January 19, 201511 yr Treacle. I shall miss you. Do the right thing for yourself. Congratulations on quitting. You will succeed this time. All the best. Bandit out.
January 19, 201511 yr Aww Wendy... You're leaving us? Congratulations on your quit! But I hope you stick around, or at least check in from time to time... I would miss you if you left :(
January 19, 201511 yr I'm sorry to read this Wendy.... I wish you a very happy smoke free life.... Love ( the nagger ) ...l.ol..... What ever works for you....keep the quit.... Xxxxx
January 19, 201511 yr Do what is right for you beauty, more power to your elbow an all that. Be great if you an the monkey could check in from time to time but actually, I just genuinely wish this journey to be done for you so whatever works is right. Much love. x
January 19, 201511 yr Actually, your length of previous quits and your current status has nothing to do with any kind of support group as it has everything to do with your personal commitment to never take another puff, where you are in the nicotine addiction education process and whether or not you're still believing in the cigarette. I was quit for 6 years without any kind of support group. The story is pretty much written on my profile page. Long story short, I was not successful when I had that long quit because I had not a clue about the addiction and certainly had nothing in the way of support. When I started smoking again in 2010 or 2011 I went straight back to 30 per day and often times many more. When I decided that I wanted to quit but enjoyed it too much, my doctor told me I was an addict, put me on Wellbutrin XL and told me to find a support group, because it would increase my chances of staying quit for good. I argued but before I left all of my arguments were proven false. I found a support group and stayed quit for 9 months before I relapsed again. I had done all the reading, yada, yada, yada. The problem wasn't lack of knowledge, it was lack of truth. I was still believing that cigarettes benefited me, in particular helping me deal with stress. Thankfully I only relapsed for about a week before I quit again. Once I believed and understood that smoking didn't help me deal with stress, I never looked back. It was the one false sense of security that I was holding onto that could have kept me smoking until it crippled or killed me. You can quit on your own without any kind of support group. Many do it. But many of those people (not all) go back to smoking many years later, sometimes a decade or two later. When I look at those within the travels of my life that have had long quits and relapsed and never quit again (or the constant cycle of smoking/relapse/smoking), the common denominator is lack of knowledge about nicotine addiction and for sure, lack of a support group that helped educate them and hold them accountable. The difference for the majority of those who truly quit and NEVER TAKE ANOTHER PUFF FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES and those that either relapse into a full-blown addiction or "sneak a smoke" every now and then is support. A good support group will lay the foundation for a lifetime of being smoke-free. Again, you can do it on your own but please make sure that the foundation for your quit has been laid and you keep up with the maintenance of that foundation. Whether it be reading on your own, meditation or whatever, you need to never forget that you're a nicotine addict and will be for the rest of your life. Although it may be uncomfortable for some to hear and grasp, it's what we unknowingly signed up for all those years ago when we decided to become smokers. I'll Come Back For Reinforcement When I need It This video talks about the benefits of regularly reinforcing your quit when things are easy as opposed to relapsing and having to try to quit again. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiIOvdMZ7us&list=PL76365B6CE2DA076B "The only time I think of smoking is when I get one of your stupid letters"Video discusses how I used to send out follow-up letter to make sure that my clinic graduates were prepared to deal with the occasional thoughts that they would likely encounter after quitting smoking.http://youtu.be/DgZN4UI_8wU Complacency Video discussing the importance of not allowing yourself to become complacent after longer term success not smoking. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZSktbwotI4&index=30&list=PL4F05C03D0F9B86DB
January 19, 201511 yr I hope you change your mind and come back but you got to do what's best for you. Good luck in all you decide.
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