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I am starting my quit again today. I am so frustrated that I cant make it through a normal day. The only way I feel this will work is if I dont leave my house. EVER!! I want this so much but my mind gets the best of me and I feel like a complete failure. I am very disappointed in myself and I am very sorry for restarting my quit date.
Sissy
Okay, I am not pushing religion or anything like that on you, but perhaps give this a try.....just believe.
YOU GOT THIS!!
Smiles......................
Gyorgyi
Awwww, Sissy. I hear you. This is HARD. You are fighting addiction and fighting addiction is not easy.
Obviously, becoming a hermit is no way to live. But smoking is no way to live, either.
What have you tried in the past to help with your quit?
My method was to create an actual, written (by hand) quit plan. This made a huge difference.
I listed the times I was tempter or triggered to smoke and wrote down what I would do instead.
I also used nic-gim (per the package directions)
I signed in here and spent some time every single day. That's the real ticket to success
I am on day 69
I've gained 7 pounds - and already lost 2 of them.
You can quit. This site can help. We are standing by to applaud your success.
PT
Make this the last day. You can do it. Reach out today if you want to smoke.
Barb
Yes you can make it through a day, but you are choosing not to. You're giving yourself permission to give up.
DON'T DO THAT. It's not strength that gets you through. It's not willpower. It's your WILLINGNESS to go through what you need to in order to be FREE.
What are you going to do differently THIS time? Einstein said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result!
Have you done the recommended reading? Do you have a plan in place of what you can do instead when a craving hits? Do you UNDERSTAND the addiction you are fighting from which to break free? Do you have a list of distracting activities you can do? Have you figured out how to change up your routines so the associations and triggers are lessened? Gotten rid of all cigarettes in your possession (keeping any around is giving yourself permission to fail)?
Do all of this, and come here with us and read and participate every day. The Daily Pledge is a good place to start each day.
The Daily Pledge - October 2019.
Blog "HELP" before you give in and smoke.
And - keep in mind that the difficult part is the first couple of weeks. You don't have to be a hermit FOREVER!!! Once you get past those first days, they will start to get easier - I promise.
Hang in there - it IS possible - one day at a time.
Nancy
I agree with Youngatheart. You have to figure out what works, what doesn't and make adjustments. I've attempted to quit many times and I learned something from all of them. The most important thing I learned was that I was letting my brain play tricks on me. The number one thing you have to do to quit smoking is pretty simple, make the decision to quit your decision.
If you attempt to quit you have already failed. We often stop smoking and we wait for a big sign that says, "you don't smoke anymore". It won't happen. The day you smoke the last cigarette is the only action that will happen that tells you that you're no longer a smoker.
If you haven't yet, consider medication. Wellbutrin and / or Chantix makes a big difference for most people.
Everything has already been said that I would have told you. I've quit more times than I can count. My last 3 I told myself I was going to keep quittin my entire life if I had to. Because it was getting to be the priniple of the matter as much as the health reasons. I don't like anything or anyone having control over me and nicotine had me by the throat.
I am one year quit. Here was my plan.
I used the patches.
I read volumes on this site and used it to set up my plan.
I wrote my plan down and kept it in front of me all the time, so when one of those crazy moments hit I just had to look at it and find something to do
I joined the daily pledge everyday.
I joined in conversations and started some of my own on this site.
I used this site and the people on it as an alcoholic/addict uses a sponsor in AA/NA. I called for help.
Sometimes I would just get on and blog or read to keep me busy and pointed in the right direction.
My self talk when I wanted a cigarette was "I don't do that anymore, what should I do instead?" and NOPE (Not One Puff Ever).
You will only fail if you stop quitting. You can do this. This is a journey. Embrace it. All of it. You will get to your final quit. And I will tell you after being a year w/o smoke it is worth every single crazy moment I had to get there.
TAKE THE PLUNGE... EMBRACE THIS CHALLENGE.....YOU WON'T BE SORRY.
Well my dad 1 and I woke up sick. I stayed home from work and have been taking it easy all day. I work with special needs kids so I can’t go to work sick. I through away everything yesterday that has to do with smoking but today I thought about it constantly. Reading posts here, Deep breathing and reading and sleeping because I’m sick helped today.
It was supposed to say today I woke up sick not my dad.
Sis71 wrote:
It was supposed to say today I woke up sick not my dad.
No worries. FYI you can edit your post on a computer by clicking the Actions button and clicking the edit link in drop down menu to edit your post.
Mark
EX Community Manager
That's great. You can do this!
Barb
Congratulations on following through on your Quit Day!
Here's to Day WON!
On to Day Two, and Three and to FOREVER!
Remember to keep a cold bottle of water handy and sip often, change up your routines, keep a list of things you can do to distract yourself when the going gets tough.
You can do this! Just don't smoke!
Thank YOU so much for being honest with self and ME and for sharing YOUR heart with ME - I smoked and came back a few times too - YOU are NOT alone - NO WORRIES - I am so glad for YOU - YOUR doing GOOD - New day - new mindset - CONGRATS ON YOUR NICOTINE FREEDOM - gentle hug
As long you jus keep trying try to keep your mind on other things and tell yourself I can do this we're here to support you as much we can.
Hi Sissy,
Don't beat up on yourself. It does not matter how many times you fall down but that you get back up again. Nothing beats a failure but a try. Today is my second day and the struggle is real. We can do this together and support each other. Maybe cook your favorite dish and watch a good movie. Find something fun to do online or play some games. Go to bed early. Think of something to do to make yourself busy. Tell yourself it's just about today. Worry about tomorrow, tomorrow. Yesterday I cleaned out my garage. Good Luck to you. You can do this.
you are not a failure.
have you read Alan Carr’s book? - very helpful
also have you done any research on the enemy nicotine? It’s helping me big time just understanding the enemy..makes
it easier to strategize getting over rough patches. (I’m new at this but it’s the ist quit where I feel
like I will be victorious)....the following link helped me——>
https://whyquit.com/whyquit/LinksAAddiction.html
Goos luck! You can and will do this.
Because this is an addiction, it's not as though you can just shut off all thoughts of your smoking. Craves are dealt with one at a time--one day at a time. This is the process of relearning life--eventually not smoking becomes natural.
Learn to reroute your attention to short tasks, fun stuff. Tiny sips of water and keep talking. Ex is here for you 365!
Good luck you can do this ,I can tell you about my experience but everyone different, I set my quit date ahead mean while I read alot on here just read read read until my quit day way here ,,the first three days are the roughest but got threw them ,I smoked 20 something years was a chain smoker,,I so wanted to quit that horrible addiction,, you learned so much on here just read ,soak everything in got to be willing to give it your all no matter what you face it's not easy by know means ,,I found myself one day was so stressed so first thing I use to do is go get me a smoke but now I got up thought abt the situation got busy done dishes or take a walk keep busy took me some deep breathing exercises it helped, I didn't want to start all over again from the beginning ,,I send you prayers you'll get threw this thire alot of people who have great advices here, just ask questions ,,good luck sis,71
It is hard, but trust me if I can do it anyone can, I was the queen of excuses until I recently got diagnosed with COPD at 57...then no more excuses...smoke or die!!! The biggest thing for me was reading Allan Carr’s book quitting is easy...you CAN DO THIS,,,
SO happy to hear you also found it helpful. I know it was an important part of my success!
Hey Sissy,
look we can tell you anything and everything under the sun, but you will quit when you’re ready to. I’m on day five with no smoking, but it took me years to finally get to this point in my quit. I’ve made up my mind and I’m completely committed to my quit. I’ve heard it all and I’m telling you from my experience, you’ll quit when you’re ready and not before. There is some good advice on this site. But quitting has to be you’re personal journey. I use toothpicks to take the edge off. What are you going to do? It’s harder when emotions get involved but I will never go back to cigarettes. When you’re ready you won’t either. If you need some support you have all of us here for you.
I restarted several times as well. Trust me you’re not the only one.
I saw someone mention serial quitters. I quit for 18 months once and 26 months another time. There were years in between and I'm now on day 9 of my third and FINAL quit. The good news is it gets easier every time you try.
Identify why you had to have THAT cigarette. Why was that one (or those 5) more necessary than all the rest? Plan plan plan. I love the list of 100 things to do besides smoke but even better I like the super simplified "DELAY, DISTRACT, DRINK WATER, DEEP BREATHING, DISCUSS" even more.
If you can put it off for a while and find something else to do, even the strong urges go away quickly. Sure they come back. Do it again. Works like a charm and more and more efficiently as time goes by.
I was a serial quitter, I had so many failed quits that I cannot count that high. I wanted to quit but I kept giving in to the craves. I made a plan and I identified my triggers and then planned what to do instead of smoking. I knew the triggers were not going to just stop, I had to learn to deal with them and I had to believe what I was being told, that it would get better, it would get easier. I stayed very close to this site and came here every morning and every evening at the beginning. I read blogs and comments, I commented, I asked for advice and I TOOK it. It did get easier, for me it wasn't just one day at a time, it was one FEELING at a time. I had to learn that it was okay to be sad or angry, to FEEL. I didn't learn that back when I should have, I started smoking instead. I have over 5 1/2 years of freedom now and I can tell you that it was worth every difficult day and every difficult feeling to quit. It is the best thing I ever did for myself.
Ellen
Yes quitting is hard. It may be one of the hardest things we have done in our lives. Withdrawal from a drug is not easy. Just like any other drug you can not feed it and be free. Education is the key to a successful quit! If you do not educate yourself about nicotine addiction you may continue on a cycle of relapse. Quitting is a challenge but with a commitment not to take a puff no matter what, which includes whether you are inside or outside. It is and will always be a choice. I am sorry that you have not been able to be consistent. I always advise new members to stay close, Be here, participate, read, study, blog. Come here BEFORE you smoke. To stop the vicious cycle and not become a serial quitter take it seriously and analyze what caused you to smoke. Have a plan for what to do differently when you have the urge to smoke. Make a vow that you will not smoke if it happens again Get rid of all smoking materials it lessens the chances of being tempted. rt It is good that you are starting over. Never give up. Start with a commitment that NOPE to yourself no matter what so that you do not give up. Be prepared to hang tough. You will not die from quitting but from smoking.
Keep it Simple"...
101 Things to Do Instead of Smoke
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Quit Date - How to Reset
UNDERSTANDING EXCUSES EXCUSES