Are you ready to take control of your life? Quitting smoking is one of the most important decisions you will ever make, and every moment will have an impact on your life.
It has to be your #1 priority. If not, you will fail.
Here are the first 30 days of my journey. But this is after 100’s of relapses.
It simply won’t happen. If it does happen, then all the more power to you. But it’s not realistic.
I don’t believe most people will succeed on their first try. I think the vast majority of people will fail a couple of times. I relapsed over 300 times in my life.
Am I embarrassed about that?
Yes and no.
Click Here to Subscribe to My Channel
Each time I relapsed I learned something new. I learned what not to do the next time. Yes, it’s rather ridiculous it’s taken me so many tries, but that’s how addicted I really was.
If you’re a chain smoker and have been for many, many years, it’s not going to be easy. Your mind has been conditioned to smoke in virtually any situation.
You’re accustomed to it with every mood change, when you’re happy or sad, joyful or depressed, angry or excited.
For you, there is ALWAYS a reason.
So maybe the answer to is by actually failing a couple times to see what the process is like. Have you ever considered that?
Not that you should try to fail, but I’d expect to see a few bumps down the road, especially if you hang around people who smoke.
Work may also be a problem, depending on the field that you’re in. You’ll see how tough it is once you jump into it.
I remember my first attempt at quitting back when I was 21 years old.
The physical withdrawal got too intense and I just crashed and burned. I was not in the correct frame of mind. I was still a party kid.
If you’re going out to the bars every weekend and all your friends smoke, then it is not time to quit.
You’ll fail every single time.
Sounds disheartening, I know, but that’s the honest truth.
Unless something tragic happens in your life, or everyone else quits at the same time, you can’t be a party kid and go out every weekend and expect to not smoke and everything to run smoothly.
It’s just not realistic.
What is realistic then?
Try quitting cold turkey and see how long you last. The first time you will have no idea what to expect because you’ve never experienced it yet.
Coming off 300 relapses, I knew what to expect.
Believe me, I knew every trigger, every situation, every vulnerable moment, and every emotion that could get me in trouble.
Plus you can’t go into this blindly.
You can’t be, “well, I should quit, my mom wants me to.”
Or the famous, “I don’t want to die of lung cancer, so I’m going to stop immediately.”
Those excuses will get you no where.
Nicotine is way too powerful to let you off the hook so easily. It will play a million tricks on you to make you start back up.
In my history, nicotine won the battle many, many times.
So try this:
1. Don’t expect to succeed the first time. It’s not realistic.
2. Expect to fail a couple times. It’s very common.
3. Learn from your mistakes.
4. Gain knowledge from what you did wrong before and go back and try again.
With my unsuccessful 300 relapses, I’ve gained a wealth of knowledge about what it truly takes to quit for good.
I’ve been there, done that. I know exactly what to expect.
Honestly, there isn’t any trigger that fazes me, because I’ve seen it all before. I laugh at them. They are old news to me.
That’s why I know what I’m talking about. I’m not going to pretend to be a doctor and say “smoking is bad” over and over. You know that. We’re both not stupid.
Everyone is different, and there is no one real answer.
However, there is a GIANT underlying cause of what’s keeping you an addict. That’s nicotine.
It’s constantly making you believe you can’t live without it, that you feel happy and empowered by it.
All of that, of course, is a complete lie. It does none of those things.
Smoking doesn’t relieve stress, it causes it. It doesn’t take away your anxiety, it creates it. It doesn’t calm you down, it makes you more wired then ever.
Why?
It’s a stimulant.
It doesn’t make you feel good, it does the complete opposite.
Quit and you’ll quickly realize how great you can actually feel on a day-to-day basis without smoking.
It really is all a complete lie.
Here are some other things you should do:
1. Set a date and make no excuses.
2. Realize that any other method of quitting puts nicotine back into your body, sending you back to square one each and every time.
3. On Day 1, do anything it takes not to smoke.
4. Do not be afraid of eating. What’s worse: eating a couple of snacks, or smoking a pack of cigarettes?
5. If you want, make a journal. Write down your thoughts and emotions each day. It will be therapy for you.
6. Chill out for at least 2 weeks. Don’t plan any major events. Relapsing is very easy, so be aware of that.
7. Avoid as much stress as possible.
8. Begin positive and forward-thinking. Don’t think of what you’ve sacrificed, think of how great your life will ultimately be.
9. Be active. Clean the house, start a hobby, and MOVE your body. But not too much at once.
10. Take things hour by hour, minute by minute. Nicotine cravings can catch you off guard at any moment. Be on top of things.
Know in your heart you’re going to go straight home after work, shut the door, and make it through the day without smoking, and that’s all there is to it.
Believe you can do it.
OK. Hi, helpful and informative page. I quit heroin quite recently but I find quitting smoking is a real challenge. I’m gonna try though I mean I just can’t afford it.