Chrysalis

Joe, I am sorry for your disappointment buy, hey, that little place in Florida looks like a slice of paradise to me. I wouldn't exactly cal that a hardship posting! Great photos, too. Good for you for making lemonade out of a lemon. (And good for you for telling them to shove it with their "rescheduling" option!) Which cruise line was that, by the way? I am sorry that you had to come home to such sad news about your uncle. With your family history, I'm doubly glad that you quit smoking!

Hey, Chrispy, how's Alex doing? Leg all healed up?

toothpicks (SO not pc!! :P )

Blood tests every week while you get the dosage titrated is not going to be fun for either you or Bobbie! :( But hopefully, things will stabilize soon and everybody will adjust easily. You're a good cat daddy!

Ross, what did the vet say about Bobbie's diabetes? Can it be treated?

That's funny, Action. That's exactly what I guessed-- Wendy was somehow involved with rescuing apes. Wendy, why don't you make a donation to RedApes.org and then you can honestly say that you are involved in orangoutang rescue! :)

rural

My experience is much the same as Jackie's. I quit more than 7 months ago. I frequently want a cigarette-- I think about it every day. But then I quickly chase that thought from my head and go on about my life. The "thought" never rises to the level of a "crave" and does not pose a danger. For me, the danger comes in when I start obsessing about a cigarette. I start thinking about it and wanting it and I can't seem to shake the thought. It keeps plaguing me hour after hour, day after day until it wears me down. I don't WANT to smoke, but I can't stand this corrosive, constant fantasizing about cigarettes. That is why I relapsed (in the past, that is)-- I was trying to quiet that voice. Now when I start to obsess about smoking, I have learned to ask myself what is bothering me in my life and why? Why am I feeling tense or anxious or bored or tired? When I have identified what I am feeling and why, then I take steps to dissipate those feelings. Perhaps exercise (which is good for whatever ails you) or more sleep or meditation or call a friend or something. Basically, my brain is used to using cigarettes to deal with any distressing emotion so that I don't actually have to deal with things. Now I know that I have to take conscious, active steps to resolve my problems and then my cigarette obsession magically stops.

I seem to recall that Tracey said that she was returning to the States on December 28th. According to my handy-dandy online days between dates calculator: "It is 48 days from the start date to the end date, but not including the end date." If you call December 28th "Day 0" then today is 48 days in the countdown.

yoyo

It's so weird! They must have changed the formulation of cigarettes or something this year. I certainly didn't smell that bad or that strongly when I smoked, did I? Well...did I??!! :bad:

Great idea, Babs! I'm happy to count down for Rez and Tracey. But if it was me, I'd probably count down to Day -1. :wub: But Day 1 or Day 0 is good, too.

diamond

O-o-o-o, that looks delicious, Pippa! What is "black vinegar"? Sounds interesting.

groundwater

toxic

slime

Deltawing, almost a year already! Wow! Good for you! :) I'm 7 months quit and I think about smoking every day. They are brief thoughts--certainly nothing as strong as a craving-- but they are there. I really miss smoking a cigarette to relieve stress. Now I know that the only stress smoking relieves is the stress caused by nicotine in the first place. That is true. But still, smoking did relieve my stress and it was nice when all I had to do to relieve stress was to smoke a cigarette. Now I have to do something more active like go for a walk or practice yoga or something. :wacko: Now I look at smoking the way I look at chocolate. In addition to smoking, the other thing that is an instant stress reliever for me is chocolate. I LOVE chocolate!! But I don't eat it because it is fattening and also because I have diabetes. I COULD eat a few pieces of chocolate-- they won't kill me-- but I know that they are not good for me and that whatever stress I am feeling will go away eventually whether I eat chocolate or not. Same with cigarettes. I may want a cigarette but I know that they are not good for me and that I don't want to pay the price of slipping back into addiction. So I choose not to eat chocolate and I choose not to smoke. Neither one of them is a really difficult choice any more. So, yes, I frequently think that I would like a cigarette. Then I immediately dismiss the thought. It's kind of annoying and I wish it didn't happen, but it does happen. So I deal with it.

flirt!

radiator

fleece

I took a Tai Chi class a few years ago. To the uninitiated (like me) it seems to be very similar to Qi Gong in that it consists of a series of slow and graceful standing movements that are designed to increase strength, flexibility and energy. I didn't like the class. The main problem was the way it was taught-- basically just do your best to do the movements the way the teacher does them and if you keep at it for several years you will probably develop good technique. Too rote for me. The other problem is the genre itself. I have a hard time believing that slow, graceful movements are going to do a darned thing for my health. It doesn't matter if it is tai chi or qi gong or yoga or anything else. And in point of fact, after 2 months of weekly tai chi classes and practicing twice a week, I didn't feel at all different in my mind or my body. On the other hand, how can a billion Chinese be wrong? Do you have to believe in it in order for it to work? Or do you keep doing it and be patient and sooner or later you will feel the benefit? I never have figured that one out. So to answer your question-- tai chi and qi gong seem very similar to me. Tai chi is the one that so many Chinese people do every morning in their parks and workplaces. There are videos on Youtube for both of these styles so you can compare them yourself. And please do let me know if you feel any different after doing these exercises.

Qi Gong looks interesting. I'm going to check that out. Thanks!

Geri, I think that you have hit upon one thing that makes quitting permanently so difficult-- you keep wanting that ONE cigarette that will give you the "A-a-a-h-h-h!" of relief! You don't really want to go back to smoking with all the negative associations it has. You just want one "ah moment". The thing is, the only tension that a hit of nicotine eases is the tension that nicotine caused in the first place. When you smoke, the nicotine goes to your brain and you feel calm but the nicotine is quickly metabolized. So as time passes-- 15 minutes, 30 minutes, one hour-- you start to go into withdrawal. Your brain starts to demand more nicotine. You get tense and antsy and stressed. When you smoke another cigarette, the nicotine goes to your brain and you have that "a-a-h-h moment". You feel calm again (temporarily). After years and years of doing this, our brain thinks that cigarettes relax us and dissipate our stress. No. They don't. The nicotine in the cigarettes is a drug "fix" that relieves the addict's withdrawal symptoms. That's all it does. But our brain is confused and THINKS that cigarettes are relaxing. No. Cigarettes only relieve the tension and stress that was CAUSED by nicotine in the first place. One of the things that will help make this quit easier and make it permanent is if you learn to recognize when your junkie brain is starting up one of the Nicodemon lies and you use your rational brain to stop that thinking. Sometimes you just have to FORCE rational thinking onto your junkie brain. But every time you do that, your rational brain will become stronger and your junkie brain will become weaker. If you don't do this, if you continue to "romance the cigarette" this way you will continue to obsess about cigarettes week after week until you're ready to scream! If you do listen to and strengthen your rational brain, you will eventually forget to want a cigarette except for every once in a great while.

How are you doing today, Geri? Are things getting a little bit better? As Pippa said, the worst is over and you NEVER have to suffer through that again. Good for you! Keep reminding yourself of why you quit. Breathe deeply and keep your blood sugar up. And give yourself lots and lots of pats on the back for tackling a tough challenge with courage and determination. You are rockin' this quit! Keep going!