MarylandQuitter

N to the O to the P to the E!

Why is nobody using it? Perhaps nobody likes to cook anymore? Hoarding recipes and don't want to share? You quit smoking now don't tell me you quit cooking too!! Somebody post a good recipe for sweet potatoes. Thank you. Have a good day. :)

You know, I listened but I never cared. But sometimes it takes somebody who cares enough to speak up. For me, my doctor cared enough about me that he didn't care if he hurt my feelings because it needed to be done. He spoke the truth. Not about cancer and all the dangers of smoking, but rather that I was a drug addict and cared more about keeping it alive than anything else. Young people always think they have time so the dangers of smoking often go in one ear and out the other. What sticks with young people are how stupid they really are by smoking and how stupid and unattractive they look. How they stink worse than poo and how their skin looks gray. Tell a young female that her skin looks gray and her color is horrible and if she says I wonder why, point to the almighty cigarette controlling her life. All that money spent on fancy hair products is down the drain as the stench of stale smoke fills the air, all of which is coming from her hair. Tell her that her hair is stinking up the office. lol Not really but it's probably true.

Thanks for checking in and sorry to hear about that collapsed lung! Yikes! Glad you're in a better space now. You sound better, very positive and ready to celebrate that 4 month quit!!!

My first true quit I did so with very little knowledge, certainly not with the knowledge found here. I quit because I wanted to quit more than I wanted to smoke. Although the quit lasted several years, it failed. It failed because I had no knowledge base to draw from when I got the urge (whether from stress or happiness) to smoke. If we want to do something bad enough we will. Nothing can stop us. I often like to use the analogy of holding a winning lottery ticket worth millions in your hand. There is nothing, and I mean nothing that would stop anybody from getting that ticket to the whatever agency to claim your money. The reason is because the money will change your life in big ways, not always for the good, but most often that is the case. Think of smoking in the same way. If you want to quit more than you want to smoke, nothing will stop you. Your life will change forever as you'll be free from the drug addiction, will enjoy better health (look at all the runners we have here!!!!!!!), have more money, possess an inner strength that you can do anything and the list can get quite lengthy from how one's life is better after quitting smoking. Now for a reality check. Many new members have mentioned they were scared of reading about people who have relapsed after long periods without smoking. We're talking 5 or more years. I was quit for 6 yrs and relapsed. Of all of the people throughout my life, including myself, who went back to smoking after being quit for several years had no support group. No education about the addiction. Little to no understanding about why they smoked or why they were feeling the way they were which led to the relapse. With support groups such as this, the success rate is much, much higher. Support with ongoing education and discussion can and most often times leads to a life time of being smoke-free. I know that without QuitTrain, I don't know where I would be right now. Another reality check is that some people are just going to relapse. No way around it. Those who want to fight for their freedom and ultimately their lives, will stick to the program, stay active here and post and reach out when in trouble. Not only "trouble" when you're on the verge of lighting up, but day to day things that upset us. Talking these things through from the onset will head off any danger of relapse. "It's Inevitable, Some Smokers Are Going To Relapse" If you are a member of any quit smoking support group, whether it be online or a live program, it is likely that some members of your group are going to fail. You should not interpret this fact to mean that it is likely or inevitable that you are going to fail. Video spells out the major difference between people who relapse and those who don't. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ego_dpPmfOk Now, another reality check! :) A Thirty Year Success Story A short video discussing a clinic graduate and panelist who just celebrated his 30th year anniversary of having quit smoking. His experience relates to the video "Amount smoked" that is linked in the video description. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62wrmoJEpuE&feature=youtu.be

As I was reading babs post, I thought this video was very relevant. Going Back To Normal After Quitting Smoking Video discusses how after quitting smoking a person will eventually get back to normal. Normal does not mean going back to the normal they experienced when they were smoking but more accurately, what they were like before they ever took up smoking with effects of aging now thrown in. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUKBBcZ26BQ ...and of course one my favorite GL tunes. :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKb2XvemUeI

Will I ever feel relaxed or content again if I quit smoking? I'm new in my quit and will this restless feeling diminish? Is this restless feeling bad? This is a great topic for discussion for newbies and oldies (not necessarily old in age. :dirol: ). Everybody, jump in and share your thoughts. http://www.quittrain.com/topic/4389-restless/

Going Back To Normal After Quitting Smoking Video discusses how after quitting smoking a person will eventually get back to normal. Normal does not mean going back to the normal they experienced when they were smoking but more accurately, what they were like before they ever took up smoking with effects of aging now thrown in. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUKBBcZ26BQ Related articles: Sleep Adjustments http://www.ffn.yuku.com/topic/12275 Medication adjustments http://www.ffn.yuku.com/topic/23017 Is it true that everything smells and tastes better when you quit smoking? http://www.ffn.yuku.com/topic/11885 Videos related to topics touched upon in this video: Using cigarettes to self medicate pre-existing conditions Quitting smoking and mental health http://youtu.be/2ysFk0-pQ3A Blood sugar symptoms

I'm restless right now and it ain't gotta thing to do with not smoking. :) Great post. Will add more later once I get home.

I don't think smoking helped one bit because you decided to quit again. You still believe that smoking helps you cope with stress. A day like you described doesn't even exist in my world but if it did, it would almost be almost unrecognizable bliss. Of course I understand that there are other things going on in everybody's lives but this one day, you chose to smoke over a pissed off wife, the cable company and the weather; all excuses to smoke. There are only two good reasons to start smoking again. Good Reasons To Take A Puff On A Cigarette After Having Quit Smoking For people who think that there are no good reasons to take a puff on a cigarette after quitting, and more importantly, for people who think that there might actually be good reasons. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvHl-zwUdBo

Nope

And yes, the stairs to the Lido deck...just follow the aroma of perfectly brewed coffee leading the way. Up here you'll find any kind of beverage that you could ever want. But remember, if you choose coffee, don't let Ava charge you for it because it's free and always has been. :i-m_so_happy:

I'm bookmarking this as I'm sure it will be referenced many times. Great testimony from a great man. You were here at the beginning and gave hope and safety to many, many people. Many days I was not in the best of moods and stressed to the max but your honest and friendly style of writing put things into perspective for me. It's people like you who change lives. I would tell you to never change but you're too damn old to change anyway. :) You're probably at least 10 years younger than me but it felt good to type that. :)

That is definitely one of my favorites. I'll fix the AC link. Thanks for the heads up, Rob.

Ecigs are not going to help you deal with stress and it doesn't matter whether or not they contain nicotine. Dealing with stress is just a part of life and how well we deal with stress comes from developing and managing skills to get through stressful situations. Using an ecig after you've quit smoking is playing with fire, especially if you let yourself believe that it's somehow helping you manage stress. Take a look at this copied from another thread. Please keep in mind that big tobacco is behind much of this; trying with all they have to not only keep you hooked on their drug but also create new drug addicts who foolishly think they are getting the best of both worlds. Look at what PM did to cover up their deadly product, the gunk science, paid off politicians and the list goes on and on and on. All of this, including the depositions can be found at the QT Blog. Nicotine-Free E-Cigs Still Deliver The Juice The amount of nicotine in e-cigarette refill solutions doesn't always match what it says on the label, particularly if the label says nicotine-free, a study showed. A quarter of refill liquids tested (eight of 32) differed by at least 20% from the labeled nicotine content, with discrepancies that ranged from 92% less to 103% more than stated. All three solutions labeled as "nicotine-free" contained traceable amounts of the addictive substance, Skyler Reinhardt and Maciej Goniewicz, PhD, PharmD, both of the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, N.Y., reported at the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco meeting in Seattle. Two "nicotine-free" products contained 0.9 mg/ml, while a third tested at 0.8 mg/ml nicotine. Labeled nicotine content in other tested brands ranged from 5 to 36 mg/ml. "E-cigarettes have enormous potential to hook all types of users," the researchers noted in a poster presentation. "Nonsmokers that try e-cigarettes, even with nicotine-free refill solutions, may develop an addiction because of faulty manufacturing." For conventional cigarette smokers, the battery-powered vaporizer devices are considered a safer route of nicotine delivery than burning tobacco and as a possible aid to smoking cessation. But the findings suggested that "for users that are trying to quit tobacco cigarettes by switching to e-cigarettes, there is a possibility that they are actually inhaling more nicotine than is labeled," possibly counteracting their attempts to cut back, Reinhardt and Goniewicz explained. Their study involved a random sample of 32 e-cigarette refill solutions from 16 brands purchased via online vendors in the U.S. that were tested with gas chromatography for nicotine content. The findings should have implications for regulation by the FDA, they argued. "This science can inform health policy organizations as they determine e-cigarette regulations, which can and should include ... standards for accurate labeling," Andrew Hyland, PhD, also of Roswell Park, commented in a statement. Nothing about e-cigarettes, including labeling, is yet under FDA regulation. The agency's long-delayed proposed rules are currently with the federal Office of Budget and Management awaiting release for public comment. Use by youth has been a concern, especially given flavorings likely to appeal to kids. Products included in the study had flavors like Gummy Bear, Root Beer, and Caramel Kona Milkshake. The researchers noted that while most of the refill solutions tested had fairly accurate nicotine content labeling, those levels were commonly high enough to be fatal to children. They recommended that a broader range of refill solutions be tested in the future. http://www.medpageto...y/Smoking/44238 The study was supported by Roswell Park Cancer Institute, a National Cancer Institute grant, and JP Morgan Chase. Goniewicz reported research support from Pfizer, which makes smoking cessation medications. Reviewed by Robert Jasmer, MD Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco and Dorothy Caputo, MA, BSN, RN, Nurse Planner "Miracle" Aids For Quitting Smoking https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyhfRm5nev0

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

Netflix only has SOA through season 6, although I've read some spoilers about the season 7 and the final episode. The soundtracks are actually pretty good. Not Mark Knopfler good, but good.

Joel's videos and the documentaries. Reading, reading and then more reading. Couldn't get enough of it.

Not cool. Lol

Well, be on stand-by because Seattle gonna probably win and win big. *ducking away from debris being hurled in my direction* :)

Glad you're back, Queen Beth! :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ii6L_Aux9RU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An2a1_Do_fc

NOPE!!

Not a person with any morals in the whole lot of them. Jax acts like a spoiled brat. Still, I like the show but despise the main characters. lol I even bought one of the soundtracks from the show. :)