Hi WElcome to EX...I am so glad you are spending the time to prepare a plan and thinging about why and when you smoke..so many just jump in and then wonder why it's not working for them...I smoked for 47 years...since you were 1 years old!!! Yikes!! But for the last 19 days I have been smoke free...the night before my quit date I tore up any cigarettes in the house...got rid of the lighters and ashtrays and bought some healthy juices, snacks ( like fruit and pretzels) and got three great books form the library...I never smoked in my house or car and woke up on DAY1 excited but like you very nervous...the first thing I did was eat something...I never did when I smoked..coffee and a cigarette was my breakfast...then I went for a walk...not far...just down the block and back but I needed to feel how great clean air felt to breathe in...just keep taking deep breathes...and remember the more you are drinking water and taking deep breaths your body is getting rid of the smoke and cleaning that smell out of your system...by Day 3 I was feeling so much better..no more coughing...very little cravings and I started to form new habits..I used to go outside to smoke while on the phone..now I sit in my favorite chair and drink sips of ice water or some awesome fruit juices with cup up strawberries in them...like drinking dessert!
After eating I change the routine I had..instead of rushing to get the table cleared and putting the dishes in the dishwasher...I go and sit in front of the tv for 1/2 hour...then do the sihes ..just to change when I would mostly think about having a cigarette..right after the table and dishes were done...the change of sitting and deep breathing while I check what is on TV keeps me relaxed. Stress, hunger and after a meal is the worse time for me..so I cnaged the routine after eating...eat small healthy snacks..even a few grapes cold from the fridge...and breathe...breathe...breathe...in through your nose and out through your mouth..just keep thinking about all the toxins we used to inhale..I think of them leaving my body every time I exhale now..Keep in touch and contact anyone on this site..most are so sweet and still beginners like you and me...some have been quit for years and come on to help us newbies...oh the group I started is NEWBIES TOGETHER>>>check it out under the group tab on top of this page...join us and blog what you are feeling and what you want to chat about...7 more days and you will do the best thing you ever did for yourself...you deserve it!!!!
{{{{{HUGS}}}}}
Barbara in SC (Schoney50)
