Why I Quit Smoking | D2Documents

Strongly detesting my dirty habit, I found myself going back for that last cigarette.? Again.? I was addicted and hated it.? Especially since smoking had become such an unpopular pastime, it was embarrassing to me to have to go stand outside in the rain in order to take my puffs.? My kids called me ?Chimney? and pleaded with me to throw away that last pack.? I knew that not doing so was colluding with the addiction that rendered me powerless.

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Not only did I endure my own self-loathing, I lived with the threat of serious health repercussions.? However, most of the time, I chose to ? or should I say, forced myself to ? live in denial.

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My smoking dilemma harangued me for one year too many, however.? I managed to catch up with myself to admit that the habit I hated could be released.? Forever.? I believed, for one second, maybe two, that I could do something about this.? I began envisioning myself free from the awful enslavement.? So I sat down and began to craft a plan.? Knowing that my lucid moment would eventually vanish behind a looming monster that would dangle the alluring next cigarette temptingly before me, I wrote down every dirty little reason why I hated smoking.? I vowed to take this list with me everywhere and read it whenever the urge tapped me on the shoulder.? I determined to read the list every morning at the beginning of the day and every evening before going to sleep.? And if that didn?t work, I would rewrite the list thirty times every day.

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After this was in place, I realized I needed a replacement for the bad habit.? Exploring new endeavors that could take the place of my smoking, I gaineda sense of satisfaction mastering Sudoku puzzles.? Never before having time to learn the art of solving Sudoku, I now realized how much time my smoking habit consumed.? Rewarding myself with a healthier alternative for those seven-minute intervals helped to refocus my thoughts and gave me something to look forward to that redirected my time and attention.

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Lastly, knowing I could not do this alone, I asked for help from my family and friends.? During particularly difficult times, I would get someone to go for a walk with me.? I found that becoming more physically active helped with some of the effects of withdrawal.? Eventually, as I began to gain victory, I joined a fitness center in order to reinforce my commitment to my better health.? I learned to consider my trips to the gym a reward for my good self care.

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Now, I am happy to report that smoking and I no longer go together.? I have regained my power and proven to myself that I am not powerless.? I am proud to say that I was able to overcome something that had such a powerful grip on me.? You can too.

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