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11 years ago 0 +0 / -0 823

You are doing your best and staying away from the smokes! Wow! That is commendable and the wonderful part of all this! I hope you find your way through to harmony and balance in your journey. It's so good that you are honest and still pulling through without the extra baggage of the nicotine! Good venting!! Xo Lemontwist!

11 years ago 0 +0 / -0 11226

I am sorry to read this Lemontwist. I hope you feel better soon.

Take good care of yourself.

Ashley, Health Educator

Here to help :)

11 years ago 0 +0 / -0 96

Working On It... I was also amazed that smoking was not allowed. I'd say it was good and bad. I mean, I'm so glad smoking wasn't allowed, because the temptation to relapse under such a high stress situation would have been difficult for me to deal with. On the other hand, for the people who were still smoking, which was more than the majority of the inpatients, they had to deal with not only nicotine withdrawal (with or without NRT), but also whatever crisis brought them into the inpatient ward in the first place.

11 years ago 0 +0 / -0 1140

Wow. I've never seen 100% no smoking rules enforced in a mental health setting. (I've generally seen that smoking is allowed outside in designated places and at designated times for certain patients.) Sounds like it really is becoming hard to smoke in all kinds of places.

It also sounds very fortunate that you quit before this happened, or you'd probably be having some pretty bad cravings. With NRT's or not, I'd think that involuntarily giving up smoking would be rough.

Here's to you feeling better soon.

Quit Meter

$25,580.05

Amount Saved
Quit Meter

Days: 700 Hours: 6

Minutes: 42 Seconds: 46

Life Gained
Quit Meter

4967

Smoke Free Days
Quit Meter

99,340

Cigarettes Not Smoked

11 years ago 0 +0 / -0 96

Thanks again everyone. Didn't realize I made it into the 200s.

Been a rough few weeks. I was hospitalized for my depression, and just trying to get through it. I'm glad smoking wasn't allowed while I was an inpatient. I think nicotine (gum and patches) was the most heavily dispensed drug, over antidepressants and sleeping pills. :-P

11 years ago 0 +0 / -0 93

Hi Lemontwist, Firstly I'd like to congratulate you on quitting. At 204 days you deserve to get anything you want. If it helps just sit back and see how far you have come. There is no need to smoke and you know it. We all do. Cravings will come and go. As they come we will beat them and come out stronger each time. You have a good positive approach keep up the good work. John

11 years ago 0 +0 / -0 618

Hi LT,

You are doing well! Dealing with our emotions is a big part of quitting. When we smoked, we often had a cigarette rather than face or deal with a feeling, and this leads us to feel a very different person. Ultimately, I think it gives us much more self-esteem once we learn to deal with it all! Keep up the good work!

Whatever it takes, just don't smoke!!!

Love Lolly.

11 years ago 0 +0 / -0 96

This is all very helpful. I'm trying to be present with my emotions and feelings lately, which are weird as I feel like I'm re-learning how my emotions work right now. I also think the physical discomfort I've been feeling the past few days has made me want some quick fix relief, which of course a cigarette won't provide but that's what my brain was latching on to. It also doesn't help that the spring weather is triggering me something awful. I'm just trying to sit back and take a deep breath when I start feeling really awful, and ride it out, and then get on with it. So far so good.

11 years ago 0 +0 / -0 618

Hi LT,

So sorry you are having such a difficult time right now. Working on it has a handle on this.

When I quit, 9 years ago, I had never had an anxiety attack or taken anti-depressants. The first anxiety attack I had was a real scare to me, and I dreaded having any more, which of course I did time after time, as I went into my quit, but as Working said, soon the craves and anxiety attacks gradually ran together and became one animal, - anxiety - then vanished.

Why I am likening this to craving is that I was prescribed an antidepressant for neuropathic pain after cancer treatment, and those same feelings came back at the start of the treatment, and were like the craves/anxiety attacks I had when quitting. Once again, the 'crave' part went away and I saw it for what it was! Hope any of this ramble helps!!!

Whatever it takes, just don't smoke!!!

Love Lolly.

11 years ago 0 +0 / -0 1140

Hey lemontwist,

Sorry that it's rough right now.

Kind of weird that anti-depressants would start up the cravings. I wonder why that is. I have noticed at some point during my quit that I associate certain feelings with wanting a cigarette. Once I got a handle on that, I started to just see those feelings by themselves. For example, anxiety was paired with a cigarette crave for me, so I thought I wanted a cigarette every time I had some anxiety. But once I started to simply see it as anxiety, separate from any actual "need' for nicotine, it became a different animal. ...Not sure if that makes sense, but hopefully there's something helpful in that train of thought.

Oh, and in the meantime, it appears that you are near or just past the 6 month mark with 180 + days. That's something to celebrate!

Quit Meter

$25,580.05

Amount Saved
Quit Meter

Days: 700 Hours: 6

Minutes: 42 Seconds: 46

Life Gained
Quit Meter

4967

Smoke Free Days
Quit Meter

99,340

Cigarettes Not Smoked

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