Anyway, enough ranting about that... Here's a little something I found while looking for motivation...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Within 20 minutes after you smoke that last cigarette, your body begins a series of changes that continue for years.
20 Minutes After Quitting
Your heart rate drops.
12 hours After Quitting
Carbon monoxide level in your blood drops to normal.
2 Weeks to 3 Months After Quitting
Your heart attack risk begins to drop.
Your lung function begins to improve.
1 to 9 Months After Quitting
Your Coughing and shortness of breath decrease.
1 Year After Quitting
Your added risk of coronary heart disease is half that of a smoker’s.
5 Years After Quitting
Your stroke risk is reduced to that of a nonsmoker’s 5-15 years after quitting.
10 Years After Quitting
Your lung cancer death rate is about half that of a smoker’s.
Your risk of cancers of the mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, kidney, and pancreas decreases.
15 Years After Quitting
Your risk of coronary heart disease is back to that of a nonsmoker’s.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Interesting tidbit.... This is my 500th post! Woohoo for me. So maybe i am cool now, even without the whole smoking thing...
;)
Monday, May 15, 2006
Yeah- I'm cool now!
6th grade- I had made it out of elementary school... I was older- I was cool... And there they were... sitting down on a storm drain by the creek ouside the school. there are the cool kids- They smoke, they cuss, they get high, etc... There's the folks I want to hang out with. So I did. 11 years old and I started smoking... Pretty much just to fit in with the cool kids...
By 14, I was smoking a few packs a day... Marlboro reds... Chain smoking... Look at me folks... I'm cool now!
I smoked between 1 and 3 packs a day (I quit a few times, the longest period was about 9 months) for 22 years. Holy shit... 22 years of being a smoker. I've smoked over 150,000 cigarettes! How crazy is that? No telling how much I've spent- Prices crept up during those years from under a buck to over $3 a pack... I'd estimate somewhere between $15,000 & $50,000. Yep... I'm cool.
Today is my 17th day without smoking.
I made a bunch of excuses as to why I needed to smoke just a little longer... the last one I had was Stormii's surgery. After that one, how could I say anything was so major that I really needed to smoke anymore?
God is good. I have not cheated once this time around. Previously, I have done cool things like put on a patch and then just take a drag here and there, or even cooler, put one on in the morning, rip it off at lunch time and then smoke for the rest of the day. Nothing like a small overdose of nicotine to make you feel like the coolest guy around!
Sick? Can barely breathe? Feel like you're gonna cough up a lung at any second? I betcha a cigarette would make that feel better... let's get up and drag that ass outside and smoke one... hell it was so hard to get here, might as well make it two. Been there....
The sad part? I haven't had one in over two weeks... But I still want one just as bad now as two weeks ago. And I know exactly how I'd feel if I smoked one. I'd have the headache from hell... I'd get naseous, I'd want to pass out... But that coolness- yeah... it's a powerful draw! Thankfully, by the Grace of God- I have stayed uncool for now... I have resisted the temptation...
Sure... I flick my imaginary cigarette mindlessly while waiting for the light to turn green... I inhale deeply getting that first drag off my pen while sitting at my desk at work.... I make some extra trips to the snack machine during the day too...
But I'm not smoking.
Probably the hardest thing in the world to do...
Anyway, enough ranting about that... Here's a little something I found while looking for motivation...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Within 20 minutes after you smoke that last cigarette, your body begins a series of changes that continue for years.
20 Minutes After Quitting
Your heart rate drops.
12 hours After Quitting
Carbon monoxide level in your blood drops to normal.
2 Weeks to 3 Months After Quitting
Your heart attack risk begins to drop.
Your lung function begins to improve.
1 to 9 Months After Quitting
Your Coughing and shortness of breath decrease.
1 Year After Quitting
Your added risk of coronary heart disease is half that of a smoker’s.
5 Years After Quitting
Your stroke risk is reduced to that of a nonsmoker’s 5-15 years after quitting.
10 Years After Quitting
Your lung cancer death rate is about half that of a smoker’s.
Your risk of cancers of the mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, kidney, and pancreas decreases.
15 Years After Quitting
Your risk of coronary heart disease is back to that of a nonsmoker’s.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Interesting tidbit.... This is my 500th post! Woohoo for me. So maybe i am cool now, even without the whole smoking thing...
;)
Anyway, enough ranting about that... Here's a little something I found while looking for motivation...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Within 20 minutes after you smoke that last cigarette, your body begins a series of changes that continue for years.
20 Minutes After Quitting
Your heart rate drops.
12 hours After Quitting
Carbon monoxide level in your blood drops to normal.
2 Weeks to 3 Months After Quitting
Your heart attack risk begins to drop.
Your lung function begins to improve.
1 to 9 Months After Quitting
Your Coughing and shortness of breath decrease.
1 Year After Quitting
Your added risk of coronary heart disease is half that of a smoker’s.
5 Years After Quitting
Your stroke risk is reduced to that of a nonsmoker’s 5-15 years after quitting.
10 Years After Quitting
Your lung cancer death rate is about half that of a smoker’s.
Your risk of cancers of the mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, kidney, and pancreas decreases.
15 Years After Quitting
Your risk of coronary heart disease is back to that of a nonsmoker’s.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Interesting tidbit.... This is my 500th post! Woohoo for me. So maybe i am cool now, even without the whole smoking thing...
;)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
12 comments:
YOU sound cool too me....that is why I stop by once in awhile. And of course for your great recaps!
I have quit smoking for 17 months now and I will NEVER go back. I miss it everyday. I mention it a lot, to my close friends, family and husband, "How nice a cigarette would be right about now," but I will not smoke ever again even if I love it. I didn't do it to be cool..I did because I loved it. It made me think better, I felt sexier, I loved the whole ritual of lighting up. But never again will I do that.
You keep up the GOOD work.....and thanks for the info.
I am SOOO proud of you baby :) That is all I will say because you just HAD to peek and made me all nervous and threw off my train of thought . So Pffftthhhh
VERY cool. That is a lot of money that went up in smoke. Hang in there. I have been smoke free for 22 years. Mostly the smell makes me ill now, but every once in a while it smells good. I know I can;t ever take even a puff.
You are WAY more cool now! That is awesome, gup! Keep it up!
Congrats on the 500th post, too. :)
i'm glad that you're making progress and would rather be healthy than "cool". it's a dream of mine that the world would become "smoke-free" one day.
Way cool! :)
Hmmm in all my stupidity I thought I was cool...I get this!
I like the perspective of the latter half of the post, thoughts to keep in mind!
Way to go! Keeps me inspired!
Life is just too good, my kids are just too enjoyable..WHy would I want to shorten that time I have??
GREAT POST!
I totally think you're cool! I know that this is the hardest thing to do! But, look at you, you're doing it! Congrats!
smoking is very hard to quit. my mom did it when I was in High School. we gave her soooo much hell.
I applaud you and wish you all the luck.
You can do it!!!
I had my last cigarette on October 28, 1999. I still want one every now & then. I'll never smoke again though, the smell of cigarettes makes me sick. I can even smell them when I am driving down the road with my windows up and another motorist is smoking nearby... YUCK. Every now and then I get a fleeting craving...lasts about 10 seconds and then it is gone. Keep it up....it is worth it.
I have to comment on this one.
I know exactly what you're talking about. I started smoking at the age of nine to be "cool" like my older sister. Man oh man, was that a cruel joke! I was smoking a pack to a pack and a half a day from the age of 13, full-flavor Kings (none of those weaklings for me).
After 20 years of said "coolness" and many failed attempts to quit, I've now been smoke-free for 3 months!
It's still difficult, REALLY difficult, but it's getting easier everyday and I feel so much better and it's completely worth it!
So, Hang in there! The "Uncool" crowd is so much better! lol.
Congrats, you can be smoke-free!!!!! I haven't smoked in almost 19 years after smoking 10 years beginning in college to be the cool brunette... But I/we wanted a baby so I must admit it, it wasn't hard for me to quit. I am sure you smell good now :)
Good for you dude!!!!
Post a Comment