Reciprocity

Oh boy ..... it's going to sound like we're piling on here a bit because I too went cold turkey. (trust me, it's not a plot against your choice of NRT product). A couple of things I would say though is: 1. Ask your Dr. or Pharmacist about the use of Nicotine gum, even if you're not buying it from them or - research recommended usage on the internet. The company who makes the gum you are buying may have it's own website. 2. Don't focus too much on what you are using to help you with the physical aspects of nicotine withdrawal because if you do, it will give your junkie brain (yes, we all have one of those!) ammunition to shift blame should you fail in your initial quit attempt. Take OWNERSHIP of this quit because in the end it's YOU and only you that determines the outcome - commitment is the key to quitting! Not patches, gums, lozenges or nico-sprays. Those only help reduce the physical side effects of quitting a bit for a short period of time. The real heavy lifting is restructuring your daily life so that you become completely comfortable as a non-smoker! That's where it's at and that just takes time & patience. Your anxiousness about your approaching quit date is completely normal! It will evaporate instantly once you actually quit

Hey! .............wait a minute here ...............

-5

I remember the first time I smelled that stink of stale tobacco smoke on someone who walked past me just after having a smoke. I almost fell over it was so pronounced, and my sniffer ain't that good either. I thought to myself; is that what I smelled like to others after having a smoke? I was embarrassed & humiliated at that realization Since then when I hear someone say; "I'm a secret smoker. Even my family doesn't know" , it cracks me up because clearly, that's not even possible!

-2

Nine years is amazing! I'm sure being a nonsmoker seems to be just normal now but celebrating the fact that you put in the work all those years ago and quit never gets old

Oh Boy! Blue Jays creamed Boston tonight; 28-5 Including an inside the park grand slam home run! Clearly was NOT Boston's night

Agreed! Freedom from slavery to nicotine is the absolute best. In my case, this is something that wasn't even on my radar when I first quit. It was an added bonus that I only realized after I'd been quit for awhile. Turns out it was by far and away the best benefit I experienced after I quit! I expect that's pretty common as we tend not to realize just how much control smoking has over our daily lives when we're still smoking?

-1

Oh wow! Never thought I'd see the day that the counting game died Back in the day .... it was always #1!

Nope! Not on my Anniversary. The wife would give me a slap if I did!

I really like travelling now so much more that when I smoked. Good lord, an overseas flight was sheer agony when I was a smoker! Upon arrival at destination, I would have walked over shards of broken glass & hot coals to get out to the 'smoking area'. Now -no big deal.

Nope!

You just gotta dress for the weather. That's what I do!

Yes! Long time, no see ! @Lin-quitting - glad to see you're still with us 'quitters' and it's a NOPE for me too!

OO

Congrats on 9 Years Nancy! Wow! Double digits next year

Chocolate cake Mmmmmm! Small rewards are important along the way Always reward good behavior!

Three

For: @jillar; @Doreensfree & @Boo In honor of the now defunct 'Babe Of The Day' thread; a special NOPE!

I'm not here as I'm walking the cat

Yup! Day 3 is the worst for many, many quitters (not day 1). I had pretty bad brain fog too OC and I also took a few days off work because I just couldn't function. It was still tough when I went back but I did manage to get things worked out. As others have said; "you're doing great" so celebrate that each day in some small way AND .... you have a new family (us)! Of course half of us are certifiably insane but hey; isn't that the case with most families

Boo was forever damaged after that