Quit Buddy Update :
My quit buddy didn't last too long this time around. But I am happy that at least she tried again. You'll know from previous that I have a lot of respect for people who get back on the wagon. To me it is a sign of amazing commitment and strength.
Yesterday was the first day she was in the office. So we all went outside and smoked. Well I went outside and sipped on a nice warm cup of tea. I have a choice when I want to go out or not. Control instead of a drug controlling me was listed as my number 1 reason to quit all that time ago. I can say it was blimmin freezing and today I brought my big woolly hat with me. Apologies to all those who live in cold climates. I am a wimp. Anything below 4 degrees C and I think I turn into a block of ice. :)
Sometimes the most obvious signs of how strong a nicotine addiction is is seeing a line of smokers in blizzard situations using a crouching effect to protect the cigarette from the piercing wind when lighting it. I don't have to do that anymore. Yay!
Other stuff that may be interesting to some.
In a recent survey listed in a national paper that has been following quitting. The numbers of people quitting this survey year (2006-2007) has gone up. However, over half of those that quit went back to smoking within 4 weeks of their quit date. So when you reach day 30, rejoice, you are doing an amazing job.
Continuing on with a positive theme. I am really glad to see quitters having no or less cravings. Its a positive light and gives a nice balanced view on things. It happens to some great people here.
Recently I have been thinking about methods used to quit. It is easy to try one method and when that doesn't help and say 'Thats it, I have tried but I cannot quit'. However, more than likely there is a method suitable for you, you just haven't found it yet.
There are :
Smoking awareness books, nicotine patches, nicotine gum, microtabs, zyban, chantix/champix, hypnosis one to one, hypnosis group sessions, hypnosis CD's, inhalers, herbal remedies, doctor sessions.
Oh and of course there are great forums like here. And if you are reading this you have already found one great method to help you quit :)
I've tried most of the above except for tablet form treatments. Funnily both me and my quit buddy cannot swallow tablets :) Its probably a mental thing. Even my doctor has tried and realised I am just a weird case :) I do wonder a lot about Chantix, as it seems to have great successes. I wonder if it is possible to break open the capsule and mix the contents with honey? I am thinking of my quit buddy in case she wants to give it another go. But the info is useful to me too.
Anyway, where was I? (I went off on a storytelling tangent again :) )
Ah yes ... Don't get disheartened. If you are reading this having smoked you are just learning. You will always have chances to give it another go whilst you are alive, so never consider it a failure.
Sometimes you will need to make the same mistakes more than once before you learn something. In my early quits this year I only learnt after multiple occasions that getting wrecked through a large amount of alcohol consumption three days into your quit could well end up with you smoking.
I also once thought that people here would just leave me to rot after my 5th attempt in three months and only talk to ones that succeeded. Oh how wrong I was. This is a support centre in the truest form of support. I am writing this because I guess some might be put off from even posting in the first place for fear of failing (remember there is no such thing as failure).
I am writing this to all the newbies, lurkers and guests, or anyone who happens to read my thread years from now. Don't be shy. You are a winner just by thinking about giving up and making the first tenative steps. And it really doesn't matter how many times you try as long as you try and learn from each attempt.
You always get a long story for something that could be said in a few words with me. :)
What I am saying is :
Don't be shy, this is a great place to learn and discuss all things quitting related.
[B]My Milage:[/B]
[B]My Quit Date: [/B]7/12/2007
[B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 77
[B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 1,925
[B]Amount Saved:[/B] �323.40
[B]Life Gained:[/B]
[B]Days:[/B] 9 [B]Hrs:[/B] 15 [B]Mins:[/B] 48 [B]Seconds:[/B] 2