Toddler Stage: 14-21

[jillar]

That's not a bad idea @JustinHoot99, start off slow and work your way up. Way to guard your quit!

[Doreensfree]

If you feel strong enough ....Your journey to Freedom will take as long as it takes ...

[JustinHoot99]

It's my Andrew Jackson quit day.  

[DenaliBlues]

Attaway to Keep the Quit, @JustinHoot99! 

 

 

[JustinHoot99]

11 minutes ago, DenaliBlues said:

 

1 against a thousand is how I feel sometimes against all the triggers out there.  Yesterday I went hiking on the trail I use for workouts.  Spotted a butt on the trail and knew it was from me.  Then there was the spot on the trail where I always lit up because it was the spot where the cigarette would last me right up to the point where I got back to my car.  Then of course once I got into the car, that was a trigger to light up for the drive home.  And on and on through out the day, thousands of reminders to face and defeat.  Fortunately, they are getting weaker though.

[DenaliBlues]

Me, too, @JustinHoot99. I'm still dodging triggers, reminders, desires. They do seem to be getting weaker, as you say. Or perhaps we are getting stronger. It's especially hard for me when I'm outdoors. I never smoked inside or in my car. I stepped out on the back porch, or lit up after a drive, or paused on a hike to enjoy the scenery with a smoke. Being outside has been intertwined with smoking ever since I lit my first cigarette in the woods behind my house when I was 8. Smoking while "watching nature TV" has been my happy place my whole life. I guess it's going to take a while to reprogram 47 years of associations and get happy without the grip of nicotine. I need to spend the day out in the yard today starting spring cleanup. I. Will. Not. Smoke. But I might pout a little bit. 

 

[jillar]

@DenaliBlues, have you thought about getting a ticker for your signature? It's great motivation to watch all the time, money and cigarettes NOT smoked add up  

 

https://www.quittrain.com/tickers/

[Boo]

On 3/20/2022 at 10:30 AM, DenaliBlues said:

 I need to spend the day out in the yard today starting spring cleanup. I. Will. Not. Smoke. But I might pout a little bit. 

 

Finishing a task, yardwork in particular, was one of the last triggers I overcame.  It took a while before I got over my desire for my "reward" for a job well done.

 

On a related note, mowed my yard for the first time this year on Saturday.  Didn't think about smoking once.

 

It gets easier with time.  Eventually, smoking is nothing more than a distant memory.