[Originally posted by me on 21 June 2004]
Today, June 21, 2004, is when I reach OOF (Olympian Old Fogey) status,
five years quit. As far as not smoking goes, it's a day a lot like
yesterday or even last year. Still, it's as good an occasion as any to
share a few suggestions and offer a few highlights of the past five years.
The best analogy I've come up with is that quitting smoking is like
moving house. At first, your life is total confusion and all you can
think about is how everything used to be. Gradually, you get used to
your new routines for doing everything, and the old lifestyle becomes a
memory. Can you remember when you felt like a newcomer in your current
home, and how one day you suddenly realized you'd stopped thinking about
the old place as "home"? Quitting is like that -- as you get on with
your life, not smoking will become a part of it.
One specific suggestion I'll make is to have specific plans for when
cravings hit. If you've already decided on what you're going to do
then, you can go right to it instead of wondering whether to light up or
not. Some people's plans include reaching for gum or hard candy, or
coming here and reading all the messages and replying to them, even to
the silly ones. As long as you've already decided what you're going to
do! One thing I worked on then was trying to find every quit-related
page on the web, and bookmarking the good ones.
One thing that helped me was keeping a log of when I smoked, and finding
out what my biggest triggers were, namely killing time and
procrastination. I'd go through one, or many, cigarettes to avoid doing
certain tasks, and I was really getting worried about what I'd do when I
reached my quit date. One day, in a flash of insight, I realized that I
didn't have to give up procrastinating at all; I just had to find some
other excuse besides smoking for putting things off. That was a big
relief. I still procrastinate as much as ever, I just don't use smoking
as an excuse for it.
Another related thing I did was asking myself, "How would smoking help
this situation?" If I was waiting for a bus, lighting up wouldn't make
it come any faster. If I wanted to avoid something, I could avoid it
without smoking.
Here are a few highlights from five years of not smoking:
I can now do anything for more than an hour without having to stop for a
smoke break.
I went to a three-hour movie and actually watched all of it.
The local government passed some restrictions about smoking in public
places. I didn't care, and still don't know exactly what the rules are.
I was on jury duty, and during deliberations we weren't allowed out of
the building. Didn't bother me.
I flew cross-country, and didn't have to worry about not being able to
smoke. In fact, on one flight, we waited in the plane for three hours
before taking off, and I wasn't bothered by it.
Someone actually said to me, "I can't imagine you as a smoker."
For me, the biggest advantage of not smoking isn't the money saved or
the health, though both are nice. It's not having to plan my entire
life around that next cigarette!
I'm also celebrating the occasion by reposting my DOF Speech (two years
quit) and OF Speech (one year quit), for anyone who may find them
helpful or interesting. And to anyone who remembers me, "Hi there!"
Adam, OOF
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