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trailangelmary
02-24-2008, 15:26
Since I have recently been seeing a doctor which I haven't done in 20+ some years, I am on a better health plan. I have been diagnosed with high blood pressure, arthritis in both knees, high cholesterol and diabetes so far. I have been referred to a dietician for diabetes education and will be having that appointment soon. In the meantime I have cut pasta, white bread, & sweets from my foods. I also have reduced the intake of red meat and potatoes. I eat more salads and vegs. It's a start until I find out more about what I shouldn't eat.

And now about the title of the thread.....I started a program that I did in my 20's to cut down on cigs. At that time I was smoking 3 packs a day and cut down to 1 pack. I stayed at one pack for a long time. But I had gone back up to 1 1/2 to 2 packs a day. So, I'm back on the program of smoking 1 less cigarette a day and spacing the cigs evenly apart. I started at 30 cigs a week and a half ago. Todays schedule I am 58 minutes apart and 16 cigarettes.

I have several friends supporting me in my efforts. When they see me smoking they ask if I'm cheating. The bartender at the Pub, Shannon, puts an ashtray in front of me as usual and congrats me when I don't put any butts in it while I am there. He is also one of the people that checks to make sure I'm not cheating.

So, to all those hikers I have met over the years who have said to me, "Mary you should quit smoking," I'm trying and feeling good about it. So, here's some potential trail magic....when you are around me, there will be less smoke!!

A-Train
02-24-2008, 15:29
Good luck with weening off the cigs. Sounds like you've got the right mindframe with the diet to becoming a healthier person.

Seems several people on this site have either quit cigs or cut back drastically. If they can do it, so can you!

Miss Janet
02-24-2008, 15:30
GREAT!!!!

So, Jack really can be a POSITIVE INFLUENCE! If he can quit I know you can. You are going to feel so much better!!!

Jack Tarlin
02-24-2008, 15:31
Hey, Mary, if I can do it, so can you!

Keep with it!

warraghiyagey
02-24-2008, 15:32
Cheers T A Mary. Good wishes your way. See you this weekend.:sun
I'll be the one sneaking outdoors every now and again for a clove - (I'm quitting too - at my pace.
Good luck:)

Lone Wolf
02-24-2008, 15:34
good for you mary!

The Weasel
02-24-2008, 15:52
Mary, you're smarter than me...it took being scheduled for heart surgery to get me to stop! But not only is the 'less smoke' a great thing around others, but the best trail magic is that you'll be around longer to give out more trail magic!!! Thanks in advance!!!!!

The Weasel

Doughnut
02-24-2008, 15:54
Mary,
If you never quit quitting, one day you'll quit for good!
I SMOKED, DIPPED, and CHEWED for 20 plus years, even quit a few times for 6 -9 months at a time, Been without for 14 months now. I am not seeking any 'congratulations" or anything, it was a personal decision when I decided that I am stronger than any nicotine or other addiction (except the "white blaze fever").
Eventuially, you'll (and only you) will decide the benefits are not worth the price or risk.

Best of luck to you, Hon,

DoughNut

dessertrat
02-24-2008, 15:55
Good luck no matter which way you choose to go, but give serious thought to quitting completely. I smoked at least a pack a day for twenty years, and quit with Chantix. It really did work wonders for me, combined with a determination to quit. It has now been 154 days, I think, and I am very glad I quit. I used to fear never smoking again, and now I am looking forward to it.

brotheral
02-24-2008, 16:11
Congratulations Mary !! You're going to feel alot better... and live longer !!
I'm praying for you !! BrotherAL

Almost There
02-24-2008, 16:16
Good Luck Mary!!! Tonight will have been 4 weeks, no smokes for me!!! You can do it, first week is the toughest. Just take it one day at a time, and you will make it!

Also as someone who has been tracking, my heart rate dropped by over ten beats per minute after quitting, so your heart will definitely thank you!

Obsidian
02-24-2008, 16:18
good luck, I quit a bajillion times before I finally quit quit. It'll be rough, but if you really want it you'll do it.

Appalachian Tater
02-24-2008, 17:39
We've never met, but thanks for the kiwi-strawberry drink in 2006!

Call and make an appointment for the dietitian Monday--don't put it off.

Swimming is the best exercise for someone with arthritis--is there a pool you could gain access to?

Here's a good place to start with the diabetic diet: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/diabeticdiet.html

And good luck with the smoking, it is possible to quit. The money you save you can use for the pool.

Tinker
02-25-2008, 01:35
Way to go, Mary.

I quit back in March 1981. No regrets. You can do it! :)

budforester
02-25-2008, 08:18
Great game- plan, overall! I quit smoking your way: marked down those cigs and allowed one less every day. It eases withdrawalls that way, but still takes determination... Don't let anyone tell you it's easy. I got it down to one- a- day on several occasions, and I carried an unopened pack of "insurance" for quite a while.

gsingjane
02-25-2008, 08:41
This doesn't necessarily work for everyone, but I quit (in 1991) with the aid of Nicotine Anonymous. Yes, there is a 12-step program for smokers! It was a great way to supplement my willpower and to share with others undergoing the same process.

Jane in CT

p.s. Congratulations!

Newb
02-25-2008, 08:42
I quit last year and have never felt better. It's a matter of seeing yourself as a non-smoker when you look in the mirror. Every time you reach for a cigarrette say to yourself, "what am I doing? I don't smoke!"

take-a-knee
02-25-2008, 09:31
I held my stepdad's hand many years ago as he slowly choked to death from COPD. All you hikers who envision yourself still being able to carry a pack at retirement age after having smoked all of your productive years, well, it ain't a likely proposition. The likelyhood is you'll have a markedly declining quality of life starting at just about the time you have the time and resources to do the things you all ways wanted to do. STOP NOW!

Deadeye
02-25-2008, 09:36
7 years, 1 month, 19 days (but who's counting) since my last cigarette. Patches did it for me, but it still wasn't easy, and like so many others I quit at least 100 times.

Congrats on getting this far, and good luck with that last step.

GratefulHike
02-25-2008, 09:37
hey now dessertrat, I have been thinking about trying the chantix. I have already changed my lifestyle with a better diet and going to the gym daily. I have been doing that for over 6 months now and just haven't gotten the motivation to quit the smokes. With the chantix how long did you take it before you quite completely? How long after you quit did you continue to take the chantix?

DAKS
02-25-2008, 09:44
tell yourself you are a "former smoker". when people ask if you smoke, or put that ashtray in front of you say "i won't be needing that, i used to smoke, or i don't smoke". go a day without a smoke and say to yourself "i used to smoke". this all sounds silly, but a little mind over matter trickery does help!

good luck! your on the right track! you have alot of support here on WB!!

Almost There
02-25-2008, 09:53
Cold Turkey, somehow I've convinced myself that smoking again will lead to my death, once you do that, not a problem. First week was hard, it's been a month at this point, every once in a while I think about having a smoke...but I don't, and it isn't hard to fight it, it's amazing how much better you feel just after a month. Screw aids, you're not breaking your addiction and have to go cold turkey eventually anyways, why not just start it.

Frosty
02-25-2008, 09:58
Quitting smoking was the hardest thing I ever did. I was never able to cut down. I could do it for a few months, but in the end I had to stop totally.

Like someone else said, I quit a kazillion times before it "took." After I finally stopped, I had urges for a couple years, but remembering how many years and how hard it was to get to that point I was able to hang in. Now cigarette smaoke makes me nauseous (a good thing).

Remember:

If at first you don't succeed, quit and quit again.

rafe
02-25-2008, 10:08
I never quite quit. I have a low-level tobacco habit. No store-bought cigarettes, though -- I go through a pouch of Bugler and a box of nicotine gum every three weeks or so. The Bugler is dirt cheap, the nicotine gum is still ridiculously expensive -- but not nearly as expensive as cigarettes.

Footslogger
02-25-2008, 10:14
I quit smoking so many times I lost count. But I finally did make it in the early 80's and it is one of the better decisions I ever made - - for many reasons.

Once you're "out" and looking back at it from the outside you will wonder how you ever allowed yourself to get so sucked in to the habit.

Best of luck to you in your effort and ...if at first you don't succeed you are among the majority - - hang in there !!

'Slogger

dessertrat
02-25-2008, 10:20
It's no mystery how one gets sucked in --- it's highly addictive. I think if you do a substitute, it should be a non-nicotine one, such as Zyban or Chantix. I found that while I could quit smoking with the gum or patch, I couldn't go without nicotine for very long.

StarLyte
02-25-2008, 10:33
Hugs and kisses Mary. I knew you could do it :banana you go little dancin banana

OMG I just thought of something...this means there will be no smoking in your house?! :D

One day in 1993, I had really bad chest pains and thought I was having a heart attack, so I went to the hospital. They diagnosed me with bronchial pneumonia. Gosh that was painful!

I said to myself that I could not smoke "today" because I have pneumonia. The next day I said the same thing.

A week later, I still had not smoked and believe me I wanted to. I loved smoking. I loved having a cup of coffee and a smoke.

30 days went and I knew that I made it.

Jack I'm real happy for you also my friend!

Nearly Normal
02-25-2008, 11:15
Chantix works well if you actually want to quit.
Use that health plan and ask your Doc about it.
Worked for me after 35 years of smoking.
You plan a quit date 7 days in advance. Start taking it and on day seven quit smoking. Continue taking the chantix until you don't feel the need to.
A friend stopped taking it after about 3 weeks. Most take it between 8-12 weeks.
I took it for 8 weeks.
Good luck to all trying to quit.

ASUGrad
02-25-2008, 11:21
I quit cold turkey 25 years ago. It was one of the best things I ever did. It has huge rewards. It's not that hard if you just decide you will never smoke cigs again. Just don't pick one up. If you get nicotine anxiety, just go for a walk.

I eventually took up cigars but I never got addicted to them. I only smoke about 3 a year. I have some really well-aged cigars.

dessertrat
02-25-2008, 12:37
Chantix works well if you actually want to quit.
Use that health plan and ask your Doc about it.
Worked for me after 35 years of smoking.
You plan a quit date 7 days in advance. Start taking it and on day seven quit smoking. Continue taking the chantix until you don't feel the need to.
A friend stopped taking it after about 3 weeks. Most take it between 8-12 weeks.
I took it for 8 weeks.
Good luck to all trying to quit.

I took it for about 9 weeks. They say to take it longer, but when I started forgetting to take it, etc., there didn't seem much point in continuing to take it.

trailangelmary
02-25-2008, 16:01
We've never met, but thanks for the kiwi-strawberry drink in 2006!

Call and make an appointment for the dietitian Monday--don't put it off.

Swimming is the best exercise for someone with arthritis--is there a pool you could gain access to?

Here's a good place to start with the diabetic diet: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/diabeticdiet.html

And good luck with the smoking, it is possible to quit. The money you save you can use for the pool.

Well, you are very welcome for the kiwi strawberry in '06. I called the dietician this morning, waiting for a call back.
And I do love to swim (swam and coached competitively for 25 years) but have gotten away from it over the years. Matthewski is also encouraging me to start swimming again.
So, if I say to any '08 hikers I can take you where you need to go after I go swim some laps, that will be a very good thing!
And thanks for the diabetic link.

trailangelmary
02-25-2008, 16:13
Thank you to all for your words of encouragement and suggestions. I knew I would get some great support from White Blaze members. Each day the first two cigs wait is hard. I am having trouble breaking that habit of lighting up first thing when I wake up. Then the next few I am looking at the time about 2 - 3 minutes before it gets there (body programmed from the previous days schedule, I'm supposing). The rest of the day, I am not clock watching at all. Some days I am having one more cig than planned for that day at the end of the day because I am awake late. However, it's still the correct time apart. Last night I lit that one extra cig, took two puffs and put it out thinking I don't really want that cig!

TODAY'S PLAN 59 MINUTES APART AND ONLY 15 CIGS!! So, I am at the halfway point from a pack and a half, my previous average. I think I will celebrate with a walk around the block!:banana

c.coyle
02-26-2008, 14:14
good luck, I quit a bajillion times ...

"It's easy to quit. I've done it 50 times" - Groucho Marx (supposedly)

Sly
02-26-2008, 14:18
I have 6 cigarettes left.

Hey Mary, did you happen to see Pacence's interview? He mentioned you.

http://www.wpsu.org/ondemand/streams/Walking_with02072.html

trailangelmary
02-26-2008, 15:20
Thanks for that link, Sly. I enjoyed the interview and it is so true what he said in reference to me. He stopped by here in November and gave me a copy of his book. It was great seeing him again.

Sly
02-26-2008, 15:23
Thanks for that link, Sly. I enjoyed the interview and it is so true what he said in reference to me. He stopped by here in November and gave me a copy of his book. It was great seeing him again.

No problem. He seems like a cool dude. Very humble.

Quoddy
02-26-2008, 16:09
I was a 3 1/2 pack of "Luckies" a day guy. Early in January 1971, when I was 30 years old, I decided to quit on January 28th. On the night of January 27th 1971 at 10:30 PM I put out my last cigarette and never touched another one. For 3 months I carried the remainder of the pack that I had when I quit in my shirt pocket. Every time my craving became bad I could look at that silly pack and say, "I'm stronger than you".

Still going strong and plan to thru both the Long Trail (again) and the Colorado Trail this year at 68.