Reasons to quit smoking

[kittygilchrist]

Death comes 10 years sooner...
this is to help smokers face reality..
wanna add to the thread?

[redwitch]

You stink (literally). (And I still smoke!)

[CFrance]

I think that all smokers realize the chances they are taking with their health. I can't imagine that anyone who watches television hasn't run across all the reasons one should not smoke. That said, it is a terrible addiction and so hard to break--I know from experience, having quit four times before it finally stuck.

I started on a bet in college. I won the bet but ironically, I lost. My best wishes and prayers for anyone struggling with overcoming this addiction.

Quitting smoking is lifting a hundred-pound weight off your back.

[tainsley]

Smelly clothes, anxiety, Emphysema, cancer, departing The Villages sooner rather than later!

[Golfingnut]

Not only does it take away years of life, It starts by removing quality of life years before they kill you.

[Lark7]

I must admit that I did not quit smoking for health concerns; rather, 14 years ago, I quit because I was just tired of the smell. It is one of the more difficult things I have done.

[kittygilchrist]

Smoking Effects Pictures Slideshow: How Smoking Affects Your Looks and Life on MedicineNet.com (http://www.medicinenet.com/smoking_effects_pictures_slideshow/article.htm)

slideshow of twin smokers and nonsmokers, effect of smoking on facial skin, and who knew it has an effect on collagen that causes sagging all over the body.

[asianthree]

i quit in 1988 but i still understand why some can't quit

[kittygilchrist]

Lung Cancer Pictures (http://www.squidoo.com/lung-cancer-pictures)
Excellent video of lung and arterial damage, click on item 1.

Motivation to change can come from seeing the truth in a graphic way.

[KathieI]

My motivation came from watching my beautiful mother totally destroyed at the young age of 63, all from smoking... The cancer was so aggressive that she didn't stand a chance and lasted a short 3 months of torment, torturous pain, taking her from a beautiful, charming, professional, fun loving woman to a mass of tumors coming from all parts of her body. My only comment about her death has been that HITLER shouldn't have died this way. No one deserved it.

Thankfully, I smoked but was never addicted and had no problem quitting. The memories of her took many years to pass by where I could remember her as the beautiful woman again.

I'm sorry to be so blunt and maybe its TMI but I'm very passionate about this and would love to see everyone quit - although I do believe its your right if you want to, but don't do it around me.

[kittygilchrist]

Thanks Kathie,
Both my parents died early after years of smoking, one from stroke, the other from heart failure. Mother said "Smoking doesn't hurt you, that research is people trying to make a living". She quit after her heart stopped and she had a triple bypass.

Article on smoking rots the brain...BBC News - Smoking 'rots' brain, says King's College study (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-20463363)
Increased risk of dementia..
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-11622484

[scrapple]

There are so many health reasons to quit, we know them all and know the results of not quitting. Then there is the cost of cigarettes. Who really can afford to burn (I honestly don't know what a ppd is anymore, just the $6.99 I see at gas stations). Then there's the smell, and the shame. For me, I wanted to have control over at least some portion of my life. After >30 years of a ppd habit, and 4 quits, I needed to finally get the monkey off my back. And that was 10/05/2007. I know if I ever have one, I'll be right back where I started, so, one day at a time! Good luck everyone!

[kittygilchrist]

One, the first one, is the only one you have to resist.
Besides that, here's the effect of one on lungs.


unable to post link...it's youtube.com/watch?v=5BpxwRGVGdc

[obxgal]

I as a smoker do not need a lot of "do gooders" once again starting a thread on the evils of smoking.

[Happinow]

Just today, my 72 year old mother in law was diagnosed with breast cancer. She smokes like a chimney, looks like a hundred miles of bad road and you would swear she was 90, although I've seen many, many 90 year olds look great! Hubby has tried for years to talk her out of smoking and her response was " let me die the way I want to." So, I don't have much sympathy for her. She has chosen her path.

[memason]

I as a smoker do not need a lot of "do gooders" once again starting a thread on the evils of smoking.

I agree...anyone who smokes, know the "potential" consequences of those actions. No one needs a reminder from....oh well, nevermind.

[OnTrack]

I as a smoker do not need a lot of "do gooders" once again starting a thread on the evils of smoking.

I'm thinking that a lot of those same people, would be better served concentrating on the "evils" of obesity....and learning to push that plate away a little sooner.


Obesity VS. Smoking (poke here) (http://healthnews.ediets.com/health-topics/obesity-more-dangerous-than-smoking.html)

Smoking has long been considered the greatest modifiable risk factor affecting longevity and quality of life, but it looks like obesity may now be an even greater threat to the health of Americans.

In the the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, researchers from Columbia University and The City College of New York calculate that the quality of life and years lost due to obesity are now equal to or greater than those lost due to smoking.


.

[kittygilchrist]

As a graduate of master's program in 2001 with a course in management of change, I wanted this thread to offer the graphic truth to those/we who would prefer to see reality rather than to stay in denial.
K.
ps if you want to post another thread opposing people wanting to quit, or nobody needs to hear this, or obesity is worse, please go ahead. this thread might not be the best place for your comments...this is a support thread, and undermining of good intention is not appropriate.

[railroadman]

As a graduate of master's program in 2001 with a course in management of change, this thread offers the graphic truth to those/we who would prefer to see reality rather than to stay in denial.
K.
ps if you want to post another thread opposing people wanting to quit, or nobody needs to hear this, or obesity is worse, please go ahead. this thread might not be the best place for your comments...this is a support thread, and undermining of good intention is not appropriate.

My best friend is my doctor. He recently told me, the good lord will give you the first 50 years, the second 50 years, you have to work for it.

Just got back from the gym, because at my age it takes a lot of work, to keep in shape!

[kittygilchrist]

My best friend is my doctor. He recently told me, the good lord will give you the first 50 years, the second 50 years, you have to work for it.

Just got back from the gym, because at my age it takes a lot of work, to keep in shape!

thank you! I feel most alive after a swim, when the heart and lungs are pumping!

[kittygilchrist]

Reasons to quit:
My son has his late grandmother's initials tattooed on his arm. Her non-smoking siblings are alive and well...he'd far prefer her arms around him than her initials in her memory.
I'd like my arms around my grandchildren when they come, for as long as that is possible.

[kittygilchrist]

I as a smoker do not need a lot of "do gooders" once again starting a thread on the evils of smoking.

I quit 16 hours ago. I'm doing good to myself. Nothing to do with you.

[graciegirl]

I quit 16 hours ago. I'm doing good to myself. Nothing to do with you.

Feel this hug.

Prayers too.

[graciegirl]

i quit in 1988 but i still understand why some can't quit

Me too. It is very hard.

[kittygilchrist]

I agree...anyone who smokes, know the "potential" consequences of those actions. No one needs a reminder from....oh well, nevermind.

Oh well, nevermind quitting? I am doing this for myself, not reminding anybody, but simply putting the facts undeniably in front of my eyes and hoping for support. Your assumptions are incorrect, and your compassion is the opposite of support, which is what this thread is about. Why you bothered to post only you can examine in yourself. You irritated my effort, but I am determined.

[kittygilchrist]

Me too. It is very hard.

I would say I love you Grace, but everyone's first words about you are "I love her", so I'm in line shouting out for you. thanks...

[kittygilchrist]

I'm thinking that a lot of those same people, would be better served concentrating on the "evils" of obesity....and learning to push that plate away a little sooner.


Obesity VS. Smoking (poke here) (http://healthnews.ediets.com/health-topics/obesity-more-dangerous-than-smoking.html)




.

Ontrack, I'm not obese. I'm quitting smoking. Can you think of a reason you can help me with....I need all the worst news I can get about it. Smokers are in denial. support???

[kittygilchrist]

http://http://www.journalnow.com/business/business_news/local/article_cb836c3c-ab6e-11e2-a089-001a4bcf6878.html

Graphic images make the destruction undeniably real. May I say gently to those who think everyone knows, so why put any new thing out there, that addicts don't embrace the reality, they/we deny it. Putting the destructive images on the package is coming and already in place in UK, because graphics in your face results on smoking have more impact than animations and lengthy research articles have for most of us, even scholars.
I'm ready for any support, your story, can read in depth text or graphics. I ask you please not to post opposing or confronting my effort.
Kitty

[kittygilchrist]

You stink (literally). (And I still smoke!)

thanks, Dee. Yes, I stank until 8 a.m. yesterday. I care about you...but that's not about smoking. Very nice to meet you.
Kitty

[mainlander]

Kitty this may sound overly simplistic yet it has worked for me (quite some time ago) and others who have used it. Just keep reminding yourself "I am not a smoker", "I don't smoke" and be absolute in that saying. Soon you will believe it and act accordingly, works for other habits as well. No use in filling your head with all the evils, etc. just inscribe this on your mind; "I don't smoke".

[kittygilchrist]

Smelly clothes, anxiety, Emphysema, cancer, departing The Villages sooner rather than later!

yes! that's what I want to hear...real life reasons to quit.
thanks....
Kitty

[kittygilchrist]

Mainlander, Your suggestion is welcome, most welcome. I had that mindset six months ago, but tobacco was a salve for extreme situational anxiety.
Perhaps you are a professional? hypnotist? I need that conscious mental focus you suggest, and I'll meditate to make it deeper in the psyche.
thank you for a free consult,
Kitty

[kittygilchrist]

My best friend is my doctor. He recently told me, the good lord will give you the first 50 years, the second 50 years, you have to work for it.

Just got back from the gym, because at my age it takes a lot of work, to keep in shape!

thanks RRman, I'm starting to swim and it feels really good to huff and puff and have sore muscles. you go guy!

[kittygilchrist]

Feel this hug.

Prayers too.

oh yeah. needed that....

[kittygilchrist]

I'm quitting no matter who says what. I'm out here because it is a strategy to quit to embarrass myself if I don't. Several people posted hostile comments on this thread based on erroneous assumptions about my motivation or about how one quits. For you, I hope you will examine your hearts for the need to derail my genuine effort.
Your posts against providing support were a challenge. I am rising above that.
Kitty

[OnTrack]

I'm quitting no matter who says what. I'm out here because it is a strategy to quit to embarrass myself if I don't. Several people posted hostile comments on this thread based on erroneous assumptions about my motivation or about how one quits. For you, I hope you will examine your hearts for the need to derail my genuine effort.
Your posts against providing support were a challenge. I am rising above that.
Kitty
A comment in the original post about it being you quitting, would probably have mitigated the impression of it being open season to dump on smokers. :shrug:

Good luck. :thumbup:

.

[memason]

I agree...anyone who smokes, know the "potential" consequences of those actions. No one needs a reminder from....oh well, nevermind.

In light of new information, my previous post [above] was inappropriate.

[graciegirl]

Because I have stood by the coffins of three people this last two years that our family DEARLY loved who died from lung cancer and who smoked.

Two dear folks on this forum died too probably from complications from smoking.

You asked. I am not judgmental about this and I think the older we are the harder it is and folks may need more than just will power. Perhaps a medical doctor and counseling.

I am wishing you strength, Kitty.

[kittygilchrist]

In light of new information, my previous post [above] was inappropriate.

You're my friend, Mike. 24 hours now. woohoo!

[kittygilchrist]

A comment in the original post about it being you quitting, would probably have mitigated the impression of it being open season to dump on smokers. :shrug:

Good luck. :thumbup:

.

It is never open season unless your gun is a loose cannon.

[manaboutown]

Kitty, perhaps you could find a support group to join. That might be helpful since you would not feel alone in your attempt.

[kittygilchrist]

Kitty, perhaps you could find a support group to join. That might be helpful since you would not feel alone in your attempt.

Man, I appreciate that. This IS my support group. Gotta meet you. Yell when you come to town.
25 hours.
Kitty

[kittygilchrist]

http://http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/03/28/cdc-anti-smoking-ads/2018121/ (http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/03/28/cdc-anti-smoking-ads/2018121/)
graphic reality can help change the stupidity of knowing but denying reality...I quit.
this is the story behind the ad we've all seen on telly.

[kittygilchrist]

You stink (literally). (And I still smoke!)

Dee, I quit 26 hours ago....I'm unstinkable! thanks for your post girlfriend.
Kitty

[rayschic]

Dee, I quit 26 hours ago....I'm unstinkable! thanks for your post girlfriend.
Kitty

Congrats on making it thru DAY 1.
I think you should commit to posting your progress each day at the same time....making you accountable to all your supporters on TOTV. ( It really helps) Also, there are several free apps to help quit smoking that you might want to look at. Also look at meditation apps....some are really good.
Good luck. I'm rooting for you.

[CFrance]

Okay, here are some non health-related reasons to quit smoking: 1. You won't have to know where your purse is every single moment of the day. 2. It is so inconvenient to smoke anymore, as almost nowhere in public is it allowed 3. You will no longer feel the ill-disguised disapproval of other people, making you feel like a second-class citizen. 4. Your dog will no longer be subjected to secondhand smoke when, hearing that "certain" kitchen drawer open, he comes running, knowing "we" are going out to the garage for a ciggyboo. (He won't smell like smoke, either.)

I felt so free after I quit.

Patches! I suggest patches! I wore them off and on for a year. At the end I was cutting them into little bits, until finally I felt I no longer needed them. I didn't care that you were only supposed to use them for so many weeks. I did whatever it took.

another thing: don't start a project that, in the middle of which, you would normally take a ciggy break. Like painting a room, cleaning a closet, etc. If you need distraction, do something entirely new that you've never associated smoking with.

Good luck! You are a lovely lady, Kitty!

[John_W]

I thank the person who invented the drug 'Chantax'. I was a chain smoker from 1970 until 2006, I smoked 2-1/2 packs a day. I had quit twice for six months but had given up coffee and beer both times, and regressed as soon as that first beer.

My doctor gave me a prescription for Chantax in December 2006. I got it filled only to make my wife happy. I had no intentions at the time to quit smoking. Within five days I never touched another cigarette. Unlike most aides, this drug contains no nicotine. It blocks the receptors in the brain that grave nicotine.

Since then, my life has totally changed. I doubt I would be living in TV if I hadn't quit, what's the incentive. Now, I make sure I do some form of exercise everyday, whether it's working out, which I'm in the middle of right now, play golf, play softball or go for a walk.

If you really want to quit, get the prescription. The only negative is since it is playing games on the brain, Chantax may cause nightmares, which is what happened to me. However, when you are able to quit cigarettes, you're willing to put up with that during the short time the drug is needed. 30 days is all I took of Chantx. That was six years ago.

[CFrance]

I thank the person who invented the drug 'Chantax'. I was a chain smoker from 1970 until 2006, I smoked 2-1/2 packs a day. I had quit twice for six months but had given up coffee and beer both times, and regressed as soon as that first beer.

My doctor gave me a prescription for Chantax in December 2006. I got it filled only to make my wife happy. I had no intentions at the time to quit smoking. Within five days I never touched another cigarette. Unlike most aides, this drug contains no nicotine. It blocks the receptors in the brain that grave nicotine.

Since then, my life has totally changed. I doubt I would be living in TV if I hadn't quit, what's the incentive. Now, I make sure I do some form of exercise everyday, whether it's working out, which I'm in the middle of right now, play golf, play softball or go for a walk.

If you really want to quit, get the prescription. The only negative is since it is playing games on the brain, Chantax may cause nightmares, which is what happened to me. However, when you are able to quit cigarettes, you're willing to put up with that during the short time the drug is needed. 30 days is all I took of Chantx. That was six years ago.

John, the patches caused nightmares too. But it was worth it. I would suggest getting any help available--try it all! Chantax didn't help me, but the patches did. so I guess I needed that little jolt of nicotine. My friend used chantax. I am happy it helped you, and maybe it would help Kitty, too. You never know until you try.

[kittygilchrist]

Okay, here are some non health-related reasons to quit smoking: 1. You won't have to know where your purse is every single moment of the day. 2. It is so inconvenient to smoke anymore, as almost nowhere in public is it allowed 3. You will no longer feel the ill-disguised disapproval of other people, making you feel like a second-class citizen. 4. Your dog will no longer be subjected to secondhand smoke when, hearing that "certain" kitchen drawer open, he comes running, knowing "we" are going out to the garage for a ciggyboo. (He won't smell like smoke, either.)

I felt so free after I quit.

Patches! I suggest patches! I wore them off and on for a year. At the end I was cutting them into little bits, until finally I felt I no longer needed them. I didn't care that you were only supposed to use them for so many weeks. I did whatever it took.

another thing: don't start a project that, in the middle of which, you would normally take a ciggy break. Like painting a room, cleaning a closet, etc. If you need distraction, do something entirely new that you've never associated smoking with.

Good luck! You are a lovely lady, Kitty!
Thanks so much Cyndy, you are in the know...I felt so guilty when Emma wanted to be loved on and the smoke made her sneeze. very helpful post.
Kitty
ps the sunflowers are sagging but I still love them...:mademyday:

[kittygilchrist]

Congrats on making it thru DAY 1.
I think you should commit to posting your progress each day at the same time....making you accountable to all your supporters on TOTV. ( It really helps) Also, there are several free apps to help quit smoking that you might want to look at. Also look at meditation apps....some are really good.
Good luck. I'm rooting for you.

I take your post to heart. I will do as you suggest re posting. thanks for the reminder to meditate, I KNEW that, but now I'll do it.
Kitty

[kittygilchrist]

I thank the person who invented the drug 'Chantax'. I was a chain smoker from 1970 until 2006, I smoked 2-1/2 packs a day. I had quit twice for six months but had given up coffee and beer both times, and regressed as soon as that first beer.

My doctor gave me a prescription for Chantax in December 2006. I got it filled only to make my wife happy. I had no intentions at the time to quit smoking. Within five days I never touched another cigarette. Unlike most aides, this drug contains no nicotine. It blocks the receptors in the brain that grave nicotine.

Since then, my life has totally changed. I doubt I would be living in TV if I hadn't quit, what's the incentive. Now, I make sure I do some form of exercise everyday, whether it's working out, which I'm in the middle of right now, play golf, play softball or go for a walk.

If you really want to quit, get the prescription. The only negative is since it is playing games on the brain, Chantax may cause nightmares, which is what happened to me. However, when you are able to quit cigarettes, you're willing to put up with that during the short time the drug is needed. 30 days is all I took of Chantx. That was six years ago.

thank you so much for sharing what worked for you. feeling alive in the workout is something I'm working towards by swimming and dancing. Doing the opposite of killing oneself feels really good. I've been smoking 6 months and already have nightmares, but I think they come FROM knowing I was sawing off the limb I clung to.
Especially thank you for the exercise encouragement...great post. thanks,
Kitty:ho:

[pooh]

I don't smoke, but wanted to offer my congratulations on the first day of your new life without cigarettes! :a040::a040::a040:

[kittygilchrist]

Woot to you too Pooh, and what a loveable character you are!

[kittygilchrist]

This is my son, Will, age 33, on a trip we made to my bro's in NC.
He just called to tell me how the elderly neighbor's cows got out and how he rounded them up and fixed her fence. I'm so proud of him...a great soul.
I brought him up with bedtime stories of his being a hero on a tractor called "Big Red"...that could fly and do his bidding in magical adventures of rescue.
Why quit? look at him...
Kitty

[pooh]

A comment in the original post about it being you quitting, would probably have mitigated the impression of it being open season to dump on smokers. :shrug:

Good luck. :thumbup:

.

Remember what forum the original post is in.....Support Groups....a section where members hopefully help and encourage other members to deal with or face difficulties, be they physical, mental or spiritual.

[kittygilchrist]

Ontrack has PM'd me his support...hurray! Everybody is on my team!

[kittygilchrist]

http://http://www.quittingsmokingstopsmoking.com/82/developing-a-bloody-nose-after-quitting-smoking/
really, nosebleed and quitting...I'm feeling weepy at 30 hours, but not bleeding...going out tonight! staying up past my bedtime.
K.

[OnTrack]

Ontrack has PM'd me his support...hurray! Everybody is on my team!

Real and honest people, with integrity and ethics.....deserve support. :thumbup:

.

[scrapple]

I'm quitting no matter who says what. I'm out here because it is a strategy to quit to embarrass myself if I don't. Several people posted hostile comments on this thread based on erroneous assumptions about my motivation or about how one quits. For you, I hope you will examine your hearts for the need to derail my genuine effort.
Your posts against providing support were a challenge. I am rising above that.
Kitty

Hey Kitty!
Kudos to you to be out with your decision. I posted reasons earlier because it truly is a struggle. Now I'll tell you what was helpful for me. Find a quit buddy. My brother in Wi and I did it together. I used chantix. Yes, many have bad dreams. Me on the other hand, had really vivid funny ones! I picked a date beforehand and made all my preparations. I probably had about a half carton left the night before my quit. I gathered a few friends around me and burned the suckers in a grill. I spoke to how they helped me at times in life, what a good friend they were but now I moved on (I know, sounds hokey, but it was really helpful). I smoked some while I did this, said what I was not going to miss with each one. 20 cigs to a pack x 4-6 packs-- it was a cathartic process. By the end I was crumbling them and burning them and really wanted that part to be over. Then I hung up a few meaningful pictures (being the visual person that I am). One was the silhouette of Keith Richards with the cigarette hanging out of his mouth and smoke twirling up. The other was the Marlboro Man riding off into the sunset with his cowboy buddy saying: "I miss my lungs, Bob." Then there was a drawing that a 7 year old girl that I camped with made for me that summer and finally a lung velocity test that I volunteered for and marginally passed. I also joined a website Quit Smoking All Together: the Web's Largest Quit Smoking Community (http://www.quitnet.com) which was very helpful. The actual Big Day was a Friday so after work, decided to face my demons, made my self my favorite alcoholic beverage, sat in my favorite spot outside where I would have my Friday afterwork cocktail and taught myself to crochet! I made some pretty ugly scarves those first few months but it all worked. I often thought of picking one up every now and then and for whatever reason, that quit worked for me :where the others didn't in the past. You can always post mail me if you need to. I don't get on every day but will respond to you when I can. Best of luck!

[OnTrack]

Hey Kitty!
Kudos to you to be out with your decision. I posted reasons earlier because it truly is a struggle. Now I'll tell you what was helpful for me. Find a quit buddy. My brother in Wi and I did it together. I used chantix. Yes, many have bad dreams. Me on the other hand, had really vivid funny ones! I picked a date beforehand and made all my preparations. I probably had about a half carton left the night before my quit. I gathered a few friends around me and burned the suckers in a grill. I spoke to how they helped me at times in life, what a good friend they were but now I moved on (I know, sounds hokey, but it was really helpful). I smoked some while I did this, said what I was not going to miss with each one. 20 cigs to a pack x 4-6 packs-- it was a cathartic process. By the end I was crumbling them and burning them and really wanted that part to be over. Then I hung up a few meaningful pictures (being the visual person that I am). One was the silhouette of Keith Richards with the cigarette hanging out of his mouth and smoke twirling up. The other was the Marlboro Man riding off into the sunset with his cowboy buddy saying: "I miss my lungs, Bob." Then there was a drawing that a 7 year old girl that I camped with made for me that summer and finally a lung velocity test that I volunteered for and marginally passed. I also joined a website Quit Smoking All Together: the Web's Largest Quit Smoking Community (http://www.quitnet.com) which was very helpful. The actual Big Day was a Friday so after work, decided to face my demons, made my self my favorite alcoholic beverage, sat in my favorite spot outside where I would have my Friday afterwork cocktail and taught myself to crochet! I made some pretty ugly scarves those first few months but it all worked. I often thought of picking one up every now and then and for whatever reason, that quit worked for me :where the others didn't in the past. You can always post mail me if you need to. I don't get on every day but will respond to you when I can. Best of luck!

Very kewl. :thumbup:

.

[obxgal]

I quit 16 hours ago. I'm doing good to myself. Nothing to do with you.

Please accept my apology for my previous post. If I were aware that you were talking about quitting smoking I would have never posted in your thread.

When you started the thread in the manner you did, it was like waving a red flag in front of a bull. There are some pretty awful remarks about us "evil" smokers already on the board. You are correct it has nothing to do with me, again my apology.

Kudos to you.

[CFrance]

Please accept my apology for my previous post. If I were aware that you were talking about quitting smoking I would have never posted in your thread.

When you started the thread in the manner you did, it was like waving a red flag in front of a bull. There are some pretty awful remarks about us "evil" smokers already on the board. You are correct it has nothing to do with me, again my apology.

Kudos to you.
I think Pooh hit the nail on the head by pointing out that Kitty's original post was in the support group category. Most of us just head to the bottom of the home page, to "most recent posts." I think some of the responders didn't realize that this was in the support group category, and erroneously assumed it might be an attack on smokers.

Thanks to Pooh for pointing out what category Kitty posted in. She doesn't need to be slammed, and I'm glad all have realized she was just asking for support "in all the right places." And thanks to those who realized that and apologized for their original responses.

And Go Pirates. Oh, whoops... wrong category.:ohdear:

[Happinow]

Congratulations on your decision to quit smoking. I have never smoked but can relate to your struggle. I am addicted to sweets!!! Please keep us posted on your progress and when you are feeling weak or just need some encouragement, there are plenty of people on this forum who are willing to listen and give support. Stay strong and much success!!

[kittygilchrist]

Wow, It's been 72 hours. Woke feeling edgy with a fresh nightmare in mind. Enemies all over a house I was in, deceitful, menacing, finally pulling guns, knives, seemed a very long tiring dream and I was surviving and doing harm to the evil unkillables. Awoke exhausted. Thanks to all for your support esp to those who apologized.
I read back over these suggestions for support when I need an idea...like meditate NOW!
hugs,
Kitty

[Parker]

Good reason to quit? Mom died recently at age 82, after having quit 15 years earlier, after having smoked from teenage years to 70's. She was always afraid smoking would reach out and get her after all, and it did. She developed tonsil cancer which required radiation treatments, which destroyed her ability to eat and drink, which then required a tube placement in her stomach for hydration and nutrition. As she loved to cook and eat, one of her greatest pleasures was taken completely away. And I don't even mention the miserable aftermath of radiation to the neck.

She was such an active, positive woman. Vivacious, fun, kind, and my father's best buddy. But for smoking, she should have lived for many more high-quality years. It's the saddest thing in the world.

[kittygilchrist]

thank you Parker, that's the reality of smoking. my chainsmoking cousin died in his
50's of copd, gasping for breath thru his already dead lungs.

[Parker]

thank you Parker, that's the reality of smoking. my chainsmoking cousin died in his
50's of copd, gasping for breath thru his already dead lungs.

Kitty, your portrait is worth a thousand words. I'll be wishing you success on your quest. It isn't easy, but it is worth it. My sister is on the e-cigarette and thinks it is a Godsend.

[rayschic]

Wow, It's been 72 hours. Woke feeling edgy with a fresh nightmare in mind. Enemies all over a house I was in, deceitful, menacing, finally pulling guns, knives, seemed a very long tiring dream and I was surviving and doing harm to the evil unkillables. Awoke exhausted. Thanks to all for your support esp to those who apologized.
I read back over these suggestions for support when I need an idea...like meditate NOW!
hugs,
Kitty

Three days...Great job....Keep up the good work !

[kittygilchrist]

I am craving this morning. Glad for the tether of this thread to boost motivation thru potential embarrassment....breathe deeply please...

[kittygilchrist]

Kitty this may sound overly simplistic yet it has worked for me (quite some time ago) and others who have used it. Just keep reminding yourself "I am not a smoker", "I don't smoke" and be absolute in that saying. Soon you will believe it and act accordingly, works for other habits as well. No use in filling your head with all the evils, etc. just inscribe this on your mind; "I don't smoke".

Mainlander, I am no longer a smoker. I smoked for 6 months before and as I moved to TV. I'd like to say the moving made me insane, but that's an understatement! There could always be an excuse for smoking, but it's still just an addiction to a chemical...I quit!:wave:

[kittygilchrist]

Please accept my apology for my previous post. If I were aware that you were talking about quitting smoking I would have never posted in your thread.

When you started the thread in the manner you did, it was like waving a red flag in front of a bull. There are some pretty awful remarks about us "evil" smokers already on the board. You are correct it has nothing to do with me, again my apology.

Kudos to you.

I know you would have supported me if you knew my secret. I just wanted to see what would happen without me begging for support-- a little pride I guess. anyway, people can be awful about anything anytime...but you did a good thing with this post. heartfelt appreciation...you stepped up, most eloquently.
thanks,
Kitty

[kittygilchrist]

This is my son, Will, age 33, on a trip we made to my bro's in NC.
He just called to tell me how the elderly neighbor's cows got out and how he rounded them up and fixed her fence. I'm so proud of him...a great soul.
I brought him up with bedtime stories of his being a hero on a tractor called "Big Red"...that could fly and do his bidding in magical adventures of rescue.
Why quit? look at him...
Kitty

i'm reading over this thread to get all the goodie I can out of it for today, and my son Will's face is the most motivating, of all the nasty pix I posted of cancer, which the research says makes you jump out of the river of denial.
My eyes light up seeing my sweet son....You are enough reason to quit..
I love you baby,
Kitty

[kittygilchrist]

You stink (literally). (And I still smoke!)

Dee, wanna go see Iron Man 3???

[kittygilchrist]

Just today, my 72 year old mother in law was diagnosed with breast cancer. She smokes like a chimney, looks like a hundred miles of bad road and you would swear she was 90, although I've seen many, many 90 year olds look great! Hubby has tried for years to talk her out of smoking and her response was " let me die the way I want to." So, I don't have much sympathy for her. She has chosen her path.

Love to your mo-in-law, smoking was very sexy in the bogart movies day. who wouldn't want to do it? nobody knew that the snake had such a bite and denial of truth comes with the addiction.
I lost both my parents to tobacco. yet I started smoking again 6 months ago, we are in vessels of weak flesh.
I'm sorry that you are in this situation of loss that you are helpless to fix.
Maybe there IS nothing you can do. My mother refused to use oxygen and died from lack of it. It hurts...it really hurts.
Kitty

[tippyclubb]

Hi Kitty just interested in knowing if you succeeded in not smoking anymore? As a ex smoker of 40 years I understand how hard quitting can be. I hope you stayed strong and got that monkey off your back.

[kittygilchrist]

Yes, I quit.
It was not by any strength of my own. In church at, Grace Tabernacle I sensed God urging me to surrender the cigarettes. I handed them to a Pastor, and there was no craving after that, I was "done with it"...
thanks for asking.
Kitty

[Sable99]

Way to go Kitty! I've never smoked but I know it couldn't have been easy to quit. Keep up the good work!

[kittygilchrist]

Way to go Kitty! I've never smoked but I know it couldn't have been easy to quit. Keep up the good work!

and God bless you head to toe. I can't wait for you come here full time. What a lovely woman you are...and bless your family too.

[Sable99]

and God bless you head to toe. I can't wait for you come here full time. What a lovely woman you are...and bless your family too.

I can't wait either! Especially since we have so much snow and ice! And, we are suppose to get a lot more snow on Wednesday and again on Saturday! Will this winter eve end?.

[tippyclubb]

Yes, I quit.
It was not by any strength of my own. In church at, Grace Tabernacle I sensed God urging me to surrender the cigarettes. I handed them to a Pastor, and there was no craving after that, I was "done with it"...
thanks for asking.
Kitty

Oh I'm so happy to read this. I don't smoke anymore but do use the electronic e-cigs. I've been using them for two years and just about ready to give it up too.

Give yourself a huge pat on the back for quitting! Stay strong and don't give into temptation to smoke. Its a temporary urge and passes quickly.

[Country Dreamer]

I quit in 1992. I was attending a meeting at a friend's house. As soon as I walked in he said "you really should quit smoking. My mother has emphysema, and it is heartbreaking watching her struggle to breathe" to which I replied " how do you know I smoke? You never saw me with a cigarette". And he then told me it was obvious as soon as I walked in his house. I quit the next day. I didn't want to be infringing on other people's space with such an obvious smell.

The addiction caused me to make bad decisions, to not care about other people. There are many things in our lives we do not have control over, and so I decided to take back this part of my life.

I had tried many times before, but this time I succeeded. I hallucinated, I yelled at my family, I screamed at a toll taker, and then apologized telling him I had just quit smoking. Everyone was very supportive and endured until the cravings eventually subsided.

Stay busy, exercise, go to very long meetings and clubs that are fun and you know you can't smoke.

I am so grateful to not be a smoker.

YOU CAN DO IT!!!!!

[BarryRX]

Quote:
Originally Posted by asianthree
i quit in 1988 but i still understand why some can't quit
Me too. It is very hard.

I quit more than 20 years ago, and occasionally I STILL want a cigarette. When I was working as a pharmacist, I had the impression that Chantix was more effective than other smoking cessation methods. To those that want to quit, keep trying .....maybe next time it will stick!
__________________
I have to be myself, everyone else is taken.

[kittygilchrist]

Setting Captives Free - Online Courses (http://www.gracetab.org/207829)
this is a weblink to resource bible based how to get the emptiness filled once and for all in a way that is to your life, not to your destruction. I'm one of us.