Stop Smoking Support Thread
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MinusTwo - Congrats on your upcoming 5 year anniversary. You must give us the date so we can plan a celebration party for you.
Does anyone know where BarbaraA has gotten off to? For some reason she was in my thoughts last night. Hope she is doing well.
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Morning ladies . guess im down with a nasty cold .. my nose is runny and my throat is killing me .. my head is gonna pop off ... but ya know I am smoke free .. I guess I gotta go to Dr today
yuckJust for Today We will not Smoke ...
Love and Hugs to u all xoxoxoxo
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lisamarie - Bummer on the nasty cold. Hope you get well real soon.
Off to lunch with 2 good friends - one is a 17 year BC survivor - she is my rock!
Just for Today We WIll No Smoke!!!
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Hi Jo and lisamarie, many colds making the rounds in NY, weather cannot decide what season it is!! Have a wonderful lunch, 17 yrs. WOW, are your recycled teenagers making their ways back up here? Lisamarie - hope you feel better soon and just for today we will not smoke. hugs, Karen
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Karen - The recycled teenagers are almost gone. By this time next week we will be down to the ones that stay here year round. One of the gals I had lunch with today will be having surgery this time next week - her bladder has fallen - again. Hope they get it right this time.
Lunch was great. The 3 of us at Olive Garden. Had the Soup, Salad and Breadsticks lunch. The peach ice tea is to die for!!.
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Jo, I love that Olive Garden Lunch ...
my gf's and I used to go all the time .. Yummyyyy I took my aunt to lunch yesterday even though I am.. we ate at J&R steak house here on Long Island it was yummy .. steak and shrimp ,sweet potatoe and veggies , a salad , and then cheesecake and coffee ... yummmy .. I am gaining sooo many pounds not smoking ...lol
I love all u gals hugs and hugs and HUGS
Karen the cold thing is horriable ... and I am working today
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lisamarie - One of the first "programs" I used when I quit smoking was natural herbs. In their advertisement they clearly stated I would not gain weight. Guess what? They were WRONG! About 6 years ago I lost almost 20 lbs and left great. Went from a size 12 to a size 4. Well, now I am back up to wearing 8s and 10s depending on the brand. I really have to keep an eye on how much I eat. I am holding steady and the darn pounds will not come off. I so wish I could get rid of at least 5 lbs. I would be happy with that.
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Yesterday morning, I was driving to my next farm call( I am a large animal veterinarian) and I just got so damn tired of it all. I smoked for 10 years and then switched to snuff to help quit smoking. I have a half finished can on my dash. I just "quit". I have tried so many times before, but this time I think it just might hold.
The sunflower seeds and "altoids" are tearing my mouth to hell, but I have made it to 1 day and 8 hours. I can do this. I hate nicotine and I want to be free of it. Let you know tomorrow how I am doing.
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Welcome lovehertons - There is so much support and encouragement here. Others will be along to also welcome you. We have a sayiig here - Just for Today We Will Not Smoke! Take it one day at a time or hour by hour if you have to. Post as often as you need to. We are here for you.
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Hi lovehertons, what a great decision you just made, make sure to mark the day and time on your calender, now you are going hour to hour, soon it will be days. I smoked for 30+ yrs. and never thought I could quit but here I am at 16 mos. with the help and support of this group you can do it too. If it gets too hard tonight go to bed early, I did that more than once, a tip from our fearless leader seaside memories. If you read a few back pages you will find a whole bunch of tips. I quit using an e cig, some used the patch, some gum, some cold turkey.. We have a resident smoking cessation expert, VJ, who will be on to welcome you. Good to have you with us, post a lot, so we can help. Karen
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Welcome Lovehertons!
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Hi Galsal, nice to see you today on another non-smoking day!!!! hugs, Karen
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Hi Everyone,
So glad I came across this thread. I had wanted to ask if there were any women who were struggling with still smoking after diagnosis or attempting to quit after being diagnosed but was afraid to. I'm 56 years old and have been smoking since I was 16. I was just diagnosed 2/29 and, although I know I need to quit, have been having a difficult time. I even told my sister "What crazy person continues to smoke after they find out they have cancer!!?!!" I had a partial mastectomy w/ALND 2 weeks ago today and have my first visit with the oncologist tomorrow. I know I need to quit before starting treatments. I'm normally not a heavy smoker, the majority of the time I smoke about 1/2 pack a day. On more stressful days I might smoke a full pack, which there have been quite a few of those in the last two months. My husband smokes and our 34 year old son who lives with us and who is diagnosed with schizophrenia smokes extremely excessively. There is no chance of either one of them quitting so I already know I'm not going to get any support from them in this area.
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mimiof6 - Welcome - So glad you found us - this is a great place to be. I am the same age you are and probably have smoked as long as you have. I smoked through treatment and decided last July that enough was enough. Even though I loved smoking and was a light smoker I figured it was about time. I could not get myself to quit during treatment - too much stress - my rads were a nightmare. Those were my excuses. Yes, you can do this. My DH still smokes and in the house. Also my 2 coworkers smoke. So I am surrounded by them. I use an electronic cig which really helps me from going back to the real thing. There are numerous methods out there and don't be discouraged if you don't succeed the first time. It took me several tries over the years and I guess it was just my time.
We have a resident smoking cessation gal that will email you her tip book. I am not used it myself but I understand it is great. Others will be along to give their support and encouragement. Post often even if you are still smoking so we can help you. If you have to, take it minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day - whatever is going to work best for you.
I never dreamed I would be at a point where I could lend my support - I surprised myself. I am 8 months 21 days since I quit.
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mimiof6, is that your name for grandma of 6? I ask because I am a nini of 2, a friend of mine is mimi. You have definitely come to the right place, this is one strong team of women here to support and encourage you. We are in all stages of quiting, if you start a few pages back you will know us all and where we are in the quiting process, plus all the tips we have to make a difficult process easier, it is most definitely doable. You battled cancer, you can with a firm resolve do this. Like you I was a long time smoker who never thought I could quit, I went from hour to hour in the beginning. Like Jo, I used the e cig after I was down to 6 per day. I too was a heavy stress smoker, now I am a 16 month non-smoker with an addiction to chewing gum, far less dangerous. Through out the day others will come by to welcome you with the majority checking in after work. Like Jo, you are surrounded by smokers, this definitely is a challenge but one that you are up for. Take it moment by moment, little baby steps and you will get there. Many of us used nicotine alternative methods, e cig, patch, gum, and others cold turkey. At this time it is a large group with 2 of you joining in the space of 2 days, you will learn much from the early quitters, they are a strong support group of their own. Again, welcome to our thread. Karen
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Jo & Karen - great posts. You are to be congratulated.
Welcome to the newbies.
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MinusTwo - Thanks! You are such a sweetie.
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Welcome newbies!
Jo: I took a friend to her oncologist's appt. on Tuesday, then we went to Olive Garden for lunch and had the soup, salad and breadsticks! Great minds think alike.
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Bama, I counted back on my calender from my quit date, I am at 16 mos. not 18, I do intend to get to 18 though. No Olive Branches in Batavia - used to go to one in Buffalo when I lived there. Great food, reasonable prices too. Where are all our ladies, Galsal checked in with another day under her belt, YAY. Missing Maria, lisamarie, mimiof6, and lovehertons. Just for today we did not smoke, stay strong ladies. Karen thanks MinusTwo.
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Bana - Olive Garden is one of my favorites - DH is not a huge fan so it works out to be a good place for a girl's day out. Yes, great minds do think alike.
Where in the world is BarbaraA? She has not checked in for quite some time.
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Well, there is just so many of you. Thanks for the welcome. I am still off of the chew, 2 days and 13 hours. What a bitch. The last time I did this I said this would be my last time. Here I am again in the throws of a nervous fit( i'll get through it, they really haven't been that bad).
The sunflower seeds are still tearing my mouth to hell. Hurts, but it kinda feels right in a twisted way. I find that Icebreakers are the best little ticket. They really light my mouth up like "cope" did.
When, I get through the next couple of days, I'll really set my mind to learning all you ex-smokers. Right now, its me and my addiction. Check in tomorrow, ladies.
I will not use nicotine tomorrow.
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Thanks so much for the warm welcome ladies. Sorry for posting so late. Had a busy day today. Saw the oncologist today for the first time. The good news is I think I'm going to be very comfortable with him and that I lost 5 lbs. I can't even remember the last time I lost 5 lbs. Found out that I will need both chemo & radiation. He strongly recommended both because I'm triple negative and said my chances would be better. So next week will be a busy week for me. I go back to my BS Monday a.m. to discuss having a port put in then go back to the oncologist's office in the afternoon to attend "chemo class". Then back to the BS on Wednesday to actually have the port put in. Guess I'll find out Monday when the first chemo treatment will be. After my appt hubby and I went Easter shopping for our 12 yr old grandson who we have custody of and are raising. He is our 34 yr old son's son. Yes Karen, it does stand for Grandma of 6. We have 6 wonderful, beautiful, amazing grandchildren . 5 grandsons and one granddaughter (the grand princess...lol). They range in ages from 5 mos to almost 16 yrs old. Our granddaughter will be 16 0n 4/30 and she is our 5 month old grandson's big sister. When our daughter told us she was pregnant I was a few months shy of being 40 and wasn't ready to be called grandma or mawmaw so I decided on "Grammy" instead. We live in cajun country and my husband started calling me MiMi and it stuck. Of course my granddaughter has outgrown that and now calls me Grams (she spells it "Grahams" though, like the crackers) so I've started calling her my "graham-daughter". Our other 3 grandson's belong to our oldest son and his wife who live in MS.
Didn't do too well with the smoking thing today. I was really anxious about meeting the oncologist for the first time. One of my biggest fears I had built up in my mind was that he would beat me over the head when he found out I was still smoking or that he might even refuse to treat me. Turns out he barely even mentioned it. I did really good yesterday as compared to today. I only smoked like 3 or 4 yesterday. I've considered getting one of those e-cigarettes but would much prefer to do this cold turkey if I possibly can. Definitely don't want to do chantix cause of the side effects I've read about. Not gonna stop trying though. I will start over again tomorrow and keep starting over again until the day comes that I don't have to start over again. Thanks so much for everyone's support. Look forward to talking with everyone again soon.
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Lovehertons, Could you use a nicotine patch?
I don't know if tis wpould help you or not. I quit a decades long addiction to Winston Longs with one session of hypnosis. I was even in grad school at the time and knew the mechanisms of hypnosis and it still worked. Immediately and perfectly. My parents wentto a session after seeing that I had done it. They both quit, but my mom later went back to smoking and quit a couple more times. My Dad quit permanently. Previously I had tired so many times and would always find myself out in the car ashtrays, just to get one more hit off of a stubbed out cigarette. I was addicted and seemingly helpless over it.
I wish you well as you take on this challenge, I know it is hard.
Ginger
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mimiof6, you sure do have a busy week coming up on you, it will be a roller coaster for awhile. I did not quit during active treatment, my BS, who I thought would have a fit over my smoking, only said "let's do one thing at a time Karen, I'll get the breast cancer out but I can't do anything about lung cancer" Some have quit during treatment though. Just keep trying as you have been doing, keep cutting back. I used to put 6 out on the coffee table so I knew what my "allowance" was for the day, lit one took a few puffs and stubbed it out for later. Try chewing gum, have many flavors to choose from, even bubble gum, it satisfies the oral fixation. I also cut a few straws to cigarette length and chewed on those, whatever helps you along. Keep posting to get support, tips and to learn who we are, I know we are a big bunch now, there are a few butt veterans: Minus Two, Barbara, o2bhealthy, Seaside Memories, Jo and myself. Our newbies are Maria, lisamarie, Galsal, I know I'm leaving someone out, a brand new newbie, my apologies, I don't want to go back to our pages and lose this post. Just keep trying, baby steps which will lead you to that final break. Karen
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Gingerbrew and lovehertons, sorry about that, we all get credit for I chose not to smoke today, stay strong.
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Happy Easter to you Jo, is that what we called ourselves, butt veterans? doesn't look right. hugs, Karen
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Karen - We are butt veterans and proud of it.
I have a busy weekend ahead and may not be on here much. I am driving to South Padre Island - about 70 miles from where I live to meet a sister for the first time in person. We are going to have lunch. We have similar jobs and were way to busy until now. In fact, she is busier than I am. Planning on vacation next week - so that was out - weekend after that is out - I will be home recovering from recon surgery. So we had to make this one work. Will give details later. Hope to be able to post a picture or two.
HUGS
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Jo, how exciting, I hope you have a wonderful time!!! hugs, Karen
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Really ladies - LOL
How about butt vets? Just hope someone doesn't turn it around.
Happy Easter & passover to all.
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