Hello Breather, Thanks so much for the advice and vote of confidence today..It's just what I needed to hear today..I was feeling a little weak but now I am feeling stronger..
I did let myself relax and rest today..No running all over town trying to keep busy today. I have been out and about all day most every day pretty much since I quit smoking, trying to stay busy and fighting the nicotine habit and all.
I just ran one little errand today and then back home to enjoy a little R&R. I even fell asleep for a few minutes on the couch today..I used to smoke to stay awake, I used to wake up in the middle of the night to smoke etc etc. I was a very hard core smoker/nicotine addict and smoked for over 43 years..Being able to sleep in the middle of the day is a very good sign..So maybe I am starting to get more comfortable with my quit now, which is a very very good thing...It has been slow going but I think I may be starting to get the hang of being a non-smoker now.. As you would say....Excellent for me!!!
Hello Red Yay for you for keeping it simple. Yes , sometimes we have demands made on us and we get tired trying to get everything done and you're right that dealing with an addiction on top of everything can drain the energy out of us. There are people that set aside certain times of the day to relax , meditate , power nap and generally just turn the world off for twenty minutes or so. It means letting a machine get the phone calls and not letting anything disturb your space. People will get to know not to even bother calling at a certain time because they know their call won't be answered. Be sure to take the time to sit , close your eyes , and reflect on how proud you are of yourself for coming this far. Sounds to me like you're doing great. Excellent for you. breather
H.A.L.T. / HALTED / TRY Just for today...I won't smoke today..
These slogans help me to stay quit every day. Simple but to the point..One of my rocks in times of trouble.
I have been letting myself get to tired lately. Quitting smoking and staying quit can be very tiring..Staying busy is good but at the same time can be over done just like all things.
One of the things I have to watch out for is getting too tired and telling myself that smoking will help me relax for just a little while..Of course this is not true. This is the junkie talking again and if I am not careful I will ambush myself again.. I need to pay attention to how I am feeling and if I am tired from all the staying busy than I need to listen, to pay more attention to myself and sit and rest for a while..
Thats all there is to it really..."H.A.L.T." stop in my tracks and listen to my body and mind..Not that stupid junkie..What does he know anyway..
breather, Thank you so much for your support today..
The idea of never having another cigarette sounds great to me..I will remember to listen to my inner self and ignore the messages from the addict..because I am doing great and I do not need a cigarette to live.... quite the opposite. I want to breath and live..therefore I do not smoke anymore...Smoking almost took my life..
Roses I agree with you that we need to be super vigilent. We are doing everything without that almighty cigarette now and are compiling a series of firsts for ourselves. First 24th of May weekend , first birthday , Christmas ,etc. I happened to have stopped on Rememberance day (not planned) but since then the confidence that I won't smoke on those occasions has been reinforced that now they aren't such a huge deal. In the early days of the quit they are everything. We're testing the waters to see what we can do at this point. You bet it's hard but it is so worth it. You've been through the two hardest weeks so they say so keep on going now. Be proud of yourself , reward yourself and above all be kind to yourself. The addict in us tells us that we're doing poorly when really we're not and the opposite is also true. Remember that if you don't have another cigarette you never have to go what you've just gone through again , ever. How does that sound to you ? Yay for you. Excellent. breather
Thank you for the support and excellent advice..I especially like Try just for today and Halted, hungry angry lonely excited depressed..If I pay attention to myself and do a little self talk during these times I think I can stay quit this time. I now know that it is the junkie thinking that I have to counter with true common sense thinking..Never listening to the lies of that junkie mind again..I agree the lie that we can't quit is not longer valid..We can and have quit, it is staying quit that is the challenge..We must remain hyper vigilant when it comes to our quits and our staying quit..
Yes Jim the lie is no longer valid. How many times did we tell ourselves that we'd never be able to quit ? , that we were hooked and that we were too addicted to ever go through withdrawal and that it was too tough ? We bought into all the self-defeating behaviour that made sure that we stayed addicted. We heard the surgeon general's claim that it was easier to stop using heroin than to stop smoking cigarettes further ensuring that the self- defeating behaviour continued. That was then and this is now ! We learned how to live without it. It was difficult at first but as time went on it got easier. Who would have thought that a chronic smoker could put the butts down and not pick them up again ? , certainly not me. That was a few years ago and sixty thousand cigarettes in the past. So throw the cigarettes in the garbage where they belong and start a better life for yourself. Do this for yourself and you'll be glad that you did. As one member here said " temporary inconvenience equals permanent improvement ". The lie is now dead and we're not buying into it any more because with a little determination we can stop and we will stop if that's what we really want to do. One day at a time we're learning how to live a new way of life that's better than we'd ever imagined. Excellent for you. breather
This is great stuff, buddy! Thanks for finding it Rose, as it's definitely one thread that will particularly helpful to all of our new quitters! "The lie that we can't quit is dead..." Awesome and nothing but the truth!
Good Day Roses We're here to help each other along the way. There have been numerous times where the reply I received was the reply that I needed to hear. I'd say that 17 days smoke free is a miraculous acheivement. They say the nicotine is out of our system after a few days but then the mind games start. Refuse to play the game. Tell yourself that no matter what happens that I won't smoke today. The last 3 letters of jusT foR todaY spell try and that's all we have to do is try. What was a necessity a couple of weeks ago is now a simple choice. Today I choose not to smoke and for that I'm gratefull. The lie that we can't quit is dead and to that we are the proof. Excellent for you. breather
