I’m not a big fan of talking about myself so I apologize in advance for my terrible writing.
I guess you could say I started smoking around 14 years old if swisher sweets and pot count. I didn’t really get into cigarettes until I finished basic training at 19 years old. From there, I was pretty much smoking 3 to 4 packs a day for most of my 6 years in the Air Force. How I passed the PT tests is beyond me. I from there I tried many different ways to try and quit. It wasn’t until the very last year of my enlistment that I finally managed to quit using nicotine gum and exercise. It’s been almost 10 years and I’ve still managed to stay smoke free. I wanted to post this today with my support for all you people struggling with this issue and maybe a bit of personal insight on what quitting has been like for me that maybe someone will find value in.
First thing, when I was going through trying to quit the biggest thing that helped me was just remembering to hold out for a month since I believed that was when the body didn’t crave nicotine and it came down to working on the things that triggered my desire to smoke. I did that through nicotine gum with I slowly tapered down from the 4mg gum ( cinnamon worked best for me) down to regular gum. But I always chewed cinnamon gum since it seemed to curb the cravings better than the mind crap. This was the easiest part.
This last thing I didn’t learn until much much later and it seems like something people don’t write about too much. Addiction to cigarettes never goes away. It’s been almost 10 years since I was a smoker and sometimes I still get cravings. You will always want a cigarette but it does get easier to manage if you watch your environment and you know what triggers you. For me it’s alcohol and other smokers so I work hard to avoid those things.
But I just wanted to stop by and offer my support and admiration for all of you who are either starting this journey or have been on it for a while.
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Quit Meter
$340,605.00
Amount Saved
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Quit Meter
Days: 6581
Hours: 17
Minutes: 13
Seconds: 28
Life Gained
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Quit Meter
45414
Smoke Free Days
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Quit Meter
1,362,420
Cigarettes Not Smoked
