List of Distractions

Want to know what to do if you're craving a cigarette? Here you go:

Breathe in 4 counts, hold for 4 counts, exhale 4 counts. Continue as needed.

Drink ice water

Eat something crunchy

Bake a cake

Call a non smoking friend

Paint a bedroom (my week 2; long story)

Play string with a cat

Walk around the block

Plant a tree

Plant some flowers

Organize your junk drawer

Color in a coloring book

Do crossword puzzles and word searches

Eat a cupcake

Read Facebook 

Go to livestrong and respond to posts

Start a blog

Vacuum

Wash your car

Scrub your sidewalk after you draw profanities in chalk

Mow your lawn

Eat some carrots

Scream into a pillow

Play video games

Do jumping jacks

Go to the gym

Do anything EXCEPT smoke!!! You can totally do this!

Just a few thoughts about a few issues (probably random, like this title)

Tiny Rant #1
A news story this morning said that bribing people to quit smoking might be the best way to get a person to quit forever. This was a finding by a study in the UK. I'm not sure, really, how I feel about this. I mean, no one ever offered to give me a penny to quit smoking. Instead, I had to dig down deep and make it happen. The financial reward came when I realized the amount of money I was saving by not buying cigarettes every week. That savings, though, is HUGE! Also, my concern is that once the financial incentive is gone, will the person decide it's no longer worth the effort to quit?

Tiny Rant #2
Supporting people who are quitting smoking sucks. People who don't smoke don't understand, and people who DO smoke are way too deep in their own addiction to be supportive. Pretty much, it feels like the only people who truly GET quitters are those who are quitting themselves. I will admit, however, that a few weeks ago, I'd had enough of beginning quitters. I couldn't understand why they couldn't just buck up and quit; after all, that's how I quit.

Then I went back and re-read some of my early posts to the Livestrong Community. I said very, very similar things to what these newbies were saying. I had very nearly forgotten already, after 9 months, what those first few days were like. For that, I apologize. We need to work together and help each other with our quits, no matter if we are 1 day or 12 years quit. We need support, but we also need to provide support when we're strong enough to stand up again.

Tiny Rant #3
I hate e-cigs. Yep. I hate them. I hate the way they look. I hate what they stand for. I hate that they make people believe they aren't strong enough to quit on their own. I hate them. I keep getting asked about e-cigs, and because I'm a firm believer in the philosophy "your quit, your rules," I tell people that they should quit how they feel most comfortable. If they want an e-cig and it's going to help them quit pumping the vile concoction that is a cigarette, by all means, use it!

Inside, though, I hate them. I want people to understand the only thing holding them back from quitting is fear. Quitting is a scary thing but is completely manageable. You do not have to be a slave to nicotine just because you're afraid. Honestly, I quit smoke out of fear of cancer, fear of amputation, fear of stroke, fear of smothering myself to my sleep because I couldn't catch my breath. That's scary.

How do we conquer fear? Sometimes, we just have to face it head on and look at it from every direction. Becoming educated about nicotine addiction is the first step to truly quitting forever. Education is critical. That's why I keep mentioning whyquit.com.

So, those are my tiny rants of the day. Whew! Feels good to get that out of my system!

Everyone Loves These Cats

The Cat Gang. It's like a criminal gang, only softer, cuter, and infinitely more insane.

My Cigarette, My Friend by Joel Spitzer

This is one of the most powerful posts I've ever read about smoking and nicotine addiction. I'll post the link here for your convenience. Please read this post and think about how smoking takes over every aspect of your life. I didn't truly realize how much my addiction took over my life until I wrote my own smoking history. If you can, document your history, as well. It will uncover a multitude of reasons on why you should stay quit.

Have a great Monday, ya'll!

http://whyquit.com/whyquit/joelcigfriend.html

Disorientation After Quitting: What to Expect...

My Smoking History

I don't know why I started smoking. There is absolutely no good reason for me to have ever started smoking in the first place. I smoked my first cigarette in the summer before my sophomore year in college. I was 19 years old. It was a miracle I didn't start sooner. All of my cousins and my sister began smoking years before I did. I always thought that if I made it to 18 without smoking, I would never begin. I was wrong. I was at a party and a friend put a cigarette in my mouth and said, "Smoke up!" And, unfortunately, I did as I was told. Within two weeks, I was smoking at a pack per day.

And I smoked for the next 23 years. I tried to quit every now and then, but one thing about me is that I don't quit anything very easily. If I do something, I do it to the fullest of my ability. I never just smoked one or two every now and then; no, I smoked full on as much as I possibly could, no matter what I was doing. I smoked in my house, in my car, at work, drinking, sober, first thing in the morning, last thing at night. I was dedicated to my addiction.

Then, the anti-smoking laws began. I started paying attention to when and how I was smoking. Meanwhile, I moved to Denton, Texas and adopted two white kittens named Bailey and Baxter. And, yes, I still smoked in my house. I noticed one day that my beautiful white kittens had become yellow and asthmatic. They wheezed and coughed as much as I did. Finally, I made the call to stop smoking in my house. That was in 1999.

I got my teaching certificate, began teaching, and decided I could no longer smoke during the day. So, I started wearing a nicotine patch. I would smoke 4 cigarettes before I put it on, then put on the patch and wore it all day, until I got home around 5 in the afternoon. In the evening, I would smoke at least the rest of a pack. I did this until 2008, when I decided to stop smoking in my car and decided I no longer needed the patch. So. Get this. I spent money on cigarettes AND patches!!! For years!

When I quit the patch, I did not smoke during the day. From 6:30 in the morning until I got home at night, I did not smoke. I put myself through the first 10 hours of nicotine addiction every single day. Talk about self abuse.

 Meanwhile, my cat Baxter was diagnosed with lung cancer. The vet said that this kind of cancer occurs in cats whose owners smoke around them. I told him I hadn't smoke around my cat in years, and he said more than likely that didn't matter. The damage was already done. Baxter died 6 months after the diagnosis. Crushed, guilty, horrified. And I continued to smoke.

Somewhere in there, I tried Chantix, quit for about a month, but the medicine made me feel like dementors (yes, a Harry Potter reference) were in the room constantly. I decided I would rather smoke than put up with that crap.

Cigarettes, meanwhile, continued to go up and up in price. I was spending $55 to $60 per week on cigarettes and was having a pretty serious financial crisis. I couldn't afford to spend money to go to the dentist. Couldn't afford to spend money to go to the doctor, or travel to see my family, but by god, I could spend money for my cigarettes!

When I finally went to the doctor, I was diagnosed with chronic bronchitis, bordering on COPD. My blood pressure was around 160/100. I was in stroke territory. My health was a ridiculous mess; I was a ridiculous mess.

I decided on June 12, 2013 that I was done. No more. And I quit. 10 days on nicotine lozenges. The rest completely cold turkey. Did I mention how stubborn I am?

So, there's the whole story of my nicotine addiction. I'm sure more will come out later. I think that's enough for now...

Saturday Nights, Drinking, and Your Quit

The destruction of many quits has its roots in the seemingly innocent routine of going out with friends for a few drinks. I've read countless posts on livestrong.com from people who just went out for a few drinks to "test the waters" then ended up smoking "just one." Here's the problem: there is never just one cigarette. That one cigarette leads to another, which leads to another, all the way down the road to a pack per day smoker in no time. The best advice I've ever read is summed up in the acronym NOPE: Not One Puff Ever.

I don't suggestion you never go out and abandon all your friends during your quit, but I do recommend you exercise caution. Have an exit strategy on hand. Plan on monitoring your alcohol intake because alcohol destroys your resolve when taken in mass quantities. Another thing learned from livestrong.com: PROTECT YOUR QUIT AT ALL COSTS! Remember that you are fighting for your life. If you are tempted to light up, remember why you are quitting. Go back, look at your reasons for quitting, and then decide if taking a smoke is really what you want to do. Try to use logic when you are tempted. Logic will tell you the sheer illogical nature of smoking. Why are you tempted? Is there something you could do instead of smoking? Do you really want to pump 4000 chemicals into your system?

If you need to leave, because your logic failed you, then by all means leave the bar immediately. Your true friends will understand. Remember in my post on communities I mentioned the importance of letting your friends know about your quit? This is why. Your friends will honor your decision to quit because they WANT YOU TO LIVE LONGER!!!! No one wants to visit you in the chemo ward of a hospital, as you're coughing and gasping for air. Instead, they would much rather miss out on your company at the bar during your quit for a few weeks, then welcome you back with open arms once you're strong enough to drink AND be around smoke without going insane.

You owe it to yourself, your friends, and your family to stay strong. If you are going out tonight, just be safe, have an exit plan handy, and above all remember: NOPE!!!!