I am Finally Ready!

[Humbled]

Hi guys! My name is Tom and I am 39 years old and have been smoking for 25 years. I have 3 amazing children who have been asking my to quit smoking for a while now. They are coming back from vacation next week. I have set my quit date for Sunday morning so that they will never see me smoke again. I am truly humbled by everything I have read on this site and I am finally ready to become a non-smoker. I quit for over 1 year at one point but did so for the wrong reasons. Now my goals are very clear and my desire to be smoke-free is not in question. I hope that it is ok that I am 1 1/2 days away and that I do not offend anyone that I am still a smoker for this moment and yet I am on here sharing my intentions. I just felt like this was the place for that kind of support. I have told my closest friends over the last week that they will no longer have to out up with my bad habit after tomorrow night and they are waiting to see if I can follow through. I know I will and I look forward to sharing ,y 1st hour, week, month and year etc in doing so. Anyway, that is who I am and this is what I have decided to do. I admire all of you and look forward to being where you are soon enough!

[Devil Doll]

Welcome Tom! Congratulations on your decision to quit and setting your quit date, that is awesome! Everyone here is amazing and we are all here to help. :D

[Nicole Diver]

Welcome Tom!

You have come to the right place. There is a lot of good stuff to read as you prepare for your quit.

The day before I quit was sooo much worse than the day I actually quit. I never wanted to quit, and thought for sure I would die a smoker. Then I learned, addiction catches us all the same way. I wasn't one of the unlucky "more addicted."

Once I started to understand that, I realized I could quit too, just like others had. And I've been so much happier.

 

It may not be all peaches and cream at first but that is totally normal for a lot of us. And we'll be here, we'll all do anything we can to help. This is so great, your life is going to get so much better!

[Humbled]

Thank you, I appreciate that. It may take me a while to figure out how to navigate etc. but I plan to stick around. 5 minutes on here will be better then a 5 minute smoke break. LOL

[sgt.barney]

Please remain seated, keep hands and arms inside the car at all times. Secure loose items and fasten your seatbelt.

 

Next stop: Quittsville. Enjoy the ride and see you on the flipside. [1]

 

The Quit train leaves the station Sunday morning.

 

 

 

Easy Peasy

 

 

FOOTNOTE:

[1] you must be at least this tall to ride ....

[Trish]

Hey Tom...welcome to the QT.  Congrats on your desicion to quit.  It will be the best decision you will ever make.  No worries that you are not yet quit.  Everyone is welcome here...smokers and non-smokers alike.  The fact that you are here means that you really want to quit.  The fact that you have told your friends also shows that you really want this.  This is the best place to be!  Stay close to the board and post as often as you like. 

[Colleen]

Welcome Tom :)  You have come to the right place to support your quit.  You are more than welcome to read and post while getting ready to quit.  We have all have been in your shoes and can help you through sticky situations.  We have an SOS board, post there if you feel you are in danger of smoking.  We'll get you through it without smoking.  The socializing board is good for quick distractions or not so quick distractions.  I highly recommend the numbers game.  The Celebrations board is good for seeing where you are headed.  The NOPE pledge, take the pledge each morning, it makes a big difference.  NOPE = Not One Puff Ever.  We have a blog section, start your own, post what you want.  If you explore the blog section, you will find yourself reading about what some long time quitters' first days were like.  Jump right in...we have one shark here, well two really but the other one thinks he's Batman...Either way neither one bites :)

[Humbled]

I am actually speechless right now which is very rare considering I was born in NY. This is more then I could have imagined for. I have made one other decision and that is that I have chosen not to tell my family about my decision, instead I would prefer for them to just realize it on their own, I feel as if that is a much better reward for me then to imagine any undo pressure from a loved one. I am not sure if that is the best approach or not but I am more then willing to find out.You are all truly inspirational and I look forward to sharing my journey and inspiring others to follow as well. So Thank You!

[SanDar]

Hi Tom and welcome!

I just quit yesterday. I worried so much before I quit but the truth is that quitting is not nearly as stressful or as difficult as all the time I spent worrying about it.

I truly believe it's mind over matter. My frame of mind is that I am not giving up anything, and I have so much to gain. Read all the helpful information on this site. Education is key!

Congratulations on the best decision of your life!

 

Sandy

[Pippa]

Hi Tom - welcome. Read as much as you can, stock up on juice, plan distractions and believe in yourself - you can do this. Stick close to the board - you will find great support here

[Tink]

Hi Tom welcome on-board congratulations on deciding to quit :)

 

Stick close to the board education and support is important especially at the beginning, read and post don't be afraid to ask for help just post away, this board is such a great support with some colourful characters too

 

We are here for you tom

[El Bandito]

Tom!

 

Congratulations on the best decision you ever made. Your kids are going to be so proud of you.

 

Lots of good stuff to read and absorb here. but when all else fails, NOT ONE PUFF EVER works for me.

 

You got this Tom, no probs.

 

Looking at your location, tell me you play Golf. There are some serious golf courses where you are!

[BAT]

Welcome to the Quit Train Tom :)

[bakon]

As for not telling, that's what I did. They will notice in a day. The smell will be gone. After your family figures it out I recommend yelling it from roof tops. That pressure is only going to be felt if you go to smoke and someone knows you quit. So it shouldn't matter and be a good thing. The more people know, the less likely to slip up.

 

Grab some juice. Blood sugar will fall first few days which will make you edgy and irritable. So juice it up. Do not look at it a forever losing something. Look at it as just minute by minute first day. Don't smoke for hour then go eat a sandwhich. Small rewards. Make next hour then have a juice and smile. Next hour and your comin up on lunch. Just don't spook yourself with looking ahead. Just play each moment your in and get through that moment. Soon you will realize it's not killing you not to smoke. In fact it gets easier every hour you push through. First couple urges are hardest that it can hand out. After that your stronger to them and they grow weaker.

[Susana]

Hi Tom!

 

Welcome to the club, and congratulations on your decision and setting of a quit date. You can do this :good3:

 

Lots of good advice here already. You have lots of educational stuff at the top of the forums. Educate yourself about nicotine: what it is, what it does to you, how the addiction works... the more you know the less likely you are of wanting to fall for it.

 

If still you have weak moments, let´s not understimate the anti-craving power of laughter. You have a choice of not-that-serious threads in the Social forums, may I recommend specially the anti-craving powers of the cats´ thread :wink:

 

Looking forward to seeing you progress and celebrate the beginning of your new life.

[Doreensfree]

Huge welcome Tom......

Great decision to quit....and find your way here......I smoked double yours and some,this is my advice to you ....

If you havnt read Allen Carr easy way....it's a good book and has help a lot of folks.....

Read all you can to really understand ,what keeps us hooked.....

Jump in with both feet,and no matter what you are feeling,no matter what's going on.....never...

Stick anything in your mouth and light it....

Stay close to the board,post a pledge,join in on the fun.....

You can do it.....

[Still winning]

Hi Tom,

 

I think it's great you've posted now. We can help you prepare some stuff too. 

 

Bakon said about fruit juice. That's a biggie. Those blood sugars jump around a lot and it can make you feel like your craving when it's actually messed up internal levels as your body tries to clean itself, heal and reset. 

 

Also helpful to have a plan on what you are going to do instead, like when you would smoke. For instance, first morning coffee, maybe log on here rather then pick up a smoke, or wander round the garden etc. In essence the quicker you re-train your brain, the easier it is...so a plan when those "triggers" hit is good news!

 

3 kids is a great motivator!!  There will be awesome unexpected benefits for the children and from them too. I get more hugs from my eldest now as I don't smell!! I never knew I did smell that bad :(  But we play a whole game without me trying to sneak away for a smoke, we have more money to do more things and eat more ice creams :)  It really is great now. Smoking is only ever a fleeting thought. Try to hold onto that if a day feels tricky or plain hard. Good days always come behind a bad one. A crave is nothing to be worried or afraid of, it causes no physical pain and it passes - unlike smoking which can cause some real damage!

 

whyquit.com is a brilliant site to read up on as well. I read for the early days and it really helped to put some clarity around the term addiction and help me want to not smoke even more. Allen Carr is a well read book round here too. 

 

How are you planning to quit tom?  Are you just going cold turkey, or gum, or patches??  It sometimes helps to know. 

 

Welcome!!

[jimmy]

welcome aboard tom your in the right place  rember 1 day at a time don't worry about tommrow just go for today tommrow will take care of itself  congrats on quitting :D

[Paul723]

Welcome! Read, read, read! An educated quit is a strong quit! Your body will do a lot of healing from the damage smoking has done to it early on, all normal.

[MarylandQuitter]

Hi guys! My name is Tom and I am 39 years old and have been smoking for 25 years. I have 3 amazing children who have been asking my to quit smoking for a while now. They are coming back from vacation next week. I have set my quit date for Sunday morning so that they will never see me smoke again. I am truly humbled by everything I have read on this site and I am finally ready to become a non-smoker. I quit for over 1 year at one point but did so for the wrong reasons. Now my goals are very clear and my desire to be smoke-free is not in question. I hope that it is ok that I am 1 1/2 days away and that I do not offend anyone that I am still a smoker for this moment and yet I am on here sharing my intentions. I just felt like this was the place for that kind of support. I have told my closest friends over the last week that they will no longer have to out up with my bad habit after tomorrow night and they are waiting to see if I can follow through. I know I will and I look forward to sharing ,y 1st hour, week, month and year etc in doing so. Anyway, that is who I am and this is what I have decided to do. I admire all of you and look forward to being where you are soon enough!

 

Welcome, Tom!  Every single day that I smoked (every time I smoked most likely) I felt guilty because I knew I was robbing my children of time with me not only in the present, but also in the future as I was certain to succumb to an early death.  The moment that I put out my last death stick is the moment that burden was lifted.  When you put out your last cigarette you instantly become a non-smoker.  You're giving your 3 children the thing they want more than anything; their Dad to quit smoking and be around them for many, many more years.

 

The best place for a smoker to be is right here.  There is no requirement to be smoke-free for membership.  Lots of people want to quit and that's all that matters.  The only situation a smoker would be turned away from this sight is if some marketing executive from Philip Morris was here advertising their death sticks. Gotta draw the line somewhere, right?  :)

 

We have some really good documentaries to watch to help keep your mind occupied, games to play in the Socializing forum and all sorts of craziness from members here who will help keep you grounded and on the right path.  Not to mention of course the great advice and listening ears from people who truly care about your quit.

 

Feel free to start your own blog, post whenever or wherever you wish, share how you're feeling (the good the bad and the ugly) and of course if you feel like you might slip up and smoke, please post an S.O.S. and wait for members to respond.  All of the moderators get a copy of the SOS sent directly to their phones and many members do as well.  No matter what we're doing, an S.O.S. isn't confined to whoever is on the forums at the time.  No matter where we're at or what we're doing, we'll get the message come to help.

 

This is your forum. Please use it and take advantage of it to rid yourself of this deadly addiction.  :)

[JackiMac]

Hi Tom and welcome on board the quit train, you will get plenty of support here and we judge no one, we only are here to support and friendship, quitting smoking is one of the best decisions you will ever make, there are many of us here who have quit and relapsed over time but being here we are learning to recognise the addiction for what it is.  We all have a different story to tell, but we all share the same journey.  Read and educate yourself as much as you can and stay close to the board, post as often as you want there will always  be someone close by to help if needed.  Congratulations again and looking forward to sharing your journey.

[SueBeDoo]

Hiya Tom great to have you here, congrats on deciding to quit, I never told anyone when I quit either, I was fed up telling them and failing every couple of months, felt better not telling, good idea.

I am 36 and have 3 kids, my 8 year old son hated me smoking and would beg me to quit and wouldn't kiss me cos I stank, the way I see it what was the point in me having kids if I won't be around long enough for them due to my stupidity, they deserve to have their mammy as long as possible, you can do this Tom and you will do it, before you know it you will love being a non smoker and I love telling doctors etc that I don't smoke,

Keep reading and posting, we've got your back, don't ever be afraid to ask us for help.

Sue xxx

[...]

Hiya Tom. It's good to meet you.

 

I am glad to hear your ready. And it sounds like you have some kiddos that want to keep their daddy around for a very long time.

 

You can do this. And when you feel like you can't, then lean on us.

 

Glad to have you here. And remember the most important thing is to NEVER stick something in your mouth and set it on fire.

 

WELCOME TO THE QUIT TRAIN !!!!

[sherry]

Hi Tom,welcome!

 

Congrats on your new smoke free life, we're here if you need us...otherwise just jump in and have fun! :)  

[Jenny]

How are you doing Humbled?  Welcome aboard the QT!