If a pig like me can quit....

THESE ARE THE STEPS I TOOK

1) STOP saying "I need a cigarette" There is not a single human being on the planet that "Needs" a cigarette. Our disease tells us we need it. That is a lie. Do not perpetuate this particular myth any longer. From now on you may say "I WANT a cigarette" and later, after your "smoke-free date" you can add "...; But I would rather not smoke. Just for right now". While you are in the weaning off stage, DO NOT smoke indoors. Go outside and avail yourself of at least SOME fresh air. Throw away (or at least put them away) any lighters, this will reduce the number of AUTOMATIC cigarettes. Use matches. The automatic cigarettes need to be identified, make a note of them. Put down the time, this makes them less mystical. We are trying to make an irrational habit visable to the rational side of the brain. Auto-pilot is our enemy. The cigs in the car while in traffic, for instance can be avoided... remove the ashtray and take out the car lighter. Make your vehicle another off limits 'indoor' place.

2)Set a "Smoke-Free Date", not too soon and not too far away. I suggest a week, thats what worked for me. Put that date on your calendar and on a Contract with yourself....

3) Contract with myself. Use wording like I _________ have just smoked my last cigarette at _______ o'clock on the ________ day of ___________.

I am now free.
You will be able to honor this contract because you have been preparing for this day. You have taken steps that set you up for success, rather than the failures you may have experienced in the past.

4) Start taking vitamins and eating healthy snacks. Drink fruit juices and water instead of sodas. Eat seeds and nuts instead of candy.

5) Buy a few things:
a)Buy a small Note Pad. About the same size as a cigarette pack,. Keep them together with a rubber band.
b)Get a rubber band for your wrist
c) Get Orange Juice (If you ALWAYS smoke with coffee, I suggest switching to decaffeinated; or stopping coffee altogether. Coffee is a trigger for me. I stopped drinking it for the first few Smoke Free days. I drank Orange Juice instead, because cigarettes tase BAD after cigarettes (for some reason).
d) Get sunflower seeds (in the shell) this helps with the oral fixation. I remember at the end of my first week tobacco free, my lips would quiver involuntarily... I think they were lonely for their old friend. The next items helped with that...
e) Plastic drinking straws or stir straws for chewing.
f) Hard candy like Jolly Rogers, and peppermints.
g) New Toothbrush. Brush your teeth OFTEN. Cigarettes are not desirable right after brushing.
h)

6) Ration Cigarettes. Smoke in EXCESS the first day you begin your approach to freedom. And keep track of each cigarette! The day should be ONE WEEK before your "Contract Date" to quit. Smoke like a freaking pig addict, because if you get nauseous it will help you to hate them. It is necessary for you to hate cigarettes 1% more than you love them or you will FAIL at quitting. The next day (after "Pig Day")you will begin a strict regimen of controlled smoking. The tobacco companies have their product down to a science. You are controlled by nicotine dosages that are measured for optimum benefit to them and their bank accounts. Your body remembers how many cigarettes you gave it yesterday, and it will DEMAND the same amount tomorrow. We know this in advance, so we use this to our advantage. After "Pig Day", on Day 2, you will smoke the amount you usually smoke (It was 2-3 packs a day for me, more back when I was drinking)

7) Tell everyone you are going to quit, ESPECIALLY those who smoke. Tell them not to give you anymore cigarettes. That you you are less likely to not just stop buying cigarettes; but have an escape hatch after you smoke your last one. The psychology is as important as the action. Are you serious? Or do you still think you "NEED" cigarettes? Work toward your freedom, not your disease. Avoid places where ther is a lot of smoking and the commaraderie of fellow smokers. Hang out with smober people. Find new "playmates". You may be surprised how many good people will want to be around you that didnt want to before. I actually had sex with non-somokers, WOW!!! My dating pool doubled!!

8) Step One, above, needs to be expanded a bit. "STOP saying "I need a cigarette"" is the first irrationality that needs to change. Take an inventory of each cigarette you smoke and put down the time of day. Cigarette after dinner seems very natural and rational because it is something we have done out of habit, without really thinking much of it; its a food trigger. Cigarettes smoked in commeraderie are also very attractive, there is a connection to your fellow man, you may feel perfectly comfortable about smoking and striking up a conversation with a stranger outside a theater or restaurant. These are social triggers that you want to be aware of after your quit date. Alcohol and coffee are strong triggers, you may tell yourself 'a cigarette takes the edge off' or it makes you feel balanced. Thats the empty promise of a hard narcotic. A cigarette tells us it is the solution for all our ills. If you are an addictive personality like myself, you will have dozens of rationales. Tobacco has a perfect excuse for you to continue in your addiction, but you can respond to these in a calm and rational voice. If you need a sharp mental/physical distarction from a particularly difficult craving, put a rubber ban around your wrist and snap it while telling yourself "A Cigarette will hurt me a lot more than this!"

9) Sometimes a simple act that was destructive before can be your greatest asset, Procrastination is a WONDERFUL tool. That way you can forestall your next cigarette for many minutes, hours, days, weeks, months and years. Especially in the beginning. If you can NOT smoke for 7 minutes the craving will magically disappear. Big Tobacco has the addiction down to a science. Nicotine has a built in alarm system that lets you know, in NO UNCERTAIN terms, when its time for your next dose. AND it will screammmm and screach until you satisfy it. It will make you think this desperation will NEVER go away, not without another dose. Just one more dose. Thats the lie it tells you and it is very cunning. Procrastination is one of the strongest tools in your toolbox. As long as you know the secret code, that the craving to smoke goes away, WHETHER YOU LIGHT UP OR NOT. Thats right, your disease wants you to think the only solution is MORE tobacco, its not true. That strong craving is only temporary. Dont cave in and it stops. Early on when you are weaning off or after your Quit Date, you may have more cravings within about an hour; but these too are manageable. Just dont pick up that first smoke, no matter what comes down the pike....and the craving dissolves into another victory. All these little victories add up into hours and days of smobriety. You will want to reward yourself. Go for a walk and breathe fresh air, you are free.

10) Positive reinforcement. Reward yourself. You may have experienced some self loathing for your past weaknesses. Stop beating yourself up. You are a valuable member of the Universe, no less than the trees or the stars (See Desiderata for more wonderful inspiration)

11) I make a gratitude list. Put down all the benefits of not smoking. Dont forget the money you save. Food tastes better. You will be getting more oxygen to your brain because the celia in your lungs wont be plastered down with cigarette tar, it takes a while but it doesnt start getting better until you stop smoking.

To be continued.