Tomorrow is my quit day. I have mentally prepared myself and have a plan in place. Thought this would be a great support for me in addition to my boyfriend who is also quitting with me.
Having a PLAN is the best way to success! Having a quit partner has got to be awesome! And coming here really will help. we "get" you and what you are going thru. there will always be someone who has the suggestion that clicks with you.
So Congrats on your awesome plan to be an ex smoker! this is one decision you will never regret!!
The most 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 is an easy and entertaining read. Here is a link to a free PDF version of it:
As well, read the sections on this site, and read the blogs, responses and pages of folks you think might be helpful. You might visit whyquit.com and quitsmokingonline.com for the good information contained there.
After you have completed the recommended reading, it will be time to make an informed choice of the quit aid, if any, you will use. 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. But – any method that you think will work well for you will be best for you. Are either/both of you choosing to use a quit aid. Let us know, if so!
The idea is to change up your routines so the smoking associations are reduced. Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand. 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.
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. 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. Don't let that smoking thought rattle around your head alone. Get busy! Here is a link to a list of things to do instead of smoke if you need some fresh ideas:
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!
Good for you and your boyfriend, be strong and determ to do it, I never thought I could after 53 years smoking, now I am on my 57th day is not easy but posible I keep sugarfree eucaliptus cough drops handy and when ever I get the urge I take one, or get a straw in my mouth or a toothpick what ever is closer and so far I am fighting my demons and winning. GO FOR IT, wish you the best, keep visiting us we cal help
This is awesome and I am already happy to know you all support me and eachother. This really is a great place to go to for help, advice, etc and am glad to be a part of this. I am even more happy to be able to work towards something that will really benefit me in so many ways. I know this is going to be very very hard for me but I am ready to take on this challenge.
Welcome to the site! Be sure to do the reading above. Congrats on your wonderful decision to quit! You are in the right place for support - stay close!
Welcome to EX, jdoo -- I'm 148 days into my quit, and here's what I've learned:
The bottom line is that a successful quit is based on education, attitude, acceptance and determination. Education: Once you've learned the truth about this addiction it's much harder (for me impossible) to go back to smoking. Rather, it helps us unlearn the connections we had with smoking. Attitude: Your attitude or mindset is key to whether your quit feels like torture or feels like something very doable. If you feel deprived, if you feel sorry for yourself and just use willpower to get through not smoking, it will be torture (and you'll read more about that in the Carr book). But if you have that attitude that smoking is nothing and you are willing to go through the discomfort that is generally associated with quitting, then you can be a happy quitter. I am definitely a happy quitter! Acceptance: If you can accept that you will have craves early in your quit and sometimes later in your quit than you would imagine, and don't fight them but observe them and say "Yeah, I don't do that anymore" and find something else to do you won't have as many craves. It's true. Determination: This is tied up with the willingness I mentioned. You have an addict's brain, just like the rest of us. Your addict's brain will whisper to you, scream at you and plead with you to come back. There will be times when you find yourself thinking "oh, what could it hurt to have just one." That's your addiict brain trying to entice you. Determination is your ability to say NOPE -- Not One Puff Ever.
So welcome to EX -- we're a wonderfully supportive group who've been there done that or are being there doing that right now. There's no better resource than a good support group to get through the initial discomfort of quitting.
