I quit Smoking on September 3, 2018

I quit Smoking on September 3, 2018

I quit smoking 8 months ago. I still remember the date, September 3, 2018. At the stroke of midnight, I looked at the last stick of cigarette in my hand and I vowed not to smoke any more.

It’s been 8 months since that day. Here’s how I did it and what’s happened since then.

Cold turkey?

Naw. Far from it. I started cutting back 3 weeks before that. I consciously went from 2 packs a day to 1 pack a day to half a pack, a few sticks to just 3 before ending up with 1 stick a day for 5 days and prolonging the number of hours between sessions. I documented my progress to ensure I wouldn’t slide back.

 

Why’d I quit?

I quit because I finally came to my senses that smoking was bad for me. I was nearing 40.

Plus, my best friend kept bugging me to stop smoking for my own good. He lives in Thailand and he was just as heavy a smoker as I was back in the day.

Most of the smokers I knew had also quit: My Dad, for one, who used to be a heavy smoker quit. My youngest brother, he quit too.

I was overweight. I stank. I felt weak. My voice felt weak whenever I got up on stage to sing and I could barely hit the notes I needed to hit. Heck, singing in the car was hard. I hated myself. I really hated myself. I really, really hated myself. I felt like an addict. I was always looking for cigarettes. I’d grow desperate at night if I ran out of cigarettes. I couldn’t get things done.

I was miserable.

 

Are cigarettes really that bad?

I wouldn’t say cigarettes are totally bad. I don’t wanna be a hypocrite about it. They were a big part of my life. They helped shape my identity. I was able to make friends by sharing sticks with strangers.

I made a lot of books and articles while smoking a cigarette or two. I also wrote a few “Quit smoking” eBooks for some clients, all while chainsmoking and going through a pack in an hour or two.

It was only when it fully consumed my life that I finally said “enough is enough”

Once I started working in an office, that’s when I noticed how cigarettes affected me negatively. My productivity decreased every time I stepped out for a smoke. Plus the danger of getting caught smoking outside increased every time I lit one. I work in an office where the number of smokers is outnumbered by non-smokers 12 to 1.

I was also starting to notice that a lot of people were dying because of cancer and I run a high risk of developing cancer because of my genes.

Polluting the air around me, stinking up any place I stayed in for too long and increasing the volume of cigarette butts in the world… there were more reasons for me to quit than to keep smoking.

 

8 months… not bad I guess. Let’s see if I’ll reach a year.