Staying Quit Smoking

Having quit smoking for good over 28 months ago, I have found that it is sometimes very hard to continue to stay quit. Even at this stage in the game I sometimes get the urge to smoke and the thoughts in my mind tell me that even tho' I have emphysema so bad that I am hooked to an oxygen tank at all times, I can still have "just one" ever so often and it will not harm me very much.

I know deep inside myself that the "just one" junkie thinking will get me right back to a pack or two packs of smokes a day and will in the end cause my ultimate demise. Fully aware of the consequence of starting to smoke again; I have very little trouble of not taking that first smoke.

The main problem is however; what do I do to keep those thoughts from coming around and bothering me each and every day? There are many things that I have do to in order to keep a little of my sanity. First I am grateful to God for leading me to the newsgroup alt.support.stop-smoking. Should I have not found that group on the internet back in July of 1995, I feel that I would no longer be here to talk about it.. My doctor confirmed that not long ago when he complimented me on the amount of my health that I have regained after quitting smoking. Now this is coming from a doctor who has practiced medicine for over 30 years. He told me that I was the first person he has ever seen in my condition to come back as much as I have and really get in a better shape. This is not to say that I am well, just improved. The newsgroup and the IRC chat has help me to keep my quit going and in turn able to regain some of the functions of my lungs.

Another thing that I do to maintain my quit is to try to help others to both quit smoking and to help them stay quit. Again, quitting is just the first step in the process. We must stop the act of putting a cigarette, or cigar, or anything else in our mouth that produces smoke, no matter what kind of smoke it may be. If it gets into our lungs and thence to the rest of the body, then it is going to do harm to our bodies and prolong the quitting process. So in the act of helping others to quit smoking, I am reminded just how fragile my own quit is and therefore I am reminded that the main purpose of quitting is to stay smoke free and in that respect the option to smoke does not exist. In other words "Smoking is Not and Optiion"

Maybe by now you are thinking, "Just how long must this go on, how long does it really take to stop smoking and to stay stopped?" Well, that is a question that is not easily answered. It is something that I nor anyone else can answer with any certainty. It is up to the individual who has undertaken the quit to do certain things in order to speed up the quit process and to instill in the mind the points that must be made in order to stay quit smoking... I cannot govern that , and sometimes even the person doing the quit cannot do anything about it.

What should you do to enhance your chances to stay quit smoking? About the number 1 thing to do is to realize that nicotine is a drug, and if you have had trouble quitting that is because you are addicted to the nicotine that is contained in the tobacco and hence the smoke from burning the tobacco. As long as you fee the addiction you will remain addicted to it, and if you decide to try to take "just one" cigarette, pipe, or cigar, you are in danger of restarting the addiction, whether it be right away, or a few days or weeks from the time you take the first one. The only way is to never take that first draw on another cigarette.

The number 2 thing is to come to terms with your quit. You did not quit smoking just for one day, week, month or year. When we start out we are quitting to save our lives from being miserable a few years from now, we are quitting for the rest of our lives and must take that into consideration. I have heard that some people say they cannot quit that way.. They have to take it one day at a time and even one hour. Well, that is in itself leaving the doorway open for a slip and that in turn is giving yourself permission to smoke. I would never give myself permission to smoke another cigarette again as my lungs have already been abused so much that I am on 24 hour oxygen and will remain so for the rest of my life unless I am fortunate enough to get a Lung Volume Reduction Surgery in which if it is successful I may be able to got off the oxygen and have a somewhat normal life for my remaining years.

The number three thing is to consider seeking professional help if you find yourself becoming depressed for a long period. Depression is a very common thing among people who have quit smoking. Sometimes it will pass within a few days, and sometimes it will linger on and on for a longer period. That is when one must face the fact that they are in need of maybe talking to someone or having a doctor place them on some kind on anti-depressant. I would be remiss if I did not tell you that I also have taken anti-depressant drugs, and also for a long while I took an anti anxiety medication and had to wean myself off it as I became addicted to it and it was a long and drawn out procedure to taper off on the drug.. If you find that you are sleeping too much, just don't want to do anything and are in a down mode all the time, maybe you should look for help.. Also there is a non prescription product on the market that may help you to feel more normal That is the "St. John's Wort." It has been used for years among the people who are into herbs and has a good track record. The only thing is that it does take a couple of weeks for it to build up in the system and get a person leveled off.. But that is the same as with most mind altering drugs, it takes time for it to be effective So I suggest start taking the SJW as soon as you start to feel depressed and get it over with Later you can come off the SJW without any side effects. First thing you should do is to talk with your doctor and inform him/her of your intent on using the hebal remedy as it may not mix well with some of the medications you are presently on. Always follow the advice of your doctor before taking any kind of medicine be it from him or someone else. While St, John's Wort is an herbal medicine, it can still affect some working of the brain and your doctor should be aware of anything you are taking.

Helping others to recover from the addiction to nicotine is another real good way of keeping yourself off the smokes. By helping others we also help ourselves to stay quit smoking and so that is actually two birds killed with one shot. I do my utmost to help others every day of my life. It is the only way I have of returning what was given to me so freely on the newsgroup; alt.support.stop-smoking. If you are unfamiliar with the usenet newsgroups on the internet it is not hard to find out how to access them and participate in the discussions you will find there. I am very grateful for finding the group as it taught me that what I was going through was quite common and most of the people who quit smoking and I was not alone out there in never never land. I had someone to talk to that knew how I felt and what was going through my mind and body at the same time. Without support I would not have made it, and so to show my gratitude to the rest of the group, and those who have come after me I will continue to participate in that group for a much longer time than needed. Being retired and not having anything to do otherwise I am only helping myself and helping others at the same time.

So to kinda summerize we must first accept the fact that smoking is addictive, and we can never safely take another cigarette and smoke it without running the risk that we may go back to smoking very soon thereafter. We must change certain habits that we have adopted in the course of the years we have smoked. Most of us have always considered it as a cup of coffee and a cigarette. I have had to limit my coffee intake drastically. Any other things that we considered and habitually smoked during should be carefully looked at and see if we can do some other thing instead of that, at least for the period of time it takes to secure our quit.

Next, if we find ourselves becoming depressed, we must consider either taking some kind of drug, as prescribed by a physician, or taking the herbal remedy St. John's Wort, or some other kind of over the counter remedy that works for us. Being depressed over quitting smoking is quite frequent and is nothing to be ashamed about. I know plenty people who have went thru it and are now off all medicines and also off the smokes for good. So to get help with our feeling is of upmost importance if we are to remain quit..

And last but not least; if we plan on keeping our quit, we should pass it on to others who are in the same boat and try to assist them in any way that we can.. Helping others will help us and in the end everybody has a winning hand.

One more final thing. For those of you who are in God's hands, prayer for yourself and others is what I use more than anything else. I even pray for those who tell me they do not even believe in God. I think he still loves them even tho they do not accept Him.

Take care and God Bless.

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