Yesterday was a little hard but not on the cravings side of things, oddly enough. I had an upsetting dream where I met all the people I've lost to cancer and barely had any sleep. The shakes are subsiding, but I'm coughing up all kinds of yuck.
On the plus side, seeing all that yuck is helping to make me realise the crap I put in my body and I really don't want that back again. I really don't want a cigarette anymore. My body's trying to convince me otherwise, but it'll get the idea, eventually.
I do need some advice, though. A few of my girl friends and I are heading out to the pub tonight. Although only one of them smoke now I've quit, she's going to smell of it around me. I don't want to become the dreaded anti smoker that gives people grief for smoking or asks her not to for the evening. But at the same time I don't want to be uncomfortable all evening, either. Any tips on how to survive your first outing to a pub after quitting?
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I sooooo agree with what Kat said. Alcohol was always a weak point for me. It's too easy to cadge a fag when you've had a few drinks. Could you stick to soft drinks? Antibiotics is always a good excuse without being a party pooper. Stopping smoking is more important than one night out, if you feel you're really struggling LEAVE.
I had to do that when visiting a friend who smokes in the first two weeks. Even though I stuck to tea and she was going outside to smoke, the mental link of gossipping and smoking was too strong for me and I was totally on edge. She's an old friend and totally understood, my sense of relief when I got back to the car without smoking was huge. The good news is I went to see her a couple of days ago and I was fine. It takes time to break the links.
I only get one night to myself every couple of months and I didn't want to miss it because of cigarettes. Avoiding doing something because I'm not smoking is as bad as avoiding something because I am, I don't want it to have any control over my life anymore.
But I was fine, I had one craving and it passed very quickly. I think it helped that there was only one girl at the table that smoked, we started and finished at my (now) smokefree flat and you can't smoke in pubs anymore. You also can't take your drinks onto the street, either, so I always felt very anti social smoking in pubs. I was only exposed to smoke on the way in and on the way out and it smelt so bad I actually gagged on the way out.
I found it harder earlier in the week when I made the mistake of letting a friend smoke out my kitchen window, but then I was sat in the smell of it.
I never really agreed with the smoking ban in pubs until I quit and can smell it. Now I can smell how horrible it really is I completely agree with it.
But all told, I'm on day 6 and don't want to go near a lit cigarette, let alone bring one of those smelly things to my lips. I have more energy (I almost leapt out of bed this morning and into the shower, even with a slight hangover), I can breathe better, my sense of smell has improved a lot more since I got it back, I can taste everything (My favourite drink, Mojito, last night tasted amazing!), my flat no longer smells and I feel so much healthier and happier.
The biggest problem I have at the moment is being near people that are smoking. Not because I want one, it's having the opposite effect. It smells so bad, I actually gag. I don't want to become an anti-smoker, just a non smoker, if that makes sense?
Oh my word you are one tough cookie. I could never have gone out on the first week. Just goes to show how different this journey is for everyone and how much determination you have. Well done.
I know what you mean about it ruling your life and good on you that you got this hurdle out of the way so early on, I on the other hand am having one glass of red wine every 3 days or so carefully supervised by my non-smoking other half.
I don't know why but I climb the walls at the taste of beer/wine, the craving is awful, getting better though and I look forward to the day when I can enjoy a glass of wine with no problems.
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