I am finding it difficult to remain a non smoker, i have been battling on and of!
Question: i had made it 4 months, then smoked a cigarette, smoked about 5 in 1 week, then quit for 2 weeks, smoked 3 in a week, then quit for a week, smoked 3 in a week quit for 2 weeks, now today is the 2nd day in a row i have smoked 3 cigarettes. i do not want to smoke but i think this addiction is trying to come back, everyone i work with smokes and i have a very high stress job, i dont want to use any nicotine supplements, just want to get another week under my belt, any advice for me would be greatly appreciated. thank you all
Answers: i had made it 4 months, then smoked a cigarette, smoked about 5 in 1 week, then quit for 2 weeks, smoked 3 in a week, then quit for a week, smoked 3 in a week quit for 2 weeks, now today is the 2nd day in a row i have smoked 3 cigarettes. i do not want to smoke but i think this addiction is trying to come back, everyone i work with smokes and i have a very high stress job, i dont want to use any nicotine supplements, just want to get another week under my belt, any advice for me would be greatly appreciated. thank you all
Congratulations.....you're doing everything you can to succeed, and you're almost there.
First, decide you will never have another ciggy no matter what. That one ciggy sucks you back into the adiction.
Some things I found helped:
A nicotine fix really and truly only lasts about 2 minutes, but your brain tricks you into thinking it's longer. Once you know that, it becomes SO much easier to handle.
So, if your cell phone has an alarm on it, when a fit hits you, set your phone for 5 minutes and do ANYTHING that gets you involved.....math problems, sudoko, a crossword, read an article, exercise (exercise is especially good), literally do anything. When the timer goes off, you'll be pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to ignore it. Do that each time the fits hit, and each time reinforces your willpower.
Also, this part is VERY important. YOU ARE SOOOOOO MUCH MORE THAN A LITTLE ADDICTION.
Write a list of all your successes. Kind of like you write for your performance feedbacks. Then write one about your social life, friends family successes....kind of a wonderful life angle.....how much worse life would be if YOU weren't helping all those people you help each and every day.....
Also, write a list of what you'd like to buy with the money you save not smoking. Do one for $/day, $/week, $/month, and especially $/year
Also, the 2 cigs I missed the most were, the post prandial and the post coital. After meals and after sex. The first, just get up and get away from the table, and do something...anything. The 2nd, well, what's wrong with more sex? Pretty soon you're too exhausted to want a ciggy :)
BTW, it took me over a year to get my real sense of taste and smell back. I used to smoke 3 packs a day, and quit cold turkey. Great good luck, you really really are there.....just tell yourself you are a non smoker, not someone who quit smoking. Recognise who you've become. It will help reinforce it too.
try the patch.try somthing that will keep youtr mind off of it.worrking out.
Have you tried eliminating your "triggers"? For example if the first thing you did in the morning was light a smoke, change that "trigger" and have a shower instead. If having a smoke with your morning coffee was daily routine, eliminate the "trigger" which is coffee, replace it with juice and pick up a magazine or the days paper. (Obviously the paper or magazine is replacing the cigarette here as well.) Um, if you always had an after meal smoke, settle for an after dinner mint instead. If at once you don't succeed, try and try again and remember that you had to "learn" how to become a smoker, so now you have to "Learn" how to quit. I wish you luck...