Having "Just One" Cigarette
This is what happens when we allow ourselves "Just One"

I was doing fine and then later that evening I got brave and ask my husband for a cig . The two of us sat outside and smoked and then it had me . I was smoking one after the other ,couldn't even go to bed until I had my last smoke .This morning when I woke up the first thing I thought of was going outside to smoke and I did .

Yes it does make you feel like hell physically and mentally . Physically ,my throat and chest hurt ,my cough is back and the list goes on . Mentally it is far worse ,I want a cig constantly now and I have to stop what I am doing to satisfy the craving so I can go on with my day ,I feel ashamed for giving on and I am angry at myself . I cannot stress enough ,the cravings when I quit were bearable I had good days and bad . The good were surpassing the bad . It was one of those bad moments and I let junkie thinking take over . How I wish I could go back and undo what I did. There is no going back only moving on .

So for those of you thinking one won't hurt it will ,I was ashamed to come and post yet again that I needed help to get through that moment .It seemed to me that I was always begging for someone to get me through . Now I wish I had ,that's what this place is all about helping each other through this addiction . Please never be embarrassed to come here and ask for help . That was my mistake and my addicted mind talking to me . Sorry to ramble but if this will stop just one of you from picking up that first cig then I will be grateful.

2 weeks later at a Happy Hour I bummed another one stating, "I can handle ONE!" Same thing happened two weeks later, and before you know it I was back to my old horrible habit. It's been 1.5 years and I've decided it's time to try again -- cold turkey.

It's true: "You're only one smoke away from a pack a day!" Don't ever take a drag -- stick with it, quitting the 2nd time around is even harder!

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS ONE CIGARETTE!!

I want to stress some important advice.... I relapsed from a six year quit by taking that "one puff". Heck, after that many years - the so called "habit" was gone and a few puffs wouldn't hurt. I then continued to smoke for three more years. When I quit this last time, lucky for me I gained the knowledge of my addiction. Addiction has no cure, just a remedy, that being - never taking another puff. I learned the hard way but I am happy to have found my way. There is no excuse for relapse, who wants to go through physical withdrawal over and over. More importantly question the fact that you may never get the chance to quit again. At three years quit, I am no different from the member who just quit today or the guy who quits tomorrow. We each remain one puff away from relapse from an addiction that has the potential to cripple and kill.

Success in staying off nicotine isn't a matter of how strong we are or how long we have been quit, it is in the understanding. Stay alert and never stop being proud. As you can see, it gets better and better.

Keep those words tucked safely in your hearts and mind. We are the keeper of our quits. As long as we never take another puff we will each enjoy the many benefits of being free. But! We must never forget who we are and where we came from. So for today, we don't take one puff, no matter what.

One day at a time.

Your quit friend - Joanne

Three years, one day, 12 hours, 46 minutes and 32 seconds. 21950 cigarettes not smoked, saving $4,390.13. Life saved: 10 weeks, 6 days, 5 hours, 10 minutes.

My last quit….

The last time I quit smoking, I was determined. I went cold turkey, struggled, fought for every minute, every hour, and made it to day number 12. By this time, I felt I was doing okay, that I could manage this, I had it under control.

I was on the way out to visit clients that morning, when I drove by a small tobacco shop that specialized in cigars and pipe tobacco. I circled back, my intention being to just step in for a moment, and maybe buy a nice cigar to celebrate my quit (what the….?!?). I noticed that they sold single cigarettes, for 15 cents each, a generic, no-name brand at that.

I told the proprietor that I had recently quit smoking. In the same breath, I asked for 1 of the single cigs, just for “old times sake”. He didn’t question my logic, just held the tray out to me, and I gave him a dime and a nickel. Imagine the convenience…no need to buy a pack, and be tempted to smoke the whole thing. Nope, just a single smoke, no strings, no further commitment.

Did I say 1 cigarette?? I actually gave him a quarter and a nickel, took 2 smokes (“why not?” said the junkie thinking part of me…”can’t hurt”…) - 15 cents each for that little old familiar tube o’ pleasure. No, I’m not actually QUITTING my quit, just a tiny little reward, for all I have gone through to get this far. Then right back to business, I’m done with this habit.

I lit the first as I got back in my car, felt that rush, rolled that taste around in my mouth, enjoyed the sensation, exhaled a long plume of smoke. “This isn’t such a big deal”, I thought, “why am I so wrapped up tight over these things? I really don’t miss smoking.”

One hour later, I stopped and bought a pack.

That was 3 years ago.

The moral of this story? DO NOT succumb to junkie thinking! DO NOT let your guard down! DO fight the good fight…it’s worth every inch of ground you gain. Yes, it is hard, but you CAN do it….WE can do it….together.

THIS is my last quit……

Thank you, Blairsville!

This is how it happened. I have six children. When my last child was 8 months old, I found out my 'now ex' husband was having an affair with a younger woman at work. He didn't want to end it, so, I kicked him out of the house.

Well, I just about wanted to die. I went to the gas station one day, shortly after that happened--to buy gas. I then went in to pay for the gas, and there on the counter, on display, was my way, Way, WAY old brand of smokes. I though to myself, 'You know, I don't care if I die, so I think I'll just smoke'. So I bought a pack, and then went to the park to smoke. Because, you
see NOBODY thought of me as even remotely being able to do that! Anyway, even at the park I was looking around. I didn't want anyone seeing me smoke! Well, I got so dizzy, I just about passed out.

Did that stop me from continuing? Nope! Within a month's time I was up to a pack a day. And then a pack and a half. That was going on three years ago. Since that time I have tried numerous times to quit smoking! A few days here and there, even several weeks here and there. And then I would go back. Well, no more! I KNOW what life is like as a nonsmoker! It is so very much better, I cannot even begin to tell you.

What makes this quit different? Well, quite frankly, internet sites like these, that have taught me about my addiction. And how I need to, at all costs stay away from that very first puff. This site and others like it, have
educated me, and have showed me what to do, instead of lighting up. So, here I am. two days smokefree. And as far as I am concerned. I am a nonsmoker. I am not looking back.

Oh, and one more thing--Nothing, and I mean NO LIFE EVENT is worth going back to smoking--cause the whole time I had been back smoking, I have not wanted to be smoking. This made me miserable! And that is no way to live.

I am now getting prepared to quit smoking forever. I have no choice this time. My dentist found a few very small white patches on the very back of my gums. He, of course, immediately spoke to me about mouth cancer and about quitting smoking. I am a very attractive female who is almost 31 years old. I have an entire life yet to life. And I want to live that life.

Just one will hurt you. Just one can kill you.