Lets see if I can post now. Yes, combating all the 'excuses' that the nicodemon can come up with! I feel positive at the moment and have a new resolve. Taking baby steps of course. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]7/1/2007 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 3 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 75 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] �12.60 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 0 [B]Hrs:[/B] 10 [B]Mins:[/B] 3 [B]Seconds:[/B] 41

Nance puts it so well Kev. Good luck Gen [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]3/28/2007 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 98 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 1,568 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] �490.00 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 13 [B]Hrs:[/B] 0 [B]Mins:[/B] 16 [B]Seconds:[/B] 1

Kev I think Nance is trying to tell you something... LISTEN TO HER! Phil [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]8/8/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 330 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 7,260 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] �1,732.50 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 64 [B]Hrs:[/B] 8 [B]Mins:[/B] 27 [B]Seconds:[/B] 20

Post test [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]7/1/2007 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 3 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 75 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] �12.60 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 0 [B]Hrs:[/B] 9 [B]Mins:[/B] 49 [B]Seconds:[/B] 48

Kev, There is not a person alive who can�t quit smoking if they want to! It may not be a pleasant thing to do, but we all know that it can be done if you want it bad enough. What is stopping you? Is it fear? We were all afraid at the beginning. None of us knew ourselves without smoking. Now I would be afraid of what smoking can do to your health...many of us know what it has done already. Were you afraid the first time on a two-wheeled bike? The first time you drove the car? Have you never had your heart jump into your throat for just a second? It didn�t kill you, it made you stronger and you learned from each experience. Smoking can kill you. Be very afraid! Is it willpower? I cannot diet, I don�t have the willpower. I pretend to diet...I drink only diet drinks, I eat a lot of salad, I pretend to exercise (especially now that I can breathe). My family doesn�t mind my weight (although my doctors are not thrilled). If I really wanted to lose weight, I could do it. I never thought I could quit smoking, but I did. I was the last hold-out, always saying �I don�t want to quit, I enjoy smoking!� Many are amazed that I was able to quit. Willpower is not my strong suit. You have to really, really want something to have the willpower it takes to attain it. Is it the attention? When I announced to the world that I was quitting, I was asking for help and support. The more people who took an interest meant more people I would disappoint if I couldn�t quit. And the world would end if I disappointed someone, right? For the first few weeks everyone was asking me �how many days has it been?� �how much money have you saved?� �how many days of life have you gained?� �do you miss smoking?� and I could spout off my statistics and new-found knowledge like I was the poster child for the SSC. Guess what? Nobody asks any more. I am not one who normally craves any limelight, so it�s just fine with me. I am quit, and my arm aches from patting myself on the back and taking my rewards where I find them. Kev, I don�t intend to be mean or belittling here, I just hate to see you continue to be disappointed in yourself and to question your abilities. Knocking your head against that wall has to hurt! You have all of the support from your professionals, and of course, from us. You have the tools, the knowledge, and the desire, all you need now is to find out what in the world is stopping you! I am very sure that if you get through the first week...hell week...you will never touch another smoke. Do whatever it takes to get through one week. Start by not buying any more smokes. Sure, if you start �squeakin� you can always bum one, but why make it so easy on yourself? Baby steps, if necessary. Just don�t buy any! (eventually you won�t be able to smoke OP�s (other people�s) because they will get tired of supporting your addiction.) One week, Kev, just 7 days out of the rest of your life. After one week it�s your choice as to whether you want to go back to smoking. But give it a fair shot. Get through the bull**it, and then see where you are. My bet is that you will be smoke free forever. Are you a bettin' man? (((((((HUG))))))) Nance [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]2/14/2007 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 139 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 4,170 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $674.15 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 19 [B]Hrs:[/B] 10 [B]Mins:[/B] 15 [B]Seconds:[/B] 12

Well, the only reason I can combat other people's junkie thoughts is because I've had LOTS of practice combatting my own! :eg: No, I quit using the herbal supplement Smoke Away, but after the first 5 days, went completely cold turkey. However, no matter what method you choose is the best one! As long as you're not smoking, then that's all that matters! Keep up the good work! Crave the Quit (or stop)! [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]6/17/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 746 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 18,650 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $3,080.98 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 52 [B]Hrs:[/B] 15 [B]Mins:[/B] 0 [B]Seconds:[/B] 29

Butterfly, Great post and good point! I am back from the edge now and will for sure use that post and read it regularly from now on. Yes, my junkie thoughts suprise even me sometimes. You could write very elequent non-smoking guides, way better than some I have read. So you did cold turkey then right? Thank you all for pushing some sense into me. Different styles, same result! Kev [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]7/1/2007 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 2 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 50 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] �8.40 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 0 [B]Hrs:[/B] 7 [B]Mins:[/B] 17 [B]Seconds:[/B] 20

Kev - hang in there. It will get easier. There is the nicotine addiction to deal with, of course. But so much of quitting successfully is a mind game. You have to really want to quit and face the fact that you ARE addicted, but its probably more in your head than you realize. Actually I think you do know that, that's why you asked for help in changing your outlook. Ok, so first of all, take it one step at a time and acknowledge each milestone you've reached. (And yes, 1 day, 2 days, etc... ARE legitimate milestones - not just the big numbers) Then you really need to transform that doubt into anger - at the addiction, at the cig companies that got you hooked, at the loss of control you have over your daily life. You have to get it into your head that you are now in charge and while you need to acknowledge the smoking thoughts, don't dwell on them. Accept them and then tell them to get lost and bother someone else! Educate yourself. Read and reread posts about addiction, what cigs contain, and how to deal with cravings. Post as often as you need to. Just believe in yourself and you will succeed! ((Hugs and Support)) - Freemom [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]3/29/2007 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 96 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 1,152 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $391.68 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 8 [B]Hrs:[/B] 22 [B]Mins:[/B] 8 [B]Seconds:[/B] 22

[quote] It's quite possible that I should stop stopping right now and work on trusting myself before I give it another go. [/quote] Boy, that's junkie thinking at its best! I must say, you've got a very clever junkie... reminds me of mine, actually. But I'm sorry, trusting yourself not to smoke doesn't happen by smoking. You have to NOT smoke, even in tough situations, and eventually, you will trust yourself because you'll know that you COULD have smoked during such-and-such event, but didn't. And if you can make it through that, you can make it through ANYTHING!!! So how do you trust yourself? Well, that's a good question. I'm not sure my method was the best, but one day, about 2 months after my last slip, I got REALLY upset. I went to the store, bought a pack of cigarettes, had every intention of smoking at least one, but couldn't. It was at that moment that I just KNEW I'd never smoke again. I finally trusted myself because I had the smokes, had the opportunity, but something deep inside of me kept me from smoking. After that point, I knew I'd never smoke again. Sure, I had some tough times after that, and even contemplated it, but never came quite as close as I did that time. Do I recommend going out and getting a pack of cigarettes so you can prove to yourself that you trust yourself enough to smoke? NO WAY!!! PLEASE DON'T DO THAT! But I guess having them in my hand and still not smoking was what did it for me. The thing is, the more situations you make it through smoke free, the easier this quit (or stop) thing becomes. The trust will come, but just like with any relationship, you don't immidiately trust somebody with your life the day you meet them. You build trust in that person gradually and the more you trust that person, the more you WANT to trust them. And eventually, if trust hasn't been broken, then you WILL trust them completely... but it takes time. Right now, you're building a relationship with your quit, and with the new you. It'll take time to get to the trust point, especially since you've broken trust with yourself before, but you can't get your partner to trust you by cheating on them. Likewise, you can't trust yourself not to smoke by smoking. But keep with the quit (or stop) and that trust will come. Crave the Quit! [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]6/17/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 746 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 18,650 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $3,080.98 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 52 [B]Hrs:[/B] 14 [B]Mins:[/B] 58 [B]Seconds:[/B] 47

One sugar please! [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]8/8/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 329 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 7,238 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] �1,727.25 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 64 [B]Hrs:[/B] 4 [B]Mins:[/B] 7 [B]Seconds:[/B] 36