MLMR

@Mee! Congrats, Super You, on two awesome transformational nicotine free years! Mee in Dutch means along, together, going there. *ga mee* , *come with me*. By sharing your quit, you let many people joining you. Including me. Thanks for that.

I had panick attacks. I needed to smoke through them. Only to fuel myself up, making my heart pound harder and faster. And I was FULLY AWARE of what I was doing. Embarassing, really. I dont have panick attacks anymore. Probably for about half a year now or something. How awesome is that?! Quitting smoking has everything to do with that. Ohw Crap. I kinda missed the essence of this thread. Things you couldnt do before you quit. Well, before I quit I could not nót have panick attacks..? Oh heck, whatever.

I used to catch two colds per year, plus regular flu. And often had a lingering, nagging headache. And now... Had one light cold, in my almost 2nd year of non smoking. No fever. Almost no headaches. Im a happy woman

Congrats on your awesome quit Jane!

Congrats Mona!

Wow, there really must be something awesome in that gum, killing your boredom and all! Oh. Wait... what?

What I definitely love most about quitting: less anxiety in my life. Overall, I am much more calm and easy going than when I smoked. Being able to breath through sheer panic is the best thing that ever happened. Knowing I was able to quit has been super empowering, on many levels.

Hi Andrew, not sure if this is of any help to you right now... but my guess would be that its your body and brain re-adjusting. Do you know these magic doors with huge locks, where every piece has to fall in place for the door to open? Your brain is doing something like that now. Finding new ways. And Im not surprised about that bit of anxiety there. It will pass, Im sure. Figure out what you need to get through these moments safe and sound. Its an excellent time for some soul searching! My anxiety spiked somewhere between months 3 - 7, after that it gradually lessened. Im now better off than ever, anxiety-wise. Quitting smoking is a huge deal and Im so glad I did it.

Wow. Briliant writing. Thanks @Sazerac for the re-post. Worth printing and putting on fridges, mirrors, car dashboards etc. In fact, rub your face in this poetry, drink it in and never look back!

Nice one, Jo! Even though Im pretty far in the proces, I still love reading about everything positive in the long run and how thats working out for others. Wow, this really is fundamental, isnt it? I take your post with me, into my new day. Thanks!

Hi Loamie, welcome. When I quit smoking, I made it my no. 1 priority. It got me where I am now: 5 days away from being 1,5 year without a cigarette. Make quitting important and put it before anything else in your life. Life will be life... make yourself accountable for your quit. Thát being said.. Water is your friend these days, take quick walks during lunch breaks, write here, read about the proces of smoking/quitting, use other peoples experiences and above all, get to know yourself in a different way and find out what works for you. Learn to trust the proces! Maybe start a diary?

"...The study shows that quitting smoking could do much more than just stopping further damage to the lungs. Researchers believe it could also allow new, healthy cells to actively replenish the lining of our airways. This shift in proportion of healthy to damaged cells could help protect against cancer." The research, published in Nature today(Wednesday 29th January), is part of the £20 million Mutographs of Cancer project, a Cancer Research UK Grand Challenge initiative. Link: Never too late to quit

Wow, will make this next weekend. Mother included.

Oh come on. This is just too stupid to be true .

True that! Writing a pre-respond made me both acountable and more in touch with my initial reasons to quit. In the end its YOU that has to do the job, and only YOU truly know about your own demons and sabotage mechanisms, and ways to derail them. The answer has to be obtained within

Thanks for sharing Jillar! Quitting obviously improved your overall health, although it must have been hard to believe sometimes, in the beginning.. Newbies, be inspired by Jillars story. Stick to your commitment, everything WILL be better!

Yes, you were. You've always been. Your cigarette didnt light itself.

Totally agree with this! And: give yourself time to go through all stages. Have self compassion and patience, reward yourself for every important milestone, even when it seems childish. Celebrate each moment of pride, of fresh breath, each and every moment that you experience how you do well for yourself. I exploited these moments like crazy and it made me much stronger. Dont lose connection with why you want to quit in the first place. Make endless lists, make quitting your absolute priority no 1 and then grow tired of your effort (for me, that was a huge part of being able to release myself from everything that kept me clinging to junkie thinking). You will also be able to quit

I regret every single cigarette. I can only hope I quit in time, before any permanent life threatening damage was done. Educate yourself. Romancing smoking keeps your addiction alert, while you actually want to put it to sleep.

Heather, these are the moments that give your quit weight and foundation, they are only stepping stones to a stronger quit. Use them for whatever it is that you want to (un)learn!

Exactly that is why I still post my (rare) moments of addiction flare up. And working remedies. To some it may come across as 'wow, is that still an issue' or, 'maybe thats a bit overdone...?' But I feel like I need to utilize these moments and keep breaking chains as long as they present themselves. I see my second year as a chance to put everything to practice i learned the first year. It serves me well, I really still feel better every day, noticing changes in the way I handle things. Smoking is nowhere near tempting anymore, and when I do have smokey thoughts, I instantly recognise them as neuro pathway patterns. Lilly and others, keep going and keep making yourself aware of whats happening. Dont fall for the attachment trap. This will all be in the past somewhere soon.

Nope

Exactly this ^^ I exploited these moments as much as I could, going over them again and again, celebrating in my own way and somehow trying to anchor them. That way I was building on something too valuable to lose. And... it worked!

Its definitely doable @Linda Thomas Just Make sure you get your elektrolytes, in order to prevent a headache. On a 5:2 day I usually skip breakfast (also on non-fasting days now) and then have a simple salad or some pre-steamed vegetables for lunch. Dinner is often more veggies, these days mostly roasted pumpkin, zucchini, onion etc. Often with salmon or chicken. On regular days I really dont mind kcals, but to my huge surprise Im not as hungry or craving for mindlessly putting eatable things in my mouth as I was before. I can have my wine and beer like I used to and I still bake with butter. In general Im a lot less ocupied with food and I really love that!

@d2e8b8, I do 5:2 intermittent fasting. (https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/the-5-2-diet-guide) Basically you eat normal for 5 days and mimic fasting for 2 days. On fasting days you consume a restricted amount of calories: max 500 kcal women, 600 kcal for men. Apart from the apparant health benefits (https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/10-health-benefits-of-intermittent-fasting#section1) its supposed to help you lose weight. Well, I clearly do. Most of the time i find it easy to do. I expected to be binge eating on regular days, but its actually the opposite, Im less hungry and tend to make healthier food choices, without the feeling of depriving myself.