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The Goal


nonic
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nonic
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18 years ago 0 813 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
penguin I hear you and I think I understand. I too am a self-medicator, and in many ways have fallen vicim to the self-defeating pattern of revolving door addiction. And the reason for that is that I never truly loved myself. If I had, I would not have subjected my body to the rigors of smoking for so many years. No, there is an element of self loathing alive and well in my psyche and like you I cannot find the source. But perhaps we do not need to to follow the source as we would a river to the sea or from the sea to the mountain. Maybe it is enough that we know it is there and find a way to make peace with ourselves as we are. In many ways, at least for me, that is what my quit is all about. I am on a quest to join the outer world with my inner way of being while simultaneously feeling comfortable in my own skin. Now if I can do that maybe you can teach me how to walk and chew gum at the same time...What do ya tink... Stay well and strong, you are a great person, who helps alot of people here on a regular basis...And that ain't such a bad thing... nonic [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]12/25/2006 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 207 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 6,210 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1,449.00 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 37 [B]Hrs:[/B] 21 [B]Mins:[/B] 6 [B]Seconds:[/B] 54
golferman
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golferman
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18 years ago 0 563 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
penguin, If at first you don't succeed... you know the drill. The greatest friend that the nicodemon has is a weak mind. That isn't a cut on you, it's based on your own observation. Addiction is a weakness, among other things. The most emotionally crippled people are smokers. Think about it... take a smoker and a non-smoker.. put them in a stressful situation for about 2 hours.. who is the one spacing out? Yep.. the person needing their 'fix'. Mind control. Nicotine does that quite nicely. The nicodemon hates rational thinking. He hates self confidence. He hates determination. He thrives on dependence.. he wants you dependent on him for your very LIFE! And so many go along with him... sigh Control. Determination. Commitment. Decisiveness. You get the picture. Hang in there penquin, one day you will be more determined to quit than to smoke. Here is a little quote for you... [b][color=blue]Stand up to your obstacles and do something about them. You will find that they haven't half the strength you think they have.[/color][/b] Best wishes. [b][color=Purple]Be Strong. Be Smart. Be Quit[/color] [color=black]Joe[/color] [size=3][color=Blue]Knowledge Replaces Fear[/color][/size] [size=2][color=purple]Hoping for success without hard work is like trying to harvest without planting.[/color][/size] [size=2][color=black]Illegitimus non carborundum est[/color][/size][/b] [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]5/15/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 796 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 19,900 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1,950.20 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 142 [B]Hrs:[/B] 22 [B]Mins:[/B] 53 [B]Seconds:[/B] 3

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    Days: 10000 Hours: 11

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Mc
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Mc
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18 years ago 0 453 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Oh, Penguin, don't we all have a long road ahead! The verbage in the quotation was a bit hard to decipher but your translation was right on the mark. We spend so much time filling holes and putting Band Aids on our troubles that we forget how to deal w/problems face to face. Why do we think it's so much easier to do a temporary fix when the problem will still be hiding there just under the surface, waiting to rear it's ugly head at the worst possible time? Well, I'll probably be working on that one til my last earthly day. Anyway, you're definitely on the right track, little bird. Stick w/the site and post often. Your perspective is refreshing. Cold Turkeys think highly of cool Penguins. mc
penguin
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penguin
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18 years ago 0 1306 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
I thought of this post when I read the following passage in a book I am reading about addictive thinking. I think it might fit in here. You must have noticed an outstanding characteristic of every end that the ego has accepted as its own. When you have achieved it,.....it has not satisfied you. That is why the ego is forced to shift ceaselessly from one goal to another, so that you will continue to hope it can yet offer you something. When we continue to shift from one goal (relationship, job, drug) to another, despite the fact that our goals never satisfy us, we are caught in a cycle of addiction. L. Jampolsky I think that this is one of the reasons I keep going back to smoking...I am looking for something outside of myself to make me complete and whole. If I get even a thought of inadequacy...I look for something to take away that pain....nicotine. I have a long way to go in dealing with this, but with every relapse it became clearer to me exactly what has been happening within me. I'm workin on it. Just my thoughts. [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]7/13/2007 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 6 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 120 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $69.00 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 0 [B]Hrs:[/B] 15 [B]Mins:[/B] 55 [B]Seconds:[/B] 16

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blue cloud
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blue cloud
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18 years ago 0 1160 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
GOLFERMAN, THANKS FOR THE POST. I KNOW YOU GUYS HAVE BEEN HERE ALONG TIME AND POSTING IS NOT REQUIRED TO KEEP YOUR QUITS. I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW HOW MUCH YOUR POST ARE MEANING TO MY QUIT. I'M NEW, LOST AND SEARCHING. 'WHEN THE STUDENT IS READY THE TEACHER WILL APEAR' FITS PERFECT IN THIS CASE. LADY,I THANK YOUR GREAT !! [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]7/4/2007 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 15 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 300 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $60.00 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 2 [B]Hrs:[/B] 1 [B]Mins:[/B] 45 [B]Seconds:[/B] 0
Mc
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Mc
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18 years ago 0 453 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Sounds great! I'm starved - When do we eat? (I'll bring the 'whine'...) Thanks, Joe, for painting us another clear picture. Thank goodness you still come around once in awhile to inspire the newbies (and the moldies, too!) Cold Turkeys love Tilapia! Cheers! mc
golferman
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golferman
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18 years ago 0 563 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
BFS, The goal of quitting smoking is taking back control of our lives from an addiction to nicotine. That is the grand scheme of things. Here is an analogy... I say that I will prepare dinner. Period. You are saying, peal the potatos, steam the veggies, broil the tilapia (great fish!)... You are breaking down the concept of dinner into individual tasks. Taking back control is like preparing dinner. It's a total concept. Whether you don't physically smoke, don't think of smoking, don't hang around smokers, the concept is that you have achieved control over your addiction. Being in control of your addiction is being able to have a fleeting thought about cigarettes and then immediately dismiss it because YOU ARE NO LONGER BEING CONTROLLED BY NICOTINE.. YOU ARE THE ONE IN CONTROL. You didn't realize it, but after your last slip, when you said to yourself that enough was enough, you gained that control. Yes, you still had to apply yourself, but you have not given control back to the nicodemon. That was my whole point. A concept. Dinner. :) [b][color=Purple]Be Strong. Be Smart. Be Quit[/color] [color=black]Joe[/color] [size=3][color=Blue]Knowledge Replaces Fear[/color][/size] [size=2][color=black]Illegitimus non carborundum est[/color][/size] [size=2][color=purple]Hoping for success without hard work is like trying to harvest without planting.[/color][/size][/b] [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]5/15/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 793 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 19,825 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1,942.85 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 142 [B]Hrs:[/B] 9 [B]Mins:[/B] 37 [B]Seconds:[/B] 30

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    Days: 10000 Hours: 11

    Minutes: 52 Seconds: 6

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Lady
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Lady
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18 years ago 0 5195 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Butterflyswimmer, Life is full of ever changing goals. The point here is quitting smoking. One day at a time. We all know that the quit is different for everyone. Some people walk away and don't look back. Some struggle for a short time and some struggle for a long time. Some slip and bounce back. Quitting is the ultimate goal. Look at my quit for example. I associate a lot of my recent successes with my quit. BECAUSE I quit smoking, I developed relationships with a new group of people. BECAUSE I quit smoking I gained confidence in myself. BECAUSE I quit smoking my life changed. BECAUSE I quit smoking I took back my life from the enslavement of smoking. THAT IS THE GOAL :) [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]7/1/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 746 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 14,920 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $2,611.00 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 67 [B]Hrs:[/B] 9 [B]Mins:[/B] 6 [B]Seconds:[/B] 35
butterfly swimmer
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butterfly swimmer
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18 years ago 0 2830 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Joe, Perhaps for some, the goal is all encompassing. But for others, including myself, we have to actively decide to not think about smoking. For me, it became a seperate goal. In the beginning, all I could handle was being smoke free (and at times, that one was too much of a goal!), so being smoke THOUGHT free as well, at least in the beginning, was out of the question! I remember making the goal to try to not think about smoking anymore. It was probably about 6 months after my last slip. So what I'm saying is that for some, one goal doesn't cut it. We need to handle one aspect of quitting at a time - first being smoke free, and then second becomming smoke thought free as well. Some may be able to lump it all together, but others need to cut the goal into chunks. And then of course, the third goal (at least for me now) is losing the quit weight! :| Like I said before, the goal constantly changes! :confuse: Crave the Quit! [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]6/17/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 760 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 19,000 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $3,138.80 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 53 [B]Hrs:[/B] 14 [B]Mins:[/B] 31 [B]Seconds:[/B] 59
Lolly
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Lolly
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18 years ago 0 382 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Fantastic post Joe! It is so great to be free!!! NEVER LOOK BACK. THE FUTURE IS AHEAD!!! Love Lolly. :) [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B]11/25/2004 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 963 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 33,705 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] �4,815.00 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 137 [B]Hrs:[/B] 16 [B]Mins:[/B] 25 [B]Seconds:[/B] 22

  • Quit Meter

    $12,580.00

    Amount Saved

  • Quit Meter

    Days: 740 Hours: 1

    Minutes: 49 Seconds: 44

    Life Gained

  • Quit Meter

    6290

    Smoke Free Days

  • Quit Meter

    125,800

    Cigarettes Not Smoked


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