So is this quitting smoking thing going as predicted? No. It doesn't suck as much as I thought it would, for starters.
OK, so this is attempt #5 in two years. I'm no stranger to failure! I do try to park the stupid part of me that stubbornly refuses to learn from mistakes, and this time around, those learnings seem to be working. I am now into my fourth day of not smoking - and if I'm honest (and shhh, don't tell anyone this), I'm not really missing it. I'd stopped smoking in my car a month ago. I never smoke in the house. I'd cut down on smoking breaks at work. So all in all, the routine isn't something concrete that needs breaking down with an iron will.
I'm not using any patches, or any aids (apart from some red wine each evening). They call it cold turkey, but I tried those patches once, and they made me feel sick. I also think it's a good test of character, too. Which is probably why I failed all those times before! The key to me this time around is a positive mental attitude. I am keeping positive. It feels weird, in a positive way, that I am not smoking right now. I am clinging onto that as my motivating mantra. It's nice to have a clean mouth, and actually be able to smell stuff.
Friday, 7 January 2011
Tuesday, 4 January 2011
Quitting smoking - Top 5 tips
So here I go again...New Year's cliche perhaps, but with resolutions ringing in my ears, and the festive period a distant memory now I'm back in work, I've decided to embark on my 5th serious quit in the past 24 months - and, dear readers, to all intents and purposes, my last.
If I don't succeed this time, then I may as well go into hiding. As this time I've gone blatantly, gratuitously public, telling everyone who will listen (and some who didn't want to listen) that this is my big quit. El Gordo. The big one. Twitter status updated. Facebook status updated. I even considered doing a YouTube vid about it. People at work know, too. So the publicity makes the stakes higher - if i fail, then my rep is well and truly trashed. Even those people I added as friends on Facebook who I don't know at all, will probably disown me. So wish me luck. And I'm going cold turkey, too...
So, the 5th quit...and to mark it, I thought I'd share with you lovely lot what my top 5 learnings are that I've taken from previous (failed) attempts:
My Top 5 Quit Tips
1) Stay positive
This comes from the UK's leading proponent of 'my glass is half empty'. So for me, this one is one heck of a challenge. But it's absolutely true - basically if you want to succeed like a medal winner, you have to think like a medal winner. That Bolt guy surely didn't start his racing thinking it was going to be a walk in the park and that he'd fail. He kept self-belief and continued striving to outperform himself. To succeed in your quit, you need to keep that positive belief, too.
2) Drink sh*tloads of water
I found this really useful. As well as making you feel like you are de-toxing your body, and thus making you feel a bit better physically, it's good to keep re-hydrating yourself when you first quit, and it also keeps you doing something, too. If at work, have a bottle of water at hand on your desk and avail yourself of it frequently. If on the go, take a bottle in the car etc.
3) Shout your mouth off
Go forth and spread the word - tell everyone you can think of. The more public you make it that you are doing your quit, the more support you will get. Also, the more resolve you give yourself to keep with it when the inevitable doubt creeps in around day 3 onwards. If you fail, you will have a whole raft of friends and family you are going to have to answer to. And if any of them are like my mum or my best mates, that's a pretty scary prospect. Now, pass me that water again...
4) If you have a partner, get their full buy-in. If not, get a quit buddy.
If you have a partner, it's essential they support you 200% here. Yes, they may be jaded (like you might be) by previous failed attempts. Yes, they may think in their head that it's another time when you'll be crabby, difficult to live with, and then after the initial quit, you'll stumble and go back to the old nicotine again. However, if you are going to seriously quit, your life partner's buy-in and support is an essential. And if you are lucky (or unlucky) enough to not have a partner right now....find yourself a quit buddy - a penpal or e-pal who will help support you.
5) Chew gum like a hooker
Unless you are the menthol cigarette type, you'll probably find like me that smoking right after you've chewed some gum really does taste crappy. So, the more gum you chew, the less your mouth will resemble a suitable resting place for a smoldering cigarette stub. Chewing gum also helps take your mind off not smoking a bit. Of course, if you smoke(d) menthols, you'll have to find something else, or one of those fruity flavour gums the kids chew. You could even try some of that nicotine gum, but that made me feel a bit sick. But a pack of gum at all times is, for me, essential like that bottle of water I have on my desk right now. Plus, remember....when you quit, your breath smells better....why not go dental by having that fresh gum taste too? Your taste buds work a bit better now you aren't smoking, after all...
If I don't succeed this time, then I may as well go into hiding. As this time I've gone blatantly, gratuitously public, telling everyone who will listen (and some who didn't want to listen) that this is my big quit. El Gordo. The big one. Twitter status updated. Facebook status updated. I even considered doing a YouTube vid about it. People at work know, too. So the publicity makes the stakes higher - if i fail, then my rep is well and truly trashed. Even those people I added as friends on Facebook who I don't know at all, will probably disown me. So wish me luck. And I'm going cold turkey, too...
So, the 5th quit...and to mark it, I thought I'd share with you lovely lot what my top 5 learnings are that I've taken from previous (failed) attempts:
My Top 5 Quit Tips
1) Stay positive
This comes from the UK's leading proponent of 'my glass is half empty'. So for me, this one is one heck of a challenge. But it's absolutely true - basically if you want to succeed like a medal winner, you have to think like a medal winner. That Bolt guy surely didn't start his racing thinking it was going to be a walk in the park and that he'd fail. He kept self-belief and continued striving to outperform himself. To succeed in your quit, you need to keep that positive belief, too.
2) Drink sh*tloads of water
I found this really useful. As well as making you feel like you are de-toxing your body, and thus making you feel a bit better physically, it's good to keep re-hydrating yourself when you first quit, and it also keeps you doing something, too. If at work, have a bottle of water at hand on your desk and avail yourself of it frequently. If on the go, take a bottle in the car etc.
3) Shout your mouth off
Go forth and spread the word - tell everyone you can think of. The more public you make it that you are doing your quit, the more support you will get. Also, the more resolve you give yourself to keep with it when the inevitable doubt creeps in around day 3 onwards. If you fail, you will have a whole raft of friends and family you are going to have to answer to. And if any of them are like my mum or my best mates, that's a pretty scary prospect. Now, pass me that water again...
4) If you have a partner, get their full buy-in. If not, get a quit buddy.
If you have a partner, it's essential they support you 200% here. Yes, they may be jaded (like you might be) by previous failed attempts. Yes, they may think in their head that it's another time when you'll be crabby, difficult to live with, and then after the initial quit, you'll stumble and go back to the old nicotine again. However, if you are going to seriously quit, your life partner's buy-in and support is an essential. And if you are lucky (or unlucky) enough to not have a partner right now....find yourself a quit buddy - a penpal or e-pal who will help support you.
5) Chew gum like a hooker
Unless you are the menthol cigarette type, you'll probably find like me that smoking right after you've chewed some gum really does taste crappy. So, the more gum you chew, the less your mouth will resemble a suitable resting place for a smoldering cigarette stub. Chewing gum also helps take your mind off not smoking a bit. Of course, if you smoke(d) menthols, you'll have to find something else, or one of those fruity flavour gums the kids chew. You could even try some of that nicotine gum, but that made me feel a bit sick. But a pack of gum at all times is, for me, essential like that bottle of water I have on my desk right now. Plus, remember....when you quit, your breath smells better....why not go dental by having that fresh gum taste too? Your taste buds work a bit better now you aren't smoking, after all...
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