So, today is the first day of me quitting smoking. Let me apologize for any spelling/logic/grammar mistakes I make in the upcoming days, because I truly feel stupid. It's as if my synapses have just went on vacation. I'm all muddled up.

Mr. Yuk

*hugs*
*hugs*
*hugs*
way to go!

Hooray! Good for you, Mr. Yuk. And I say, a free pass to post more when the urge to light up occurs.

Muddled up for a period of time, perhaps, but CONGRATULATIONS!!! The benefits and freedom should surely outweigh the momentary trials.

Best wishes for a complete release of this habit!!
We're all behind you!
blessings,
S of the PEAS

I have to tell you that I went to a Hypnotist about 9 months ago and I haven't smoked cigarettes since. It's done wonders for my hiking ability. Sorry just wanted to share. Good for you, I hope you make it cuz it feels wonderful.

-HG

Let me be the first to offer you unconditional support and encouragment!!!! Misspell away... use fuzzy logic... misuse the english language at will!

Good luck!

Carianna of the GG

Forgot to add ...

Think of how many pieces of pzkut you can buy in place of those dirty little cancer sticks!

How many more gallons you can put in the tank to go further in hunt of letterboxes!

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Let me be the first

Except I had forgotten to refresh the screen and missed all the other replies! So let me be AMONG the first! :-)

Carianna of the GG

Good luck! Seriously, I know how hard it can be. I was 2-3 packs a day for a dozen years or so... I'm coming up on 3 years now without a smoke (August 3rd is my anniversary). You may forget you moms birthday, but you will NEVER forget the day you quit smoking.
That "muddled up" feeling goes away after 3 or 4 days. The urge to kill people goes away after about three weeks. :)

Warm Front

Thanks for all your encouragement folks. I keep looking at my little boy, you know? He's only 6, but I wanna make sure I'm around when he's 46, and I don't want him to pick it up from me... I don't smoke in the house or anything, but it's a nasty, dirty habit, one I want rid of.

Mr. Yuk

Ciongratulations MR. YUK , I quit 8 1/2 years ago and have not looked back since. I may not be in the best shape as I once was but I definately can breathe easier. I quit cold turkey too, I think the easiest way. Just put them down. Great you are looking at your little boy as encouragement too, that is defianately a mental image when you feel you can't go on and make that turn into the store and say just one.... no! It will get easier in time and you won't even miss it. I promise! Good luck to you and cogratulations on quitting!

Cannonball

I want to thank you for this on your little boy's behalf. Don't just think of him though; think of his kids. You want to be around for your grandchildren too, right?

Big hugs; hang in there! Might I suggest taking up knitting to keep your hands busy? ;-)

Knit Wit

Now you can feel sorry for all of those folks that still light up. Everyone of them would like to stop and hasn't the cajones you have.

Don going on 30 + years of still feeling sorry for smokers.

HEHE,

I've already got enough hobbies, I don't need anymore...

Although, I am worried about my carving ability, my hands don't feel real limber... I've eaten a bag of baby carrots today, to give me something to do with my hands and such.

What I'm gonna do is take up running. Me and this other former Army dude are just gonna run each night after work until we really can't think of anything else.

Mr. Yuk

When my mother quit smoking, she really missed the physical motions of holding the cig and inhaling. She discovered that McDonald's straws are about the same diameter as a cigarette so she would cut them to the approximate length of an unsmoked cigarette and puff air through them. It looked really silly and, as kids, we cracked up at her. But, she swore that it helped.

Crazy solutions or not, good luck to you!
Amyrica

Dad cut pieces of dowel, painted them to look like cigarettes and "smoked" those for a while. He smoked from the time he was 8 until he was in his 50s. Camels, unfiltered. He now has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and advanced lung cancer. I am sending so many good thoughts your way so that you don't have to go through that. It's hell on earth.

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Now you can feel sorry for all of those folks that still light up. Everyone of them would like to stop and hasn't the cajones you have.

Some do, some don't..... my MIL has been *forced* to quit twice because of longer hospitalizations (once for pneumonia, once for a broken leg). Both times she has gone back to smoking after having stopped for over 2 months. My husband and his brother get so furious........ And she lost a brother to lung cancer. I almost can't even walk in her house, the smoke is so bad. When I was pregnant, and ultrasensitive to smells, I'd have to wash my hair after going over there. She says it's ok, because she doesn't smoke in front of the kids - but they aren't idiots, they know - they've walked in her house unannounced and caught her, or went looking for her and found her smoking on the front porch...... sheesh!

Mr. Yuk, you are right, it's a dirty habit, and congrats on the decision to quit!! Your son will appreciate it. I appreciate you making the decision, even though I've never met you! My best friend quit and she says she gave up smoking for Doritos.... ;-)) Baby carrots are probably a better idea! But Doritos sure are yummy - a few won't hurt!

Mama Fox

Good for you! I quit a few years ago & never felt better. It's well worth the intial hell you go thru the first few days/weeks. Replace the bad habit with a good habit & you'll do fine. Sounds like you are well on your way with the running thing. When you feel that urge to smoke, post or carve. You'll be amazed at how soon other smokers will smell awful to you.

Wishing you all the best on your journey to becoming smoke free,
dee123

Right ON. This is the single biggest gift you can give your little boy. It's also the best thing you can do to guarentee a functional elderhood for yourself (do you want to be the wheelchair/ O2 dependant old fart who can't get up and walk to the bathroom without turning blue or do you want to be the obnoxious old fart passing up the young whippersnappers out on the trail because you have such great lungs?)

I spend every working day with people who are really sick or dying from smoking all their lives- it's not just lungs, it affects many systems of your body and you end up feeling like CRAP at a really young age (compared to those who don't smoke or who quit young)

If you want some great aversion therapy, just AQ mail me and I'll give you some graphic descriptions of what it's like to die of lung cancer or COPD! (cheerfully offering to horrify you- lol)

Oh- and I quit 11 years ago. If you find yourself going psycho, don't hesitate to wean yourself offf with either nicotine gum or patches; that's what helped me! Mama Poodle Dude.

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I keep looking at my little boy, you know? He's only 6, but I wanna make sure I'm around when he's 46,

Mr. Yuk,
Did my family tell you to type that? I quit in January and then started again in April, for some stupid reason or another. I don't know what my problem is. I have the patches sitting next to my morning stuff. I know they work (FEAR, a nurse told me if I smoked while on them, I could have a stroke), why do I keep buying $5 a pack cigarettes?

I too want to watch my 6 yo daughter grow up. That should be enough incentive. Maybe your strength can spill over this way a bit.

Thanks,
Janet, Blooming Flowers

Way to go Mr. Yuk! I quit for good on 10/10/1990 after 20 years of heavy smoking. My secret to staying *quit* are deep breaths, taken just like a deep drag but without the cigarette, this gave me the same good feelings/high as the cigarette. The reason is that smokers are deep breathers and when they quit they stop taking deep breaths and become shallow breathers. Crazy but true.

Every time I quit, even if it didn't work out at that time, I learned something, so that eventually I was able to do it for good. It's like learning anything, I had to figure it out, and if I had to do it again, I could (I still smoke in my dreams). Once figured out and understood, a big chunk of difficulty is taken away. Keep this in mind because it is Not impossible to do....it IS doable.

Sending you good thoughts,
catbead

Would anyone think it's beneficial to have a board that's a "support group" for quitting various vices? I don't know how much value anyone would get out of it, but if it can make people's lives better, I'd be more than willing to create one. Anyhow, besides being there for your kids and grandchildren, I want you around to keep paying premium memberships here. ;o)

But seriously, if I can help you all live healthier and happier lives, I'd certainly like to do it. I was thinking that maybe I could move this thread to the Health and Fitness board. Frankly, people are pretty supportive no matter what board someone posts on, but maybe a special board for people to share their goals, hardships, and successful strategies might be useful. Not just for quitting smoking, but to lose weight, or even to stop biting nails.

-- Ryan

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I was thinking that maybe I could move this thread to the Health and Fitness board.

What? There's a health and fitness board? How the heck did I miss that one?

As I sit here eating my Weight Control Oatmeal (which is actually really good) thinking I've got to either give the cigs I just bought away or smoke them then stop, I could be reading the Health and Fitness board. Hmmm.

At least I don't bite my nails. If I did, the paranoia would set in. . .Is Ryan watching me? There are too many windows around here. Just kidding.

Janet, Blooming Flowers (Hoping to be less bloomed by August)

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I too want to watch my 6 yo daughter grow up

Oh Blooming Flowers, please dont give up trying. Its not enough to see your six year old grow up, its to see her kids grow up. Having the kids be grown up doesnt make it easier on them, I lost my mom when i was 35 with a 2 1/2 yr old and an 8 week old baby. Even as a grownup I still need my mom. She had COPD, asthma, and a host of other problems related to smoking for 40 yrs.

Please know that there are a lot of people out here in cyberland that will cheer you on!! All of you that are trying to quit!! Just keep trying.

vicki (who misses her mom every single day even after 5 years without her)

to anyone wanting to quit:
Go out and destroy those cigs and lock up the money so that you cannot get any more.

I quit 18 1/2 years ago after about 5 years of a pack a day habit (and back then we could smoke in the workplace!). I fell off the wagon in New Orleans (smoking wise! As far as alcohol, never got on that wagon!) for one long weekend in the winter of 1999.

I crave a cigarette just about everyday, I just keep telling myself that if I get really hooked again it will be much harder to quit.

The message/example that we are sending to our children when we are strong and ditch the habit is far better in the long run. I think that I have an addictive personality (addicted to AQ right now!) and I think that I just have to be stronger. Like anything worth while, it is hard to do. But hard is not necessarily bad. I think that if I give in to the cravings I am acting from weakness and if that is true with others, lean on a stronger person who can be there for you in your weakness.

Go for it, you will not be sorry and we will all be here for you!
Ruth
Six Stars

I quit march 5th of 2006. Over 15 months now. There are stilll times where I seriously crave a cigarette but I will not allow myself even a drag of a smoke. I know as soon as I make the exception and have "just one drag" that sooner or later I will have another "just one drag" which leads to "just one cigarette" which will lead to "just one pack" etc. etc. just like it was every time I had tried to quit before. I always thought I had control over moderation and I didn't. It always lead back to fully smoking again. The key for me was to know that if I caved it was a lack of will power on my own part. It would be a personal weakness. I would be cheating myself. So I refuse to ever have "just a drag" no matter how rough a time I may be havingor how drunk I may be seriously craving that smoke. You can't let smoking be a crutch. Be true to yourself. You can do it. Starting smoking again is a CHOICE! No one will be holding you down while shoving a cigarette in your mouth. So be true to yourself and your son that you love so much and don't make the CHOICE to GIVE UP on quitting. You are done with cigarettes and that is that! Sorry if this seems harsh but sometimes tough love is the key! This exact logic is how I have made it 15 months and counting! As soon as I looked at it from the perspective of smoking again was me making a choice to fail it became easy to not smoke. I would never make the choice to fail at something I had the power to control. I am stronger than that and I know you can be too! You can do it buddy!

chadams

Well, I'm on Day 2, and it's awful, but I just read through all the posts that happened during the night and it gave me extra desire to stay quit.

In lighter news, I started shooting heroin instead of smoking. They say it's safer.

HAH!

Mr. Yuk

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In lighter news, I started shooting heroin instead of smoking. They say it's safer.

Reminds me of the movie Airplane!

"Look like I picked the wrong day to stop sniffing glue"

-Amanda from Seattle

Ya Mr. Yuk!!

It is the first day of a healther new you!!

Good for you! I quit for three years (and much like chadams) started after one night of "just one cig" smoking again full time. I have now quit again - 2 years and will never smoke again. The thought of missing any more time than I possibly can have with my daughters gets me through even the roughest of days....

AGJ