Quit Smoking For Good-My Journey

I have been getting emails asking me where I am and when I will be back.  Well my journey to quit smoking for good has kept me away for a while.

I have been quitting smoking and loving it.  The only thing is because of habit I had to stay away from the computer for a while.

Feb 6, 2010, I told myself that on my birthday on May 6th, 2010 I would quit smoking.  I told myself that every single day along the way.

I didn't do anything different on my journey.  I just continued a few times every day to remind myself that on May 6th I would quit.

May 6th came along.  I had about 10 smokes left.  I decided to finish smoking them and then embark on the road to quit smoking for good.  5 minutes before noon on May 6th i smoked my last cigarette.

In this hub I will try and walk you through the first 10 days of my journey to quit smoking for good.

Well like I said 5 minutes before noon on May 6th I quit smoking for good.

That was to be day one. I had no idea what to expect. Some people had told me quitting smoking was easy while others told me they would rather come off of heroine.

Any ways I was armed with the nicotine inhaler and some nicotine gum. By about 5 that afternoon I was sucking on the nicotine inhaler. This was going to be harder than I thought. I was questioning my self on whether I could do this or not.

I woke up day 2 wanting a cigarette but I just kept telling my self that I had quit smoking for good.

I continued to suck on the inhaler and chew the gum. It really wasn't that easy though. For the most part I didn't think things were going to be quite this hard.

So what does day 3 hold in my bid to quit smoking for good. As of right now day 3 has proven to be the hardest of them all.

I was cranky, I was chewing gum, sucking the inhaler, eating and every moment thinking of reasons I should stop this stupidity. That afternoon my wife had a surprise for me. She handed me an electric cigarette.

I had no idea what to think but at this point I was willing to try anything. So day three I threw away the gum, the inhaler and started smoking the electric cigarette. I know it sounds wrong, after all it is a road to quit smoking for good.

So as day 4 came along I had to make a decision whether I was going to quit smoking for good or not.

To this point I had not yet cheated with a cigarette.  However I couldn't help but feel that I was still cheating with the gum, inhaler and the electric cigarette.  Was I cheating or wasn't I.  Till this day I really haven't made up my mind but I did change things.

Day 4 after my walk i decided that indeed I was going to quit smoking for good.  When I got home I threw out the inhalers, the gum and decided to keep the electric cigarette for a couple more days.  I would also restrict its use.

As for day 5 and 6 things seemed to be getting easier.  i had made a decision and it was time to move forward.  i was taking about 10 drags a day from the electric cigarette.  I felt okay with that.

I did notice that as I was getting rid of cigarettes in my life I was bringing something else in.  I quickly realized i was eating a lot more than usual.  I know this is common but I also knew i didn't want to gain a bunch of weight. 

I would be okay with a few pounds but no more.

So it seems the second phase of my journey to quit smoking for good is over and it seems to be going a lot better now.

Day 7 came along and I was really starting to feel confident now that I would quit smoking for good.

I was feeling good, the cravings were not so frequent and not so strong.  it just seemed that over all day 7 was the easiest to date.

Another plus for day 7 is I only used the electric cigarette twice.  Things were starting to look like they really were going to happen.

As the days moved forward everything seemed to get easier.  I haven't used the electric cigarette in 3 days now and it isn't bothering me at all.

It is day 10 and I haven't cheated once with a cigarette and am using absolutely nothing now.

In my heart of hearts I know that I have quit smoking for good.  I will never smoke another cigarette as long as I live.

In this part of the hub I just wanted to mention a few key points in my ten day journey to quit smoking for good.

I know these will be different for most people but this is relevant to me.

-Smoked 2 packs a day for 30 years                                                                                                

-Cigarettes in my province cost between 9 and 12 dollars a pack.

-Day one my smokers cough disappeared

-Day 2 not sure if this is going to happen.  Using nicotine inhaler and gum.

-Day 3 was the worst of any day so far.  Was cranky, was craving and so fourth.

-Day 4 made the decision that I wouldn't give up.  Have an electric cigarette now.  Threw all other aids away.

-Day 5 am actually starting to feel like I'm getting my breath back.  Oxygen is a good thing.

-Day 6, barely using the electric cigarette.  Focusing on not over eating.  Am however eating lots of sunflower seeds.

-Day 7, started working a bit on the computer again.  This was tough because I always smoked while working on computer.

-Day 8, absolutely sure I have my breath back.  At least some of it.  Energy levels are also way up.

-Day 9, I am having absolutely no cravings.  I haven't used the electric cigarette since early day 7

-Day 10, Starting to really feel like a non smoker.  Fellow worker offered me a smoke today and I had no trouble saying no like I had been saying it for a hundred years.

I really do believe I have quit smoking for good.

I know that talk is cheap.  However I haven't come this far to fail now.  I have quit smoking for good and that's a fact,

I will tell you two things because someone asked me in an email.  The first question is what was my biggest motivator.  There were a few.  money was a big one.  After all I will be saving over 500 a month now.

However money is a far second to my health.  I so just wanted to be able to breath properly and so far things are going well.

The second question was what was one single factor that helped me quit.  To me that one was easy.  For 90 days everyday I told myself I would quit on May 6th.  I had a plan and I stuck to it.

I also need to thank so many hubbers for all the great words of encouragement.  it would have been a lot harder without you guys.

Now, I know I'm  only 10 days in.  The thing is each day is getting easier.  i am not letting my guard down.  I know I will have some tough days yet.

The thing is I don't care.  No matter what I don't want to smoke and I wont.  As far as Im concerned I have quit smoking for good.