|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Sun Aug 31, 2008 1:33 am
well, as of 2 pm est on saturday, august 30, 2008, i've joined the ranks of the mass group of people that are trying to quit smoking. with my fiancee at my side, i made my way to the pharmacy section at wal mart and picked up a box of nicotine patches. it's been a strange day. i've only had one minor moment where i was snappy. however, i've felt drained all day long, like i'm unable to focus. now, before someone tells me to quit whining and suck it up (which i doubt will happen), let me give you all some background.
i started officially smoking shortly after my 12th birthday. the reason i say officially is because a lot of people count from when they had their first couple cigarettes. if i went that route, i started when i was 10. but at any rate, let's move on. i've been at least a pack a day smoker for the past 15 years. i've used cigarettes to help me get off the cocaine and heroin. they've served me well in many a stressful situation. so it was very hard for me to make the decision to quit. but when a close friend of mine was recently diagnosed with lung cancer at the young age of 32, it got me thinking. that's really not much older than i am, and definately way too young to die. so i made up my mind a few weeks ago that i was gonna quit after the cigarettes in my carton were gone. then i hit some serious stress and put that on the back burner. good ole nicotine to the rescue, once again. but i've had enough. i'm tired of getting winded going up a flight of stairs. i'm tired of the constant minor asthma attacks. i'm tired of being tethered to an ashtray everywhere i go, not wanting to stay for any length of time if it was a nonsmoking environment. the day has come where i change my life for the better. goodbye cigarettes, hello healthier lifestyle!
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Aug 31, 2008 9:44 pm
THAT is awesome. We are behind you. A longer, healthier, better smelling life to you! mrgreen
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 5:20 am
day two:
it was actually a pretty good day. aside from really wanting one when i was visiting my brother, i didn't have any desire to smoke at all. and once my fiancee and i met up, i really didn't even feel the need to even think of a cigarette. many thanks to her keeping me otherwise occupied he he. i've been able to focus a little more clearly today than yesterday. and yes, i know it's technically day three for me, but i just got home. all i know is i'm somewhat concerned about how work is gonna be smoke-free. that's where i get most of my stress. only time will tell.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 11:01 am
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 4:08 pm
Sa far, so good!
Well done!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 12:45 am
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 12:55 am
day 3:
i'm so angry with myself. i've been doing so well, then i mess up by taking a drag from a friend's cigarette. i can't dwell on this. i just have to try to not let it happen again. i'm back to work tomorrow so we'll see how that day goes. wish me luck.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 8:28 am
Good luck! Don't dwell on a single slip up. Look at the big picture.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 9:56 am
Hey slip-ups will happen. Don't let it get to you. I'm happy to hear that you are doing this for you and that you seem to have a healthy mindset about this challenge.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 11:32 am
you will make it whee
god luck.
a friend of me started smoking with 14 and now she is 23 and a non smoker.
just wehn she drinks too much she sometimes want to smoke, so dn´t drink.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 12:18 pm
That's awesome. Congrats with quitting as well. We must all resist temptation to the fullest. I started when I was 16, now almost 24, I can quit cold turkey for months, but so hard when stressful events especially...so I know how you feel. I say mind over matter, and it helps when you are not around smokers too much as well that way you are not tempted to be in the party for the smoking sessions.
And like AmelieChan said, it's best not to always party and drink from my experience (social smoking like such) will just let you light up a cig without thinking or because others are smoking infront of you xp .
Congrats.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2008 9:54 pm
thanks guys. i slipped up yesterday on day 4, my first day back to work after the labor day weekend. i got so stressed out it was either a cigarette or throwing a part across the shop floor and getting fired. i naturally chose the lesser of the two evils. i wound up smoking the entire thing before i realized it. naturally, i felt like i let people down, myself down and beat myself up about it for like 5 minutes. i decided to try harder, and went all day today without one. so, that's 5 days with one full cigarette. i'd say i'm not doing too shabby. things at the shop will be a little easier once the statewide smoking ban goes into effect on the 11th.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 6:51 am
how about sports?
i know a lot of people who smoke less because they started with sports.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Sep 05, 2008 2:44 am
another day gone, another day without a cigarette. i've been coughing a lot today. keep bringing up some nasty stuff from my lungs.
and now for a little health lesson, for those that don't know.
inside your bronchials are little hairs called cilia. they move back and forth, pushing mucus and other foreign bodies out of your lungs. a chemical in cigarette smoke paralyzes these cilia and cover them with tar, another chemical in the smoke. around day 5 of quitting, the cilia start to work again, causing the newly founded nonsmoker to cough continuously for weeks, sometimes months until the garbage from the smoke is out of the lungs. at least, i think that's what i remember from health class.
so, as my chest burns from the coughing, and i produce about a quarter pound of ashtray-tasting phlegm a day, i can thank those damnable cigarettes for doing this to me.
oh, i might add, this is the time most go back to smoking. i'm gonna resist that urge. no matter how long a person smoked, as long as they didn't develop cancer, it only takes roughly a year for your body to undo the damage that smoking caused.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Sep 05, 2008 3:16 am
I felt particularly moved when I read your story Mike because my grandfather had started when he was 12. I'm pretty sure I mentioned to you that my mom was only 17 when he passed.
Maybe you should write down the names of your daughter and your fiancee. When it gets hard pull out the slip of paper from your pocket with one of the lovely ladies' names. Sometimes though we know the benefit/reason behind giving up something bad, we need that added visual to push us to stay on track.
...On that note I'm taping Mirrors to every box/bag of junk food in my fridge and pantry!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
