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Do you fear that someday you will start back?


Lady
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Lady
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18 years ago 0 5195 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
[quote] I would urge you that if the thought were ever there to move quickly away from any physical temptation and call someone. Talk it over. Get your head back on straight. [/quote] As I get farther into my quit, when smoking thoughts come into play I am sometimes hesitant to reach out to my support group. I look at my meter and tell myself I shouldn�t be feeing this or that way anymore. But it does happen from time to time. After a few minutes of debating with myself, I do go ahead and reach out. Usually I begin with, �this is so silly� or �you aren�t going to believe this�� There is just something about saying those things to someone else and letting someone know what is going on that makes dismissing the smoking thoughts so much easier. I hope I never hesitate too long before reaching out because I know that with just one puff, I am once again a lifetime smoker. Do I fear relapsing at some point? No, I don�t think so. Do I fear smoking again? Daily. The freedom of not smoking is too valuable. It is like you always say Joe, Knowledge Replaces Fear. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 7/1/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 224 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 4,488 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $784 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 19 [B]Hrs:[/B] 18 [B]Mins:[/B] 42 [B]Seconds:[/B] 23
golferman
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golferman
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18 years ago 0 563 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
A common discussion I see on this and other smoking cessation sites is the one about the fear of starting back to smoking after a long (greater than one year) quit. Yes, there are people who do start smoking again 2, 5 or even 10 or more years after they�ve quit. Any yet, there are others, who I believe are the majority, that are quit for life. Why is this? To answer this question you have to look at what smoking is. It is an addiction. A chemical addiction to nicotine to be specific. As soon as a person takes that first ever puff on a cigarette, the brain is permanently etched with the nicotine and will never forget it. There are a whole series of chemical reactions that occur in the brain, but I won�t go into detail here. Suffice it to say that the brain is forever altered. So what happens when you quit? Well, after you quit smoking and get over the withdrawals, you brain will still remember it�s old pal nicotine. Over time, some individuals tend to forget the coughing, the stinking breath, the slavish trance created by cigarette dependency, and tend to somehow dwell on smoking from a very romantic perspective. For those, when something triggers them, they will light up again. And just like that, most are looking at a total relapse. Why don�t all quitters relapse? Why don�t people all dress the same or eat the same foods? We are individuals and some are more resolute than others. It�s easy to talk ourselves back into smoking if we allow it. Remember that your brain has not forgotten Mr. Nicotine. My friend Carolyn, who passed away last summer from emphysema at the age of 67, was a prime example here. Her and her husband Jack smoked for years. They quit together in their late 30's. Fourteen years later, at lunch with some friends, Carolyn bummed a smoke. That was it. Try as she might, she could not leave them She suffered a heart attack along the way and in her 50's she developed the emphysema that eventually killed her. Jack is now 70 and has never touched a cigarette since the day he quit. Staying quit is an individual decision. Like any addict, we can never have that first �fix� after we quit. I believe that those who relapse really have no idea as to the power of this addiction. They think �I can have just one�. Wr

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walkingeagle
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walkingeagle
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18 years ago 0 191 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Every where you go, there they are. Smoking is everywhere and we must make a decision, smoke or not. Even as I close in on 1 year quit, they occasionally tug at me. That damn " just one " thinking. Have been able to get past those all so far. I truly hope this is the Final Quit. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 3/17/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 330 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 13,217 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1980 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 55 [B]Hrs:[/B] 2 [B]Mins:[/B] 5 [B]Seconds:[/B] 51

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MissyFit
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MissyFit
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18 years ago 0 586 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hi Joe, At this point, since I've gotten over all the initial hurdles, I'm mostly concerned in keeping this quit for a lifetime. I've asked the question on here more than once.... Why, after so many years of being quit, did they start again? It's always the same answer... They thought they could get away with just one. [b]Do not learn from your mistakes, learn from the mistakes of others so that you do not make any. --Sean Karsten [/b] N.O.P.E. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 2/2/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 373 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 7,473 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1331.61 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 39 [B]Hrs:[/B] 13 [B]Mins:[/B] 31 [B]Seconds:[/B] 51

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hummybird
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hummybird
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18 years ago 0 1115 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
H*** NO!!! Never starting again 'cause I'm not EVER going through withdrawal again! :8o: Besides, I'd have to start over again at "still cravin'" Not cravin', never cavin'. Hummy [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 5/5/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 282 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 11,313 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1833 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 36 [B]Hrs:[/B] 16 [B]Mins:[/B] 21 [B]Seconds:[/B] 2

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JohnW
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JohnW
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18 years ago 0 319 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hello Joe, If You were in my shoes at the present time, being One month short of being 3 years quit, You would say to Yourself, Gosh, that's a silly question, But No, Its a good question, I supose Everyone has there own opinio on this topic, But my theory was after smoking like 45 years, and not a sickerette touching my lips for the First 6 months, I knew then that I had a lasting Grip on that Tiger's tail, and I wasn't letting go for hell or high water, But at that point in my quit, 6 months, I could not Slip an let my Friends down on this website, Who encouraged and supported me through weeks an months of lifting my spirits an hope's in my new lifestyle, For You see, They instilled such Great Motivation in me, that I had never received before from Anyone, But I do believe myself, The longer You can go into Your Quit, the more Your eyes open to the greatness in life which is out there before You, Like I say, Try it on, It fits great,'' ''Good Thread,'' Smokless In Oklahoma :)

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Bubba
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Bubba
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18 years ago 0 407 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Everytime I get a craving flung on me for a smoke, I review my Dangers of Smoking poster. More often than not, the picture of the damaged lung is enough to quell the fear and give me added reinforcement to continue on. Lindsey [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 9/10/2001 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 1616 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 96,990 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $16160 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 333 [B]Hrs:[/B] 13 [B]Mins:[/B] 6 [B]Seconds:[/B] 32

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