Turkey's Triumphs: Page 3

I didn't think I would ever be able to stop smoking. I had heard how horribly hard it would be for a woman my age, in fact, not a snow ball's chance in Hades. But I was a chain smoker, my dad died of lung cancer, a favorite aunt is dying from emphysema, I was waking at night with dread running through my veins. In the middle of the night I got on line and after going here and there I found WhyQuit. It's like an awakening...Oh! I get it now. I set my date, I quit.

It's of course the best thing I'll ever do for me and I am proud. So to all the women over 50 I want to say YES YOU CAN. Pick your date, read at WhyQuit and get ready for quite a fun adventure. Laughter helps.

I've been quit for 1 year, 9 months, 14 days, 11 hours, 12 minutes and 57 seconds (653 days). I've not smoked 19604 death sticks, and saved $3,121.71. I've saved 68 day(s), 2 hour(s) of my life.

Good luck to all,

Debra Flower

I tried to join the Freedom group about 6 weeks after my quit date. I was told it was for new quitters. As you can see, not being able to post was no biggie.

My brother was diagnosed with emphysema on 9/8/04. My father died of lung cancer at 67(4 packs a day). I come from a family of 8 kids. Both my parents smoked. My mother still does. Seven out of eight of us smoked. Five still do, even the one with emphysema.

I quit once at age 34 for 4.5 years. I got divorced and wanted to die so of course I started smoking again. Well, to tell the truth, I was at a bar feeling sorry for myself and took one puff. Ten years later at age 47 and over 120,000 smokes, I decided that I wanted to live to corrupt my grandchildren. Thanks to my brother who was in tears one year ago and who quit with me and lasted 4 days. What do I mean about corrupting my grandchildren? You know, tell them lies like: if you eat your veggies you get muscles in your spit, if you lie your tongue turns green...........

Anyway, thanks to WhyQuit tomorrow I am gold at 7:00 a.m. pacific time. Oh yeah. Feeling good and not like a slave. I smoked 2 packs a day and went cold turkey. Rock on!!!!!!

Thank you WhyQuit.com

Mike Hunton
Elko, Nevada, USA

I started smoking when I was 17 years YOUNG. I knew better because my mother DIED as a result of smoking - she was 35 years YOUNG and had advanced heart disease. She was a 3 pack a day smoker.

Because of my mother's medical history I had been ADMONISHED by every single doctor I ever had to see to stop smoking. Even my gynecologist told me I had to quit.

What did they know? I "enjoyed" smoking, it kept me calm, took the edge off. But really, what did I know? I had no clue that active smoking was the result of nicotine addiction - prior to that I believed it was a "habit". A cardiologist actually told me that I was addicted. I did not believe him. I was 32 at the time, and I knew that all these people were right - I needed to quit smoking. I didn't want to die young. But I didn't know how. Any doctor I ever had to see told me I NEEDED the patch or something to "help". NO ONE ever said "cold turkey." No one in the medical profession ever said "you can do it cold turkey."

I did a Google search for quit smoking. That was how I found WhyQuit. The very first story I read was Noni Glykos' story. I could NOT believe that she was my age and had been died with lung cancer. I kept reading. I could not get enough of this website. Furthermore, I could not believe that REAL PEOPLE WERE QUITTING COLD TURKEY - no pill, no patch, no gum, just QUITTING ON THEIR OWN!!

But I wasn't ready to just quit, to just quit cold turkey. I believed in my mind that I could not do it. I was very envious of their magical powers.

In July of 2003 I quit for 8 days. I had set up myself for failure. I was not believing that I could do it, I could survive. I sold out at day 9 and went back to smoking. I quit again in November 2003 when I had to have major surgery. I lasted for 5 days. I needed my cigarettes!!

In 2004 I came back to WhyQuit, and then I started reading the threads at Freedom. I poured over the long-term quitters threads. I would just sit and cry 'cause I felt like they were special and I was a loser and I just couldn't do it.

But I had decided that no matter what, I was going to do this, and make it. I was going to do what I needed to do. And I was going to survive. I didn't know when, all I knew was that it was going to have to be on my own.

Then on August 17 I felt a wheeze in my back. Not the regular asthma type wheeze but a deep in your lungs wheeze. It scared me so much (think Noni) that I smoked my last cigarette on August 19, 2004 @ 7:42 p.m. I did it cold turkey. I wasn't scared, or nervous or anxious anymore. I just knew that it had to be done. And I was going to make it. I changed my self messages from "I can't" to "I am." From "I won't make it" to "I am healing." The list goes on and on. It's hard to be defeated when you're armed with facts.

I lived at Freedom from Tobacco for the first couple of months. I stayed focused on the messages. Other people who had succeeded were not more special than me, and I was not a loser. We had that one thing in common. We wanted our freedom from nicotine.

It's that simple. I wanted to be free from the fear, the worry, and the cost! I am on the "other side" now. I have been living in comfort for quite a while-and I'm only "1". I do not spend time thinking about smoking, I do not miss it, I do not need it. I never did. Last night was my official birthday and this time when I cried I cried tears of pride.

If you are thinking about quitting, quit wasting your time and just do it. Get educated. Visit WhyQuit. It also helps if you send yourself KIND, LOVING messages about how much you deserve to be free. You will survive. You will not "lose" anything, not even your mind.

Chevet' Mondragon

Hi there. I have quit for over a year and a half and I am truly happy I made the choice. I smoked for 15 years, a pack a day. First of all we all make mistakes, no shame in it.

I tried everything, patches , gum, pills and it did not work. After my close buddy confronted me and said I should quit because I stink I gave it some thought. I went to quitsmoking.com and read every article on the webpage. After each article it said "never take another puff again" and that is exactly what I did and am still doing today. I got rid of all my cigarette stuff like packs, lighters and ashtrays and went from there. The first couple of weeks were hard and now I can do it without thinking about it as much. The worst is when there are people in your life that want to keep you the same way and tempting you to smoke. Now I see these phonys a mile away and stay away from them.

You have one life to live. Forget about the past and begin a smoke-free future where it will not only benefit you but all the people in your life as well.

Breathing easier,

Mike Ross
Ontario, Canada

I am 1 year Quit!!!!!

I wish I could share this news with my whole family but sadly I can't, for we have buried most of them from smoke related illnesses. My siblings say they are proud of me, I just hope they follow suit and quit too. I am truly tired of attending funerals of people who have died from nicotine related illnesses, those are the saddest of all in my opinion because death by cigarette is a needless loss, so avoidable.

I started smoking when I was 13 years old, I was up to 2 packs a day at the age of 30 {after my mother died from lung cancer} when I finally said "That's it, I'm quitting". I tried NRT the 1st 5 time attempts to quit smoking, it seemed to only drag out the quit, and depress me because I wanted to be COMPLETELY FREE of nicotine.

Finally at 43 I found this site and read,read, read. I quit cold turkey =), I joined, I posted and helped others through their tough moments. It helped me so much to know that everyone goes through pretty much the same things. I got strength from everyone in here and knowledge reading the articles. In all my attempts to quit knowledge was the biggest thing missing. Educating myself was the tool I was missing. Quitting cold turkey, not dragging it out was the ticket.

I would like everyone out there of thinking of quitting to know quitting is doable, the road is not easy but neither is dying from cancer or heart/lung disease. I've seen it first hand, I know. So quit thinking about it and do it, IT CAN BE DONE every day you don't is one more day that that one you light up could be the one that kills you. I wish you all the best

Thank you so much Joel, John and all the others at Whyquit.com for being here.

Jayna Salva
Columbus, Ohio

John, I never joined Freedom or posted any messages. I lurked and read (and read & read). Regardless of Peter Jennings and what could happen to any of us, I will never smoke again. Sincere thanks to you, Joel and everyone associated with Freedom & WhyQuit. Below is my email to Keith Olbermann, MSNBC - written today.

Cheryl

[Editor's Note: Keith Olbermann, a 27 year pipe smoker, just had a tumor removed from his mouth. Click the above link to read his story.]

Keith,

I am almost 55 years old and started smoking in my late teens - until I was up to a pack or more a day. I quit May 2, 2004, as required by my doctor prior to cosmetic surgery (FULLY intending to start up again after the surgery). Typical of any nicotine addict, I dreaded the quitting much more than the surgery and did considerable research in an attempt to ease the pain.

The method that worked for me was cold turkey with the help of whyquit.com. This is a very educational site with a tough love approach and I believe that, had it not been for the knowledge I gained on WhyQuit, I would be smoking today. In the 15+ months since I threw away my last pack of cigarettes, I have not taken one puff - regardless of stress, cocktails or WHATEVER (excuses addicts come up with). I recommended this site to a friend that wanted to quit (after 35 years of smoking) and remarkably, he has not smoked for almost a year.

Keith, PLEASE check out WhyQuit...........after reading your tumor story, I think you will appreciate the "scared straight" climate of this website and admire the volume of information it contains.

Thanks for your effort on this worthy campaign and good luck (and good health) to us all.

Cheryl

I celebrated a true Independence Day on July 4, 2002, when I finally came to my senses and stopped smoking. Shortly thereafter, I found Freedom and I never looked back. Freedom provided a place for me to become educated about my addiction and really see smoking for what it really was. It helped me understand withdrawal and the less-than-linear process of quitting. And the people saved my life with their no-nonsense caring approach when I was feeling weak.

Now, I wouldn't trade my quit for anything. Life on this side of the quit is easier, sweeter, and far more enjoyable.

If you're tired of slinking off to have a cigarette, worried about destroying your health, or sick of being tied to an addiction, you have found the right place.

One day at a time is all you have to do.

SammyMN (Quit 3+ years ago)

Free for 2 years, 9 months and counting!

I'm not ashamed to admit that I needed help to quit but like most people I thought that help came in the form of a patch or a pill. Then I found this site. Because of the knowledge provided by John and Joel I was able to break free and most importantly stay free. No gimmicks, no tricks, no hidden agendas. WhyQuit is staffed and frequented by people who genuinely care about saving your life.

If you're still smoking and thinking about quitting or you want to quit but are afraid to fail then picture this: in your mind imagine total comfort, your life free of cigarettes, free of craving, maybe you can imagine your life before you started smoking. If you could achieve that image wouldn't you make the effort? I did, and I'm living my smokefree life every day and loving it.

Jill

Hi, my screen name is BillW, and I chose that because...its my first name and last name initial. Didn't realize another BillW made significant contributions to addiction recovery back then... and I can't claim that now for me. But nicotine is an addiction, and you can recover.

I've been free for 3 1/3 years, and helped out some on the Freedom website. I often hear people refer to the first weeks or so as a rollercoaster ride. It sort of is... but no one ever died from nicotine withdrawal.

And like a rollercoaster, there are certain rules that apply:

1. Keep your mind firmly tucked into the car at all times. Remember why you are doing this. Read, Read, Read!
2. While the ride might be rough at the beginning, it tapers down, just like a roller coaster. It Will Get Better!
3. Don't try to leave the rollercoaster in the middle of the ride. The "comfort" you will feel as the ride ends makes up for any bumps!
4. Having survived the rollercoaster ride, feel free to buy the tee shirt and photo. But if you never want to ride it again, then Never Take Another Puff!

Bill

Want some motivation to quit smoking? If you want to live, then quit.

If you want to continue your life as the dog of Philip Morris, R.J Reynolds or the Marlboro Man, go ahead. Be as stupid as you want. Whatever you think that cigarettes are doing for you is far outweighed by what they are doing TO you. You are killing yourself. Don't try and rationalize it, YOU ARE KILLING YOURSELF! If you like a slow suicide verses one that's short and sweet, keep smoking.

I know what you're thinking. I smoked 2-3+ packs a day for 35 years. I always thought that I would quit "someday." My mom died of lung cancer, and I thought about quitting... "someday." I hacked up lumps of brown crap every morning, and I thought about quitting... "someday." I coughed like I had bronchitis most of the time, and I thought about quitting... "someday." I panicked whenever I was out of cigarettes, and I thought about quitting... "someday." I missed airline connections because I ran out of the airport to grab a smoke, and I thought about quitting... "someday." I had a CAT scan and was told that I had a suspicious spot on one of my lungs, and "someday" was here!

If you don't have any of the issues that I had, you can't rationalize that away either, because YOU WILL have some or all of them. Quit now while you are still alive. Don't let cigarettes decide when you are going to quit for you. Their decision will be that you will quit when you are dead. Imagine having to tell your loved ones that you are dying because you were too stupid to quit smoking. Imagine not even having the chance to tell them how much you loved them because you died of a heart attack.

I have been smoke-free since May, 2002. Hopefully I dodged THE bullet.

G. Taylor