Bleh, I’m allowing myself to feel.
I was thinking about that earlier. A pack a day. A smoke lasted about 10 minutes or so from the time I sat down until I stubbed out the butt. That means at least 3 1/2 hours of my life each and every day was dedicated to slowly killing myself. Unbelievable.
Another repost for you (and you all off course). This one by Gummer, a person who had some great things to say on the old Quitnet.
These reposts all say essentially the same thing… Smoking is the cause of your distress so don’t ever be fooled into smoking again to feel better - it cannot ever work! Smoking has done a major job on you. It will take time and effort to straighten things out again, so be patient. You need to allow yourself the time required for your body and mind to return to normal. So hang in there! It doesn’t matter what it takes, just hang in there and you will get through this. It’s gonna happen. Cravings ARE going to hit you out of the blue. Thats the way quitting goes. It may happen at day 5, or day 27, or day 152… cravings CAN and DO come out of thin air.
But never let them surprise you. EXPECT them, and when they do arise, treat them just as you have all the others… SIMPLY DON’T SMOKE. Ride them out… recognize them as a natural part of the process… as a sign of healing and progress… until they go away In time they will stop bothering you at all. But until you reach that point, do not be discouraged if you`re suddenly slammed by a craving.
THAT’S WHAT SMOKING HAS DONE TO YOU. And that’s what you have to go through until you free yourself. Never be fooled into smoking again… because it was smoking that got you here in the first place. NOT smoking is the only answer. Be patient. Be steadfast. Be optimistic. Don’t smoke.
Smoking always, always makes quitting harder… and not smoking always makes it easier. Cravings… are a sign that your quit is working. They are a symptom that your body and mind are trying to find equilibrium again. Never be alarmed or discouraged because cravings hit you all of a sudden… that is what is supposed to happen as you ‘detox’, and start shedding the addiction. It is clear evidence of progress, whether it is day 1 or day 157.
I frequently see posts desperately looking for advice for something to get rid of these withdrawals… drink huge amounts of water… take extra vitamins… try homeopathic remedies… but the truth is that IF you shift your mind, then you do not need anything. Stop thinking of withdrawals as a desperate need to smoke, and instead start to see them as cleansing moments that, while uncomfortable, are very effective at healing. Shift your focus, and your attitude, and the way you interpret things.
After all, that`s what is going on… your body is simply convulsing against the poison you have forced upon it. Withdrawals and cravings do not have to be a sign of trouble, because they are really a sign of progress. See them that way and you will endure them with far greater ease than if you try to fight them, or fret over them…
The breakthrough comes… not when you stop craving, but when you stop seeing smoking as a solution to the cravings. It happens when you come to the conclusion that smoking (rather than NOT smoking) is the source of your misery. At that point you will start to see the withdrawals quite differently… no longer as a desperate need to be filled… but as a side effect of smoking, as damage to you caused by years of smoking.
Because this yearning to smoke is no different from other effects of smoking… it is damage, plain and simple, just like shortness of breath, or poor circulation, or gum disease. And, as with all smoking damage, the only hope you have of ever reversing it is by NOT smoking. So when you feel that craving to smoke, try to see it for the damage that it is, rather than any deprivation of your needs. That urge to smoke does not necessarily mean that YOU want to smoke. It is not a natural and voluntary reaction… it is involuntary and a by-product of the addiction. It is an effect, a symptom. It does not need to be satisfied.
Once you see this, quitting no longer feels like burden… not smoking will actually feel like therapy, like you finally ARE doing something to counteract this burden, like you are in control again… And that shift of perspective is a huge breakthrough that can finally turn the tables in your favor.
Gummer
@Mno can I have my NOPE geese back? I know you didn’t take them off me but I didn’t feel like I deserved them after I relapsed. But now I feel like I do 
Busy day in Austria, approaching 12 days with no cigarettes. Past few days I used a nicotine puffer 2 to 4 times. Today 0 
. Feeling good. Came across a pic of mine some three years ago 
, what a mess I was……not going back there. Alcohol now 607 days. PMO is going way better limited (feels like it is loosing it’s power over me as well).
Well, I’m doing it without patches this time. I always wound up smoking while wearing one so I’m trying a different route. So far so good, almost 94 hours cig free.
I figured something out for me and I’m astonished I didn’t do it sooner. Traffic in Florida is horrible. A 30 minute trip turns into a 2 1/2 hr trip. I would get so antsy stuck at a stand still. So I got bubble wrap. Cut it into squares just big enough for one hand and I would pop bubbles until traffic moved again. Hey, it kept me from yelling obscenities out the window 
. Point is, I just cut me some busy fingers fidget squares for anti smoking defense. Yeah, I’m happy lol.
Today was a real test. Riding in a car, doctor appointment, car again, out to lunch at a restaurant, car again, Starbucks and then an eternity of a drive home in a car with no ac. I didn’t smoke!!
Dang. You’re really f–in’ trying, lady!
I’m giving it everything I have. 
Just wondering if anyone else has suffered with paranoia from quitting. I’m assuming it’s anxiety related, but man… Like I am feeling a little crazy. It’s day 3 no vaping. I’m struggling, lol.
Meant to reply to you so I’ll edit and tag instead lol @Mama2Sunny Not paranoia but I’m definitely jumpy. I feel like I’m mentally itchy all over my body and can’t settle down. Luckily I’m aware that this will pass and each time a wave comes over me it is weaker and weaker.
@SassyBoomer congrats. Exactly. What worked for me when I quit was not having any supplemental nicotine which seem to just keep me wanting nicotine. Cold turkey worked for me. I’m very proud of you keep going.
@Mama2Sunny As soon as you stop the continual smoking pattern your body begins to repair itself in miraculous wonderful ways.
One thing that happens is as your body begins to heal is that you get more oxygen, that it was getting robbed of before.
This gives lots of people lightheaded weird strange different feeling and it could be kind of offputting because it’s something that you’re not used to. I don’t know that this is what’s happening to you but it could be.
Look for ways to soothe yourself. Breathing exercises are good. It only takes 15 seconds, you can do it while you’re doing anything else. If you were to do a breathing exercise for as long as a minute that would be good too. This will help you with the anxiety. It will help with the anxiety. One that I mentioned on here earlier is simply breathing in to a count of four. Hold it for a count of four. Let it out for a count of four. Again hold your breath for a count of four. That is one sequence.
You can repeat this a number of times over a minute or so.
This slows down your heart and will lessen anxiety.
You can do it several times a day, you can do it as much as you want.
There are all kinds of variations on those, for instance, breathing in for four seconds holding it for seven or eight and letting it out for seven or eight seconds.
You can Google it and find all kinds of different things on the Internet
. What makes the most difference is to actually do it. It is always helpful.
Just ordered both of those toothpicks. Should be here Sunday. Amazon also had other cinnamon toothpicks for 5-6 times the cost because the package mentioned quitting smoking lol. Thanks for the suggestion
Thank you so much 
It definitely helps knowing that all of this is temporary and won’t last forever. Finding healthy distractions had helped, too. But yes, I’ve been jumpy, too! Lol
Here’s another oldie for you all.
Smoking is not just a bad habit. It is a nicotine addiction.
A great “oldie” repost – “JUNKIE THINKING” – toundra 10/20/1998 19:59:57
JUNKIE THINKING: “One puff won’t hurt.”
RESPONSE: “One puff will always hurt me, and it always will because I’m not a social smoker. One puff and I’ll be smoking compulsively again.”
JUNKIE THINKING: “I only want one.”
RESPONSE: “I have never wanted only one. In fact, I want 20-30 a day every day. I want them all.”
JUNKIE THINKING: “I’ll just be a social smoker.”
RESPONSE: “I’m a chronic, compulsive smoker, and once I smoke one I’ll quickly be thinking about the next one. Social smokers can take it or leave it. That’s not me.”
JUNKIE THINKING: “I’m doing so well. One won’t hurt me now.”
RESPONSE: “The only reason I’m doing so well is because I haven’t taken the first one. Yet once I do, I won’t be doing well anymore. I’ll be smoking again.”
JUNKIE THINKING: “I’ll just stop again.”
RESPONSE: “Sounds easy, but who am I trying to kid? Look how long it took me to stop this time. And once I start, how long will it take before I get sick enough to face withdrawal again? In fact, when I’m back in the grip of compulsion, what guarantee do I have that I’ll ever be able to stop again?”
JUNKIE THINKING: “If I slip, I’ll keep trying.”
RESPONSE: “If I think I can get away with one little “slip” now I’ll think I can get away with another little “slip” later on.”
JUNKIE THINKING: “I need one to get me through this withdrawal.”
RESPONSE: “Smoking will not get me through the discomfort of not smoking. It will only get me back to smoking. One puff stops the process of withdrawal and I’ll have to go through it all over again.”
JUNKIE THINKING: “I miss smoking right now.”
RESPONSE: “Of course I miss something I’ve been doing every day for most of my life. But do I miss the chest pain right now? Do I miss the worry, the embarrassment? I’d rather be an ex-smoker with an occasional desire to smoke, than a smoker with a constant desire to stop doing it.”
JUNKIE THINKING: “I really need to smoke now. I’m so upset.”
RESPONSE: “Smoking is not going to fix anything. I’ll still be upset. I’ll just be an upset smoker. I never have to have a cigarette. Smoking is not a need; it’s a want. Once the crisis is over, I’ll be relieved and grateful I’m still not smoking.”
JUNKIE THINKING: “I don’t care.”
RESPONSE: “What is it exactly that I think that I don’t care about? Can I truthfully say I don’t care about chest pain? I don’t care about gagging in the morning? I don’t care about lung cancer? No, I care about these things very much. That’s why I stopped smoking in the first place.”
JUNKIE THINKING: “What difference does it make anyway?”
RESPONSE: “It makes a difference in the way I breathe, the way my heart beats, the way I feel about myself. It makes a tremendous difference in every aspect of my physical and emotional health.”
The best time to quit would have been yesterday but that day is gone now. The next best day is today (not tomorrow). Quit smoking TODAY.
Do you have some secret direct line to the voices in my head??? That is EXACTLY the conversation that keeps going on. LMAO.
I’m 41. Started when I was 20. Quit many times until I finally did at about 25. I just started again about 3 months ago . Because I relapsed and had a cigarette. Never had it while drinking before so I’m not sure. Anyhow. Now I have to quit again. So we’ll see at my age how it goes. Patches gave me nightmares so going to have to go cold turkey. Fun stuff. Keep going everyone!
