Nickname: Gay - Gaylene
Quit Date: October 21, 2002
Gaylene's Quit Story
After 36 years of smoking and a diagnosis of emphysema, Gaylene finally put her cigarettes down for the last time. Not long after, she found this forum and quickly fell in with the support network here. During the year that followed, Gaylene worked through the process of letting go of her addiction (and a large amount of caramel apple suckers!). As a moderator, Gay is warm-hearted and honest. She knows how to tell the truth in a loving way -- a wonderful quality that has endeared her to forum members for years.
Last year, Gaylene was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer. By the time they found her cancer, it had spread to her thyroid and lymph nodes. Amazingly, Gay beat her cancer into remission and now, a year later is doing well. She is a stunning example of the power for healing that we possess when we're able to apply body, mind and soul to the task. Along with the medical treatments Gaylene received, her attitude and strong will to live are forces to be reckoned with.
As smokers, we all harbor secret fears about the damage we're doing to ourselves by smoking. We worry we'll get sick, and we worry that we won't quit smoking in time. Gaylene kept a journal as she went through her year of healing from cancer so that she could share the journey with those of us who are working so hard to beat nicotine addiction to the ground. Her journal was an act of love for you, dear reader. I hope you read it and find the inspiration Gay hoped to provide with it.
During her first year of smoking cessation, Gaylene called her quit her WIN, because that's just how she looked at it. She wasn't quitting, she was winning. She still is!
