Thanks Lady for this post. I hope your day is better today. My emotions are going crazy right now! My (step)son graduates from high school tonight (I raised him) and it's just been a crazy week. I don't know whether to cry or praise the Good Lord for getting us through this Senior week. Here on the island it's just wild - the kids all rent beach houses and stay there...so I've been worried about what is going on but at the same time I know that this is the beginning of letting him go. So I really needed to read your post. Thanks Again Island Girl [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 2/21/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 94 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 945 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $188 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 11 [B]Hrs:[/B] 0 [B]Mins:[/B] 38 [B]Seconds:[/B] 28

Thanks Lady Hungry Angry Lonely Tired I bet there are more and I will revisit this tomorrow. Thank You [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 2/17/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 97 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 1,959 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $727.5 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 15 [B]Hrs:[/B] 23 [B]Mins:[/B] 15 [B]Seconds:[/B] 43

Hey I really liked this post!! I also know that I can control my moods and emotions if I want to and some days I do. It's the days that I dont that scare family members!! LOL! The Chicken [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 2/12/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 103 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 1,035 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $386.25 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 6 [B]Hrs:[/B] 23 [B]Mins:[/B] 13 [B]Seconds:[/B] 6

Thanks for your post Lady. Emotions are a hard thing to deal with at times. I had a bad days yesterday by self, I had to go back to my new pledge and I posted there. "My New Pledge as of 4/22/06" but I am doing better this morning and I hope you are to Cuddles It's better to be a non-smoker with an occasional desire for a cig than a smoker with a constant desire to quit...... [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 4/22/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 34 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 685 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $122.4 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 3 [B]Hrs:[/B] 12 [B]Mins:[/B] 37 [B]Seconds:[/B] 0

Mama, Taking the plunge is the hardest part. I remember all the anxiety involved and all the quits that I put off or just one more day, that turned into months and eventually years. Allow your quit to be the center of your focus. There are a few things that I did early in my quit that helped me and I will share them with you. I replaced each cigarette I smoked with a peppermint. Especially that after meal cigarette. I carried the peppermints with me everywhere and I still do, just incase I feel the urge. Deep breathing and drinking a lot of water will help get the "taste" out of your mouth. Every hour I said..."I have gone XX hours, no way am I starting over again now. I have gone 24 hours, no way am I starting over again now" The first few weeks, I focused on just NOT smoking. After that is when the emotions came in to play. Around 30 days. Each day you make it through is the stepping stone to the next. Keep taking one step at a time and quit for 5 minutes at a time. We can all do just about anything for 5 minutes. When you finish that five you have laid the stepping stone for the next five minutes. That's how we stay smoke free. N.O.P.E. Not One Puff Ever (no matter what!) You will find many stages to your quit and they will bring about changes to your life. I would not trade this journey for anything in the world. My world is a much better place since I quit smoking. Take the first step and then just keep putting one foot in front of the other. Post when you need help. The good-hearted people here will help you along the way. Believe in yourself because not only can you do it, you are worth it. Congratulations on your decision to quit. I will be watching for you. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 7/1/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 334 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 6,689 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1169 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 29 [B]Hrs:[/B] 11 [B]Mins:[/B] 24 [B]Seconds:[/B] 46

H.A.L.T. Hungry, angry, lonely, tired. These are four things that will get you in trouble if you don�t halt. No one has discussed this topic in a while so I thought I would bring it up. Emotions are a trip. It�s been an emotional day for me. Mainly because I let things get to me and then it was just a spiral affect from there. It all began first thing this morning and instead of controlling my emotions, I allowed them to control me and I really ticked a lot of people off today. I believe I have had three of the four aspects of HALT working against me. Learning to deal with emotions without hiding behind smoking is the hardest part of my quit. How I would love to be an emotionally sound person in total control. I have been quit a long time and really thought I would have a better handle on things now. That tells me just how much damage smoking has done to me emotionally. In the beginning of the quit, I began to realize I had emotions then I realized that I had to face them. This was a dark and lonely time of the quit journey for me. I really used these boards here to get through it. A lot of my fellow quit family members were lights on that dark path and helped me work on dealing with me. I�ve spent many days of this quit in tears and in the pity pot. A year ago, this would have been too embarrassing for me to even discuss. Now, I realize that it is a fact of life and part of the process of developing the new me. The me that doesn�t hide behind cigarettes in order to deal with life. I believe I have made tremendous progress but when I am honest with myself I know I have a long way to go. Today was a day that served as a reminder of this fact. Quitting doesn�t happen over night friends. What an opportunity this has been to define a new persona. Don�t ever be afraid to post about what you are going though. Emotionally we are all a mess when we quit. You are not alone, I promise. Not every day is a good day but not every day is a bad day either. It gets better. We learn, we grow, we develop, we move on, we progress, we succeed, and if we are lucky, we meet some people that touch our lives along the way. One step at a time using N.O.P.E. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 7/1/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B

Thank you Penguin. I needed that tonight.

[B]We don't know who we are until we see what we can do[/b] Martha Grimes Today is a new day and it is time to focus on the good. Thank you my friends. Thanks Shevie for keeping the light on for me. It's nice to know you are there if I need it. A good friend told me this morning that it takes energy to be miserable. He was right. Chin up... best foot forward... here we go. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 7/1/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 329 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 6,588 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1151.5 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 29 [B]Hrs:[/B] 0 [B]Mins:[/B] 41 [B]Seconds:[/B] 13

Hi Lady, You're kicking butt, and don't let H, A, L or T tell you otherwise! I am proud of your quit and thankful for all the amazing and wonderful insight, caring and humor you bring to the table for all of your quitting friends! You ROCK!! :eg: Strength be with us. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 5/16/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 9 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 80 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $91.35 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 1 [B]Hrs:[/B] 9 [B]Mins:[/B] 22 [B]Seconds:[/B] 9

Great post, Lady. And so right on target. I'm sorry it's the result of you feeling down. Sorry I missed you today. I'll make sure I have IM on at work tomorrow if you want to chat. Shevie [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 5/23/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 368 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 7,361 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1398.4 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 68 [B]Hrs:[/B] 14 [B]Mins:[/B] 50 [B]Seconds:[/B] 37