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Wendy

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Do what is right for you beauty, more power to your elbow an all that.

 

Be great if you an the monkey could check in from time to time but actually, I just genuinely wish this journey to be done for you so whatever works is right. 

 

Much love. x

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Actually, your length of previous quits and your current status has nothing to do with any kind of support group as it has everything to do with your personal commitment to never take another puff, where you are in the nicotine addiction education process and whether or not you're still believing in the cigarette.

 

I was quit for 6 years without any kind of support group.  The story is pretty much written on my profile page.  Long story short, I was not successful when I had that long quit because I had not a clue about the addiction and certainly had nothing in the way of support.  When I started smoking again in 2010 or 2011 I went straight back to 30 per day and often times many more.  When I decided that I wanted to quit but enjoyed it too much, my doctor told me I was an addict, put me on Wellbutrin XL and told me to find a support group, because it would increase my chances of staying quit for good.  I argued but before I left all of my arguments were proven false.

 

I found a support group and stayed quit for 9 months before I relapsed again.  I had done all the reading, yada, yada, yada.  The problem wasn't lack of knowledge, it was lack of truth.  I was still believing that cigarettes benefited me, in particular helping me deal with stress.  Thankfully I only relapsed for about a week before I quit again.  Once I believed and understood that smoking didn't help me deal with stress, I never looked back.  It was the one false sense of security that I was holding onto that could have kept me smoking until it crippled or killed me.

 

You can quit on your own without any kind of support group.  Many do it.  But many of those people (not all) go back to smoking many years later, sometimes a decade or two later.  When I look at those within the travels of my life that have had long quits and relapsed and never quit again (or the constant cycle of smoking/relapse/smoking), the common denominator is lack of knowledge about nicotine addiction and for sure, lack of a support group that helped educate them and hold them accountable.  The difference for the majority of those who truly quit and NEVER TAKE ANOTHER PUFF FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES and those that either relapse into a full-blown addiction or "sneak a smoke" every now and then is support. 

 

A good support group will lay the foundation for a lifetime of being smoke-free.  Again, you can do it on your own but please make sure that the foundation for your quit has been laid and you keep up with the maintenance of that foundation.  Whether it be reading on your own, meditation or whatever, you need to never forget that you're a nicotine addict and will be for the rest of your life.  Although it may be uncomfortable for some to hear and grasp, it's what we unknowingly signed up for all those years ago when we decided to become smokers.

 

I'll Come Back For Reinforcement When I need It

This video talks about the benefits of regularly reinforcing your quit when things are easy as opposed to relapsing and having to try to quit again.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiIOvdMZ7us&list=PL76365B6CE2DA076B

 

"The only time I think of smoking is when I get one of your stupid letters"
Video discusses how I used to send out follow-up letter to make sure that my clinic graduates were prepared to deal with the occasional thoughts that they would likely encounter after quitting smoking.
http://youtu.be/DgZN4UI_8wU

 

Complacency

Video discussing the importance of not allowing yourself to become complacent after longer term success not smoking.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZSktbwotI4&index=30&list=PL4F05C03D0F9B86DB

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QuitTrain®, a quit smoking support community, was created by former smokers who have a deep desire to help people quit smoking and to help keep those quits intact.  This place should be a safe haven to escape the daily grind and focus on protecting our quits.  We don't believe that there is a "one size fits all" approach when it comes to quitting smoking.  Each of us has our own unique set of circumstances which contributes to how we go about quitting and more importantly, how we keep our quits.

 

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