November 18, 2010 Day 1

The Great American Smokeout

So, last night per my request, my boyfriend threw out any cigarettes I had not smoked before I awoke this morning. He even emptied the ashtray on the porch! Damn it! I couldn't even lick one or smell it, not even an empty pack to look at! I guess I really am going to attempt this....quitting smoking. I have been smoking for twenty-something years and have only quit one time before....1993/1994 during my pregnancy. However am I going to do this?

I went online yesterday and found some pointers from all over the place really, not just one site, and I compiled my list to just a few. They are: the FREE smoking cessation hotline (which I have already utilized during my lunch break), reviewing past quitting experiences (which I just told you was in 93/94), anticipating challenges...really? Who in their right mind wants to anticipate a challenge on a daaily basis when quitting smoking? (I really wish I could just slip into a coma until the urge to smoke is gone), limit alcohol..uh huh..right!, ask for help..(I didn't ask per se as much as I warned my friends and family of what I was doing!) My boss told me to take the next 3 months off and my family plans on sleeping for quite some time! Aren't they lovely? There are 2 that I thought were very helpful pointers though: reduce stress (well, that's what my cigarettes did!) and reward myself for quitting! (you can only imagine how long this list is getting!)

So, I am currently on my 10th waking hour of my first quit day and I am relatively in a good mood considering. I did want to wrestle a cigarette out of a man's mouth at the red light at lunch but I didn't! I did purchase an obscene amount of peppermint bark and dark chocolate and because of this, I did ready up the treadmill!

Stay tuned for I am sure tomorrow will hold even more surprises and chocolate shame for me!