Past day 50, how I got there

[intoxicated yoda]

Tomorrow morning at about 8 30 will be the end of day 53 and the beginning of day 54.  This is just a quick log of how i got started and what I've done to stay quit this long.  I'm still balancing on a razor edge and the war ain't won yet but I'm still in the fight hoping this may help someone else get started.  First thing I did before I quit was to switch brands of cigarettes.  I don't care what anyone says, I don't believe they are all the same and trying to quit off of anything by Philip Morris was completely impossible for me.  In fact, my first quit attempts from smoking Marlboro Lights had me lighting back up within 11 hours max.  Even with the NRT patches I couldn't make it past noon.  I remember putting that patch on at 6 30 am and by 11 00 i would be trying to recharge that sucker with a cigarette.  Then I switched to American Spirit.  I went from a pack a day to half a pack a day in less than a week.  I wasn't even trying to cut back just the urge wasn't there as much.  Then I started listening to sleep hypnosis videos at night.  After about 6 months I had to make a drive of about 18 hours and I was out of cigs so I decided to see how long I could go without smoking since driving is my worst trigger.  I made it the whole way.  I bought a pack during the trip but didn't smoke any of them until I got back home.  Well that turned out to be the last pack I bought and when they were done so was I.  In the meantime, I keep listening to the sleep hypnosis, do breathing exercises to fight cravings.  I still go out for a smoke like i used to i just walk around the driveway for 10 minutes instead of lighting up.  I play a lot of golf.  On the downside I do eat a lot and sleep is still hard to come by.  And when the craving gets really bad I do EFT tapping.  Now I would never let anyone see me do that goofy looking shit but i swear it makes unbearable cravings tolerable.  sometimes it works better than others...what's that saying...40 percent of the time it works everytime....but if you stick with it long enough it will either reduce the craving or wear your arm out to the point you couldn't lift a cigarette up to your lips even if you had one.  Either way i call that a win.  The last thing was to get some outside support for those unexpected symptoms.  Whatever is happening to me has happened to somebody else.  What I don't want happening to me is emphysema.  I know there is a plethora of other conditions i could get but that is the one that scares the hell out of me.  So there is a quick run down of how I got here.  It was the Readers Digest version so if you're thinking it sounds pretty simple it was, it just wasn't easy.   If you got questions or answers I'm open to either.  In the meantime, if you are reading this and want to quit but can't bring yourself to it yet, at least switch brands.  It could end up being the first step of many to a successful quit.

[Doreensfree]

What I don't want happening to me is emphysema.  I know there is a plethora of other conditions i could get but that is the one that scares the hell out of me.

 

Emphysema is something to be very scared of your right I  Y.

My Hubs died 2 years ago after suffering for over 15 years ...It's a horrible illness.....

Let this be your motivation to keep that precious Quit ....

 

 

[Gus]

You’re in the fight for and of your life! Finding what works for you and sticking to it, no matter how goofy is commendable! Keep up the good fight!

[Linda]

@intoxicated yoda Your on your way to your final quit!! Keep up the good work!!

Great post!!!

[intoxicated yoda]

@Doreensfreesorry for the loss of your husband.  thank you for sharing the experience

[AceWhite]

Great post!

You are dead on right - "It was simple, just not easy"

 

[Rozuki]

@intoxicated yoda, you are so right about the Marlboro Lights and quitting.....I tried twice about 20 years apart. Couldn't quit for long either time! When the prices started going thru the roof, I switched to buying my stash at the local Indian Reservation.....3$ a pack vs 7-8$ a pack. Supposedly they had less saltpeter and other strange addictive chemicals than anything Philip Morris makes. Did that for 3 yrs until I had a major health issue...then it was either quit or die after 40+ years of smoking. Talk about motivation!! 

[intoxicated yoda]

@Rozuki 40 years is about how long i smoked.  had about a 4 year break in my late 20's and a few failed quit attempts in my 30's and 40's.  Now i'm in my late 50's and i feel like i've dodged all the bullets and land mines humanly possible.  How is that health issue now?  Are you recovered or on the mend? 

[Rozuki]

@intoxicated yoda, I have recovered from the initial health issue which caused me to ditch the smokes immediately (a stroke). The Universe works in mysterious ways though....just after my 1 yr quitversary.....had to have open-heart surgery (triple bypass). Doc said good thing I quit when I did...so that I was able to dodge another bullet. I recovered from that surgery as well. The last few years have been quite an adventure, in my case! 

[jillar]

@intoxicated yoda have you considered putting a ticker in your signature like most of us have? Its a great way of seeing how much money, cigarettes NOT smoked and time since you quit. Its an awesome motivator, I loved watching watching mine add up that first year.

[intoxicated yoda]

@RozukiSo glad to hear you have recovered from those things.  It's good to have people like you around to look to for the required endurance on the trip.  I really dig that smokebusters graphic in your signature.  Can't wait until i ain't afraid of no smokes myself.  hahaha

 

@jillari thought i had but i guess i didn't click one of the required buttons or something since it hasn't shown up.  That is a good idea for the motivation.  

[jillar]

There's step by step directions if you need them

 

https://www.quittrain.com/topic/15042-creating-a-ticker/

 

[intoxicated yoda]

@jillaram i official now?  LOL

[JonGuirl]

On 10/18/2021 at 2:57 AM, Doreensfree said:

What I don't want happening to me is emphysema.  I know there is a plethora of other conditions i could get but that is the one that scares the hell out of me.

 

Emphysema is something to be very scared of your right I  Y.

My Hubs died 2 years ago after suffering for over 15 years ...It's a horrible illness.....

Let this be your motivation to keep that precious Quit ....

 

 

My Father and Grandfather both suffered and died from it.   I remember Grandfather would take us somewhere he would walk from the house to the car, have to take a break leaning on the fender of the car to catch his breath, then get in and get it started, spend another minute catching his breath, then fire up a Salem and put it in gear and off we went!    At the end he could only sit up for 20 minutes before he was completely winded and out of energy.   Same end for my dad.   A big quit motivator for me! 

[Tara smith]

So much of this sounds like my story.  I am on day 7 & this is the most difficult quit yet. Maybe that’s good thing.  That’s what I’m sticking with anyway.  I am a stage 1 cancer survivor.  You would think that would have kicked my habit but I have relapsed twice so here I am.  

I am interested in the know-how for creating a ticket.  And appreciate the link to get there to do it.   Something for me to figure out later on.

On another note:

I am thankful for all of you because you are the only people I can share with. 
I don’t have anybody to share this with because I am a closet smoker (for those that don’t know) so I would like to share with you all here.  I just want to say that I am so thankful for the opportunity to go camping with my husband for 4 nights this past week.  He does not know that I smoke and we were with each other almost the entire time.  Absolutely no way for me to smoke unless I down right lied and made an excuse to drive to the store.  I wanted to bum one from another camper I saw in a distance who was smoking and i reframed.  Not being in my ordinary surroundings helped me tremendously.  Coming home and being here has been so very tempting.  Thankful I have not allowed cigarettes to win.  I am thankful that I think I can remain the queen of my domain.  For me it’s one day at a time.  I really don’t want to go back.  It’s just way too tough to have to go through a quit again.  Not smoking is truly easier on the long run.  It has just got to be.  
 

thank you!

 

[jillar]

16 minutes ago, Tara smith said:

I am interested in the know-how for creating a ticket.  And appreciate the link to get there to do it.   Something for me to figure out later on.

 

Here you go tara: https://www.quittrain.com/topic/15042-creating-a-ticker/

 

 

17 minutes ago, Tara smith said:

It’s just way too tough to have to go through a quit again

That's what helped me not relapse, the simple fact of not going through the misery again! You're doing great Tara

[intoxicated yoda]

I'll post some links to some videos i use to try and convince myself that I don't smoke and that it smells horrible even tho I still like the smell of a cigarette.  Don't try to figure it out, I'm really screwed up in the head.  Here's the first one.  I use this one in the mornings and during the day when I have time.  

 

 

[intoxicated yoda]

I like this one for bed time.  I switch between a few different ones but I think i like this one the most

 

 

[intoxicated yoda]

the breathing exercise I do 2 parts:

 

1st part...take 3 long slow deep breaths and on the 3rd breath hold it for as long as you can.  Ideally you want try to hold it long enough that it takes 15 or seconds to fully recover.  once you recovered fully do

 

2nd part...place the palms of you hands together chest high so you can isometrically press them together.  Again, take 3 long slow deep breaths and on the 3rd exhale, completely empty your lungs and press your palms together as hard as you can and hold your breath with the lungs empty for as long as possible.  Ideally when you inhale you want to have held it long enough it makes you gasp for air.  I just kind of dove into this but it might make sense to ease yourself into these and see how you react.  

 

40% of the time it works everytime for killing cravings

[Gus]

1 hour ago, Tara smith said:

It’s just way too tough to have to go through a quit again.

Hey Tara! I’m 7 months into my one and only quit. I absolutely know without a doubt that I would not survive another quit. It’s the reason I will never smoke again. I just can’t. Keep your quit. At all costs. It truly will be worth it if you do. It gets so much easier, in time. I promise you that it does!