and this is why I love this place so much...all the great and caring people..thank you. It has been a good day and I know that positive thoughts have been sent my way. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]1/21/2008 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 49 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 882 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $187.43 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 6 [B]Hrs:[/B] 22 [B]Mins:[/B] 19 [B]Seconds:[/B] 25

Hi Island Girl, You are tuly amazing! Try to get some time each week, you desreve it. you are so strong,a true inspiration for sure. If you can keep your quit, I have no reason not to keep mine. Thanks E [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]3/2/2008 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 8 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 200 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $96.00 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 0 [B]Hrs:[/B] 21 [B]Mins:[/B] 20 [B]Seconds:[/B] 39

Congrats Island Girl.. it is definately time to get some help. Even a couple hours a few times a week. You are doing a TERRIFFIC job hanging onto the Quit.. you are a TRUE inspiration to many. Now you have quit.. you have made a great firsr step in taking care of yourself.. and your health.. you are not alone in what you have to deal with, and much support in ALL areas. :) [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]2/10/2008 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 29 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 493 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $77.65 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 4 [B]Hrs:[/B] 5 [B]Mins:[/B] 34 [B]Seconds:[/B] 50

Thank you all for your helpful suggestions. BJ, I will also look into the American Legion, my Mom is a charter member of the local auxilliary, she has over 60 yrs as a memner, joined when my Dad returned from fighting in WWII. I had not even considered that one. It is a long hard struggle many days. And, I think that not having any time off makes it worse, maybe that is why I am so proud of the fact that I managed to quit smoking during all of this. (I was up 3 times last night, once wiht Mom and twice with the dog) Mom is not even capable of getting herself her own glass of water, so I am kept pretty busy. It took a lot of willpower and I have had lots of crisis, but I did it. Maybe that is why I find it hard when I hear others complaining about wanting to smoke after a stressful day, boy, would I be glad to trade them stresses for just a bit! But..tomorrow will be FIFTY DAYS, so I am proud and happy! Let's all remember~~postive mental attitude and we can overcome anything! ;) [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]1/21/2008 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 49 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 882 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $187.43 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 6 [B]Hrs:[/B] 21 [B]Mins:[/B] 5 [B]Seconds:[/B] 1

Yes, 200+ days in there are still cravings of a sort, still something missing at times of stress when I would have grabbed a smoke. I've long since stopped slapping my shirt pocket every few minutes though and still carry these kitchen matches I chew on every where I go. Most of you here don't remember me but I dipped snuff and smoked at the same time. There was snuff in my mouth pretty much every waking hour and yes you can sleep with it in there too. Add a pack or more a day to that and you get a serious oral fixation. I hope one day to stop nibbling these tiny pieces of pine but it isn't dangerous. My Mom also had a stroke some years back, it was before the computer age though. SHe woke up one morning and couldn't talk. Couldn't read or write. No limp, no sagging face, no nuthin. She just couldn't tell anybody what was wrong, she had no idea what was wrong. she was just sitting there crying and drinking her coffee. She couldn't understand a word we said and couldn't tell us a thing. It's against all the rules but I want to thank the mods for leaving those websites posted up at least long enough for Islandgirl to find them. We sure could have used resources like that back then. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]8/17/2007 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 206 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 4,944 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $865.20 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 37 [B]Hrs:[/B] 18 [B]Mins:[/B] 44 [B]Seconds:[/B] 14

Honestly, I'm not surprised that long time quitters run into a bit of a crave now and then, because it's sort of like going to another country & learning a new language and you do great for a long time, but then something traumatic happens, say a car accident. Or huge stress. You would, just by human nature, begin speaking your native language. You would not even think in the new language. So, the point? Well, smoking is our old language, if you will, and non smoking is the new language. We have to put coping skills in place for those "car accidents" in the future, so that we don't go back to our old language, just because we didn't know what else to do. And I for one do not want to be blind, or have a heart attack, or stroke, or carry around an oxygen tank, so N.O.P.E. is my new language! [IMG]http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p300/DeeKaySss/helloparrot.gif[/IMG] Hugs, N2 Psych [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]1/9/2008 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 60 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 1,200 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $300.00 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 7 [B]Hrs:[/B] 23 [B]Mins:[/B] 53 [B]Seconds:[/B] 55

Hi Dennis, it may be shocking to some folks who are just starting out on the road to freedom that even this far along we may have a bit of a scrum with the ND out of the blue. Just a little while ago I was back to having smoking dreams and watching smokers with envy. I still have a box of my nicorette gum in the kitchen drawer, it's been there for more than a year, I just can't bring myself to throw them out, even though I've been advised to. A couple of weeks ago the fight was getting hard and I came close to taking a piece of that gum just to ease the tension Well I still haven't taken that piece of gum because I've come once again to the conclusion that not only did I quit smoking but I also quit nicotine - regardless of what shape or package it comes in. this far along, I reminded myself that I would feel as sick as a dog and that I would only want another piece and within a couple of weeks I'd want the 'real thing' and I'd be back to smoking, and I really, really, didn't want that. also, I reminded myself of as many physiological consequences of nicotine that I could starting with the heart beating faster, blood vessels constricting, on and on and I really didn't want that either...I quit smoking to give my body a fighting chance, so why would i even consider, for a minute poisoning it all over again, especially now when it's only beginning to trust me lol I decided that I needed another milestone to aim for, and so I set 18 months as my next biggie to aim for and I reached it today...the next one will be the 2 year mark. So, the point of all this is to let you know that you are definitely not alone and that maybe setting a new goal may be helpful....also revisiting the reasons why you quit may be helpful. Try to remember going to bed at the end of the day breathing like you'd just run around the block and promising yourself that in the morning you'll quit smoking. Not hard to remember if you give it a bit of thought. we are addicts. As such, our brain will ocassionally remember that a substance used to feel really good under certain circumstances and we'll have a bit of a flash back, where we'll want that drug again. No worries. It passes. Nicotine is a highly addictive, highly unerestimated drug. Smoking is not an option [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]9/9/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 547 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 21,880 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $10,940.00 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 50 [B]Hrs:[/B] 16 [B]Mins:[/B] 54 [B]Seconds:[/B] 56

Did you know that after all this time not smoking I still have huge cravings form time to time> All is good I haven't given in to them. Please respond if you have same experience. :|Ps stomach pain still comes and goes. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]1/24/2007 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 410 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 10,250 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $2,767.50 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 75 [B]Hrs:[/B] 5 [B]Mins:[/B] 32 [B]Seconds:[/B] 19

Another little known fact: If a husband was in the military.. The wife may be able to get help with homecare. You will need the DD214 from the veteran.. contact your local VFW or American Legion. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]2/10/2008 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 28 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 476 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $74.97 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 4 [B]Hrs:[/B] 2 [B]Mins:[/B] 49 [B]Seconds:[/B] 59

Islandgirl, Next time you're in to see the MD, ask for a referral to a homecare agency or better yet a social worker. You may qualify for respite care. Even just a few hours a week could do you a world of good. Danielle, Bilingual Health Educator