The W00t Rant

The Quest for the Holy Quitting - Day 5

So, my quest for the holy quitting is now on day 5. I have to be honest and say that I'm actually a little surprised that I've lasted this long. Perhaps it's because I've never gone this long without a cigarette in about 5 to 10 years. All in all I'm starting to see a glimmer of "light at the end of the tunnel."

Day 5 was also the first day of an increase in the dosage amount going from 0.5 MG to 1.0 MG. The increase definitely came at the right moment.

Some good signs: starting to "forget" about smoking. Although this could be attributed to the increase in dosage, I have noticed that the cravings haven't been as intense. However as I said, this could be because of increase in dosage.

The bad: it's becoming more and more of a psychological battle. I'm constantly playing mind games to keep myself from smoking. I'm betting that this will be my primary battle from here on out.

Some strategies? I'm starting to walk around more often to "visit" friends at work. Also, just getting away from my office, I gain so much more relief.

Anyway, much of the help that I've received has come from my friends. There is no way I would have gotten this far without them.

Days 2 and 3. The weekend.

I'm technically posting on "Day 4," but I wanted to talk about the weekend and my progress.  All I can say is that without Chantix, there is no way in hell I would have made it this far.  Day 2 was tough, but I've had rougher times in my prior attempts to quit smoking.  Day 3 though?  Man, I almost broke down at least 3 times on that day.  I was doing everything in my power to try to not think about smoking.  I did enough laundry to cover me for the rest of the month.  I cooked a gargantuan meal, enough for six.  I constantly watched the olympics, anything to take my mind off of smoking.

My friends definitely helped.  I got texts galore on encouragement and tips.  So to all my friends: THANK YOU.  Ultimately, I've come to the realization that my biggest hurdle right now is the psychological, primarily BOREDOM.  Chantix, for the most part, covers the physical aspects.  It's the psychological part that is going to be rough.  Whenever I'm bored, I've discovered that my cravings for a cigarette skyrockets.  Probably because, smoking provides "something for me to do."  I'm hopeful though, because I've never gone this long (in the years that I've been smoking) without a cigarette - that alone is an accomplishment for me.

Because I'm at work, so far, Day 4 has been a bit less rough for me.  It's still a mind game, but because I have "shit to do," it takes my mind off of "the game."

Day 1: The Quest for the Destruction of the Vile Sticks

It's my tenth attempt.  Attempt for what you ask?  It's my tenth attempt to quit smoking.  I've been smoking now since I was 21, and since then I've attempted nine times to quit.  Nine times.  I'm certainly determined to quit, so I have the assistance of my doctor who has prescribed me with a drug called Chantix.  Chantix is a drug which blocks the area of the brain that where the cigarette addiction lies.  It also curbs any of the withdrawal symptoms of smoking.

So, how do I feel?  Well, it's day 1, but so far so good.  However, it isn't the first day of taking the drug.  Based on the instructions, I'm supposed to start taking the drug 3 to 7 days prior to my "quit date."  So, this is technically "day 4" of taking the drug.  The side effects that I've had so far is slight dizziness and headaches which are annoying.  The other side effect that I haven't gotten yet is stomach pains, but the instructions clearly state to take the drug *after* eating as well as drinking an 8 oz. glass of water.  It's probably why I haven't gotten any "stomach pains."

How is Chantix affecting me?  Well, I describe it to my (hopefully) former smoking buddies this way: imagine a smoke craving to be like a sharp edge, and Chantix is like sandpaper slowly dulling the edge.  This is what taking Chantix is like.

As I'm typing away on this post, it is now 12:30 PM and so far the urges haven't been unsurmountable.  The tough thing?  The lack of breaks and the constant thinking of smoking.  The "constant thinking of smoking" I think will subside as time goes by, but I have yet to come up with a strategy of "breaks."  I'd say one of the *very* few benefits of smoking is that you always have an excuse to take a break and take your mind off of work.  So, I'm hoping for some ideas as this will definitely help me out.

Oh, one other thing.  What about a strategy for when I'm bored on a the weekends?  This is also when I have strong cravings to smoke.  Any ideas for this?

Why I Despise Applebees

Applebees, TGI Fridays, Houlihans, Chilis. I hate them all. Sure sometimes they are something that you can't avoid. For example, you're on a road trip, you haven't eaten since noon the previous day, and there are no other eating options in sight. Other than this? Wait a second, I take that back. You should still avoid eating at these types of places. At all costs.

Why? Because they are cookie cutter restaurants that can't pick a specialty and instead give you a tome of a menu. You sit there staring at this tome, scratching your head, and end up blindly picking something. After waiting, your meal arrives and the portions are so huge, no normal FATMAN can even finish them. These restaurants are cookie cutter where the business executives literally vomit onto a piece of paper and then declare them as menus. What the fuck ever.

Ultimately, the main reason why I despise these types of restaurants is because they suck the life out of any regional heritage. They remove any sort of local specialty and cuisine. These types of restaurants are about trying to accomodate everyone. Food isn't about accomodating everyone. Food is about culture, taking risks, comforts, history, community, family, and health. These cookie cutters are nothing of this sort.