Interesting perspective Pen! That really made me think! Thank you.
In past attempts, it wasn't hard for me to quit... it was just hard for me to STAY quit. I could go a few days without a smoke, or even a few weeks, and really not be too bad off. It was when I had to start living my life again (i.e. being around smoking friends, having life crap on me, etc...) that I started having problems. Plus, until this quit, I ALWAYS thought that after a certain point of not smoking, I could smoke "once in a while" and still be a non-smoker. It wasn't until THIS quit that I learned that it's just not possible.
From this quit, I learned that rewards are very important. I leanred that the maintenance of the quit is even more important than the initial few days and that I needed to not just focus on the first 3 days, but focus on how I would handle life's situations when they came up. I learned that just because the nicotine is out of your system in 3 days, that doesn't mean that the cravings are done in 3 days. I learned that there are lots of people just like me who really do want to help me quit as well and that I'm not alone. Even if my "best friend" is gone, I have friends here who really do care about me and want to see me succeed. That really has been the difference this time around.
Crave the Quit!
Pam
[B]My Milage:[/B]
[B]My Quit Date: [/B] 6/17/2005
[B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 644
[B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 16,116
[B]Amount Saved:[/B] $2659.72
[B]Life Gained:[/B]
[B]Days:[/B] 45 [B]Hrs:[/B] 21 [B]Mins:[/B] 14 [B]Seconds:[/B] 33