For those who've made the choice Not to Smoke

13 years ago

When you find yourself craving a smoke, take this out and read it. It may just help you get through the craving. Remember to congratulate yourself for each day you spend Smoke Free! You deserve it!

#18 WAS MY FAVORITE

1. So you think one won't hurt? ...When was the last

time you had one and quit smoking?

2. I don't want one.. I want them all.

3.You have to practice being a non-smoker. It won't

come automatically. Every craving I survive gives me

more practice.

4. Avoid thoughts of how hard this might be. 3 million

smokers quit every year. It can be done.

5. When you make it through the first week, it gets

better rapidly.

6. Body changes are normal and sometimes uncomfortable

but they remind me I am suceeding.

7. A Craving is just a feeling. There is no reason to

be afraid of it. You can say no to the craving as

easily as you can say no to buying something out of

your budget. It is my choice.

8. It takes what it takes to quit. no more and no

less. No matter what...just don't smoke

9. Symptoms are temporary. I will feel normal again.

Don't think of never smoking again ...think one

hour..one day..one minute if you have to. We only need

to cope with today. Whatever happens tomorrow I will

handle then.
I will have cravings whether I smoke or not. If i

smoke they will get worse and come every 30 minutes.

If I don't they will pass in a few moments and get

fewer and farther between and get easier and easier

until I am free.
I can live with the occasional desire to smoke or

I can smoke. There are no other choices.
Smoking does not calm my nerves. It creates stress

everytime my nicotine level drops and I have to smoke

to bring it up again. As a smoker I am in a constant

state of withdrawl creating stress.
Each craving challenges me to think about what is

really important to me. With each craving I have the

choice of acting on what I believe or staying in denial.
Desires to smoke are inevitable..smoking does not

have to be.
No one is making me stop smoking. I can smoke if I

want. I choose not to for now. Tomorrow i will have

the same choices.
The urge to light up will pass if I smoke or not.
I would rather be a non-smoker with an occasional

desire to smoke than a smoker that always wants to

quit.
Getting ill from smoking is far worse than this

transitional discomfort of quitting.
I am a puff away from a pack a day for the rest of

my life. Just don't smoke.
People who love themselves don't smoke.
It's a pack of lies, don't buy into it.

Mush: 3 years & 10 days SMOKE FREE!

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Comments (12)

wanda_va
13 years ago
Those are all good...and true. I loved smoking, so it was really hard for me to quit. So I decided not to quit, but rather take a vacation from smoking. If I still have the desire to smoke when I am 80 years old, I can start up again. That's 17 years from now; if I'm still around, I probably won't be able to afford them, and hopefully I won't still want them.

--wanda, who has not had a cigarette for 6 years, 18 days--
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User
13 years ago
The cravings don't last more than a minute or so, and as the years go on, you get fewer and fewer of them. I rarely if ever get a craving for a smoke. The first thing I used to do when I felt stressed or angry is grab a smoke. I had a knipshin at work on Friday morning and it didn't occur to me to look for a smoke.

The hardest time to not smoke after you try to stop works in 3's:

three days
three weeks
three months

Once you get past these three stepping stones, you can say you stopped smoking. And never say you quit. That way if you start again, you haven't failed. You just weren't ready.

I stopped smoking about 15 years ago. I can't remember which year, just remember it was September 27th.
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ruthieg__tx
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I think the take a vacation is a good idea.....I told myself........I can smoke tomorrow. Make sure that there are no handy cigarettes so that in order to smoke, you have to actually go get them. I kept telling myself that all I had to do is make it through that one day and I could always smoke the next day .....If I wanted to........I made it for days on end and one day I thought about it and said.......Holy Crap....it's been a week and then two weeks and one day ........I said.......Holy Crap....I've quit smoking.
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jannie
13 years ago
Think of the money you will save. A pack costs $6, a pack a day ex-smoker smoker saves over 2 grand a year.
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kacram
13 years ago
those are good. I'm NOT a smoker, but they would work for weight loss too, and looking at that fudge, cookie, potato chip... etc
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Jamie_LA
13 years ago
TODAY MAKES DAY ELEVEN FOR ME!!! YEA, I'M YELLING!
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joyfulguy
13 years ago
Congrats to all of you who are on that "vacation" - keep up the good work.

And for those of you considering going on such a vacation ...

... remember those brochures that you've seen promoting tropical isles?

This one's even better (and isn't over in 2 weeks).

Plus, rather than costing money, as the tropical isles do ... this one saves you money ... and keeps on doing it as long as you live (or until you decide to get off of your vacation).

ole joyful
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cynic
13 years ago
People make a much bigger thing out of quitting smoking than it really is. You're never going to quit smoking until *you* decide you want to quit. Telling yourself you should, having people nag you, lecture you or otherwise will not get a person to quit. You'll quit when you're ready to quit and not before.

Only you will find the reason(s) and motivation to quit. And you'll need to find the ways to break the habit. I found mine and quit what was at one point over 5 packs a day. Haven't smoked in over 17 years. But there's still times I'd like one. I miss the taste.
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jae_tn2
13 years ago
being in the hospital for 5 months will make you quit, but i wouldn't recommend it!
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Marcia Thornley
Original Author
13 years ago
cynic, I'm sorry but I disagree. Quitting smoking is a great big deal. Nicotine has been proven to be just as addictive as Heroin, or Cocaine. Those who are planning to quit or who have for several months need all the support and help that can be given to them. No one chooses to become addicted. That's why the Nicotine is in smokes. So that we will buy more.
So if some one needs other people to urge them on or needs NRT or anything else to help them, then I believe we should help in any way we can. And that includes celebrating every success! To those who have made the decision, I congratulate you! Well done!
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juellie1962
13 years ago
I like # 18 also. The biggest reason I'd love to smoke again is the weight issue. Smoking would end a meal, smoking would be a diversion from snacking/eating. I've gained 20 lbs since quitting. :( Excuse time is over; I MUST do something about that!!!
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User
13 years ago
Quitting heroin is easier than quitting smoking. That's why there are so many more people who can quit the heroin, but more people who go back to smoking. It's a proven fact.

I do want a smoke now and then, but mostly when I read threads like this. Go figure, eh? Or when I watch a news story on places that won't let people smoke in certain areas. Sorry, but as long as it's legal I don't think they should stop you from smoking in certain areas. Although I appreciate it, because I find smoke painful to the lungs now.... I would probably start again, but in Canada (Calgary at least) a pack costs over $10 a pack and when I stopped smoking, I was up to 1 1/2 packs a day. $15 a day in smoke. That's 1/8th of my paycheque! Up in smoke..... Sometimes when I see how much I eat and my weight problems I think if I smoked again, I could knock this weight right back off again. Nobody believes I weigh what I weigh, but I know what I weigh and I see me nekkid... Scary sight, let me tell ya. LOL

In the end, the love of breathing is the only thing that keeps me from starting up again. My cravings are rare now. I have dreamed I've had a smoke. I wake up thinking it was real. I know that if I were to start again, I would never quit again. And it would kill me.
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For those who've made the choice Not to Smoke

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For those who've made the choice Not to Smoke

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