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Stages of change

Ashley -> Health Educator

2024-06-25 11:19 PM

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What have you learned?

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Questions to challenge negativity

Ashley -> Health Educator

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Strange feelings...


18 years ago 0 34 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Harrow - I have felt the same way - I feel like smoking makes me more social...I guess I have to find new ways to get myself out there and strike up conversations. =)
18 years ago 0 34 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
4my2girls - that explains what I am going through perfectly - my security "blanket" (of smoke -haha) is gone now
18 years ago 0 34 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
You probably can all relate to this feeling - but I find that I feel like I am not sure who I am without smoking..it is very strange and scary. I have read lots of posts and it seems that everyone has gone through some sort of transformation while quitting (and it all seems very positive) so I am trying to see that light at the end of the tunnel even though right now it feels like it might be a train! [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 4/25/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 2 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 17 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $4 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 0 [B]Hrs:[/B] 4 [B]Mins:[/B] 23 [B]Seconds:[/B] 10
18 years ago 0 34 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
DD - thanks...I have smoked since I was 14 - so right behind you! I think that I have returned to smoking for emotional and psychological reasons more then anything else...I feel I have broken the "habit" part but can't get a grip on knowing myself without the veil of smoke! Thanks for the encouragement - I guess I need to get to know myself all over - which may be a blessing in disguise!! Pitstop
18 years ago 0 34 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
I have found that when I quit in the past, I did so many new things b/c I was no longer lazy or preoccupied with smoking. I have a 2 1/2 year old son and I am imaging tons and tons of special things that we can do together now...that maybe I would not have done before...damn, now that i am thinking about it - smoking really makes you so passive and uninvolved - like you are really only half there...
18 years ago 0 28 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
I know what your saying One of the reasons I've never been able to quit is due to this. I am not a very social person and I meet people by smoking that I probably never would have met otherwise. For me the benefits of smoking, (meeting new people) outweighed the problems. I knew I would never be sucessful trying to quit until I fixed this underlying problem. Now quiting is still hard, but no where near as bad as it was before. For me it was realizing I was the same person whether I smoked or not. (It goes a little deeper than that but thats the basics) Good Luck [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 4/24/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 3 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 76 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $10.5 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 0 [B]Hrs:[/B] 9 [B]Mins:[/B] 37 [B]Seconds:[/B] 55
18 years ago 0 99 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
I can remeber loosing my first few quits, not because I wanted to smoke...but because I had smoked for so long I couldn't define myself without the smokes. I had been a smoker since I was 12, and there really wasn't a lori that existed without the ciggys. I spent a lot of time redefining myself, picturing myself going thruogh each year of my childhood not being a smoker. I think everyone can relate. hang in there. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 4/5/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 22 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 337 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $99 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 1 [B]Hrs:[/B] 23 [B]Mins:[/B] 31 [B]Seconds:[/B] 40
  • Quit Meter

    $50,475.03

    Amount Saved

  • Quit Meter

    Days: 6259 Hours: 10

    Minutes: 41 Seconds: 19

    Life Gained

  • Quit Meter

    45473

    Smoke Free Days

  • Quit Meter

    272,838

    Cigarettes Not Smoked

18 years ago 0 99 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
pit- it can almost be like a death. The person I defined myself as is no more. That person valued different things, did different things. Starting at such a young age kept me from a lot of physical activites. I never worried about what I ate, cause I found it a contradiction to worry about food when I was smoking. The new me runs every morning, eats better (not great, but better). The new me is going to a book fair this week end. I would never have done that cause I couldn't leave to smoke. The new me goes to the movies...never did before for the same reason. What things do you get to do now, that you couldn't before?
  • Quit Meter

    $50,475.03

    Amount Saved

  • Quit Meter

    Days: 6259 Hours: 10

    Minutes: 41 Seconds: 19

    Life Gained

  • Quit Meter

    45473

    Smoke Free Days

  • Quit Meter

    272,838

    Cigarettes Not Smoked

18 years ago 0 852 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hi Pitstop, I understand exactly. Re-defining myself without a cancer stick in my hand was, and still is, a challenge. Each and every day, I accomplish an old task without one of those in my hand! I still take it one at a time though. Its frightening when I know I am about to do something that I usually did with a smoke. But I know it is all in my head. Take walking for instance- I used to smoke while I walked. So now when I get ready for my walk, it still frightens me. A swoop of paranoria goes through my body, much like an adreniline rush. But I now know what to do. I know I will not smoke. So I take a deep breath, several times, grab my water and down some, then grab another one and a handful of my hard candies. Now I am set. I now control my cravings. They no longer control me. Each time I do the task without a smoke, makes that task a little easier to do the next time. So now, I am doing things non-smoking. This is who I am becomming. This is the new me. I spent 1/2 my life smoking. My childhood is the only time without smoking. It's not like I can refer to life since I was only a child. But I can refer to yesterday, because yesterday I did not smoke. I hope this helps. But really, I meant to say that I understand. You will re-define yourself, one day at a time. Tomorrow you will be a little different than you are today. Enjoy the ride. This is you now. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 3/5/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 53 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 1,604 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $173.31 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 4 [B]Hrs:[/B] 7 [B]Mins:[/B] 17 [B]Seconds:[/B] 5
18 years ago 0 34 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hello Pitstop, congratulations on two days. You are still the same person and you will be back to normal in a couple of weeks. Just try to adjust slowly. smoking is something we did for most of our lives and you need more than a couple days to start feeling better. my biggest problem for slipping was gaining weight. i was so scared of getting bigger that i would rather smoke. it's really a stupid way of looking at the big picture. i think so much clearly now and that is why i am able to give advice to you. start by rewarding yourself everyday with something small, then every month. soon you'll be looking forward to your anniversay but first take it just one day at a time. dont think about tomorrow, just today, from now until you go to bed. you should also make a list of things you couldn't do as a smoker and try to do everything on your list. also read and post here a lot. i made it to almost 2 months and i really never thought i could do it. good luck. elle [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 2/28/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 58 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 585 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $145 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 4 [B]Hrs:[/B] 3 [B]Mins:[/B] 58 [B]Seconds:[/B] 48

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