How to quit Smoking
How I did it: Last year when I quit smoking, I used the drug Chantix. It gave me really weird dreams and I had to make sure to eat before taking the medication, but it was definitely worth it. I quit for 7 months, but I was always sneaking a cigarette here or there, and I had a secret pack hidden, just in case.
Well, this year, I decided to try Chantix again. I took it for the first week, while you're still allowed to smoke, and on my quit day, I did stop smoking. But this time I had really vivid dreams, and very scary dreams. Also, I started realizing how depressed I was getting, even when I was still smoking, As I have a personal history of clinical depression, I decided to quit the Chantix about 8 days into it. I wasn't sure I could quit without Chantix, but I said to myself, "You have one day under your belt, let's see if we can make it two days." I pretty much resigned myself to the fact that the first 3 days were going to be rough, but things would slowly improve. So I took it day by day. I am still taking it day by day.
I realized when I quit smoking before, I always gave myself little excuses. I set myself up for failure. I would say, "Ok, I quit smoking, but if I were to smoke one cigarette a week, or smoke a cigarette every now and then, it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world." And you know, maybe it wouldn't. But that one cigarette would make me go out and buy a whole pack of them. I couldn't smoke just one cigarette and leave it at that. And if I could, it would throw that horrible poison back into my body that I just got rid of, leading to another few days of horrible withdrawal symptoms.
So this time, I said to myself, "This is it, we are done and we are never going back. This is non-negotiable." And I was serious. The first few days were pretty terrible, but after I got through them it gave me even more reason to not want to smoke again - I don't want to go through that withdrawal again. Still, I take it day by day. It has been 1 month, 17 days so far. I have a quit counter that keeps track of my milestones, and I put aside my old cigarette money and buy myself gifts to reward myself. Since I hated gaining weight the first time I quit, I joined the gym and I love being able to see how my body is healing itself, how I can run without getting winded, etc. I still think about smoking from time to time, maybe once every few days, when an old trigger comes up, but it is only a passing thought that is easy to ignore.
Lessons & tips: Quitting smoking is 90% mental. If you really, truly want to quit smoking, you will be able to. If you have even the slightest reservations, it will make it so much more difficult, if not impossible. So make yourself want to quit. Get information on how horrible smoking really is. Check out whyquit.com. Look at people who smoke closely, their teeth, their skin. Write a list of reasons why you want to quit. Put aside your cigarette money to reward yourself.
And be prepared to be uncomfortable for a while. But realize it is worth it. Check out the timeline for quitting smoking as more motivation. If you can get through the first 3 days, your fight is 90% in your head. If you make a committment to yourself, the mental fight will be much easier.
Resources: http://whyquit.com/
http://www.xarka.com/freeware/quitcounter.html
