Hiya folks!
It's been awhile since I've posted. I still pop in from time to time
to see what's up. It's nice to see people are still quitting and a
good percentage of us are staying quit.
The past year for me has been pretty much the same as the year before
that. The cravings are gone. A very rare occasional "thought" pops
into my head from time to time, bounces around for a second or two, and
then leaves. It's that last tiny piece of "old tape" which used to
control my life, which used to tell me that smoking was a solution. New
tapes are playing these days :)
I found this group eleven years ago during a two-month quit. My quit
didn't last, but the group moved on. There was a message in that fact
which I didn't quite understand at the time :). I had a subsequent
longer quit three years later. But again, I fell victim to my own
bull**** that smoking would "do something" for me. And it did...it made
me miserable, in a physical, emotional and spiritual sense.
I came back here on 5/1/02, found the same good sup****t which had always
existed. With this group, the Patch, Allen Carr (it does appear,
however, we have a newbie who thinks only Allen's stuff is
apropo...pity), a close-knit group of folks who all quit around the same
time and an extra little Yahoo group (thanks, Binnie!), I was able to
stick it out until I reached a point where the miracle happened. That
miracle happened the day I felt comfortable in my quit.
I still respect the addiction. I know what one puff will lead to,
because it always did in the past. There is no such thing as "one puff"
for me. There's either total abstinence or full-blown addiction. And
you know, it's rather neat realizing this. It makes the choice that
much simpler :)
From a three-pack a day smoker, I managed to quit. Anyone can. All it
takes is a decision, really. Life over death. Happiness over misery.
I look at the discomfort I felt the first few months I was quit, and it
was nothing compared to the misery a cancer victim feels. I try to
always keep that in mind.
Meantime, Patty and I are living well. Another trip to Hawaii is behind
us. It's getting warm up here in Almost Canada and the bike trails are
finally free of snow. Another summer of cycling hopefully lies ahead.
It's been incredible, awesome and so worth it. It's a freedom every
smoker deserves to feel. One day at a time.
Thanks to everyone who came before me for showing me the way. Thanks to
everyone who's come since then...you remind me of how im****tant this is.
Lee
OOF (almost forgot the acronym...heh heh)
(But didn't forget how to post my meter!)
---
6 years 4 days smoke-free, 131,813 cigs not smoked, $19,771.95 saved
|
