smoking
Hi all
i was here before but dont believe i was ready.Tonight i was walking
up my stairs and i couldnt breathe by the time i got up to the top.Im
new im here and im gonna start taking peoples suggestion cause i dont
wanna smoke anymore.My quit smoking date starts tonight when i go to
bed ive tried this many times before and have failed.Please help me
Lee
February 21st, 2005 at 3:18 pm
In a message dated 10/17/2002 10:14:50 PM Central Daylight Time,
lboyd@… writes:
Hi, Lee,
Welcome back and dive right in — read the files at cognitivequitsmoking.com,
and do the homework. I’m convinced that doing the homework, lists of
emotions/conditions that make us want to smoke, and the reasons we smoke,
help us get the urge “out in the light of day” where we can deal with it by
thinking about those feelings that lead us to smoke.
I’m working on it, too, and am slow to change, but what Steve, Pam, Cat,
Indi, Dayla, Phil, Karen, Laura, and everyone else (forgive me for those I am
leaving out) post really does help. Plus, they are all willing to help via
instant message chats, too, and those chats are also a big positive –
they’ll help you get over those hurdles. It helps to have someone else
objectively work with you through the cravings and the issues about smoking
and why you do it.
Just don’t give up; think of quitting as a process you have to work through
rather than an event that happens on your quit day. I tried thinking of it as
an EVENT — a quit day — and wasn’t prepared to deal with the process of
doing daily things without a cigarette, and that’s what hung me up. Coffee,
meals, relaxing, beer, sex, stress, anger, joy, — yada yada — were all
events that would’ve happened and will happen in my life whether I smoked or
not.
You can do it, Lee. Work through it and you can do it. It’s not easy, and
you can do it. Start by doing the ABCs and the lists (there are posts from
Steve and Pam about how to get started). If you try cold turkey again and it
doesn’t work, pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again.
Try weaning, all the while doing the ABCs and *thinking* about your smoking
habit. Cut out that first cigarette you smoke for a week; if you normally
smoke at 7 a.m., cut that one out. The next week, cut out the 9:00 a.m.
smoke. The following, cut out the lunch time smoke. And so on and so on…
Many quitters and ex-smokers don’t agree with weaning. It has worked for me,
because I am slow to change, and by weaning, I knew I didn’t have to make a
radical change. What works with weaning is this: You gain confidence by
taking control of the situation, by doing something good for yourself and
your health by setting a plan to quit. You also don’t feel (or I haven’t)
that the hurdle of quitting is too high to jump over because you don’t have a
dividing line in the sand like, OK, today I smoke, tomorrow I won’t. It makes
it easier to let go of a habit that’s been reinforced for ever how many years
you’ve smoked.
What doesn’t work is this: Your body still needs the nicotene cause you
haven’t cut it out completely. And as long as you are weaning, if you don’t
have a clear goal set and a plan and preparation, it’s hard to let go cause
there’s always that thought of “I can smoke later.” Like, “Ok, this week, I
can’t smoke until 9 p.m., but at 9 p.m., I can.” So it’s a little like
holding on while letting go — which is an oxymoron, like “a little bit
pregnant,” if that makes sense.
Anywho. I meant this to be a supportive message and it’s turned into Harper
writing about her thought process as I go through this journey. Sorry about
that.
Bottom line: Do the homework; and “pack track” while you are still smoking.
Write down when you smoke, what thoughts and feelings you have, and do that
for a couple of weeks. It’ll help you figure out how to ABC the urges,
identify when you smoke and what you’re feeling, and just having that
knowledge is the big step to take to help you figure out how to work through
those urges with your ABCs and lists.
It’s not easy, and it takes work. And it’s a wonderful journey. Those
seemingly small moments when the urge hits, and my brain says, thanks to cog
quitting, “Hey! What are you feeling? You’d be feeling that anyway. Is a
smoke an appropriate response?”, and my brainn says back, “Well, duh. No.”
are priceless. They are getting more and more frequent, and for that, I’m
thankful.
Again, sorry for the long message.
Keep on keepin’ on, Lee; you can do it. Take the time to make this quit
effort a special time for you. You can do it.
Take care,
Harper
December 26th, 2005 at 8:47 pm
I am 55 yrs old and after more than25 years of smoking
have just decided to quit. I am taking wellbutrin, but
even with that I dont think can manage on my own. And
after reading some of your messages, I have concluded
that you all can really help me.
Jagdish
April 13th, 2006 at 4:06 pm
I’ve been smoke free for a day and a half and I’m having trouble today.I’m
taking Commit and it takes the edge off but I can’t get them off my mind. Any
suggestions
September 13th, 2006 at 1:47 pm
Hey Alice
I am 72 years old and on day 74 of quit. Just joined a couple of weeks ago, and having trouble finding my feelings or sensations that say smoke. All quits resulted in failure during the third month when the “need” for a smoke (not craving) overwhelms me.Short of breath on exertion and heart problems–but a few days after no smoke, much less panting, and heartbeat more regular.
Good luck.
Ray
[LINK]
September 14th, 2006 at 8:24 am
Hey Ray
I guess it’s never too late to quit, huh? I am going to give the program a try. I figure if I have someone to talk to about quitting and using the patch for cravings, I might make it this time. Until my husband started smoking cigars, he had given up the cigs for many years. He used to say that he will always miss smoking. I guess you never get over it. It’s like being an alcoholic—one day at a time. Good luck to you too. Keep in touch. Alice
On Tue, 11 Jan 2005 22:10:24 -0700 (Mountain Standard Time) “VE6NIT” <rcrandle@…
Hey Alice
I am 72 years old and on day 74 of quit. Just joined a couple of weeks ago, and having trouble finding my feelings or sensations that say smoke. All quits resulted in failure during the third month when the “need” for a smoke (not craving) overwhelms me.Short of breath on exertion and heart problems–but a few days after no smoke, much less panting, and heartbeat more regular.
Good luck.
Ray
[LINK]