Stoppin...it takes a while to actually feel the freedom. Finding the key is the answer but sometimes we just don't see what is right in front of our faces. Once we figure it out, life becomes awesome. Like Vicki said...we all post and post and post. Some people are here a lot early in their quits and others (like me) just don't go away :). Cry away...I sure did. Great post Joe. I think the best advise you ever gave me was to dismiss the crave immediately once it starts. I am so glad I am no longer a slave. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 7/1/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 219 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 4,388 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $766.5 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 19 [B]Hrs:[/B] 8 [B]Mins:[/B] 1 [B]Seconds:[/B] 8

[b][color=black]that we live our lives in chains And we never even know we have the key[/b][/color] from �Already Gone� The Eagles Smokers live their lives in chains. They are chained to their nicotine fix. So many smokers feel helpless to do anything about it, yet they �never even know we have the key�. We here at the SSC, and all the former smokers out there have found that key and have released themselves from their chains. The key represents your desire to no longer be held a slave to an addiction. There are several active threads going here, in different forums, where people are agonizing over their quits. I read them and I think to myself, �what are they thinking?� How enslaved are they and what is causing this? Are their craves any worse than what others have felt? Are their lives any more complicated than others here? Of course they want to quit, why else would they be here? Then they struggle. Some slip. Some have relapses. Yet they are still here. Still �trying� to get that quit. I am very glad they are here, giving it another go. But what are they doing with that �key� that will set them free? The more I�m here and read the various posts, the more I�m convinced that some people just think too much. They worry themselves into a slip or a relapse. Quitting is not that difficult. You don�t smoke. The only hard part is figuring out what to do next. I suppose that is the �key� they struggle with. When you get a crave don�t analyze it to death. Don�t give it the time of day. When a child is throwing a tantrum, the worst thing you can do is pay attention to them. Ignore them and without an audience they usually stop. The more attention you give a crave, the more you will focus on it and not on your smoke free life. The crave will pass. A crave is a lousy reason to slip. No one would ever be quit if we all gave in to craves. I know, I tell people all the time to think. Now I�m telling you not to think. The difference is simple. Don�t think about the crave. Think about your quit. Your life. Think about that �key� you are holding. [b][color=Purple]Be Strong. Be Smart. Be Quit[/color] [color=black]Joe[/color] [size=3][color=Blue]Knowledge Replaces Fear[/color][/size] [size=2][color=black]Illegitimu

You nailed it, Joe. I hope all the struggling quiters, newbies and the rest, read this and take it to heart. Shevie [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 5/23/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 258 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 5,160 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $980.4 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 48 [B]Hrs:[/B] 2 [B]Mins:[/B] 31 [B]Seconds:[/B] 23

Right on target my friend! Turn the key and open yourself to a better place and a better you! Josie _____________________ The SSC Support Team.