easy and entertaining read. You can search for it online or at your local library.
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. You should also do the tracking and separation exercises suggested in My Quit Plan http://www.becomeanex.org/my-quit-plan.php
After you have completed the recommended reading, it will be time to make an informed choice of the quit aid, if any, you will use. If you go that route, I personally recommend the aids that don't let the addict control the dose such as the available prescription drugs or the patch. If used properly, gum, lozenges and inhalers are fine, but they need to be used only as a last resort. I have seen folks become addicted to them if they substitute them for every cigarette they used to smoke - just trading one addiction for another. I do not recommend the e-cigarette for three reasons: 1) the vapor has been compared to the polluted air in Bejing on a bad day, 2) they just provide another nicotine delivery system while continuing the hand to mouth smoking motion, and 3) the batteries can spontaneously catch on fire. . But – any method that you think will work well for you will be best for you.
The idea is to change up your routines so the smoking associations are reduced. Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand in a place different from when you smoked. Maybe switch to tea for a bit. 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. Keep a cold bottle of water with you from which to sip. 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:
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
Don't be terrified. You'll do just fine. Just resolve yourself to you're not smoking today and take it one day at a time. Welcome aboard. Once you've completed Smoking Trigger Tracker Tool | Guides & Tools | BecomeAnEX , please visit Newbie Quitters and read some there and also Best of EX. Therein contains some very useful and timeless knowledge saved to share with those that are serious about quitting smoking and also understanding how nicotine works inside our brains and bodies, How Nicotine Addiction takes over (and what to do about it!) . Be sure to use the search feature on the right-hand side of your screen to find answers to questions you may have along the way. I can guarantee you that at some point or another someone at sometime has or had the same feelings you are questioning. Here's another link to read to just get you started Welcome to the site. Now let's get to work....... We're just a bunch of former smokers helping other smokers quit and stay quit !!!!