One day at a tiime

John · Admin

One day at a tiime

gonee · MIP Old Timer

The program works for cigarettes too. When I stopped drinking in Aug 1988, I had a strong desire to stop smoking as well. In Nov 1995, my God came to my rescue and removed the obsession to smoke. It was not easy. I had a long talk with my wife and told her that my irritation is going to return. She helped me also by putting up with some of my withdrawals.
I will say a silent prayer for you, John.

hayestracey · Member

good on ya john, ive used this prorgamme to help with other unmanageable areas of my life too, accepting the powerlessness and taking the action one step at a time, it worked for me i am not a smoker but both my parents are heavier smokers and id love to see them quit for themselves but thats there choice.

wishing you all the best

Tracey

Quetzal · MIP Old Timer

Hi John,

Good luck in your decision to quit smoking. I am, on Day 6 of my quit and it is easier than I thought it would be. I was diagnosed with COPD last week and quit immediately.

I am using the 12 steps to help me through and it really is working. Just keep taking it one day at a time as you did with the alcohol and you will be amazed at how fast the days will can go.

To help ease any cravings I drink ice water, chew gum, exercise, do puzzles, make lists, sleep, take lots & lots of showers (can't smoke in the shower, right?), and it is all working for me.

Congrats on making such a great and healthy decision, John.

Take care,

Carol

Jerry F · MIP Old Timer

Yeah you have the power of experience which is sooo convincing to we alcoholics. We
know and know that we know what works and how when we apply the principles and
the experiences of others. My experience with your condition was also to get around
others who were working at getting nicotine free also...the group work because I know
and know that I know I cannot do recovery alone. Nicotine owned me and it made
me sick how I enslaved myself to it and made it the most important god in my life
bigger than wife, family, friends and value system. I went to the VA quit smoking
program the last time after I went to the lung specialist because I was sooo under
the influence (we can use that term with alcohol too) with the awareness that I was
born tuberculic (an attachment to alcoholism by the way). I did the same thing at
those meetings that I still do in AA...sit down, all the way down, listen, learn and
practice, practice, practice. I'm in support. Do the patch or the pill or whatever it
takes to get and stay nicotine free. SA maybe? smile

Dave Harm · Senior Member

WC Fields once said, "Quitting smoking is easy, I've don it hundreds of times!"

Seriously though... good luck...

I put my last one down on April Fools Day. I figured that was a good day because I had to be a fool to start in the first place...

Lexie · Senior Member

I'm pullin' for ya, John!

I've tried to quit a few times, and compared with quitting smoking, quitting drinking was easy. Maybe because it's reinforced so many ways with other rituals--answering the phone, waiting for something, finishing a meal. (The after-meal ones were the hardest for me to give up.)

I hope to take another run at it one of these days, but I know I'm not ready yet.