MLMR

NOPE

*NOPE*

NOPE

NOPE

* NOPE *

*** N O P E ***

Nope 

Hi Kate, I hope the ketamine infusions will ease things for you. I admire your perseverance. 

3 hours ago, JustinHoot99 said:

@MLMR Doing good thank you.  End of today will mark 18 days free.  I'm feeling comfortable enough I'm going to start watching the diet and bringing my wt back down to norm. I've gone up from 176 to 180, which is quite a bit for me since my wt does not fluctuate a lot.  And 176 was already higher than the 170 max I feel my best at.  So it's enter the diet phase now.  I workout daily anyway, but joined the Daily Exercise log where I will be logging both exercise and diet until I get back down below 170.  ETA is 2mths.  I see you are closing in on 3 mths free.  Hows the cravings going.  Honestly.

Sounds like you are in it for real, well done. Keep that attitude up, it will help you big time.

I dont have cravings. I quit smoking three years ago and then messed up one weekend. Put my ticker back at day one and had to start all over. Hence the three month quit. The first week was tough, but I had the same approach as before, maybe even more  ferocious: watching, reading, writing (did you see that enormous diary Introsucktion, its mine )about quitting. It was a close call. Never again. 

Hey @JustinHoot99 how are you doing?

How’s your article search going, want to share some of the things you are reading/watching? 

2 hours ago, JustinHoot99 said:

@MLMR Doing good. Surviving. Thanks for asking.
Got my red X on my calendar.
Drank a code red, ate a donut and piece of candy so far (in addition to bacon and egg for breakfast).  Gaining wt, but frankly, I don't give a dang right now.
Spent some time (a lot of time) surfing quit smoking blogs and articles.
Walked around the block 5 different times.
Used my visualizations several times.

My next steps I need to take is to start working on my productivity a bit.  I mean, I have probably gained 3 hrs a day if time.  Right now I fill that in w/ whatever fills in the time and gets me through a craving, but I can do better than that.  I already exercise 45min/day, everyday, so I can't use that.  There are a lot of "adulting" projects I need to start doing, that should be my priority.

Appreciate your asking.  Hope your day is going well.

Surfing blogs and articles and stuff about addiction on YouTube definitely got me through the first months, along with writing here. Make quitting your Most Important Project, for a while. For as long as you need!

Which ‘adulting’ project will you be tackling first?

Hi Justin, good to have you here. Hows today going?

Hi there Gracie, remember and say to yourself out loud: this will pass. 
 

Pictures of black lungs often did it for me, as strange as that may sound. Quite sobering…. Good for you that you choose health.

Did you take a look at Joel Spitzers videoclips? There’s plenty of material here:

Because smoking does nothing but harm. 

Hi Tara, in the beginning I made endless lists. I listed what I didn’t like about smoking, what I liked about being free from nicotine, I even wrote down my most embarrassing smoking moments. I thought, if it has to be this bad, why not work my way through with everything that I’ve got? It really helped me.  
 

Have you found Joel’s Library yet? Many powerful video’s about quitting. 

55 minutes ago, Tara smith said:

I really like myself and feel so much better when cigarettes aren’t the center of my attention. 

Hi Tara, welcome back. What you wrote there says it all, right?

Congratulations on your decision! Do you remember what helped you last time and is that something you can incorporate in your plan again?

Related video:

The danger of using internet quit sites as a crutch to quit smoking

@Abby yeah, i think Frying Pan Doreen is referring to me

I’m not sure about the ripple effect either. A person smokes because he/she allowes and eventually provides. There's really no external effect or person or whatever responsible for that. The more I come to think of it, the more I see how I started jeopardizing my quit somewhere at the start of this year. I recognized that I felt isolated and lonely, I knew I had to go full on self care. I think I did a lot of things quite ok, considering circumstances. But, somewhere along the line, the thought “I can always grab a smoke, if things really fall apart” came in. And although I didn’t really held on to the thought (at least that’s what I uhm... thought haha), I wasn’t facing it either. What I should have done, was coming here way more often. It should have been my absolute no 1 priority to keep that quit, like it has been for so long. Regardless of personal and global circumstances, moons or stars.. bit I didn’t. And now I’m sorry and have to sit on the blisters, as we say here. 
 

so, don’t ripple effect me, don’t be like MLMR!! (Or at least not relaps-wise  )

Yesterday I was with my best friend. She is 46 and has COPD. I am afraid she will be dead within 10 years, if she doesnt make some radical lifestyle changes. Let me rephrase that: I fear for her life. Its not 'just' the smoking that worries me, but everything that comes with it: bad food choices and a range of associated physical worries, chronic slavery, underlying depression and financial problems.

We did food shopping together. I was looking at her from a distance when she didnt see me and tears came to my eyes. The panting, trying to hide how tired she is. Looking at least 12 years older than her real age. And right after we leave the shopping mall she lights up, because she knows she cant smoke in my car..

Its been 2 years, 6 months and11 days since I quit. Once in a while I pause and take the time to write down whatever comes to my mind about quitting. Dont have to, but I want to. I could thank myself a million times for making the decision back then and I want to keep that gratitude anchored. I never thought id be able to meditate, breaking up without falling apart, switching jobs, saying some final goodbyes, drastically reframing my future and yet feeling more at ease with myself than ever before.

I whish there were ways to convince my friend to quit as well. I know she can and I know everbody can. If only she took the chance to free herself of all the horible junkie thinking. I cant even begin to imagine what its like to fear for your spouses life, or a family member. Last week I had a cremation of someone who died of smoking related illnesses. Not someone very close, but still. It didnt impress my friend one bit. Crazy, sick addiction that does unimaginable things to otherwise healthy brains.

The other week I ran into someone I hadnt seen in a while. Regular smoker, quitting was always on her mind and she did all the things so many of us have been doing for years: cutting down (result: enforcing her addiction) , limiting her smoking to 'only in the kitchen', quitting and starting again, etc. Living her life, but always with a sense of guilt about her smoking 'habit'. 

She told me she only just found out that she has advanced lung cancer. She's in her 50's. 

52 minutes ago, Fluffyyellowduck said:

... and didn't. 

Thats what it's all about. You did well!

Think about it: in one year you will celebrate your second smokefree new years eve

2 hours ago, jillar said:

You're doing great fluffyduck and you update us as often as you want. We love going on your journey with you

^^ what Jill says, plus updating can be a great way to keep yourself accountable and commited.

22 minutes ago, Fluffyyellowduck said:

If tomorrow is as easy as today, or easier, I'll be fine. 

Hey Fluffyduck, let me tell you that you'll be fine either way, with cravings or without. You will survive the tougher moments as well. You will learn new ways of dealing with anxiety, because of quitting. The rough moments are part of the package, part of life. You'll be fine, as long as you stick to your commitment of not smoking.

Emotions come and go, all the more reason to make your resolve as strong as possible. When the going gets tough, this is what will help you through. 

@Fluffyyellowduck, you relied on smoking to feed your addiction. Quitting is all about debunking the lies that come with being addicted to nicotine. 

Hows your first day going?