First day and I am craving craving craving.
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Take it one minute at a time and then stack those minutes into hours and the hours into days! You can do this!
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Hi and Welcome to Ex’s...Mollybiscuit413
Glad you found our site...hon...cravings and triggers are tough, but to be expected. Preparation and knowledge are the key...if you didn’t already, please read at My EX Plan | BecomeAnEX also, it is important that you replace smoking with healthy habits...(ie., support others on this journey, take a walk, clean the oven, clean the shower, take a shower, drink water, do a puzzle, etc.,) have a list ready...hang in there ... it takes baby steps...one step in front of the other...Gotcha in my Thoughts ~ Colleen 209 DOF
The first days of a quit are difficult - no two ways about it - but lots of us here made it through and you can, too. Keep a cold bottle of water handy from which to sip, a written list of your reasons for quitting to reinforce your decision AND a list of distracting activities. Don't let that smoking crave rattle around in your head unchecked. Get busy! Slow/deep breaths, going slower and deeper with each, are always available to you and are a proven way to get through a crave. Exercise is also a great crave buster - even marching in place works.
Get through these early days the best way you can - but get through them you must to have a successful quit. Don't let Big Tobacco win!!!
One day, sometimes a minute or an hour at a time is how we all did it. I KNOW you can, too.
Hang in there!
Nancy
Ride them like waves...
Time, them how long, rate one to 10, write it down.
Yell at them. I said yell!!! at them! LOUDER!!!!!!
The nicotine bully will try to convince you they will not end. That is a lie. They come and go, and decrease, and you will do this!
Thank you for the encouragement and suggestions. Got out of my house went to my mom’s for dinner. I got out some knitting and crocheting books as my niece is having a boy and I have a blanket to make. That will keep my hands busy. This sucks but I did it before and i’ll do it now. I know tomorrow if it’s like the first time my peripheral vision gets weird. Strange side effect. Thank you you all.
Vicks Vapor Rub . I swore by it. Thats stuff killed my craves immediately. I had those little blue bottles everywhere around the house and even bought a Vicks inhaler when I would be out in public and didnt want to smell like a medicine chest. I can't explain why it worked, but I read an article on it somewhere on the internet and gave it a go. I kept a bit under my nose when ever the craves got bad. Deep breathing ( Slow inhale through the nose, exhale slow out the mouth) also was good and I kept a very very clean house.
It will get easier, I promise, if you stick with it and recognize your growth. Remember that no crave ever killed anyone but no one can say that about cigarettes. Stay close by, we are all here supporting you.
Ellen
Thank you Ellen will check in tomorrow. I think I can actually sleep now.
You can totally do this! Think about how cool you'll be when you quit. No one will give you that side eye for smelling like smoke or cross the street to avoid the second hand. I get it. It's so freaking tough that first day. Take a deep breath of oxygen. Visualize what you'll do with all the free time you'll gain when you aren't wasting your life smoking.
Are you still not smoking?
Still not smoking. Was jersey st reading some articles on the why quit site. Craving went away looking at some nasty pictures. Plus I remembered how good I felt when I had quit before.
I didn't doubt you! Congrats and I'm right behind you... Just one day but hell it's a start!
It is one hell of a start!
Take a deep breath, grab something from your quit toolkit. I used a lot of cut up drinking straws, cinnamon candy. I went for walks, got in bed and watched movies. I did things to distract myself. I'd been smoking for over 30 years. Today, I celebrate 2 years of freedom. Sending you positive vibes and love. You've got this, if this is what you want!
This is what I want. Drinking lot’s of water with lime or lemon. Deep breathing and reminding myself that if I smoke now I’ll just have to start this fun all over and I don’t want to do this again.
Inch by inch, every things's a cinch is one of my favorite sayings from the late Rev. Robert Schuller. I've done some reading since I made my comment. I now know you had 19 years of freedom so you know what the journey is like. Congratulations on stopping again. I'm not sure what to say that you don't already know that will help you through the challenging moments. Please know there's someone out here sending you positive vibes and lots of light and love. I'm rooting for you.
Your story of why you started smoking again is a teaching point for me. It reminds me how fragile my quit is and I need to try and always be mindful that even one seemingly innocent puff regardless of the reason and the intention will send me down a rabbit hole.
I can't wait to be like you!
pcolaflorida, thanks for the comment. It makes me feel good to consider myself a positive "example." Thank you for that. Please know, stopping was a struggle. I "played" at stopping many times over the years. It seems like the "stars" were in the perfect alignment in 2017 and that something shifted within me (emotionally and/or mentally) that allowed me to put cigarettes down with the intention of never smoking again. I believe in synchronicity. I had an emotional meltdown about smoking during a physical. My nurse practitioner's understanding and prescription for an anti-depressant helped. I searched the internet on "How do anti-depressants help with smoking cessation?" which led me to this community. Learning about nicotine addiction was invaluable. I followed many of the suggestions: identifying my triggers, prepare a toolkit, and set a quit date. I flubbed on my quit date: I thought if I went to bed the night before I would wake up with hours of not smoking under my belt. It didn't work. I was in withdrawal and it wasn't pretty. I bought a pack, took out 5 and decided I was going to stop at noon. I knew I needed to face my withdrawal and not think I could sleep my way through it. There were times I couldn't come to this community because all of the discussions were more then I could handle. Yet, through it all, I've remained smoke-free. I've paid attention to the stories of the long-timers that relapsed. I understand that if I want to remain an Ex, I'm going to have to stay on it and remind myself that I'm not special when it comes to nicotine. I want everyday to be a "day won" and not "a day one."
Sending light and love and a whole lot of support!
Michele
If you just hold on long enough you'll get to the point where it really is easier to stay quit than to start all over again. You already grasp that. There is no need to have to do this all over again. This can be the be all and end all. Stick with it.
CONGRATS and I was SUGGESTED to PRAY OR jog in place OR 3 deep breathes OR clean OR go out for a walk- I did it ALL - gentle hug ❤
I like it - lot’s of deep breathing going on that’s for sure! Thanks for the hug.
Nicotine causes addiction. Cravings are normal and will not last forever. Deal with them by staying busy and active. Breath deep. Chew on a straw--stay invested in your quit and Ex. Read, read, read. Learn, blog more.
Remember why you want to quit. Saying NOPE--not one puff ever is a mantra to use as a reminder of what you've got to do.