Leaderboard

NOPE - no way after 8 years!!!

NOPE

Congratulations @Hope2Nope, on your awesome eight year quit! I love celebrating another year quit with a fellow Butt Kicker! Have a great day...😊

Wow! That time of the year again! It’s hard to imagine a cigarette in my hand now but we were inseparable 8 years ago. I would like to thank all my fellow quitters for all their support and encouragement along all these years. It was not easy at first but after a short while, it became much easier, mostly thanks to the support I received from the amazing people I met here. Thank you ver much everyone and Class of 2016 ROCKS!!!!!!

Congratulations on EIGHT YEARS of NOPE!

Not one puff or nicotine patch ever!

NOPE

Nope...

NOPE (and a pinch and punch for the first of the month)

NOPE!

Congratulations …… well deserved

Huge Congratulations on your Fabulous 8 years smoke free . Treat yourself to something great 🐸

Congratulations @Hope2Nope 8 years is amazing!! All the best to you!!😃

Congratulations 👏 🎉 on 8 years smoke free @Hope2Nope Great job!

NOPE!!

NOPE!

NOPE!

G’day NOPE .....Not One Puff Ever.... (replace Ever with Min,Hour, Day as required.)

NOPE!

NOPE!

NOPE

Nope...

NOPE!!

Good morning everyone, Sometimes I overthink things. Today, just going to take things one minute, one hour and day at a time and trust that things will all work out. Have a fantastic day everyone. Gene

Congratulations on an epic quit. Thank you for paving the way for the rest of us. This is a perfect example of how a forever quit should look.

Well done! And happy anniversary!

The Half-Percent Club, Quitnet Re-post, May 22, 2004 This is a good read. I'm sure that it is as true today as it was back in 2004 that a very small percentage of smokers actually join the elite quitting club and keep their quits. Are you going be part of the half percent club? Keep our quit. Gene Repost - the half-percent club (my doctoral ramble) From melder7777 on 5/22/2004 8:49:23 AM every so often I renew my membership in this club feel free to join (the dues are outlined below) maureen chosing life for 649 days! (and regretting not a one) From kevindontsmoke on 11/19/2002 11:50:48 AM according to statistics published in June of 2002 by the American lung association (see "TRENDS IN TOBACCO USE" at http://www.lungusa.org/data/): * over 46,500,000 (that's 46 and a half million) Americans smoke. of those, 70% (or 32,550,000) say they want to quit. of those, 34% (or 11,067,000) attempt to quit each year. of those, 2.5% (or 276,675) succeed. that's about one-half of one percent of the total number of american smokers. the half-percent club. * (since i don't have similar statistics for any other country, i'm going to assume that the percentages are about the same everywhere; people are people, wherever they live, and nicotine is nicotine, no matter who's addicted to it...) -------- now, some people might look at those numbers and get discouraged. they might think, "only a half of a percent make it? what chance do i have of succeeding with odds like that?" - what they don't realize is that statistics say *nothing* about individuals. and every member of this exclusive club is an individual. and every individual has the power of choice. -------- the half-percent club has no officers; no president, no secretary, no treasurer. it has no meetings; it has no meeting hall. it doesn't march in parades, organize food, clothing or fund drives, hold garage sales, or have bingo on wednesdays. but it does have dues, and if you want to be a member, you have to pay your dues. it doesn't matter who you know, doesn't matter what you know, doesn't matter if you're from the right family, doesn't matter if you went to the right school, doesn't matter if you're from the right side of the tracks, doesn't matter if you're a man or a woman, doesn't matter what color your skin is, doesn't matter what religion you follow (or even if you follow any at all), doesn't matter what your politics are. all that matters is that you pay your dues. because the half-percent club isn't like other clubs: nobody nominates you for membership; you nominate yourself. nobody votes on whether you can become a member; your vote is the only one that counts. you elect yourself. by paying your dues. you pay your dues by waking up every morning, looking your addiction in the eye, and choosing not to feed it today. you pay your dues by going to bed every night patting yourself on the back for having stuck by that choice today. you pay your dues by choosing not to feed your addiction whenever you're hungry, angry, lonely, or tired. you pay your dues by choosing not to feed your addiction whenever you feel sorry for yourself. you pay your dues by choosing not to feed your addiction whenever you're under pressure. you pay your dues by choosing not to feed your addiction whenever you get a crave. you pay your dues by choosing not to feed your addiction. no matter what. you pay your dues by choosing life. because as long as you choose life, you're a card-carrying, paid-in-full member. and as long as you keep choosing life, nobody can vote you out. in fact, once you've paid your dues, the only way to lose your membership is to take it away from yourself. by choosing to feed your addiction. by choosing death. -------- this morning, for the 366th morning in a row, i woke up, looked my addiction in the eye, and chose not to feed it today. this morning, for the 366th morning in a row, i wrote in my quit journal: "I am a nicotine addict. I cannot afford to feed that addiction. Not even one time. - so - Today, I choose LIFE! Today, I choose HEALTH! Today, I choose STRENGTH! Today, I choose SELF-CONTROL! Today, I choose FREEDOM! Today, I choose NOT to SMOKE!" thomas jefferson said, "the price of freedom is eternal vigilance"; writing these affirmations in my quit journal every morning is one way that i practice eternal vigilance against my mortal enemy. it reminds me, every day, that i'm an addict, and that my only power over that addiction is my repeated choice not to feed it. i know, from previous experience, that it only takes one feeding to bring that addiction back in full force, and this reminds me, every morning, that i can't afford to give it that one feeding. so far, this has helped keep me free for a full year; i'd strongly suggest that you find a way to practice eternal vigilance that works for you. today starts my second year of freedom from smoking; my second year of membership in the half-percent club. i invite you to join me. by choosing life. today, and every day. kevin - grateful to be in my second year of freedom!!!

Hi @DenaliBlues ... i love this.... reframing smoking craving as memories or nostalgia. Many thanks.

Thank you @Doreensfree,... so sorry to hear that your hubby did not make it... but happy that you made a life saving choice... hugs... everytime I hear my hubby cough at night, I think about how smoking is killing him.

Thank you @jillar

@notsmokinjo, I've been praying that birdies best friend made it home?

Nope....

NOPE!

NOPE!!

I remember sitting on my back step , crying smoking my last cigarette , My choice was …Quit now or face double feet amputation in the future . Thankfully I made the right choice . Gene My hubby never made that choice and passed away due to Emphysema due to not making the right choice . Make sure you choose the right one Dear Friend 🐸

I remember feeling the same way Gene but then reminded myself that I CAN smoke I just choose not to. I choose not to stink of stale smoke, I choose not to throw away my hard earned money, I choose not to ne an addict. Then if the craving was still strong I would use my air cigarette to trick my mind into thinking it was getting the real thing and that worked EVERY time ☺

Thank you Peeps , I Carnt believe it’s been 11 years I have been travelling on this wonderful Train . Helping Quitters find thier Freedom still gives me great pleasure . If I can do it anyone can … Trust Me 🐸❤️

Update: I got the $750 FEMA was issuing to practically everyone affected by Helene. Yesterday, I received an additional $1800 to get the tree off of my house. I still have so many trees that need to be cleaned up. I’m considering applying for an SBA loan also to help take care of this. I’m short on time and just really don’t know a lot about it. I figured I would apply and see what they offer. I can always decline. I just WANT and NEED to go home. Thanks everyone for the kind words. This has been such a slow process with hardly any progress.

Best of luck with your big event, Gene! Meetings and special events are so stressful, aren’t they? Equal parts aggravating and energizing. Hope it goes great. K T Q!

Congratulations @Hope2Nope, seven years quit is awesome! Especially when its an original 2016 Butt Kicker 😊 I hope you have a great day!

Thanks a lot everyone for your amazing posts!!! It’s so great to be part of this community! It’s hard to imagine it’s been 7 years already and I don’t think this would be my forever quit if it wasn’t for the wonderful people here. Hang in there newbies, there is an awesome life at the end of the tunnel and you deserve it!!!

Great Job Butt Kicker.

Congratulations on 7 Wonderful smoke free years. You are just crushing this quit.

Congratulations on 7 years smoke free @Hope2Nope Great job!

Congratulations on your Fabulous 7 years.. Inspirational..