The story of how I quit smoking
Page 8
Although I had stopped lighting up a cigarette as soon as I left the flat, I would still light up within about five or ten minutes of leaving
So I started playing the game again, trying to last longer and longer before lighting up. What I found was there were many occasions, or points I would get to when I light up a cigarette. For example;
We have a large supermarket on the outskirts of town and it is a 25 minute walk from my flat. Each time I walked to that supermarket I would light up a cigarette at the same point in the journey. The reason was that was the point where there was just enough time left to smoke a cigarette before I reached the supermarket. So I would light up at that point to smoke a cigarette before entering a place where smoking was not allowed.
There were many others too, if I went to the bank there was a point where I would light up a cigarette. If I went to the barbers there was a point where I would light a cigarette. And it was all because I had learned that that was the point where if I lit a cigarette I would just have enough time to smoke it before reaching my destination.
So I decided to cut them out, and it was remarkably easy. I just had to tell myself not to light up when I reached the points in my journey when I lit up. I just had to think of something else for a couple of minutes, then the chance to light up before going into to place where smoking was banned was gone.
There were other times when I smoked outside, other than the certain points I lit up because I was heading for somewhere smoking wasn’t allowed. If I had to go to several places for example, or if I was just out for a long time, I would light up because I wanted to at that time. I managed to quit smoking these cigarettes without really trying. I don’t really remember much about it, so it must not have been difficult. I do remember a couple of times taking out my pack of cigarettes and thinking “No, I won’t smoke just now”, but that’s all I remember about it.
Until one day I met a colleague I’d worked with a few years earlier. It was in the outdoor market one Saturday morning. We were chatting away, catching up as we hadn’t seen each other for about 4 years. He took out a pack of cigarettes and offered me one, I refused it. He asked if I’d quit smoking and I said “No, I just don’t smoke outside”.
At that point my mind began racing, because I couldn’t remember making a conscious effort to stop smoking outside, or when I actually stopped smoking outside. What is more, I realised I didn’t even carry my cigarettes on me when outside. I couldn’t remember when I stopped carrying them with me outside, or even if I made the decision not to carry them. Maybe I stopped taking them with me on short shopping trips, then got into the habit and stopped putting my cigarettes in my pocket when I went out. I don’t really know. All I really know is when I told him I didn’t smoke outside it was the first time I was consciously aware of it, and I didn’t know when I’d stopped.
I remembered he laughed when I told him I had quit smoking outside, but still smoked inside. He said “Are you rebelling against the government? They’ve banned smoking inside most places, so you can only smoke outside, so you’ve decided to not smoke outside and only smoke inside”.
I said no and explained about how I was trying to cut down/quit smoking. But when I walked away, I realised that I only ever smoked inside my own home. I never smoked outside my home, and couldn’t remember the last time I did, or ever having a “pang” or “craving” to smoke when outside.
I was so happy I couldn’t believe it. I’d set out to stop lighting up a cigarette every time I went out of my front door, succeeded in that, then tried to stop smoking other cigarettes just because I’d reached the point in my journey where if I didn’t light up them, I wouldn’t have enough journey left to smoke the whole cigarette.
And somehow I’d managed to quit smoking outside all together without any apparent effort. Well it couldn’t have taken much effort because I couldn’t remember doing it!
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