Hi, I’m Jessie. Today is my quit date. I just put my first patch on. I’m super nervous.
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Hi, I’m Jessie. Today is my quit date. I just put my first patch on. I’m super nervous.
Hi Jessie! Welcome. All of the people here are great....lean on them when you need a lift or some support. I'm on day 45 of my quit and have come to this website every day. It has helped tremendously knowing that I was not the only one going through this life changing transition.
Jessie.
Welcome to the EX Community. You have come to the right pass for support to quit smoking. Many of us have had success with a NOPE attitude. Not One Puff Ever no matter what is happening in your life. I am a firm believer education is the key to success. Read, Study, Blog and be willing to do the work. With the help of the EX Community you can have a forever quit. Start by educating yourself about the addiction to nicotine. Know the LAW! Go to My EX Plan | BecomeAnEX and review the videos and learn more about your triggers and how to prepare when the urges come
I was advised to read Allen Carr's Easyway to Quit Smoking which can be found on pdf on the web. Another good site to get info which was very helpful to me More info is available at this site www.whyquit.com. There are several articles to read. Nicotine 101 and FreedomFrom Nicotine My Journey Home. To get help on navigating this site go to. Community Help. The main thing is to stay close. Come here first before you light up. Talk about it. We will help. Never give up Never give in hang tough. NOPE will keep you free.
Hi and Welcome to Ex’s...
So glad you found us Jgwhiting ... Be sure to do the recommendation readings offered by JACKIE1-25-15
Also, stay close to the support site and stay busy. We are here for you...and have all gone through this journey, it isn’t easy, but it’s doable...Gotcha in my thoughts ... Happy Friday ~ Colleen 669 DOF
Welcome to the Ex Jgwhiting How is going so far? Use that quit plan as you progress on your journey. We're here to support you. Just reach out anytime you need encouragement--we want you to be successful.
Barb
Hello and welcome - I am so glad you are here
WELCOME Jessie Remember Yes You Can Do This
Welcome to EX, if you have not already been welcomed officially by Youngatheart.7.4.12, I am sure she will be along shortly. You very well may have already been welcomed. I agree that education is huge in this recovery, I read everything I could find about nicotine addiction. I am a retired RN, you would think that at least SOME of that would have been familiar. Sadly, back when I became a nurse, addiction wasn't really given a whole lot of attention. I am sure it is much different now than it was back then, when dinosaurs walked the earth. Quitting is a journey, one day at a time, sometimes one feeling at a time, it is not something you can rush through or skip parts of...it has to be taken as it comes. I will not tell you it was easy, that was not my experience, I will tell you that it is possible and more and more people are quitting all the time.
We are happy that you are here and we want to help you in any way that we can.
Ellen
Welcome to the community!
Most of us were nervous and apprehensive when we approached our quits. It's natural to feel this way about the unknown. Education can help you overcome that. I'm sorry you didn't find us before you quit, but the educational information I will give you will make a GREAT crave buster as you go through these first couple of days.
If you find you are experiencing intense, vibrant dreams, you may find that you will need to take the patch off at night and put a fresh one on in the morning. I would give it a go for the first couple of nights, just to get you started.
The 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 easy and entertaining read provided a world of good information about nicotine addiction, most of which I was not aware. I credit it in large part with my success at quitting. 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, quitsmoking.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. Here is a video to inform you further about nicotine addiction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpWMgPHn0Lo&feature=youtu.be.
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-instead-of-smoke
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
Welcome, so glad you are here! Do you have a plan to deal with your worst triggers? If not, make some to help get you through the first few weeks. I played a lot of games on my phone - something to keep my hands and brain busy! Reach out as you need for help and encouragement, this site has helped me through many a craving.