Markus

Evelyn You're getting there, like Action said good that you know it...and good going! You have all that power within you right now, to be what you will and to live the life you want. It takes years to sometimes to finally wake up and to face your addiction, to look at yourself and see that you are the one keeping yourself in chains. It isn't the cigarette keeping you imprisoned, it's you. I always thought cigarettes was why I had a "habit" for 35 years. It was a junkie lie I was living. Now we choose to live with the truth. :).

I used to have sinus and bronchial infections also. After I quit I had a septoplasty and as a result of the ENT MD consultation I had a sleep study done. That put me on CPAP. Apparently was stopping breathing anywhere from 10 s to 45 seconds per minute of every hour that I slept. So sinus infections are a lot less maybe once or twice a year always during flu season, sleep is great, and not walking around like a zombie half the time or sleeping 12-14 hours a night on weekends trying to bank some sleep.

Jackie, You have arrived and isn't it grad? :) That's very inspiring!

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Marti Nice piece of writing your OP, that's the one I wanted to write about, the one I am interested in. That IMO is the one to hold onto. The rest of it is in your life, part of you, but will not shake the foundation you describe in the first paragraph of the original post. It is all noise on the periphery of your quit, let it stay there. keep it at arm's length. Only if you let it happen will something shake your quit. You are alone in this, it's a highly personal thing, keep it real and keep it all about you because that is exactly what it is, all about you. Please remember to keep it that way. This place, all of these people are here to help and cheer you on but you are the one doing the slogging so do not take on extra baggage... And the marching band, jugglers and clowns, you got that part right, they are a sideline. No man's land is a myth, but there is a feeling some have,,,what do I do with all of this time? What am I? What you wanted to be that's what you are....I am proud of you and you paying it forward. :) KTQ, MArkus

:)

Yep exactly, that forever thing Beth. I remember standing in the kitchen, conjuring up this quit I have now...looking down the road. What I saw was that I could do it but would change me, I remember thinking, how will I make it, what will I be? That's the part we get to make up as we go and keep the quit. You don't look at the great things, like I'll be free...that junkie wants to pull you back before you make a mistake and dump him...

Great post Ladybug! So many fears, and so many lies are wrapped up in this addiction. When we can finally confront the lies and the fears we see addiction for what it really is. We realize that we think this way because we are addicts. Quitting smoking is the way to confront the addiction, and learning about it and discovering yourself is a good way to stay clean. Markus

This is so true.

Amen +100000000000000000000

Happy Birthday Fab! Sing a song of sixpence. A pocket full of rye. Four and Twenty Blackbirds. Baked in a pie. ;)

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Trish That just sucks. I am sorry to hear that. A cigarette is not the answer to anything. It never was. Do not smoke. You are a non smoker. Walk like one, act like one. Gut it out. People are watching you, you are someone's inspiration. Doesn't matter if you don't want to be and didn't ask to be on exhibit. You are in the hot spotlight. Get out of it. Sending you hugs ((Trish)). Whatever you need to keep the quit you do it...as long as it is legal. ;) Markus

Rachael. That's a gruesome day alright. Damn! Hope tomorrow is a happy one for you! hugs, Markus

Hey Suz Happy Birthday to you! Nice to see you here too. Markus

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I remember that jonny, That was a bad time for you and yours. Very sad. I quit doing that. I don't smoke. Ever. End of story for me.

Happy Birthday to you !! :)

It's easy when we are quit to keep looking in the rear view mirror. It's easier if you know where you've been. You have stories to tell that everyone can relate to, they've been there too and nobody wants to go back. But trying to drive while quit and navigating by looking forward through the windshield is a lot harder isn't it? We know where we want to go but have limited experience. We make a lot of judgement calls based on what people ahead of us have told us happened to them. A lot is taken on faith.

Very powerful ladybug thanks for sharing that!

wow thanks you all :) I am overwhelmed really...love you all ! thank you ;) Ride the Quit Train!! MQ is coming over to pick us up to party!

NOPE

At 7 months or so I was walking around at work and happened to see smokers outside. It hit me like a bolt out of the blue, that I hadn't thought about a cigarette all day, no craves, no thoughts at all. It was mid afternoon, I think I realized that I had finally arrived, that what I wanted to feel, I had just experienced. It was amazing. I remembered that I had read that it would be that way, that I would be surprised. I was really surprised...it will happen :)

Want to quit smoking? Good. That takes some nerve and that alone is enough to get it done. You don't have to be smart, you just need to use the courage and will that you have, in the right way, and get that brain of yours aligned to make it happen. Just quit. Do it now. There, you just quit. It's that easy. Now you are craving a smoke of course. It gets better, just as soon as you set your mind to being a non smoker and you free yourself from yourself, and from how you choose to live your life. This place cannot help you quit, it can't give you a quit, and it can't keep you quit. Only you can do that, and it's a choice. Either smoke. Or quit. The only thing that can happen to you here is to get encouragement and support. All that people here can do for you is to tell you how and to promise you that it can be done. You are absolutely going to have to hold yourself accountable and commit to staying quit, all on your own. This place can be effective in teaching you how to start walking after you've been crawling (quit) on your own, if you use it the right way. Understand that you are an addict first, and that's why you smoke because smoking is your answer to everything. If you are quitting you should realize that smoking is the answer to nothing. This also includes the journey ahead of you. A cigarette will never be the answer to anything you need.

Fear of the unknown, fear you will lose yourself. You want to quit but you know it will change you and you're scared. It ends up that you finally realize after you quit, That you know yourself more than ever before, And you realize it's the first time in your adult life. The first time ever...that you know about you.