Author |
Message |
Halfunit
Member
09-02-2001
| Thursday, March 18, 2004 - 7:08 pm
Yahoo Gracie!!! Congratulations!!! 
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Wendo
Member
08-07-2000
| Friday, March 19, 2004 - 12:14 pm
Whoa, I sure missplaced this thread. Congrats to everyone on their continued success in kicking the habit! Tashakinz 14 months! Go Landi, things do smell better (and worse)! Dahli three years! 56 days for Dipo! Ugrace over a year! And continued success for everyone, Juju, Half, etc. who support those of us still in our first year. I officially hit 54 days today. Lately, I've had dreams where I smoke and I'm like, Why am I smoking??? I quit! in the dream. LOL! Weird. LOL!
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Friday, March 19, 2004 - 9:08 pm
54 days is excellent, Dipo!
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Friday, March 19, 2004 - 9:21 pm
Ack! I mean Wendo! 
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Babyruth
Member
07-19-2001
| Friday, March 19, 2004 - 9:49 pm
Way to go, Gracie!!! Congratulations!! Yay to all the other TVCH former-smokers in this thread, too! WooHoo! 
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Urgrace
Member
08-19-2000
| Saturday, March 20, 2004 - 1:33 am
Thank you all and hang in there!
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Llkoolaid
Member
08-01-2001
| Sunday, March 21, 2004 - 4:22 pm
Just popping in to see how everyone is doing and I guess you are all doing great. Keep it up.
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Dipo
Member
04-23-2002
| Tuesday, March 30, 2004 - 1:02 am
Based on recent events (family event), I am very happy to say that I didn't even consider having a smoke, it is just not in my habits anymore. However, I do need some suggestions, I am going to be traveling with my sister by car and she smokes, I don't want to ask her to stop ( it is a time of high stress) I just need ideas to help me be strong. I don't think it will be an issue for me but I do want to have a plan in place, don't want to get blindsided by this event. I am proud to be a non smoker and want to stay that way. Oh, I just checked and I am at 69 days as of the 30th with no smoking, originally quit 1/9/04. yeah!!!!!
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Starfire
Member
02-12-2003
| Tuesday, March 30, 2004 - 6:04 am
Dipo when you and your sister are in the car just ask her if she would just stop every so often and get out of the car to smoke. Be honest and tell her you are trying to stay a non smoker and it would really help you. I am 2 1/2 yrs as a non smoker and I really don't like the smell of it. When I first quit I would really be able to smell the smoke on people. I was totaly shocked that I smelled like that. Congrats to everyone and keep up the good work! Signed a former addict (almost 3 pks. a day)
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Tuesday, March 30, 2004 - 11:19 am
Yep, Dipo, simple as what Starfire said. Just tell her you can't be in the car with somebody smoking anymore, but you are willing to stop every now and then for smoke breaks. Ask her how long she thinks she can go without a smoke and plan to try to hit rest stops on that schedule. If she can do two hours, that would be great, and you will be ready to stretch your legs by then anyway.
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Wendo
Member
08-07-2000
| Thursday, April 08, 2004 - 8:06 pm
Dipo, I'm going to agree with Starfire too. See if your sister is willing to stop to smoke rather than smoke in the car. So far, I haven't had to face this issue because, frankly, I drive my car most of the time and it's officially a non-smoking vehicle. Heh. One of my friends is a smoker (she was going to quit with me) and smokes in her car. When and if I'm in her car in the future, I'll likely take Starfire's advice and ask her not to while I'm in the car. If she says no, well, I'll drive my own car and meet her there. Though, I think she would do it. Hope everyone is doing well and staying strong. Haven't had any more smoking dreams, thank goodness. LOL! 74 days and counting...
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Cassie
Member
07-15-2000
| Thursday, April 08, 2004 - 8:16 pm
OK, I need help. I just have to quit smoking. I have asthma and in the past week have suffered a dreadful allergic reaction to something. Yesterday and today I experienced asthma attacks which put me in the hospital. I could hardly breath and my throat started closing along with hives and swelling in my hands and feet. Anyway, my pulmonologist wants me to be admitted to the hospital again tomorrow as the asthma and hives still continue despite prednisone, iv drugs w/adrenaline, nebulizer, etc. I feel so embarrassed because I still want to smoke even though trying it puts me into spasms. I know this addiction has put me in the beginning stages of copd (the asthma) yet I still continue. I don't know why I can't get to the point where I just say no. I've done it before twice but started back after 3 months when I felt good again. Any advice from those of you who have been successful. What did it take for you to put your health before the addiction? I don't chew gum or suck candy. To be honest, I just love drawing that smoke in and miss it like hell when I quit. Nothing seems to replace it for me.
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Wendo
Member
08-07-2000
| Thursday, April 08, 2004 - 8:44 pm
Cassie, I had surgery on my cervical spine. I had a herniated disc removed and a bone graft from my hip put in it's place. The bone graft, with the aid of a titanium plate and screws, should fuse with the vertebrae above and below it. My orthopedic surgeon told me that smoking could hinder and, worst case scenario, keep the area from fusing together. Since it was my neck/back area and if fusion failed, surgery will be required again. I figured, there's something I can do to aid in my healing properly and that was quitting smoking. As a 34 year old woman with a neck problem as well as some lower back problems, quitting smoking was something I knew I needed to do. Cassie, nothing will replace the smoke draw. Heck, I've missed that too. But, frankly, that's few and far between now. I hardly think about smoking anymore. What I did: Before my surgery I had a last smoke, threw anything smoking related into a garbage bag, and tossed it into the bin outside my apartment building. I just made the decision to quit and so far, I've stuck to it. The first 72 hours is the physical addiction. After that it's all emotional. Therefore, it's all up to you and your will power. I wish you luck as I know how difficult it is to quit.
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Cassie
Member
07-15-2000
| Friday, April 09, 2004 - 6:04 am
Thanks, Wendo and good for you on your quit. I'm going to see if I can get through today without one. Looks as though the allergic reaction is subsiding so I'm not going back into the hospital. So it's my choice today, not an enforced one not to smoke. Maybe that will work better for me. I'll let you know how I do.
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Friday, April 09, 2004 - 10:43 am
Cassie, seems to me you have no great choice in the matter. You are right now fighting for your life, and you BETTER make sure it is you that comes out the winner.
quote:To be honest, I just love drawing that smoke in and miss it like hell when I quit. Nothing seems to replace it for me.
Seems to me like drawing a breath at all would be a good replacement. Just plain BEING alive to TAKE a breath. And to continue being alive to do that, you have to give up the thing that is killing you, no matter how hard it seems. That said, and since you are under medical care, you might need more than what support we can give you here. Can the doctors put you on a medically supervised program? Got a local support group you can join? Cassie, you have to take drastic measures NOW. You HAVE to be a warrior. Good luck to you, Cassie. {{Cassie}}
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Landi
Member
07-29-2002
| Friday, April 09, 2004 - 11:37 am
i'm here to help. cassie, i watched my mother in law die a couple of years ago. she had emphysema so bad, but even with an oxygen tank she would not let go of the cigarettes. it got to a point she was hospitalized so many times, just because she couldn't get a breath. i have a husband who has asthma who finally after 26 years quit. he didn't realize that food tasted so good! i quit on my birthday, November 20, 2003 (national smokeout day). i can't begin to tell you how my daughter's health has been affected. she also has asthma. i do not. she hasn't had a single asthma episode, and no longer needs to use her inhaler. it wasn't my health, but my daughter's health that finally made me quit. i'm overweight, but now i climb stairs without huffing and puffing. i no longer have a hacking morning. the smell of things is what still overwhelms me. i thought oh i won't be able to take the smell of a cigarette from someone else smoking... BS!! now, i can't STAND the smell. i now know what people meant when they talked about "wet ashtrays". i started smoking in junior high at the age of 12. very sporadic smoker (one cigarette every few months - thinking i was cool). until i turned 21. 20 years later - i finally quit. i didn't smoke during my pregnancy (thankfully for my daughter). i couldn't stand the nauseousness. the main thing healthwise for me that has been accomplished is...the drop in my blood pressure. it's almost perfectly normal to a point i no longer have to take medication. now that the weather is getting nicer i'm starting to walk a little. what i'm trying to say cassie. i've seen what happens healthwise, from me, and from others. i see who i was. i see where i am now. and it's a NON SMOKER. i've done it. you can do it!! we are here to support you in your decision. obviously you don't want to smoke, or you wouldn't be asking for help. we are here to help. your health is dependent on it hon. use patches, gum, or ask the doctor for wellbutrin to help. you are making the first steps hon. we'll be here the entire journey.
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Cassie
Member
07-15-2000
| Friday, April 09, 2004 - 1:24 pm
Thank you both, Landi and Juju. I'm going to start Wellbutrin tomorrow. I have the gum but it tears my stomach up. Believe me, I'll take you up on your offer of support and appreciate it. I'll check in tomorrow and let you know how it's going. Thanks 
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Maris
Member
03-28-2002
| Friday, April 09, 2004 - 4:19 pm
Cassie, I have to tell you the only way that you can successfully quit smoking is if it is something you want to do. I have tried many times without success to quit smoking and the reason for my failure every time was that I loved smoking more than I wanted to quit. We can rationalize all we want about our health, the smell etc but you know as well as I do, it doesnt really mean a lot because we are addicts. We know it is bad for us. We dont need a doctor to tell us. I remember when my husband quit the first time, he used the patch and then would take the patch off to sneak a cigarette because he didnt want to overdose on nicotine (if you can believe that one). I will tell you this, once you have truly made the decision to quit, you will be surprised at how easy it can be. The first day is hell but every day gets easier and then next thing you know you are like me. I have been cigarette free for over two years now. So take the first step and do it because you want to do it. Good luck
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Rupertbear
Member
09-19-2003
| Friday, April 09, 2004 - 4:25 pm
Maris is 100% correct. There probably aren't that many smokers who actually quit for good on the first try. Never quit quitting though because your health and your life are the most important things you have. It's been ten years for me Cassie. It can be done if you believe in yourself and you ARE worth it 
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Cassie
Member
07-15-2000
| Friday, April 09, 2004 - 6:44 pm
Maris and Rupertbear, thanks for your posts. I know, Maris, that once I DO take that step, it is easier than you'd expect. My problem is just getting to the point where I'm disgusted at the cigarettes. (Right now, I'm just disgusted at me.) And I have no problem believing your husband removed the patch so he could smoke. I know all of the "tricks" we play and lies we tell ourselves. I never thought I'd say this, but when it comes to this addiction, I think Nancy Reagan had it right: Just say NO! And keep on saying it, and saying it, and saying it... I've been trying to figure out all day what is going on psychologically here with me. I'm a strong, intelligent, and very independent woman. I'm also very rebellious and I think the rebel in me is working against me because I'm being forced to do it. I'm trying to turn the rebel around to take on the white sticks and give them the big finger, resenting their control over me. Pffftt...I have a reluctant rebel tonight. Maybe I can rouse it tomorrow. Goddam it, I WILL prevail and hopefully, like you and Rupertbear, I can post here of my success in the future.
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Maris
Member
03-28-2002
| Friday, April 09, 2004 - 6:47 pm
That is the hardest part, getting to the point. In the end for me it was a money thing. When cigarettes went to five bucks and I was laid off, I knew it was a luxury I couldn't afford. I wish I could say it was a more noble reason that forced me to quit, but it came down to the dollars. now I sit here while cigarettes cost seven bucks a pack and calculate how much I am saving. lol. What ever works for you in quitting is what you go with.
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Halfunit
Member
09-02-2001
| Friday, April 09, 2004 - 8:17 pm
Cassie - you've received good advice here already! The only thing I can add is that I never believed it when people said, "If I can quit, so can you!" Now I say that phrase! After 20 years of a pack and a half a day, I quit! I've actually stopped keeping track of how long it's been - the Sunday before Thanksgiving of last year. Not even one cigarette. I used the Commit lozenges and Nicorette gum, trading off here and there. The gum seemed to work really well after eating meals. I am still using 2 lozenges a day, which should have ceased at the 12 week mark - so you can see that I'm not perfect, lol. BUT - I feel that it's the way for me as I haven't had one little puff since the day I quit. If I need a little help with a lozenge, so be it. It sure beats inhaling death. Good luck in whatever method you choose, and please let us know how you're doing! One of us will be around to help! If it helps, let the rebel in you come out - everytime you pass a store that sells them, give it the bird. Just make sure no one sees you do it, or they might misread your intended target!
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Saturday, April 10, 2004 - 2:34 pm
Hope you made it a day, Cassie. You have hit on the secret, or one of the secrets to quitting. It helps a lot to get REALLY angry at how those things control your life. As more and more places become non-smoking, it becomes more and more apparent how much the addiction controls what you are able to do. What used to kill me were training conferences at work, and they would give us ten minute breaks and we had to take an elevator down four floors to get outside where we could smoke. So at breaks, I had to choose whether to smoke, have a snack, check phone calls, or pee. Only had time to do one of those. I had to CHOOSE whether to have a smoke or PEE! How sad is that?!?
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Rupertbear
Member
09-19-2003
| Saturday, April 10, 2004 - 2:54 pm
Cassie.....think of some trip, item...reward....you would like to envision yourself receiving. With the money you save by not smoking...whatever that reward is...it will finally be within your grasp and you will get a double benefit. A healthier life and that Porsche you always wanted (k, so not a Porsche but what your little heart desires!)
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Wendo
Member
08-07-2000
| Saturday, April 10, 2004 - 4:20 pm
Cassie, I gotta agree with Maris about how one quits smoking when it's something they want to do. I know that, despite the surgery I was having, I was tired of smoking. The bad taste in my mouth when I went to sleep. The smell. The expense. Everything. I wanted to quit; I was ready to quit. Having the surgery was a bonus reason to also quit. I'll also say, I "quit" many times before this last time. Sometimes it lasted a day or two, other times an hour. Good luck!
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