efreeman75
296 posts
Registered:
02 Apr 2018
26 Jun 2019
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A couple of weeks ago I drove to help an uncle who is recovering from a stroke. After mowing his grass, we sat, talked, and reflected. The topic of commitments and vows came up, and while driving home later that day, I thought about my decision to quit smoking. It wasn't a fleeting thought nor a trivial attempt. It was a decision, and once committed to, was not to be reversed. It took a lot of willingness and acceptance to honour the first few days of my quit. I had to realize and accept the laws of addiction in order to break myself free. Willingness and acceptance are much stronger than willpower and strength, for they also involve knowledge and lead to commitment. Soon I had invested so much in my quit that it was too valuable to jeopardize.
There are gums, sprays, patches, inhalers, apps, oils, herbals, prescriptions, and a whole host of other marketed items designed to make our quits easier. They may even have documentation and self-sponsored studies to 'prove' their effectiveness. They all also note that they are to be used with willpower, so it is up to the individual. But none of them can make you quit. There is no 'Easy' button. You have to want to quit. You have to recognize that you are not addicted to cigarettes, you are addicted to nicotine.
19 years ago I made a wedding vow and commitment to my wife. A vow that I took and continue to take with the utmost of seriousness. 500 days ago, I made a vow to myself to never smoke again. I take this vow with just as much seriousness.