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Give and get support around quitting

luckycairo
Member

I'm on day 5 of being a non-smoker. I was able to power through the cravings. Then, as soon as I opened my eyes this morning, I've been trying to justify a tiny little slip... Was day 5 a particularly hard day for anyone else?

Was there a certain day during anyone's first week that brought them to their knees and keep forgetting what was so bad about smoking??? Lol

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12 Replies
Giulia
Member

Howdy and Welcome to our quit family!  Each of our quit journeys is different.  My first three days were pretty easy, but day 4 was a MISERY.  Every moment I was tormented by smoking thoughts, cravings.  Day 5 wasn't much better.  I kept thinking, "what is this, cravings only last three minutes????!!!  Who said so?"  Hogwash!  I began to see them as waves.  One set of three minutes after another after another, pounding the sands of my mind.  Eventually the sets coming in were not right on top of each other.  Eventually there was an ebbing period.  All too brief.  But it kept happening and it got longer and longer between sets.  And the more I learned to surf the craving waves, instead of drowning in them, the better I got at it.  You don't need to slip if you UNDERSTAND EXCUSES

Five days is a little miracle in this quitting business.  You should feel VERY proud of yourself.  It's extremely easy to forget why we began this journey, the bad things about smoking, because our addict brain is screaming SMOKE SMOKE SMOKE!  And even writing down all our reasons, making a list of the good things about quitting, doesn't do it.  At least it didn't for me.  Because that's purely an intellectual exercise.  And this is about emotional connections.  We don't smoke for intellectual reasons but for chemical and emotional ones and the same is true for quitting.  It helps if you can accept them as part of the journey to freedom.  CRAVINGS ARE A PART OF THE RITE OF PASSAGE 

You hang in there.  It's worth it.  Just may not seem so in the beginning because the beginning is so rough.  But it does get easier.  If it didn't, there's be no long-term quitters!

YoungAtHeart
Member

Welcome to the community!

Congratulations on your decision to quit and making it to Day FIVE!  That is huge!  There is no such thing to an addict as a "little slip."  It will always, maybe not right away, but always, lead you to another and another until you are right back where you started.    If you do the reading I will recommend, you will better understand why this is so.

Just like everyone is different, so is every quit experience.  There are things in common, but a timeline for how long this or when does it get easier or was a particular day more difficult vary from person to person.  A lot depends on the associations and triggers for smoking you have built up.  I CAN tell you that the only way to beat this thing is not to smoke - don't think about - don't do it!  Hang in there until it gets easier - and it WILL (just can't give you a day when it will happen!)

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.

 

You didn't mention if you are using a quit aid, so I will give you my thoughts on them.. If you go that route, I personally recommend the aids that don't let the addict control the dose such as the available prescription drugs or the patch. If used properly, gum, lozenges and inhalers are fine, but they need to be used only as a last resort after you have tried to delay and distract.   I have seen folks become addicted to them if they substitute them for every cigarette they used to smoke - just trading one addiction for another.  You need to start out with a plan to reduce use of them over time - which the patch does by decreasing the dose contained in them..  For the gum, you can start by cutting each piece in half, then in quarters, then sub regular gum of the same flavor in between, adding more and more regular gum.  For the lozenge, you need to start subbing a mint in between to begin, increasing the number of them over time. I do not recommend the e-cigarette for obvious reasons.

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

Pnicklin
Member

Hi I’m a newbie here but I have tried to quit many times and usually i break down on day 3or4 and honestly. I  just gave my self an excuse  and ended up smoking again.

I think cravings are cravings and when they come doesn’t matter as much as how you react to them.

so just hang in there you can do it!

maryfreecig
Member

I was in disbelief that I'd quit. At first I wanted to be normal again--I saw that as smoking. But I didn't. Slowly I relearned how to live without smoking. At first the going was rough. Sketchy. Weird. But that was seven years ago!!!! One day at a time you can do this. Welcome to Ex.

elvan
Member

Welcome to EX & congratulations on your quit! You are in “Hell Week” & the second week is called “Heck Week.” I was seriously ill when l quit over 6 1/2 years ago & all that l can remember is trying to breathe. I don’t remember craving because l was so scared that l was not going to make it. Once l got “better”, l found EX & l was here every morning & every evening. I read blogs & comments, l wrote blogs & l commented, i read everything that was advised. My quit became my number one priority & l protected it with everything l had, everything l had learned. I made a plan & l adjusted it when l felt l needed to. NOPE, Not One Puff Ever, became my mantra, l said it over & over & over again. I listened to every bit of advice that l was given. I ate Sour Patch Kids because they distracted me. I asked my family to forgive me for my lack of patience. I believed, with all of my heart, that it would get better, easier, with time. Why would these people lie to me? They didn’t & it did get better as time passed. Stay close to the site, plan what you will do INSTEAD of smoking when triggers hit. Triggers WILL hit but they will get weaker when you stop giving them power.

This is a one day at a time journey, it is not an event. You do not have to take this journey alone. We are here to help in any way that we can. Remember that. Have no cigarettes or smoking paraphernalia around, make smoking HARD & INCONVENIENT. You CAN do this.

Ellen 

sweetplt
Member

HI and Welcome to Ex’s luckycairo 

Congratulations on 5 days quit...Don’t entertain a cheat, slip or anything...You are an addict and if you feed the addiction, one will never be enough...you are early in your quit and it takes time...you have to work through each craving...keep close to us...Colleen 684 DOF 

Breathing exercises are better than smoking...try them...

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indingrl
Member

Welcome and I remember this guy ended up quitting on the SAME day as ME and I did not like him so I bought a pack and used that EXCUSE to smoke - lol - I got on the same merry go round of sucking on a death stick to SHOW HIM -

CrazyQuitter
Member

The first few weeks are always the hardest. But you gotta really want to be smoke free to have a successful quit. You slipped. Put that behind you and keep trying.

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Barbscloud
Member

Congrats on 5 days.   Just remember you can't have just one.  It will take time, especially the psychological part of quitting.  You got this

Barb

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