Quitting Smoking
Published June 11, 2003
It was disgusting, hurt my health, cost too much and took too much time.
So I decided I wanted to quit. Took about a week to convince myself. It was interesting to watch the desire, or will to quit start to build, then be shattered by the desire for the drag.
Yesterday I purposely ran out of cigarettes around 9 a.m. Did pretty well, but eventually bummed a few ultra lights around 1:30 p.m.
I was aided in quitting by not having slept at all Monday night. I planned to crash around 7 p.m. Tuesday and wake up early today. The trick for me seems to get about 24 hours space between me and the last butt.
So I woke up today, and while the desire was there, it was abating. I had a bit of a nicotine headache, but otherwise felt great. The long rest after sleep deprivation was refreshing, and since I had been up to 2 packs a day, the relative drop — only had 9 cigarettes Tuesday — was making it easy to lay off.
I went for a long walk, enjoying the mild heat and breeze off the Potomac. I focused on being a nonsmoker, and what it meant for me. I could start running again. I can get more work done, I can spend my cash on better things, I can improve my health. Oh, and I can cease being a social pariah. More later.
- Quitting Smoking
- Published: June 11, 2003
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- Section: Culture
- Writer: Frank Giovinazzi
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Comments on this articleComments
I quit about a year ago, mostly because they upped the price per pack of 25 to between $7 to $8 CAD, but also because of the disturbing pictures on the packs. Sure, I bought a cigarette case but I could still see the pictures when I was buying the cigs.
I used to smoke a couple of years, then quit a couple of years but I hope I never start up again. I used to throw out cigs everytime I decided to quit, it was very expensive to do so, but it eventually worked for me.
Straws, toothpicks, and gum.
I'm still irritable but I'd be even worse if I were still a slave to the little bastards.
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Congratulations, stick with it!
I'm a compulsive eater. There is a bit less social pressure, at least at my modest weight, but I too find it helpful to focus every morning on why I'm eating better and what it will mean for me in the future.
The toughest part about any addiction isn't the headaches or body cravings, it's the conflict of values. On the one hand are all of the reasons why you're quitting. On the other hand are all of the reasons why you've been smoking. And even though you tell yourself you "can't" stop, the truth is that up until recently, you've wanted to smoke more than you've wanted to quit.
You've quit now! You can do it! You're good enough, you're strong enough, and doggone it, people will like you! :)