treepeo
832 posts
Registered:
29 Nov 2017
14 Sep 2018
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Hi LInda,
As I said in my post in My Journey, the right time to quit is now. However, when I came to that realization, I told myself that I wanted to be off work when I quit, because I didn't know how I would react, and I didn't want to be mean to other people. It was really close to Christmas, so I decided that I would quit while I was off on Christmas vacation. And that is what I did.
As smokers (a.k.a. addicts), we all come up with excuse after excuse as to why this is not the right time to quit. What we have to face is that there will always be stressors in our lives. We will alternate between feeling happy, sad, excited, stressed, depressed, apathetic, and everything in between. We just have to take the plunge and say, this is it, I am going to quit, and I am going to do it now.
I wish it was easy to quit, but it isn't. It is really, really hard. And to make matters worse, sometimes cravings don't just stop. I have come to the realization that I may always have cravings from time to time, because I smoked almost my whole life, and this addiction just doesn't want to let go. But I have to keep fighting, no matter what.
You know, tonight I went to a festival. The weather was beautiful, and there was a nice turnout. And once again, I thought to myself, I am so glad that I am now a non-smoker. I could eat, talk to people, sit and enjoy the entertainment, and never once worry about how or where I was going to have a smoke. I have broken free from an addiction that weighed me down and embarrassed me, and I never want to go back.
I want everyone that is struggling to know that ultimately, it is worth it to quit, and you will be so glad you made the effort. And that we are all part of this site because we are all in the same boat. We all need help, and we should keep reaching out to one another to provide some help and encouragement along the way. We all deserve to live smoke free lives.