Markus

Quit Date: 02-19-2008

Posted April 4, 2014 

It's all very personal.

Even though the methods used to quit are the same with slight variations depending on an individual's preference it all is a very personal thing.

You always choose what works for you or just wing it. You do that on your own, always. Some plans I see I just cringe, but you know it usually ends up that it works for that person.

A step-wise plan to quit is a good idea but doesn't need to be complex, and a fallback plan is even better. You can start by acting like a nonsmoker; see yourself a few weeks and a few months from now. What do you look like, what are you doing?

Get to the reading and the writing. Post and become a part of this forum and pay it forward to cement your quit in your mind. You will do this on your own with a little help (minimal) assistance from your friends here. Nobody can quit for you, but you can learn how to stay quit here.

Any or all of items 1-7 below, will make it better.

(1) Commit to Not One Puff Ever (NOPE).
(2) Commit to Never Take Another Puff (NTAP).
(3) Educate yourself about your addiction. Read, post, learn, overcome. Lather, rinse, repeat.
(4) Decide that you do not want to smoke more than you want to smoke. This may save you from relapse.
(5) Take control of your life, reclaim your mind and body, and get it straight about who owns you. Is it you? Or your addiction?
(6) Realize that you'll always be an addict, a puff away from a pack a day, but you choose not to smoke. That's all of us.
(7) Start acting like a non smoker, like you never smoked, walk the walk. A cigarette is never the answer to anything but disease.
( 8 Have a plan B if Plan A that you are using now fails. Make your plan B from steps 1-7, above.
*(9) Celebrate your quit! Talk it up, be proud of what you have accomplished!

Alright, enough with the steps and commitment to this and that already! Look at this logically if you will. 

How else can you possibly quit smoking by any other means than stopping using cigarettes? The addiction to nicotine cannot be overcome by administering the same thing to yourself that you are addicted to, (nicotine).

What that means is when you are at 5 days, 7 days, 10 days, 28 days quit, and you find yourself craving a cigarette (your delivery device for nicotine), you cannot beat that crave/association with a cigarette.

You might fix a bad hangover with some hair of the dog that bit you, but you can't fix a cigarette crave with a cigarette and still expect to quit smoking. Can you? Now go look at the items again, you have the desire.

What is missing if anything? You decide along the way, revamp the plan if you need to, adapt to your conditions, if something isn't working, get rid of it. Anything to keep the quit.

You have to be fair to yourself, but firm. It will get better over time, but you'll only see it if you commit to it.

And so you will.

Welcome to a new life!

Link to original post: https://www.quittrain.com/topic/221-welcome-to-a-new-life-your-quit/