Kat Quit Smoking

One Year Ago...

August 23, 2005 was the turning point for me. I had run out of excuses and mediocre justifications for remaining a smoker. For a few weeks before that I bought my packs of smokes and told myself that I’d quit after each one. Cartons later I was still smoking.

All my life I’ve always achieved whatever it was I set my mind on doing. So why was it so difficult to kick this habit? Looking back, I can see I had associated so many things with the act of smoking. Like I said in my 6th month milestone post, I punctuated my life with cigarettes.

There were a couple of things that I was certain of as I was vacillating between quitting and not quitting:

• I wanted to live a longer life.
• I didn’t want to be enslaved by any kind of addiction.

About a week before I finally took the plunge, my husband, who normally is a skeptic, embraced my announcement that I would quit for good. Here is a man who, with a law-enforcement background, can detect a liar a mile away, giving me his complete and utter support. That was the last boost I needed. I set my quit plan in motion. I also bought a pack of nicotine patches (the generic kind) and felt ready.

The first week of the quit was utter hell. I was dizzy from the nicotine patches so I stopped using them after 3 days. I could not focus on anything longer than 2 minutes and was an emotional wreck. Luckily I had happened onto the Smoking Cessation Forum after doing a search on the Internet during a sleepless night. I read through the posts and thought to myself that this was a great way to pass the time and share experiences with those going through the same thing that I was.

The sheer brilliance of this support group lies in the fact that regardless of our backgrounds, we all came here in order to find support whilst on the quit. It didn't matter who you were, all that mattered was that there were people here who have quit successfully and were willing to help you.

I give a LOT of credit to this forum. It kept me going when I thought I would fold. The act of helping other people helped me tremendously.

Fast-forward to 3+ months into my quit. SHOCKERS! I found myself expecting my first child. Talk about blessings. I quit the disgusting addiction, got promoted at work, and without even trying, got pregnant. 2005 couldn’t have been better for me.

When I think about how amazing things have become since I quit smoking, I realize that my entire life has changed for the better. I can't point out one thing here or there that has improved...literally everything has.

There really is no good time to quit; you just have to take the plunge. The start won’t be easy - however, forums like ours are created especially for this purpose...to foster a common bond with fellow quitters for support.

You have heard this before, but it bears repeating, "nothing good ever comes easy." But let me tell you, once you’ve decided to quit smoking, there is no better reward than a fuller life.

I’ll take my key now and join the 7% club. Thank you to all those that believed in me from DAY ONE. I am grateful and beyond humbled by this accomplishment.

IT PAYS TO QUIT.

I have been quit for 1 Year, 16 minutes and 6 seconds (365 days). I have saved $1,136.09 by not smoking 5,475 cigarettes. I have saved 2 Weeks, 5 Days and 15 minutes of my life.

Kat's 6 Month Smoke Free Milestone