GUS (Gave Up Smoking) is a community support diary for Kossacks in the midst of quitting smoking. Any supportive comments, suggestions or positive distractions are appreciated. If you are quitting or thinking of quitting, please -- join us!
You can also click the GUS tag to view all diary posts.
More Doctors Smoke Camels Than Any Other Cigarette (1949)
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We've come a long way, baby. Sixty years later, you are not likely to find either an ad that comes within a solar system of resembling this one, or a doctor who will endorse smoking, much less a particular brand. Your doctor, when asked about smoking, will probably offer something along these lines:
*Quit.
*... and under NO circumstances should you smoke, while using a nicotine substitute. This can be fatal.
From the American Heart Association:
How long does nicotine stay in the body?
From 85–90 percent of nicotine in the blood is metabolized by the liver and excreted from the kidney rapidly. The estimated half-life for nicotine in the blood is two hours. However, smoking represents a multiple dosing situation with considerable accumulation during smoking. Therefore, it can be expected that blood nicotine would persist at significant levels for six to eight hours after smoking stopped.
At Day Three, we have all come a long way, as well. For those of us who are brave or crazy enough to have gone cold turkey, the nicotine is all but flushed out of the system. Personally, I went with the Nicorette. But while the junk is still floating around in my blood stream, I am still ready and able to deprogram my mind and body from those reflexes of an active smoker:
*While seated at the computer, I still glance to my right, where my ash tray (actually, a little plate that I used as an ashtray, having given those away in the past) used to be.
*After completing a project (music track, DKos comment/diary, two great window casing's worth of painting), my right hand reaches for a now-empty shirt pocket.
*I inhale deeply. This is kind of funny. Taking a deep breath inward is what I did when I smoked. Now I am doing this, not only to relieve stress, but to satisfy that very same urge that I had, as a smoker, to simply take a deep breath.
Back to Day Three. Because it's the "3's" that we are told to beware of. Because the third day is when many recovering smokers fall off the wagon. Because...
... don't you hate being told how hard something is going to be?
Let me be clear. There is a difference between physiological and psychological addiction. With the first one: if you went cold turkey and are still here to talk about it, congratulations! You have just beaten withdrawal symptoms that some doctors compare anecdotally with heroin. Beating the physical jones is hard. And you did it. With us nicotine subbers, I think that we are fortunate in being able to control our own withdrawal, using a tapering process which, if followed properly, can bring us gently back down to earth.
The psychological addiction is a a different matter. It's those habits, block-quoted directly above. It's the association with pack-of-your-brand as a companion, a friend, someonething that will always be there for you.
That cigarette helped me to become cool, to play the rocking-est guitar progressions, to impress the ladies, to stall for time while I thought of an answer to your question, to appear philosophical, to give my hands something to do in an attempt to hide my restlessness.
There are other associations of this many-tentacled mind job:
Driving: Open road? Light a cig, and feel the wind! Traffic jam? Now I can smoke, and have something to do while waiting.
Coffee: So good with cigarettes, Jim Jarmusch directed a film on the subject.
Conversation: Already stated above, it allows me a moment to think. At the very least, that cigarette provides a self-referential point of discussion. Though to be fair, the GUS format is doing the same thing: giving us all something to talk about, while getting to know one another just a little bit better.
What are the activities you find to be strongly associated with your addiction to cigarettes? Note: the goal here is to not make your job harder. On the contrary, I believe that shining a bright spotlight on triggering activities helps me to unearth the B.S. that I tell myself. Name it, claim it, dump it. This way, I can later resume regularly-scheduled activities (drinking coffee, driving, playing music) without feeling triggered-to-the-gills.
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Hey, you! GUS team! Who wants to write a diary? We are looking to keep steady diary activity through Sunday evening, this first week of freedom from cigarettes, and are looking for you to volunteer a diary.
Your writing style is not as important as your willingness to place a GUS tag in your diary, tell a little something about your journey so far, and stick around and offer encouragement and support to those posting in comments. To volunteer, email SallyCat, or reply to the first comment under the "Tip Jar/Butt Can" with a time that works best for you.
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The diarists (so far!):
*SallyCat
*Rosebuddear
*bgblcklab1
*bsmechanic
*theater goon
*seenaymah
Current members of the GUS team! Please comment or email bsmechanic35 at yahoo, if you would like to join, or if your name is here in error:
1BQ
amk for obama
bgblcklab1
blue husky
bsmechanic
coppercelt
flumptytail
gchaucer2
Im a frayed knot
interceptor7
LarsThorwald
magicsister
MinervainNH
nannyboz
Pennsylvanian
sallycat
seenaymah
smartcookienyc
Wood Dragon
UPDATE X1: Diary Volunteer List
gchaucer2: Thursday noon edt / 9am pdt
magicsister: Thursday 7 pm edt / 4 pm pdt
blue husky: Friday noon edt / 9am pdt
smartcookienyc: Friday 7 pm edt / 4 pm pdt
bgblcklab: Saturday 9 am edt / 6 am pdt
Thanks folks! There is also plenty of room over the weekend to keep your fingers busy, will update schedule as necessary.