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Give and get support around quitting

BostonGirl
Member

Any suggestions for getting through the weekend?

I have very little time during the week, so weekdays are a bit easier for me.  But it's FRIDAY, and I'm a bit nervous about the weekend.  Anyone else have the weekend issue?

10 Replies
JACKIE1-25-15
Member

If you are very early in your quit the best advice I can offer is to avoid people places and things that may cause you to smoke. If you have something that you truly enjoy, spend time doing that.  You will think about smoking but you have to make up your mind that no matter what is happening you will not smoke.  Come here read, study blog. 

Start first, by educating yourself about nicotine addiction.  

Remember: 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

YoungAtHeart
Member

Welcome to our community!

Make plans NOW to get busy this weekend.  Go for a long walk, take a nap, read here on the site or others that deal with quitting smoking, clean out a drawer or a closet, play a computer game (I spent almost the entire first four days of my quit playing Angry Birds), binge watch a show you have wanted to see, wander around the mall.   Do NOT just sit around and think about smoking.  Get BUSY!  Stay busy! 
  
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. You can search for it online or at your local library. Here's a link to a video here on the site which describes nicotine addiction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpWMgPHn0Lo&feature=youtu.be.
 
 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 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:
 
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

stAn3
Member

I used to have this issue and still do sometimes. The problem for me is too much free time, not knowIng what to do with it. What has been helpful for me is to plan at least one event for each day off, anything to get out of the house and occupy my time.

Also, probably the most important thing I have learned, I make a commitment to stay in recovery one day at a time.  When it gets real bad, I take it one hour at a time, one craving at a time.

maryfreecig
Member

    Welcome to Ex. Great ideas already suggested. Can only add get out and active if being home is going to leave you feeling antsy. Ditto on what stAn3 said...one day, one hour...whatever it takes.

karenjones
Member

Now that you are not smoking you will have tons of time to get your life in order. I would suggest washing all the curtains in your house (to get that smoke smell out if you smoked in your house) time to read Allan Carr again if you haven't read him already and I suspect you have. Time to vaccum all the rugs and furniture and wash and dry and fold all the bedding. Time to make a healthy meal, time to go to the library, time to go swimming or to go to a sauna at your local Y. Time to go to your local botanic garden to see the last roses of summer. Time to volunteer at your local animal shelter. Time to take up knitting or crochet. Time to read a good book. Time to call an old friend and say, 'hey, I quit smoking and with the money I saved from not buying cigarettes, I want to take you to lunch. Not smoking gives you time and time is life and that has been your gift to yourself for not smoking.  Welll done!

MarilynH
Member

Welcome to the community please read the recommended reading above me and keep reading because it'll strengthen your resolve to keep moving forward and stacking up your precious Days of Freedom, I really can't add anything else other than you've made the best decision that you'll ever make in your lifetime and it's definetly the best gift that any of us will ever give ourselves which is the gift of LIFE.....

shashort
Member

Welcome to EX community it is a great place for support and education.  You have some great reading suggestions above that you should start with.  There is a lot of great reading here within this group to keep you busy and learn how others tackled their craves.  Find things you like doing to keep you busy and distracted. Tell yourself you don't do that anymore.  Come here and blog like you just did and ask for HELP and we will come running.  Take it one hour, minute or second at a time.  SINAO is smoking is not an option and NOPE not one puff ever kept me free. You can do it. Stay strong.  We are here for you.

elvan
Member

Make some plans to nurture yourself...maybe a pedicure...a walk in the park, a visit to a museum...some place you cannot smoke but that you enjoy...some place you cannot get to when you are working.  Remember that smoking fixes NOTHING but it is hurting you every time you allow it into you life.  We are here and we have all been at the beginning, some of us dreaded going BACK to work while others dreaded time off.  PLAN things that YOU want to do, go to the movies, go to the mall (I HATE the mall so I am not sure where that came from).  Go to a Lake or someplace near water and take deep...CLEAN breaths.  

I PROMISE you that it will get easier, it takes time and I wish with all of my heart that I could tell you exactly how MUCH time.

Best,

Ellen

AnnetteMM
Member

Weekends were tough for me because of the lack of routine. I had to keep busy and create new routines for those days so boredom wouldn't take over. Think about things you enjoy doing.  If you can't do those things, clean the house!