Why I want to quit
You’ve probably heard the same reason over and over again.
Mine is clichè and overplayed but has meaning I guess , I’m 20 years old and started smoking due to stress due to my grandmother who was like a mum to me who passed due to lung cancer due to smoking and I had to look after her when she refused chemo.
I don’t want to end up like my nan , looking like a skeleton, living my last days in a hospital bed, refusing chemo but I do respect her in so many ways, she didn’t want me to smoke , my family doesn’t want me to smoke, I smoke because I’m stressed l when it comes to work , life , family , etc and really want to quit before I get lung cancer or anything else.
Hi Queen...E. So sorry to hear of your loss. Your nan and family love you and want to spare you any unnecessary suffering . You got hooked like millions of others. You did not choose to smoke in the beginning, but it increased to a point where you realized you are addicted.
You were smart enough to come here for help. It is a great forum and we are here to answer questions and support you. That alone helps tremendously for some.
The Mindset is state that makes quitting earlier. In researching nicotine you will find how it hi-jacked our brains. We lied to ourselves for decades thinking we needed it for stress, social situations and confidence, and even if we knew this was untrue, we deluded ourselves into believing because we were afraid to quit. We after decades , were afraid we could not quit and that even if we did, what would we do with our spare time, the sense of relief, relaxation, every time we had a cigarette?
The truth is that relief feeling comes from feeding our nicotine sensors that the nicotine monster built in our brain which sensors happiness. (Dophmine) Once fed , it also becomes hungry again, much like our stomaches do. Our bodies need food, not nicotine (let alone the other 60 cancer causing chemicals and over 4000 chemicals in a cigarette) It is a vicious cycle. When you get hungry your stomach may rumble, but your stomach sends signals to the brain that your body needs fed. That is what a nicotine craving is.
Many of us have found that these cravings are not nearly what we had conceived them to be. Eating healthy food, not junk food, procesed foods and sugar can help eliminate some feelings that some mistake for cravings.Keep the blood sugar levels in check by eating breakfast, drinking water, exercise and cut the caffeine in half when quitting nicotine intake to do this.
Read and understand the 4 D's. Having a plan and using these methods help to get past these urges. Cravings are mere thoughts of wanting a cigarette, and pass in nano seconds or a minute or two usually. Think of it as the enemy begging for food. "Hey there, you forgot to feed me, im starving!"
Indeed he is, let him. You have control now and have the tools to put his hold on you to an end.
All you have to do to achieve this is to WANT to quit. You are here, so we will assume that to be true. The more some read and learn, the more reasons they see to quit and lose the desire to smoke. The desire is what making this journey most difficult. Once you lose the desire, you will have no cravings. Why would you crave something you do not want.
Read some posts and learn. Be sure to set a quit date. There are things to do to help while you wait.
The process of becoming a non-smoker can be so much easier than you ever thought. If most here can do it after 40 plus years , so can you.