Sixty days without smoking is unprecedented for me. That is two whole months without cigarettes; it means 2,400 cigarettes that I have not smoked, $570.00 that I have not spent and 9,600 minutes of my life that I have gained back. Tomorrow will mark sixty days for me. I am getting on a plane tomorrow afternoon and going back to LA for almost a week. Life is good.
Every day is a struggle but I promise you it is easier now. There are days that I get angry with myself for wanting a cigarette; heck I think we all have those kinds of moments. I have even had dreams where I woke myself up dreaming about smoking. I know that I am a non smoker now and I just keep reminding myself of that everyday. On the days when I have been really down I have come here to read the blogs, I have reached out to quit buddies both via text, and in real time on the phone. All of that has helped tremendously.
Since I quit smoking I have started to challenge myself to be in situations around cigarettes, yes I have even been to bars. Thankfully smoking is only allowed outside now in NC so it makes going to restaurants and bars much easier. Just this past weekend I went out to two different bars on a Saturday night and I didn’t even think about a cigarette until I got home and realized that I had not even thought about smoking while I was out.
I still constantly find things that used to trigger me wanting a smoke. For me personally I think that I have to treat not smoking like I would a death. When you loose someone close to you the entire first year is about experiencing all of those things for the first time without your loved one around. Quitting smoking is the same for me. Lately when I find myself in a trigger situation I am forcing myself to acknowledge these events and each holiday comes or what ever the case may be, that this is the beginning of my new life.
For some reason I think all of those things help. There are some great people in my life who have been incredibly supportive, both here and on Facebook. I do not know what I would have done without all of you. I tend to post milestone dates on Facebook regularly and I get some awesome comments from my friends there and it keeps me encouraged to know that I do have a support network. Quitting has unequivocally been the single hardest thing I have ever done in my life, and every day I know that each day that I am clean and stay clean that it is also the most rewarding thing I have ever done.
Keep the quit!
