m1k3

I finally bit the bullet last week and quit dipping snuff.

I had quit for 14 years and then last summer I thought I could have some just for vacation, right ? that works doesn't it ? you know, just for vacation ??



Well, 7 months later I am going through the hell of withdrawal again and I deserve it all. I was soooooo stupid to do that and think at the end of the week I would just walk away.



I'm through the detox, the nicotine is out of my system and even though I still feel somewhat crappy and agitated I'm starting to feel good about quitting.

Maybe this will remind me to stay clean for another 14 years.

Your friend,

m1k3

Oh yeah, to keep this somewhat on topic I am finding that program is helping quite a bit. I can recognize that the cravings are just cravings, I can choose not to react to them and do some breathing or slogan work to let go and let them fade out.

It has been an interesting experience in staying focused on the here and now and not getting caught up in the crazy thinking that I NEED some tobacco. I might want it, I might want it a lot, but I don't need it.

I am more that my thoughts and emotions, I am also more than my cravings.

Your friend,

firebolt

I know, I quit the cigis a year ago...then got stressed, and here I am, gearing up to quit again. Of ALL the mistakes I've made in life (and theres been A LOT), I consider cigarettes the worst. By far.

YAY - CONGRATS TO YOU! YOU CAN DO IT!

SparkleKitty

I have been cigarette-free since August 15, 2011 after a seemingly endless series of attempts to quit. I feel for you, my friend! Hang in there -- I know you know how good it feels when you've had it out of your system awhile. Best of luck to you and good for you for applying the lessons of recovery to this most difficult task.

Jazzman

Good for you Mike! You can do this.. you can do this..

I quit smoking.. I don't remember when but it was some time in 2006 or 2007 I think?
I was ready to quit and that made all the difference.

atalose

Inspirational!!!!

m1k3

Thanks for the support everyone.

Part of the reason I posted here was to make it known I was quitting.

Now I can't go back, that would be just wrong. I would feel like I was letting down all my friends here and that is just unthinkable.

Your friend,

Jazzman

I remember feeling a bit hypocritical for calling out Mel for her addiction to alcohol while feeding my nicotine addiction. Now if I could just beat my New York Super Fudge Chunk dependency I'd be free from all addictions!

wicked

Pshaw! I need that NYSFC! I work hard all day, I need it to relax! It is not an addiction! :rotfxko

Mike, that is amazing to stop smoking. I stopped about 3 and 1/2 years ago. After 35 years. Yikes. One hundred eighty dollars a month is a lot of money and makes a difference in my life.

I think it is a great idea to be accountable.

Beth

Jazzman

What problem? I can quit anytime I want. I only had two!

m1k3

Beth,

I didn't smoke, I dipped snuff. That's about as close as you can get to mainlining nicotine.

I can't believe I put that nasty stuff in my mouth.

Blah!

Your friend,

wicked

Snuff? Oh my, I think that is even tougher than smoking.

I remember when I was in the Army, when on a training mission, some guys would use snuff in the field.

No light.
I could not do it. Bleh is right.

Audrey1

I'm not sure about snuff, but I was an uber-hardcore chain smoker before I quit cold turkey in 2006. I fully agree with Jazzman that being ready to quit makes all the difference. I had never been ready before, had never tried to quit before, didn't want to, loved smoking, and was absolutely certain (and stupidly content) that I was a smoker through and through. And then one day something snapped and I had just had enough. Bizarre. I think the reason I haven't picked it up again since then has a lot to do with sheer stubbornness. I downright REFUSE to relapse!

m1k3

When I quit 15 years ago is was because my AW told me she would divorce me if I didn't.

Shakes head in wonder.

This time was different. I just got done putting a dip in and something in my head said "Quit Now!" That was it, I quit right at that moment. I guess my HP thought it was time to quit and who am I to argue?

Your friend,

CeciliaV

Good for you! I've been thinking about quitting smoking myself. I've been smoking on & off (mostly on) for almost 18 years now. I used to be a smoker-HATER - told myself I'd never even date a smoker, would be that person coughing loudly when walking behind a smoker, etc. Then one day, when I was 20 and going through a stressful time, I had a dream about smoking - that I was in a washroom at school and I saw a pack of smokes on a counter and just started. Well...believe it or not, the very next day, I was in the washroom at school and I'll be damned, I saw a pack of smokes on the counter - WOAH! I walked away, but I called a friend who I know was a smoker that afternoon to bum some smokes, and I started smoking a pack a day immediately. STUPIDEST thing I've ever done. I tapered back to about half a pack a day shortly after I started. I've quit twice I think - once for 6 months, once for 3 years. Started again about 4 years ago - "just" on weekends...and then there were leftovers on Mondays, and I didn't want to "waste" them, and then Friday-Monday bled into Tuesday...sigh, we all know where that ended up. Second stupidest thing I've ever done. And with all the stress in recent months, I'm back to approaching a pack a day. BLEH.

From the health perspective, I know I should quit. From a monetary perspective, I know I should quit (especially since I do the finances & also since the cost just went up $1 a pack here in Chicago, EEP!). But what's been eating at me lately is all the research I've been doing on addiction. Learning how substances (including nicotine) can change your brain chemistry, affect . It's been bothering me. I'm going to start with tapering down & limiting myself to no more than I had the day before (worked for me both times I quit), and I'm also considering hypnosis...although having seen Office Space, I am a little scared of hypnosis, lol! With all the stress and emotional roller coastering of late, I'm also a little scared of the "side effects" of quitting - I very clearly remember BAWLING for no reason the first time I quit. I had to lock myself in my office at work for an hour. It wasn't pretty.

Anywho...I guess this is my long-winded way of saying KUDOS and thanks for the inspiration. Keep up the good work!!

CeciliaV

Oh, and I looked up some tips on quitting smoking...as the wife of an AH in rehab for the second time, this one made me laugh:
"If possible, avoid stressful situations during the first few weeks after you stop smoking."
BAHAHAHAHA! Easier said than done!

LexieCat

You GO, Mike! I guess I never felt as desperate about quitting smoking as I did about quitting drinking. My recollection of the withdrawals the few times I have quit (and I think the longest I ever quit was about three months) is that they were pretty unpleasant. I'm a chain smoker, and it really is disgusting but SO hard to give up. I think quitting drinking was easier--though as I said, the desperation factor makes a big difference.

One of these days....

my3sonsnme

Ive started cutting back on the smokes yesterday, gearing up for my quit date. I quit for about a year and then when I caught my XAH with "that woman" I started back with a vengeance....Im a runner and it has really took a tole on me, I still run but cant like I use to and I just feel like crap.....hoping to be down to zero by the 9th. That would have been my 19th wedding anniversary...fitting for it to be my quit date...

lillamy

Mike,
The next time you feel like "I'll just get one can because I'm stressed right now" or "Oh, I'll quit again when I get back from vacation" -- will you do me a favor? PM me. And I promise you I'll tell you you're an idiot.

Signed,
Former co-dipper & nicotine addict who's made the same decision... a few times...

lillamy

Oh, and PS: Good on ya, mate!!!