Wow - I can't add anything more to Josie's words. Freedom, you will develop very close ties with the people who are going through this process with you. Through this site I have met some great friends who have supported me and struggled alongside me. (It's kind of like going through battle together) Many of us have named our group - I am one of the Septenders. This is a great journey but there are many hills and valleys - you may go from exhilaration to exhaustion to anger to depression to excitement and all over again. You are doing so well....Congrats! Windy [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 9/11/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 117 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 2,358 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $585 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 11 [B]Hrs:[/B] 11 [B]Mins:[/B] 33 [B]Seconds:[/B] 27

Marie, you should be proud of yourself, you're handling things beautifully. That pride you're feeling, remember it. I'm still feeling it at over 200 days. It's the best feeling in the world! Just hang on tight, Andrea [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 6/7/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 212 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 4,247 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1007 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 17 [B]Hrs:[/B] 20 [B]Mins:[/B] 41 [B]Seconds:[/B] 38

Freedomforme, A club for the new quitters of 2007 is a great idea! I've noticed you keep mentionning you're not sleeping well. This is a withdrawal symptom. It is temporary & will pass. Until then, a few tips to help: �Try to get on a sleep schedule. Go to bed at a regular time each night and get up at a regular time in the morning. Try to not stay up late watching TV and try not to sleep during the day. If you get on a sleep schedule, we guarantee that you�ll begin to feel better. �Try to make the room you sleep in as quiet as possible. Consider ear plugs or a sleep mask. �Use your bed only for sleeping. Don�t lounge around in your bed. If you spend too much time lounging in bed, watching T.V., drinking coffee, or eating, your body will learn that your bed is NOT a place for sleeping. �If you can�t sleep after half an hour in bed don�t stay in bed trying to sleep. Get up and do some quiet activity. For example, read a book for a half hour and then try going back to bed. If you still can�t sleep, get up and do something quiet once again. �Try to keep your bedroom at a comfortable temperature - not too cold and not too hot. �Try to get some exercise every day. You�ll feel better and sleep will come much quicker. �Try not to exercise or work hard late in the evening. It could make you feel �wired�. �Don�t drink anything with caffeine or alcohol for 4 hours before you go to bed. �Try not to eat a heavy meal in the evening. Don�t eat just before you go to bed. �If you�re not sleeping at night, avoid naps during the day. �Use relaxation techniques. Deep breathing may help you relax at bed time. Hope the sandman visits soon. Danielle ________________________ The SSC Support Team

FFM, Don't worry about their progress, just focus on you. Here is a post written by Josie that may help you understand anger & quitting: Afraid to turn into a bear when quitting? Maybe you've quit and it's already happened? Explosive, quick to anger over little things? Unexpected outbursts? You are not alone, but rather one of many. What happens? People in recovery do have ups and downs, and sometimes more downs than ups unless they adopt new ways of coping, none of which happen overnight. We keep saying that quitting is a process. Anger may play an unexpected role for you in this process, and better coping skills need to be developed to deal with this also. When many smokers and dippers quit, they go through changes that require some unmasking. Take anger, for instance: As nicotine addicts, we might have swallowed our anger, or lit up/chewed rather than make a scene when something really irked us. It might have been easier and less stressful than engaging in confrontation about some problem. I'm confident that most smokers and dippers who were "put in their place" can remember exhaling the smoke slowly at some time or other to decompress. They puffed or chewed away for dear life rather than say their piece and end up getting fired from a much-needed job, to offer one example, or be in an in-laws bad books forever, to name another. In such anger, a nicotine fix became the crutch, the comforter and the savior of sorts, and quite a coping mechanism! (Or so we thought anyway.) Get my drift? With the giving up (and loss from our lives) of that lifelong 'all-round friend' the cigarette, we literally go through mourning with all its stages, including the stage of sadness and anger. Quitting is a major loss, both physically and psychologically, and in addiction, a quitter will naturally mourn that loss for a little while, until they freely accept the quit and adopt it, just letting go of smoking or chewing. But besides that mourning, there are also things that can naturally trigger an angry response in a quitter: For instance, typical little things such as finding an empty roll on the toilet paper dispenser, discovering someone's dirty laundry on the floor, coming across dirty dishes in another part of the house, etc., al

start a quit journal so you don't forget how hard these beginning days are! When the urges to smoke come....read about the battle...yes it's hard....but it WILL pass....I PROMISE you that!! and there is NO freedom like the freedom from nicotine!!! hang in here and keep kickin butt Katy [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 1/4/2002 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 1828 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 73,133 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $10419.6 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 241 [B]Hrs:[/B] 2 [B]Mins:[/B] 55 [B]Seconds:[/B] 25

Freedom, Your determination is outstanding and we can't wait to celebrate your first week, let alone the 1 year mark :) Keep those coping mechanisms nearby and let us know if you need anything :) Josie _____________________ The SSC Support Team.