Great post, Kenzie! The more you question your addictive patterns, the better equipped you are to break free of them.
The thing with heavy smoking is that it was an organizing principle of our life. It punctuated everything… waking up, going to bed, working, eating, coping (or not) with feelings. Without smoking it feels weird to live without a powerful stimulant in those interstitial life moments. That empty feeling passes. But till it does, fill those moments with something else punchy… an ice cold drink, a huge body stretch, whatever.
The addiction tells us this fake story that smoking was gratifying. But that’s stinkin thinkin, romancing the smoke. The bare truth is that it’s NOT gratifying! The “ahhh” never lasts. The ONLY thing smoking ever did was make our junked up nicotine receptors want another hit. And another. Then another. Our addiction had us chasing gratification that we never could hold onto.
Enough of that! Smack that craving with a big ol NOPE snd reclaim your life! You can do this, Kenzie.