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Hi @Genecanuck, glad you got past that craving on your own by reading and posting. Well done! ☺

Congratulations @Sunshine59 on five years quit, that's awesome! Don't forget to celebrate

Congratulations @Cbdave, Chris, on your awesome nine year quit! Thank you for all the Nope threads and encouraging words you post on them so many of us rely on those daily threads. I hope you have a great day!

Hey @Genecanuck, I bet you'll be fine this weekend and keep your awesome quit and if you need our support just come on and post so we can help you past the crave. You'll be happy to know that for most of us, the work up to the event was way worse than the event. And the event went great. So have a nice weekend, we got your back!

Congratulations on 11 years quit @MarylandQuitter, you took paying it forward to a new level when you created this place and we are all so grateful you did so thank you!

joe Quit Date: 11/20/2013 Posted April 5, 2014 Just thought I would share ...In a nut shell, quitting smoking isnt as hard as you may think....its all about knowledge and commitment...the first step is quitting...... Looking back on my smoking "career" I wish I knew then what I know now....I CAN quit smoking! I think from the first cigarette i smoked as a 15 year old kid I knew that I shouldnt be doing this and that it would eventually kill me.(I think we all knew this)..how-ever, at the time everyone I hung out with smoked, so I HAD to also. My friends changed as I grew up...and most of my new friends didnt smoke...but...now, I HAD to. In my early 20's my Mother was diagnosed with Lung Cancer..I told myself that I should quit....but, I also knew I couldnt!...so why try. I continued to smoke. I met my wife and in '84 we were married (30 years coming up ) We now have 4 daughters..i dont, nor ever did smoke in their presents. I always smoked in the detached garage while working on my old mustang...(I spent alot of time in that garage ).So now, with daughters of my own...and my mother dying as a result of smoking, I really should quit....but..i heard it was hard, so I dont think I can..better not even try. 10/29/1990 My Mother dies (49 years old)...I should quit smoking but, again, I dont think I can.No sense in trying...maybe some other day. . 06/09/2000 My father dies (59years old) from a blood clot after minor surgery. I think to myself, that I should quit smoking so my girls dont have to lose either of their parents at a young age...Wont quit today, but I will think about it...(I heard its almost impossible) . I should note, both of my parents were smokers... . Fastforward a lot of years. My girls have all graduated high school, 3 of them have gone on to graduate college...2 with a masters degree and the 3rd working on hers. The 4th daughter chose to raise a family instaed and so now I am about 50 years old 3 of my daughters are married and I then had 4 granddaughters..Non of my girls smoke and I am SOOO happy for that. I tried their whole life to not smoke around them...I didnt hide the fact that I smoked, instead I let them know I was embarresed that I did and it would some day kill me and i didnt want them to ever start.... I really should quit... . move forward to the fall of 2013 and I have made the descision to retire from my job.. I have the time in i need to start to draw a pension, so I make plans to retire effective Jan.1st ,2014...(I am too young to totally retire (52 years old) I plan on getting another job, and re-investing my retirement check each month)..At this time, I am not officially retired, but I do have about 2 months worth of vacation accumulated that i need to use before the end of the year..so, The months of Nov. and Dec. i spend "on vacation" (sitting at home)...before I retire, I have a few 'medical" concerns I want to get answers for so i make an appointment...nothing major, as it turn out I am getting old and arthritis is my biggest problem...While at the drs. office the "normal" questions include "do I smoke'..of course I say yes ..and he asks if i ever thought about quitting? DUH...doesnt EVERY smoker THINK about it? He perscribes Chantix and an injection in my shoulder to help with the old age crap...lol...When I get home, I consider filling the perscription, but want to know more about the side effects....so I get online and start reading...one page leads to another....alot of side effects that concern me...I dont think i am going to fill this perscription...but I DO continue to read...thankfully . i " stumble" onto whyquit.com... click on different links and find myself watch Joels Library for 1/2 a day...or more...In the middle of a video, the dogs start "bugging" me, so I figure it would be a good time to take them for a walk...besides, I "needed" a cigarette anyway... . As soon as we hit the back yard, I reach into my front coat pocket and pull out my pack of smokes and light up...but, damn!..i only have 2 left...gonna have to go get some.....wait.........I have an idea.......why dont I just QUIT NOW!...what a concept! . I worked with some guys that I always said that they worked HARDER at avoiding work than they would have if they just did their job...so, I adapted that way of thinking to my quit...instead of quitting being hard, I was going to make smoking hard...for the next couple weeks, i spent as much time in areas i didnt smoke as I could...in my house....my wifes car...out to eat...shopping....in the shower (I was REALLY clean ) ...sleeping...I was making it hard to smoke.. . That was Nov.20,2013....the day i smoked my last cigarette...I look back at the last 35+ years and realize that I was making quit smoking harder than what it was...once I got in the frame of mind that in order to quit, all I had to do was....quit.....it became easy!.. . A few weeks after my Drs. visit, my wife was headed to the drug store and asked if I wanted her to fill my Chantix perscripition....I told her no....she asked if I descided to not quit smoking....i had to inform her that I quit nearly a week earlier ..cold turkey......and they said it couldnt be done . Dont get me wrong...we all know there was cravings and withdrawls, but i found with the knowledge i gained from my reading and Joels videos i knew how to deal with them..the biggest hurdle is ACTUALLY QUITTING...just stop...period...NTAP....NOPE.. . On Nov.29th my 5th granddaughter was born and sometime after the first of the year (daughter#2) informed us of granddaughter #6 joining us in May...who knows...maybe I will stick around to see them grow up...somebody has to screen the boys they will want to date.... . And on a sad note, my younger sister was diagnosed with lung cancer in Jan of 2014...She has endured Chemo and radiation trreatments the whole month of March...she is strong and has a good spirit... . my daughters all live a few hours away, so they were not around to pat me on the shoulder (dont get me wrong..they are extremely happy I quit)..and my wife works a strange schedule (12hr shifts and every other week-end), so I didnt get a bunch of support at home....so when i found a message board for support to help stop smoking, it was a huge help...imagine, a (virtual) room full of others who was also starting out in their quit...its like they knew what i was going through....lol...I firstt joind when i was 2 1/2 months quit, and came to THIS board in my 4th month.... . So...any newbie who has endured my suspect writing skills and read this to the end, i would encourage you to make the descision to quit and use the resorces here to experiance the freedom you can feel by finally quit smoking...... Link to original post: https://www.quittrain.com/topic/252-my-quit-story-sorry-its-long/

Wow @QuittingGirl, your mom IS amazing! I'm happy for you all that she sailed through the surgery. Here's to many more years with your mom Thanks for sharing @Genecanuck, you're doing awesome!!

@tocevoD, you relapsed again?! Getting back is only part of it tocevod, you also need to stick around and reach out to us when you need the extra support. We can help you think rational when you start wanting to cave to a crave. We are here to support you and hold your hand through the hard parts so that you too can be successful like the rest of us. You deserve it and so does your son!

Yay Gene, you're doing AWESOME!

^^I LOVE this @Genecanuck, thanks for sharing

Boo Quit Date: March 9, 2016 Posted November 29, 2018 Did I smoke today? It is the one and only question that matters when quitting. I've seen some recent posts in which people call themselves "bad quitters" because they craved and/or romanced the cigarette during their quit. There is no such thing as a "bad quitter." There are only successful quitters and smokers. If you craved a cigarette but didn't smoke, you are a successful quitter. If it took you a while to rewire your brain about the realities of cigarettes but you didn't smoke, you are a successful quitter. Smoking is an addiction. Cigarettes are something we conditioned ourselves with for years. Quitting is a process. If the process was a bit more difficult for you than others. If it took you a little while longer to turn the corner than others. If you really, really, really wanted to smoke a cigarette. If you were grouchy, bordering on homicidal, during parts of your quit...If any of these conditions applied and you stayed true to your commitment and did not smoke, congratulations. Your quit is every bit as much of a successful quit as anyone else's. To smoke or not to smoke...it is the only question that matters when quitting. Link to original post: https://www.quittrain.com/topic/11517-one-question/

Breaking unless they allow all forms of dance to compete in their categories. The sport I'd like to see is

Congratulations again @JustSomeGuy on your AWESOME quit!

I was lucky, I coughed so much while smoking that the cough was the first thing to stop when I quit. I'm sure it's cleaning your lungs up Gene but if you're concerned then it's never a bad idea to get yourself a checkup. If anything, it'll relieve your mind, and you'll get lots of kudos for quitting smoking Keep drinking lots of fluids too!

Congratulations my fellow Butt Kicker @Lust4Life2016 on eight years quit! That's fantastic and what's also just as great is you sticking around paying it forward and supporting everyone, so thank you for that

4. Move

Congratulations @JustSomeGuy on your awesome quit and thanks for dropping in ☺

I agree, you're doing great Gene ☺

2. Go 4-wheelin

Congratulations @bakon on your 12th year quit! Hopefully you check in and tell us all how you've been

10. Tattoo A pickup truck

Raya Quit Date: June 30 / 2011 Posted April 14, 2015 Its late and I am awake , and I got thinking how this quitting process has truly has been a roller coaster . Remember the first days quitting smoking are much like a roller coaster so if an hour from now you don't feel so good; RIDE IT OUT . There may be bit of a turn, and you feel queezy and wonder if you made the right decision ; RIDE IT OUT. There may be a hill , and you are filled with fear where you don't know whats on the other side ; RIDE IT OUT. Then you overlook that fall ahead of you ; and it takes your breathe away ; RIDE IT OUT . You may feel fear and panic and tears ; you may feel like screaming , shouting and you are just hanging on for dear life ; RIDE IT OUT. There are smooth patches and straightaways and the roller coaster does come to a stop, but in the beginning of quitting smoking just as in a real roller coaster ride , we don't quite know what to expect . It looks big and it looks scary . We step on with little faith and with little hope only protected by a buckle ; for the RIDE OF OUR LIFE. Oops! ( think I lost myself there and all of you LOL) Lets get back to quitting smoking and lets just sit at the top of this rollercoaster and think about things a bit shall we . Yup we have stopped at the top, and we are rocking back and forth . la ta da ta da back and forth. Ok so this is my thinking : If we were to ride the same roller coaster everyday then we would know what to expect and we are not as fearful when we know what to expect . Our fear and anxiety slowly subsides . The ride is still exciting and becomes rather enjoyable and even comfortable. We find the next turn won't scare us and the next hill won't take our breathe away , and roller coasters won't scare us anymore . And at the end of the day we get off excited and thrilled that we accomplished the uncertain and the unknown . Thats why "ONE day at a tIme works . Do it over and over and over ; at the end of each day be a winner . Some day you will tell this story to your grandkids, the story about the smokers rollercoaster quit ride . Perhaps someday you will go on a roller coaster ride with your kids and grandchildren to the county fair ; you will eat cotton candy ; ride on the ferris wheel ; or just watch ; but please if you do please share with them all the dangers of smoking and help them to understand that listening to advertisements about smoking and other smoking methods. may look appealing ; but they are preying on your young ; killers of your health ; your families health ; thieves of your money , and your life time. Smoking will never bring you happiness . Teach them that happiness is free ; you create it. There is no charge . OH by the way ? Are you still rocking back and forth up there on that roller coaster ? Move forward . You have a lot of friends cheering you on and waiting for you below . C YA ALL TOMORROW Link to original post: https://www.quittrain.com/topic/5103-ride-it-out/

Hi @DebbieS, I've moved your thread to the appropriate forum, our Introductions and About us forum since this isn't an SOS for help from a bad crave. The SOS board is for when you're at risk of losing your precious quit and you need extra support to get through it. Post there and we'll come running!

Congratulations on your 1st month quit @Genecanuck and thank you for all your contributions to the board. Have a great day!