Quit Smoking for the New Year

It is that time of year again when most of us make a New Years Resolution to improve our lives in some way or another. Most of us will fail and go back to our bad old ways within 6 days. Women usually last a day longer than men, on average. How many people will resolve to quit smoking this New Year and start 2010 smoke free? I never personally ever tried to quit at New Year, too much pressure to succeed. I quit in February instead when all the focus is on other things and so far I am now over 10 months smoke free!!

However, with the right tools and right frame of mind you should be able to quit anytime, you just have to want to do it. If New Year is your chosen time to quit then follow a few simple rules:

• You must want to do it and have made up your own mind to quit, don't do it because others are pressuring you or you will fail.
• Decide to do it and look forward to quitting, it is one of the single most brilliant things you can do for yourself as a smoker, be happy about it.
  
• Choose a method and stick to it, I don't recommend cold turkey, use some support or proven method.
• Don't give up, you can beat your addiction, it just takes a little bit of effort.

I have written my own short guide on preparing to quit smoking that you get here


My Free Report

It costs nothing, give it a read and I hope it will help you. It contains sound advice on quitting written from my own experience and research, the same that has lead to me being smoke free for 10 months. I am a very happy non-smoker now and I hope you can become the same.

If you are trying to quit go ahead and you have my best wishes, have a prosperous and smoke free New Year.

Quitting Not Giving Up

At work the other day I was asked by a colleague if I was still "off the fags". I happily replied yes, in fact it has been over 8 months since I quit smoking and I was very proud to confirm that I am still a non-smoker. "Me too" she replied with a big smile and stated that she had quit three weeks ago and was determined to not smoke again. I congratulated her and during our short conversation it was apparent that her mindset had a significant component to it. She stated that she had stopped smoking, not given up smoking. This is a clear indicator of the right mindset to quit smoking. She had recognised the psychological significance of the phrase "giving up". If you give something up then you are denying yourself a pleasure so when smokers decide to give up smoking they are already at a disadvantage and less likely to succeed than the smokers who decides to just stop doing something that is harmful to them. Quitting is simply just that, it is stopping doing something with no loss, you have just stopped an act not given anything up, not made a sacrifice, just stopped.

It is this way of thinking that helped me to quit successfully and I hope anyone reading this who is thinking of quitting or is struggling after quitting finds this helpful. To your sucess in quitting.

Using Nicotine Gum as an aid to Quitting Smoking

Addiction to nicotine is one of the hardest things to kick, that you will ever come across if you just try to go cold turkey. Many studies have shown that it is one of the most addictive substances known, as addictive as cocaine or heroin, and most people will become dependant on it soon after they start smoking. When you smoke a cigarette, your body receives an instant rush of nicotine - there is a spike in your nicotine levels which slowly dissipates, over approximately 20 minutes. When your nicotine levels drop below a certain point you will crave another hit, in the form of another cigarette.
As a smoker, wanting to become a non-smoker you will need to consider how you will tackle your body's physical addiction to nicotine and how you will relieve the cravings that can make quitting smoking so difficult. The most important thing in any attempt to quit smoking is your frame of mind, and how you mentally approach quitting. The chances that you will succeed are increased dramatically by having a positive approach to quitting and believing in yourself, if you approach quitting with fear then your chances of success are extremely slim. In some cases, however, people have found great benefit from using a medical aid to assist their confidence in quitting and provide a degree of reassurance. The most common and well known aids to quitting smoking are those that supply and regulate nicotine in the bloodstream. These did not work for me but I think that at the time I relied solely upon the NRT aid to make me quit.
One of the most popular choices is nicotine gum. This is gum that resembles ordinary chewing gum, but of course it contains a regulated dose of nicotine. The reason that some people find nicotine gum effective is because it can replace the cigarette, in providing the nicotine hit in their bloodstream that they are craving, thus relieving the pain and fear that manifest with addiction cravings. The problem that some people run into with the nicotine patch - the other popular nicotine replacement aid - is that a nicotine patch supplies a steady amount of nicotine into your bloodstream. There is no spike, or "hit", as with a cigarette, and for this reason some people still find themselves craving cigarettes when they use the patch. This has happened to several of my friends and to me, the last time I used a patch about ten years ago. Even though the body is receiving nicotine, it desires the hit, the rush of nicotine that the cigarette provides.
With nicotine gum, you can attempt to replicate this hit without a cigarette and all the other harmful chemicals that come along with it. The gum is not chewed like normal gum, there is a special technique. Rather than chewing like normal gum you only chew until you can taste the nicotine (not very pleasant at first) then you hold the gum in your mouth without chewing until the nicotine subsides. Then give it a few chews every time you want a release of nicotine, as much as you would when taking a drag on a cigarette for a quick nicotine hit. A typical guideline for nicotine gum would be to chew it 3-4 times, until you feel a tingling sensation, at which point you should flatten it and place it between your cheek and gum. Repeat the brief chewing process at occasional intervals as necessary. Under no circumstances should nicotine gum be chewed like ordinary gum, as too much nicotine will be released into your bloodstream at once, you will probably feel sick. I did, yes, I didn’t read the instructions first time.
Nicotine Gum comes in 2mg and 4mg strengths (the 4mg is recommended if you smoke more than 20 cigarettes a day.) It is recommended that you use the gum every 1-2 hours throughout the day, for a period of up to 3 months. The only drawback of nicotine gum is that you cannot drink anything except water for 15 minutes before and during chewing. For this reason nicotine gum isn't helpful at a bar, which is where many ex-smokers need the most help. Despite this, nicotine gum can be an effective tool -- when combined with your determination and frame of mind -- in an attempt to quit smoking.

6 Months Quit Smoking and Beyond

I've had a really busy Summer and missed my 6 month quit update, with holidays, my birthday and getting sick with 'flu I have just not found the time to update. I'm back now and just as focussed as always on remaining a non-smoker. I have actually reached 7 months quit today. I very rarely think about smoking anymore, the situations that I used to associate with smoking are becoming less and less significant and the thought of ever smoking again is getting less and less appealing.

I do remember what it is like to smoke and I still can understand why smokers smoke. I can still relate to that feeling of defiance, that feeling of making up excuses to justify my disgusting habit. It just makes me more determined to stay quit.

Staying quit is a subject that I am going to try to focus on for the next few posts. I have done lots of research as you will know if you have read any of my previous posts. If you search the vastness of the internet on the subject of quitting smoking you will find lots of methods on how to quit. Some of these are featured on my other site "Quit Smoking With Nick" and are very popular and successful methods of quitting. What I have not found much of is material on the subject of staying quit.

We all know that quitting smoking can be difficult, it can also be very easy. We all know that it usually takes several attempts to quit for good, why is this? If the quit smoking methods are so good why do we at some time start to smoke again? Is it because there is a lack of support and motivation for those who have quit? Every resource, course, method etc. is aimed at the smoker, what about the recent smoker? What about that person who quits and maybe two years later starts again, what support is there for the relapsing smoker to prevent the relapse? After much searching I can say not a lot. If you think that you might find some help with staying quit useful or would just like to throw in some ideas then please mail me at nick@quitsmokingwithnick.com

One quick idea is to find another hobby or interest to throw your energy into and the number one that I came up with after talking to ex-smokers is losing or keeping off the weight after quitting smoking. You don't have to put weight on when you quit but some people do and it is a major reason why some people start smoking again. If you are having a weight after quitting problem check this out, Fat Burning Furnace, it looks pretty good.

Preparing for the Day You Quit Smoking

Millions of people all around the world smoke, pouring billions of their money into the pockets of the tobacco industry. To many, particularly those that have been smoking for a long time, the prospect of quitting smoking seems very daunting. An addiction to smoking is a serious and complex one. It manifests itself in both a physical way, in that your body craves the nicotine the cigarettes contain, and a psychological way, in that your mind has been conditioned to believe that you have to smoke or terrible things will happen to you. To overcome this two sided assault it is important that you come up with a plan of attack in order to quit smoking. Although the cold-turkey or willpower technique works for some people, the vast majority of smokers will have success only with a more comprehensive and detailed plan with the right amount of preparation.

When you first start considering quitting smoking, it will probably seem so far away from where you are as a smoker that to reach it is either impossible or just too hard to start. Keep in mind that thousands of people a year, people that were also smokers just like you, quit smoking. If they are able to do it, there's no reason that you can't. Many smokers also feel that after a certain time spent smoking it is "too-late" to quit, that there is no benefit and the damage is done. Simply put, this isn't true, and is nothing more than an excuse to avoid the attempt to quit smoking. The health benefits of quitting smoking begin the very day you stop and apply to anyone, anytime.

Before you actually have your last cigarette, begin to visualise yourself as a non-smoker. Visualisation is a very powerful psychological weapon in the battle to quit smoking. When you think about your everyday activities imagine yourself doing them without the cigarette break. Spend a lot of time thinking of the reasons that you want to quit smoking. If you have no worthwhile reasons to quit, why should you do it? Think of as many as you can and write them down. Learn about the health benefits of quitting, not just for yourself but the people around you as well, such as your children or other members of your family that are exposed to your cigarette smoke. Do the maths and come up with some figures for the amount of money you'll save by not buying cigarettes, then think of something you'll use that money for. It is essential to get your mind in the right frame for quitting.
Once you have achieved the right frame of mind it's time to plan having your last cigarette. To give you an idea of what will happen, understand that the human body is incredibly resilient, and that your health will improve as soon as you stop smoking, literally within 20 minutes your blood pressure will drop down to normal levels as the nicotine starts to leave your body. 8 hours after your last cigarette, carbon monoxide levels will drop and oxygen levels will rise in your blood stream returning it to normal levels. At 24 hours after your last cigarette, you statistically reduce your chance of a heart attack. Only 48 hours after your last cigarette, your sense of taste and smell will improve as your nerve endings start re-growing.

By coming up with a concrete and achievable plan to quit smoking you will greatly increase your chances of success. It is crucial to understand how being in the right frame of mind will affect your chances of success. Knowing why you are quitting and believing in yourself, in your attempt to quit are also essential. Once you've stopped consider yourself a non-smoker, and to help, remind yourself of the health benefits you will be experiencing immediately after putting out that last cigarette.


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Quit Smoking and Beat Nicotine Addiction

Quitting smoking can be difficult and daunting due to the two sides of addiction that it presents. Every type of addiction has a chemical or physical side and a mental or psychological side. These two combine to present a powerful barrier when trying to free oneself from the particular addiction. One weapon that should be in every addicts arsenal when trying to beat addiction is knowledge of the enemy. This article specifically looks at nicotine addiction and the effect it has on every smoker. It also looks at the nature of nicotine itself, what effects it has on the body and how its grip makes quitting smoking a difficult task.

According to the 1996 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, around 62 million people aged 12 and older in the United States smoke cigarettes. This makes nicotine one of the most heavily used addictive drugs in the US. When a smoker inhales cigarette smoke it takes about 7 seconds for the nicotine in the smoke to be absorbed into the blood stream and affect the brain. It takes up to two hours for enough nicotine to leave the body to cause a craving.

Nicotine then starts to affect the body's reward system similarly to other addictive drugs such as cocaine. It has the overall effect of increasing alertness and enhancing mental performance. Nicotine affects the cardiovascular system by increasing heart rate and blood pressure and restricting blood flow to the heart muscle. Nicotine also stimulates the release of the hormone epinephrine which is a "fight or flight" hormone with a powerful effect on the nervous system. Another hormone that nicotine promotes the release of is beta-endorphin which inhibits pain.Nicotine itself is a colourless oily compound and if you were to inject it directly into your bloodstream you would die, as it is quite a strong poison, 40-60mg of nicotine would be a lethal dose to a human. In fact its natural function in plants of the nightshade family is as an anti-herbivore chemical to prevent the plant being eaten. This is why nicotine has been widely used in the past as an insecticide, bear this in mind next time you smoke a cigarette or as you try to quit smoking.

Nicotine content in cigarettes has actually slowly increased over the years, and one study found that there was an average increase of 1.6% per year between the years of 1998 and 2005. One could take this cynically and suggest that a smoking industry with so much hostility towards it in legislation and campaigning is fighting back by trying to drug its smokers into continued loyalty.

There is no doubt that nicotine is a powerful and addictive drug, according the American Heart Association "Nicotine addiction has historically been one of the hardest addictions to break." It has their interest as nicotine has links to circulatory disease. As a stimulant it raises blood pressure and makes it harder for the heart to pump blood through the body. This causes the body to release fats and cholesterol into the blood stream possibly adding to the risk of failure in peripheral circulation.

Nicotine is only one of the 400 or so damaging substances in tobacco smoke, I think you will agree that it does enough damage on its own to warrant special attention. When you next think of quitting smoking, think about what nicotine does to you and what effect it has on your body, how nicotine keeps you addicted to smoking and how you can take steps to beat it.

5 Months Quit and I Feel Great

Can't believe I've done it, but I have. Almost at half a year as a non-smoker so I decided to try to find out how my body had changed and this is the best list I could find:

* In 20 minutes your blood pressure will drop back down to normal.
* In 8 hours the carbon monoxide (a toxic gas) levels in your blood stream will drop by half, and oxygen levels will return to normal.
* In 48 hours your chance of having a heart attack will have decreased. All nicotine will have left your body. Your sense of taste and smell will return to a normal level.
* In 72 hours your bronchial tubes will relax, and your energy levels will increase.
* In 2 weeks your circulation will increase, and it will continue to improve for the next 10 weeks.
* In three to nine months coughs, wheezing and breathing problems will dissipate as your lung capacity improves by 10%.
* In 1 year your risk of having a heart attack will have dropped by half.
* In 5 years your risk of having a stroke returns to that of a non-smoker.
* In 10 years your risk of lung cancer will have returned to that of a non-smoker.
* In 15 years your risk of heart attack will have returned to that of a non-smoker.

I can certainly vouch for the increased circulation and lung capacity. I can now exercise with ease and don't get anywhere near as breathless as I used to. Also I had a very dodgy big toe on my right foot, the nail had gone a sort of grey colour and was split. I happened to notice that it has become very pink and healthy looking again. This is quite worrying as I was probably headed for a circulatory disease, hopefully I quit in time and the return of the pink colour means I have reversed the damage.

Getting ready for the 6 month mark which will be just before my birthday in August, double party!!


Click here for a way to stay focused and develop your creativity!!

Quitting Smoking and Weight Gain

This is a myth I can personaly say truly is a myth. I am not saying that no-one who has stopped smoking hasn't gained weight, I am saying that they aren't essentially linked. One does not necessarily cause the other. Gaining weight is usually a consequence of eating more not stopping smoking, although suddenly dropping the stimulant nicotine can reduce your heart rate to a more normal level and cause less of your energy to be used up. This is where you have to start using more energy with your new fitter body. I went running today for the first time since I stopped smoking 20 weeks ago and for the first time I can remember I did not feel like throwing up afterwards.

Most people who gain weight when they stop smoking do so because they are substituting food for cigarettes. Instead of smoking they are eating....bad move. Substitution ultimately will lead to failure. The dependancy has not been removed, it has been transferred and can easily transfer back to smoking, especially when a weight gain is noted. The only way, in my opinion, to successfully stop smoking is to remove the dependancy. This is more of psychological journey than a physical one, one where your attitude to smoking has to fundamentally change. A change of thinking will remove the need to substitute and weight will not be an issue.

Start here FREE REPORT and succeed.

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Quitting Smoking Can Be So Hard

Watching television last night I was reminded how difficult and daunting it can be to stop smoking even when faced with a life threatening situation. I was watching a reality show about Accident and Emergency departments in hospitals. A patient was admitted with severe chest pains and it was later confirmed he had suffered a heart attack, he was 42 years old......42!. He was overweight and he smoked. When he was inteviewed at home after making a recovery he explained that he had adopted a healthier lifestyle. He had changed his diet and ate much more healthily. He had not, however, stopped smoking.

It is to be applauded that this person made the choice to change his diet, accepting that one of the reasons for his heart attack was what and how much he ate. It amazed me though that he did not apply the same reasoning to his smoking. Smoking had made a hugely greater contribution to his situation than his diet, why couldn't he see this?

Then I remembered what it is like to be a smoker, the fear of being without, the terror of facing a life without cigarettes, terror all caused by the mental conditioning that comes with addiction to nicotine. Even when faced with death from heart disease at 42 this guy could not let go of his smoking. That is very powerful mental conditioning. This is the sort of person I wish I could communicate with directly, to show them there is a way out. All I can hope is that people read this blog and take some sort of inspiration to change their lives.

Start changing your life and take the first step here My Free Report - 10 Things to do Before You Quit Smoking

4 Months After Quitting Smoking

I have been smoke free for four months now. It is now starting to feel normal to be a non-smoker.I went to a party last night and spent most of the night in the garden (it is Summer after all), this meant being surrounded by people smoking. Just after I stopped smoking this would have made me feel very uncomfortable, very nervous about how I would deal with the situation. I think the uncertainty of how I would behave is more unsettling than actually dealing with being around smokers. Four months on and with the experience to support me I now feel quite comfortable around smokers and safe in the knowledge that I am in no way tempted to smoke.

I also got off my high non-smoker horse last night and didn't try to convert anyone to quitting :). The feeling of normality helps a great deal when faced with smoking situations, it also helps to observe other non-smokers, they aren't affected by people smoking around them so why should I be? If you have recently quit keep at it, life begins to get more normal.

This 4 month milestone is something to be celebrated, now is the time to start developing your new found clarity of mind and energy. This is something I found the other day that can help you to unleash your new self and start making your life more enjoyable since casting off the slavery of smoking. Try it, you might like it!

Click here for a way to stay focused and develop your creativity!!

10 Things To Do Before You Quit Smoking

After some very hard work I have finally finished my first report about quitting smoking. I did a lot of research and examined how I have tried, failed and finally succeeded in quitting smoking. I hope everyone who reads this finds themselves closer to quitting at the end. It is not too long, only 12 pages but I think (and my friends who proof read it tell me) that it is full of relevant and insightful information. This is how I prepared to stop smoking and I hope you will too.

You have to give an email address to download it. If you absolutely object to doing so post a comment and I will provide an alternate link.

Here is the link My Free Report go download and enjoy.

Any comments are welcome I will try to answer all.

Nick

3 Months and Counting

Well here we are, 3 months now as a non-smoker and still counting. I think it is important to keep track of how you are doing when you undertake something as life changing as stopping smoking. Some would argue that focusing on your progress makes it harder as you are thinking about smoking all the time as you measure how you are doing. I disagree, I would encourage anyone quitting smoking to think about it, but think about it in the right way. It is all a question of attitude, as is quitting in the first place. If you think about smoking in a way that you feel you are missing something, then chances are you will start again someday. If you think about smoking as something you needed out of your life, like a bad relationship, for example, then there is no harm in focusing on it. It makes you more determined to never let it back into your life, just like that person who may have hurt you.

If you have quit, keep going, keep counting, every day you don't smoke is a success and should be celebrated. If you are thinking of quitting, go for it, it will be one of the best decisions you have ever made. Also keep looking back here I am about to release a new report titled "10 things to do before you quit smoking". This will be a free download, I am currently putting the finishing touches to it.

To your success as a non-smoker!!!

2 Months It's Official

That is officially the score, I have now been a non-smoker for 2 months. I was going to post this on Sunday but that was only 8 weeks, this is properly 2 calendar months. It has got easier and easier to stay quit, I still have no desire to smoke. I will occasionally get a very brief urge when I do a task that I associated with smoking in the past or I visit somewhere that I associate with smoking for the first time since becoming a non-smoker. These urges are very brief and easily overcome. The most recent example was last Saturday at a birthday party. The party was a 40th and was being held at the same place as a 40th I went to last year, as a smoker. I associated the venue, the party and the people I was with, with a time when I smoked. That was quite a powerful combination but still easily overcome by remembering exactly what the benefits of smoking are: NONE. In the end it was quite amusing watching the smokers scuttle off outside, missing the fun, while I remembered what that was like and really was glad that I didn't do that anymore.

Here's looking forward to the next month smokefree.

Time Off to Reflect

Wow it has now been over 6 weeks since I quit and smoking is becoming a distant memory. I was lucky enough to be able to face and pass a test this weekend. It was my mother's birthday so we had a party for family and friends, my cousin with whom I used to slope off to smoke, was there. He is still a smoker and I wanted to find out if I would have a desire to smoke when he did, old habits and all that. I survived the test with no trouble whatsoever, in fact I felt very smug at how I didn't feel the slightest inclination to smoke. Poor chap he was the only smoker there and I felt a little sorry for him, you could tell he felt a bit like an outcast and went to hide down the drive to smoke.

I am taking time off this week for the Easter holidays to spend some time with my son. It is also a new test for my resolve to stay a non-smoker, I always smoked more at home than away but so far this week everything has been fine, no desire at all.

More and more it seems that smoking is dying as an occupation among all the people I know. Let's hope the non-smokers to be increase in number every day.

Getting the Fear

If you are a smoker you may or may not recognise the following, it depends on how you percieve your smoking. This does not just apply to smokers and smoking it can apply to any addiction but let us stick to smoking for now.

Why don't smokers who know that smoking is killing them just stop doing it? Why on earth would someone commit suicide slowly when it is in their power to stop and live healthily instead? Reasonable and significant questions which usually get answered flippantly by the obvious "because they are addicted". I say flippantly because often no thought goes into answering those questions, either by smokers or non-smokers. It is assumed that a smoker is a hopeless addict and that is reason enough to dismiss putting any effort into reasoning why a smoker can not quit.

In my experience there is only ONE reason why a smoker can not quit smoking, just one. No matter what number of reasons a smoker will give for continuing to smoke, the real reason is that they are frightened to quit. Many smokers will probably not agree with this point of view, especially the hardcore that take the view that smoking is what they want to do and it is their right. Consider this though, how do you feel as a smoker at the end of a night out when you are running low on cigarettes and do not know where you can get some, when you are faced with visiting a new place, perhaps for a holiday, is one of your first thoughts,"where can I smoke?". I can certainly say that in my own experience, running out of cigarettes with no way of knowing where some more would come from would at best cause irritation, at worst panic. When faced with new surroundings I would actually visualise myself smoking and planning where I could smoke.

This is what I mean by the fear, the smoker is so frightened of being unable to smoke that under certain circumstances it takes over their thoughts, becomes their focus, but one they don't discuss, because the fact that smoking has such an influence on their lives is also frightening. The smoker will then cover their fear with excuses.

The fear of being without smoking is the one reason that smokers will not quit. When smokers realise this and start to face their fear is when they can begin the road to quitting. If you smoke start to face the fear, realise it is there, realise that is what is keeping you smoking.

STOP SMOKING NOW

The 1 Month Milestone

I meant to post this on Sunday but have just been too busy. I have now been a non-smoker for a whole month!! Still waking up earlier and starting my days fresher but still feeling more tired earlier at night. I have looked on some forums and apparently this is normal. I suppose my body will eventually adjust to not having the nicotine stimulant and my daily cycle will return to normal.

Some very good news this week is that a close friend of mine has been inspired to stop smoking as well, I spent some time trying to explain to him on the phone how easy I had found it and he read this blog and took the plunge. He is at the moment preparing to stop, very important if you want to succeed, you must be mentally prepared. Hopefully in the next week or so he will, for good.

Apparently now I have been stopped for 1 month my body will benefit in the following way

Appearance improves – skin loses its grayish pallor and becomes less wrinkled

Hmmmm, spending less on the face creams then, another saving :)

If you are stopping or thinking of stopping smoking DO IT, don't wait, make the decision today and just go for it.

The Fresh Start

Matt Godson is a clinical hypnotherapist who has developed a ONE HOUR stop smoking program, called The Fresh Start Program. Matt's program works by changing your attitude towards smoking, it removes the fears that every smoker has about quitting, the fears of suffering intolerable cravings for the rest of your life. That fear is actually founded on a myth, you will not suffer cravings for the rest of your life, the cravings go away quite quickly, I can vouch for that, and are very easy to control. Most of the cravings of a smoker are not physical they are based on how the smoker percieves smoking, once this perception has been changed the cravings are insignificant. You can check out Matt's program here.

The Fresh Start Program

He has a great FAQ section that I suggest you read first and he offers an 8 week full money back guarantee so what have you got to lose.

Stop smoking, start living.

Still Going Strong

Now into my fourth week as a non-smoker I am starting to feel the benefits of stopping smoking. I used to be terrible at getting up in the morning, after a supposed good nights sleep I would be lethargic, sluggish and coughing and spluttering. After just three weeks I have lost the cough and I am waking up fresh and ready to start my day. I have been arriving at work earlier, getting more done and reducing my work stress, spending more of my days being productive and positive, again reducing the total amount of stress in my life, and I used to think cigarettes did that.

My son has stopped being suspicious that I am smoking in secret, I haven't, but he was so used to me doing so that he found it hard to believe that I had finally stopped. After three weeks of sniffing my clothes and checking my pockets he has accepted that Dad has kicked the filthy habit and he no longer has to nag me.

Here is a little advice from someone who inspired me in my cause to quit smoking, Allen Carr.

No Smoking Day 2009

So here we are again, another National No Smoking Day and this is the first one that I have not sneered at, from behind my smokers defence. Hopefully today will start new lives for a lot of smokers and send them on their way to becoming non-smokers. There are plenty of resources, help and advice here No Smoking Day. Even if you are not from the UK the No Smoking site still carries a lot of helpful information even though it is targeted at the UK for events and other lists. If you do decide to stop smoking today then the very best of luck to you in joinging us non-smokers and remember the following reasons to stop.

1 For better health
2 For more money
3 For more energy
4 To prevent premature ageing
5 For whiter teeth
6 For lower stress levels
7 For an improved sense of taste and smell

But above all why pay money to choke yourself?

Two Weeks In

Last night I celebrated my second week as a non-smoker. This has been much easier than I thought but I have had time to reflect on the last two weeks take as objective a view as possible as to how I have behaved and how I've felt.

Each time I have tried to stop smoking before, when deprived of nicotine I have been irritable, nervous and had disturbed sleep. This time I have consciously monitored these symptoms. The irritability has manifested itself, but in very short episodes and easily controlled. The nervousness has not been evident at all, in fact I have felt quite the opposite and been very confident. My sleep was disturbed for perhaps the first couple of days whilst the nicotine left my body, since then I have slept like a log.

The cravings are almost gone now, they occur very rarely and with less and less intensity each time, still on guard though now until the end of the third week when they are pretty much supposed to stop.

All in all I have had a very easy time quitting smoking, changing your belief is the key, seeing through the brainwashing and seeing cigarettes for what they really are, then it really is easy.

Wednesday March 11th is National Stop Smoking day here in the UK for those that want some info or support the No Smoking Day website has a really supportive forum, sign up here Stop Smoking Forum and if you decide to stop on Wednesday don't do it because you feel pressured into it, don't do it because your friends or your partner try to convince you to, do it for you and only you.

Anyway below is this years promo for No Smoking Day, enjoy.

The Alcohol Challenge

I don't know about you but I always associated drinking alcohol with smoking, this is also the experience of all the smokers and ex-smokers that I know. I always smoked more when drinking, especially on a night out. The taste of that first beer would send me reaching for my cigarette packet and lighter and, if at home out into the garden I would go. If out with friends I would go out into the designated, banished smokers area.

Last night came my first real alcohol challenge since becoming a non-smoker, I had the opportunity to take an evening out and relax at home with a bottle of wine. This would normally involve several trips to the garden but last night I breezed through the challenge without even a slight pang for a cigarette. Don't get me wrong, smoking did occur to me several times, it still does several times a day but how I deal with those thoughts is what has made the difference. I no longer look a cigarettes as a complement to a glass of my favourite beer or wine, I see it as something that destroys the enjoyment, ruins the taste and interrupts conversations with friends.

I no longer see cigarettes as enjoyable, because lets face it they aren't, what is enjoyable is realising that they aren't and rejecting them.

The Fragile Time - Know Your Enemy

The start of week two and so far all is well. Common opinion puts the the length of time that Nicotine cravings remain a problem at between 5 days and 3 weeks. This is the fragile time, the time when an acute craving may sway the recent non-smoker back to the old and dark ways. This is the time that you need to know your enemy, which is of course Nicotine.

Nicotine is one of the most addictive drugs known to man, some studies have shown it to be more addictive than Heroin or Cocaine, yet Nicotine escapes the public outrage shown at these other drugs. Nicotine gives an almost immediate "hit" when ingested and then starts to leave the body very soon after, creating a craving for the drug all over again. Over time increasing quantities of Nicotoine are required to satisfy the craving leading the "casual" smoker to increase their intake over time. It is this very addictive quality that the recent non-smoker must remember and take heed of whenever an acute craving takes hold. It is easy to believe that having just one cigarette will be okay, you have come this far, and surely just one will do no harm. Alas just one will do harm, the cycle of nicotine addiction will start all over again and the smoker becomes trapped as they were before.

Ride out the fragile time, it doesn't take long, there is NEVER just one.

The First Whole Week

That's it, I've completed the first week and I can hardly believe I've done it. After all the previous failed attempts, the Will Power Failures the Nicotine Replacement Failures this time I've done it. Feel great, feel more alive, been a hell of a lot busier this week too, got so much more energy than before. The key I think this time is no aggravated craving from trying the willpower method and no continuous addiction from nicotine replacement. This is not to say that I am not suffering the odd nicotine craving, I am but I am much more equipped to deal with them this time, I can see them for what they really are, an irritation that will soon end. Looking forward to the next week!

Approaching the Revelation

A few days from the quitting event and already my life has started to feel different. I have been more active, feeling more aware of others and things around me. I am no longer timing visits to the garden to relieve my addiction, no longer thinking about the next cigarette, the old "well I'll just nip for a fag first" syndrome has left me....and it feels wonderful. The fear has left me, you smokers know the one, the one that creeps up on you and fills you with horror when you look into your cigarette packet and there are only two of the evil little swine left, MY GOD where is the nearest shop / supermarket / garage / off-licence .... what time do they shut? OH SHIT!!! The calm that you are left with when this fear is over is exhilarating, satisfying and leaves you approaching the revelation that you are a non-smoker.

The Smoker and The Excuse

That was me, the smoker, full of every reason I could think to justify my disgusting practice. I started very young, 12 years old in fact and can still remember to this day ( I am now 41) that first cigarette and how foul it tasted, but egged on by a friend I continued to smoke. What did it matter, I was invincible and could give up whenever I wanted, or so I thought, yet nearly thirty years later I was still smoking.

Any smoker can give you many reasons why they smoke, none of them stand up to examination but I believed them just like any of my kind fighting for our smoking survival in an increasingley hostile world. "I enjoy smoking", "Smoking relaxes me when I'm stressed", "Smoking after a meal is enjoyable", recognise any of these statements? I do, I have used them all.....and guess what, none of them are really true, though we think so when we say them.

I Have Finally Done It, I Have Quit Smoking!!

A momentous occasion in my life has just occurred and I feel I have to share it to give hope to those still afflicted by a terrible disease. I QUIT SMOKING for good! The weed has gone from my life for ever, I feel free, unenslaved, clean and hopeful for a longer life. Damn it feels good.

If you have ever tried to quit smoking you will know how hard it is, I have tried several times in my life with varying degrees of longevity before succumbing to the weed again, and trying various methods. All these had a certain degree of success in that I once stopped for a whole TWO DAYS, once I stopped for nearly TWO YEARS. This time I know it is for good because this time it feels different, this time I made the choice differently.

My momentous time was 22:00 on Saturday 21st February 2009, this is a time I shall never forget and shall look back on with pride. This is the time my life changed for the better and I became a normal person again, a non-smoker. I will update this blog with my progress, my feelings, thoughts and advice for those of you who have yet to take the plunge and kick the weed FOREVER.