I love smoking and I’m sad.

[Evansmommy2001]

This is gonna be so hard. 
I need to be healthy though, and it’s time. 
what kind of things do y’all do to reward yourselves throughout the day lol 

[AChev]

Maybe try spacing out some healthy snacks when you have a craving or have some coffee with some flavored creamer I can't stay idle very long .Maybe give yourself a reward after a week of not smoking then a week later do it again you deserve it you can do it 

[Barbscloud]

@Evansmommy2001 Welcome to the Ex and congrats on your upcoming quit.

 Anxiety about quitting is normal. Many describe it as losing their best friend, We've smoked our way through every event and emotion, so it's only normal that were apprehensive. Approaching your quit one day at a time can help to alleviate the fear. Don't think about forever right now. You'll see those one days will turn into multiple days.

Right now, you're working through the process of your desire to quit and the addiction wanting you to keep it up. You can win that internal battle by educating yourself about nicotine addiction and putting a plan in place with how you'll deal with cravings, identifying your triggers and creating the new associations you'll create instead of smoking.

There are lots of things to do keep busy and there are lots of tools you can use.  Exercise is great, especially walking, is a great way to refocus your thoughts and replace some lost dopamine.  There are many tools--we each have our favorites.  I used Sour Patch Kids, chewing on straws, and playing video games.   Here are some more ideas.

100 Things to do instead of smoke - EX Community

And you just found an amazing group of quitters the are here to support you on this journey to becoming an Ex. There will be ups and downs, but that is part of the journey. We're here for you, so just reach out anytime we can help or want to share your experience.

This link is a great place to get you started on the right track. https://www.becomeanex.org/guides/?cid=footer_community_linktobex

Join many of us on the Daily Pledge to stay on track one day at a time.

Stay busy and stay close

Barb

[maryfreecig]

I did anything and everything when I quit. Walked for hours, took photographs, sketched from the photos, pondered the meaning of life, haunted flea markets and yard sales for treasures, cleaned cupboards, collected books and read them, ate apple turnovers and drank coffee, pondered the meaning of life some more, felt grouchy and wished it would go away, did more chores, ate necco wafers and pondered which were my favorite and wondered why I didn't like the pink ones, continued to ponder the meaning of life, drank special coffee from the gas station, ate gas station food from a station along my walking route, wanted more when it was all gone, wondered when I'd get over my smoking life.

I quit 10.2 years ago. I was a piece of work so to speak at a that time, but I did it. I did the impossible. I quit. And I know today the same as all other quitters who remain quit-- that I never needed one single puff. Smoking was never worth anything. 

It took time for me to know this, so before I could emotionally understand how worthless smoking was I had to walk the walk. One step, then the next. 

In another recovery group there is a saying 'some see the light, some feel the heat.' Don't worry about loving to quit. When I first quit, no-one could tell me that smoking did nothing for me. I fumed at the suggestion. That was then. I got what I wanted...the choice not to smoke.

You are addicted and that power is far greater than your "loving" to smoke. If you simply just loved to smoke, then you could have just one now and then and never really think too much about it. There are lots of things that any one of us love to do, but we don't. We're not addicted to these things. We can set them down.

Stick with Ex, read, blog, comment if you wish. One day at a time you can do this!

[biscuit9]

@Evansmommy2001   Big hugs.   We all thought we loved smoking and smoking was our best friend and we jumped up and answered the call whenever nicotine pulled our chain, we made sure we fed it.  Just like with any harmful substance, we have to stop allowing it to abuse us.  My suggestion is, look at quitting as allowing your body to heal from all the years of abuse.  Smoking is self harm and it's time to get the toxins out and let your lungs heal.  Time to make better friends.  I quit just over a year ago.  You can do it.

[CommunityAdmin]

We are here as a community to support you @Evansmommy2001. Greater days ahead!

Quiana, EX Team

[Maki]

In time you’ll discover why you needed it , not loved it . Addiction changes your thoughts . Now you will learn the truth behind why you smoked and what you thought smoking did for you . 

I did not reward myself per se ,  I reached out for small goals in numbers  ie one day , three days , one week , two , 25 days , a month ,  then 50 days , you get the drift and when I reached each one of them smoke free that was my reward . Freeing myself from addiction . 

Then I would set another small attainable goal to handle . 100 days , 125 , then 250. My reward , still not smoking which gave me all these unplanned rewards and a new and better life , because smoking wasn’t in it . The gift was time . 

I had to to distract my thoughts a lot in the beginning so I went to places like the zoo or to a funny movie , ( never been to the zoo ever at 54 years old ) hadn’t been to the theatre since I was a kid to the otdoor drive in ,  but did then or I bought a new book to read to help occupy my mind ( the reward was no guilt spending the money ) and a variety of things to learn . I bought pencils and paints to learn to do a craft like watercolour painting or just sketching .I never got real good at it , but it was fun , fun being a reward . 

Quitting smoking opened the doors to things I love now . It was never smoking .

I think my family even love me , hug me harder now I quit smoking . 

it’s ok to feel sad but I promise you , you are going to be smiling ear to ear in a year or sooner . Is it hard , was for me , it’s a process , but was it worth it , yes . It’s made me the happiest person on earth to say I quit smoking , quit giving it power and took my life back and I believe will you be too . 

Welcome to Ex . Journeying together . 
Maki 12 and a half years quit today .