As I and several other members do from time to time is post an interesting article found elsewhere. Here is one I hope everyone can read and enjoy, pick what you want and leave the rest
Duffis :)
The transition from being smokers to ex-smokers.
One of the things we face as quitters is the transition from being smokers to ex-smokers. Early in your quit, you're a smoker in withdrawal. Eventually, you're a smoker who's not using. At some point, you do actually become an EX-smoker.
It's a scary transition for anyone to undergo mentally. Years upon years of memories are associated with smoking. A mountain of stressful situations that we dulled (and in doing so, partially avoided dealing with) by administering nicotine. The belief that we NEED that drug to get through these situations in the future.
In a sense, we're newborns, facing a new world, and not sure what to expect. We're children, and children are often frightened by the unknown. As our conscious decision to reach out to this new world and embrace it becomes more and more real and tangible, the fear within us makes us want to run back, grab the security blanket, and hide under the covers. It's like the monster under the bed.
And, like the monster under the bed when we're small, the best way to deal with the unknown is to face it, to understand it. As long as we hide under the blankets, the monster under the bed grows bigger, scarier, more menacing. Once we finally get the courage to lean over the mattress, and stare under the box spring... only then do we understand there's nothing to be frightened of. If we avoid looking under the bed, seeing the "monster" for what it is, we risk letting that "monster" dominate our conscience, and drive our actions.
Right now, you're dealing with your monster. There's the fear of failure (you've been down this road before). There's the fear of success (oh my God, what am I going to do now that I won't have cigarettes to help me?). And there is the voice in your ear telling you things: You want a cigarette, you can handle JUST one, you NEED just this one, this crave is going to last forever, this crave is unbearable, quitting is just TOO DAMN HARD, I wasn't meant to quit, I'm not strong enough.
It's time to look the monster in the eye. It's tim
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Quit Meter
$285,918.75
Amount Saved
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Quit Meter
Days: 6862
Hours: 2
Minutes: 22
Seconds: 57
Life Gained
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Quit Meter
45747
Smoke Free Days
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Quit Meter
1,143,675
Cigarettes Not Smoked
