I should probably title this piece, I’m a non-smoker, but I’m not there yet – mentally. I still feel that urge to have a cigarette. Yesterday, I was in the car running errands and I reached for the cigarettes as a habit until I realized they weren’t in the car and that I’d even gotten rid of my ashtray. It was such a knee jerk to reach for the cigarettes that I actually felt my heart speed up for a moment with adrenaline as fear hit me.
I couldn’t have a cigarette.
And yes, for a few seconds that generated a fear response in me.
It’s an Addiction
Too many people think that smokers won’t quit because they are lazy or they are stupid. We’re neither of those things. Quitting is hard. Changing the way you think is hard. I have had one person make cracks at me about stopping smoking. They shrugged it off and said I should have done it a long time ago and when I expressed that I have genuine concerns about doing it now, their only response was if I didn’t get lazy, I would be able to quit.
Pfft.
It’s not about laziness. Of course, if I wasn’t lazy I’d be walking 90 minutes a day – oh, wait I am. If I wasn’t lazy, I’d have tried to quit before – oh wait, I have. Realistically speaking when someone is quitting smoking, starting a new fitness program or do something that is a lifestyle and behavioral thing for them – the last thing they need is someone belittling their efforts. This is definitely a case of if you’ve got nothing positive to say, you should shut up.
In the meanwhile, here are some tips for you if you are considering joining me on the stop smoking bandwagon:
- Make a list of the reasons why you want to stop – they have to be your reasons and not someone else’s. It’s great when your spouse, your parents and even your kids want you to stop, but you have to want it too
- Toss out your smoking apparatus from ashtrays to lighters or at least put them up and away where they are out of your visual sight – I know some smokers that kept a pack of cigarettes somewhere because it worked psychologically – they could have one if they really wanted it –but most of them never wanted it again
- Don’t get idle – this is one time when keeping busy is a good way to be whether you are working, cleaning or exercising – currently my kitchen and dining room are spotless, and all the laundry is done, I’m dusting, vacuuming and cleaning the bathrooms today!
- Get a friend to stop smoking with you if they will – they can be your support group. If you don’t know anyone who is stopping right now, feel free to drop me a line, I’ll be happy to provide you with some support in this area because I know it’s hard and I know you have to really work at it to break the habit
- If you screw up and have a cigarette, okay, that’s just one, put them back away and keep on putting them away or throwing them out – it’s just like skipping your workout one day – fine, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go back to working out the next day
- Take the money you would have spent on cigarettes and put it in a box – actually get the cash. At the end of your first month without a cigarette – treat yourself to a reward with the money in that box
- Tell everyone you are stopping smoking, don’t keep it a secret – the more people you tell, the more you reaffirm that commitment to yourself
Still have those urges hitting you at the worst times? Employ the 5 Ds of not smoking – these can be found on the American Lung Cancer Association and other stop smoking web sites. The 5 Ds are pretty simple, but they are effective and they do work:
- DELAY – take a minute or two and that urge to light up will pass
- DRINK water when the cravings hit, it will help stave off the craving and help you flush out your system
- DO something else when the craving hits, whether it’s go for a walk, clean a room in your house or pick up your book and read for a few minutes
- DEEP breathing is a great way to help DELAY lighting up a cigarette and you’ll be surprised by how much lung capacity you have back in just a few short days
- DISCUSS how you feel – I’m sharing with you here, but I’m also talking to my spouse everyday about the good moments and the bad moments and I’m being honest when being around other smokers at the moment – I can’t do it
Since I stopped smoking, I have received the following benefits:
- In the first 20 minutes, my blood pressure and pulse rate returned to normal
- In the first 8 hours, the nicotine and carbon monoxide levels in my blood reduced by half and oxygen levels began to return to normal
- Within 24 hours, carbon monoxide has been eliminated from the body, my lungs are starting to clear out mucus and other smoking debris
- Within 48 hours the nicotine has left my body (although not all of it because I am using a patch to get over the hand mouth habit and stepping it down)
- Within 72 hours, breathing becomes easier, bronchial tubes begin to relax and my energy levels begin to increase
It’s been 72 hours and I’m still not smoking – it’s hard, but here I am. How are you doing?
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