How I did it: More specifically, I used the recovery principles at "Celebrate Recovery", which is a Christ-centered recovery program that uses the same sort of 12 steps one would find at AA, but they're related to eight Christ-centered principles of recovery.  May sound ultra-religious and hokey to some, but I can tell you that I had tried absolutely e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g else, including patches and pills and nicotine replacement this and nicotine replacement that, blah, blah, blah... For me, smoking was an addiction (it's more powerful than heroin, remember??), and I had to fight it like an addiction.  By handing that addiction over to a higher power (for me, that's Christ), I was able to finally quit.

As of this writing, I celebrate recovery from my addiction to nicotine and have been completely free of nicotine for over six weeks.  And, yes, I have quit smoking for slightly longer than this before (maybe a couple of months), but it has always involved some sort of medication or nicotine replacement, which left the physiological addiction to nicotine in place.  I have absolutely no nicotine in my body now and am using nothing pharmaceutical to deal with it either.  This is by far the longest I have gone without nicotine or some sort of replacement in 20 years.  20!

That's not a typo -- 20 YEARS!!!

Good luck to any and all who really want to beat cigarettes once and for all!  It can be done!  If I can quit, so can you!!!!!  I PROMISE!

And if you're interested in the Celebrate Recovery program (for this or any other addiction issue -- any hurt, habit or hang-up, actually), check out CelebrateRecovery.com to find a group in your local area.

Lessons & tips: Nicotine is an addiction, and I believe it when they say the addiction is more powerful than heroin.  It takes serious work to beat it!  For me, that was surrendering that addiction to the healing power of Christ.  (Straight up, no holds barred, no joke.)  I smoked over 20 years, and this was SERIOUS stuff for me!  It is completely and totally miraculous that I am both smoke- and nicotine-free today.

Resources: Celebrate Recovery.  Find a group locally at CelebrateRecovery.com

Jun 21, 2009, 03:51PM PDT | 0 comments | 1 cheer