I'm new here, and what a perfect way to start a new way to quit thread! So Here I am unaware of this site until I just signed up the other day. Spend some time reading and reviewing things on here, great job on this site and helpful tools to get people quitting.
I am Mike, 38 years old, been dipping for 23 years, now on day 102. First off let me say, I have tried to quit 26 times, so in order to help others on why it took so many times to quit, lets review my attempts and why they didnt work.
I tried quitting on vacation, thinking being happy would work, ended up not lasting the week, why? Found out I really did not WANT to quit.
Tried doing it over the holidays, didnt work, why? Found out I really did not WANT to quit.
tried to quit by eliminating the triggers, the big one, beer drinking, quit that, went 60 days, first day I drank a beer with friends, started chewing again, found out.. Found out I really did not WANT to quit.
had a life change, new promotion at work, tried to quit, Found out I really did not WANT to quit.
Change of plans, this time, I approached everything I learned about quitting differently. I actually told myself, I was done, and WANTED to quit 23 years later......I prepared, and did the opposite everyone tells you not to do when quitting.
WARNING: If you dont believe quitting can be easy dont read anymore cuz you wont get it.
Heres what I did, I planned, had a date in mind, weeks before, instead of backing down and chewing less, I chewed more, i was on Grizzly pouches, went from a can every 2 days to a can a day until quit day. Since most people I know didnt know I even chewed(never used a spit cup), I had no support, other than myself, and a little faith(it matters not what type of faith you have, as long as you have some) Prepared mentally for those weeks until day 1, when day 1 came, I trained my brain that day 1 is easy and they get harder from day 2 on. By Day 5, I realized this was easier than I thought, yes I said easier, you know why, because I truly wanted to quit this time, and knew nothing would prevent me from doing it. But wait I left something important out there, there is the trigger mechanisms everyone talks about to avoid, my thought is, in my own experience, triggers avoided on day 1, return in full force later on, with that theory in my head, day 1 I drank a few beers and watched some Hockey on tv, major trigger, but on day 2, I realized I just did what I shouldnt have done and I accomplished the impossible, then I moved to all the other triggers to conquer them, staying up later not to have another chew but just because I wanted to think about having one without actually doing it. I kept a can in my garage with 3 pouches left in it, everytime I got a sharp fog, dizzy spell, or that weird feeling in your jaw where it shakes and shit, I would head to the garage, and open the can and smell it, then put it away....again huge trigger to prove to myself the only way to face my fear is to face my fear....that fear is not quitting. Back to day 5, this is when I realized i put myself through much more than most people do, as they avoid all of those triggers, and who the hell keeps a can and smells it when you are about to run to the store and buy a can???? I do..why? Because I want to quit......Day6, no more triggers, thats right, no more triggers, had a beer, no big D, just ate, no big D, woke up for work at 5am, and I walk into the garage and open that can and smell it, laugh and put it back, yes I do that daily, until it doesnt bother me anymore......that day was day 8, that morning, I opened the can to smell it after getting up for work, and I didnt laugh, I actually said," WOW, that doesnt smell very good." So I threw the can in the trash. Day 8 was the day I put to bed the dreaded fear of wondering if I was going to quit. I knew it. Did I continue to have cravings after day 8, Yes all the way thru day 102 which is current, but instead of getting pissed off, or agitated, I laugh, and it goes away. AS of this writing, my cravings are about a 10 second crave, and its gone sometimes for days, because of what I put myself through on days 1-8, I realize there isnt any bad days, its all good days now, and have been.
The point of all this is, not 1 person will quit the same as the next, I read and researched how to do it for years, and I did it my way, MY WAY! That way worked best....all in all, when I now talk to people about it, and they say how hard it is, I laugh, because with anything in life, its only as hard as you make it out to be. Triggers, are nothing more that preventing one from facing what they know they cannot do.....if you face them right away, you may, just may, walk away, quit one day. I did it, and still have faith I am forever done with this. I no longer feel dizzy, depressed, pissed off or anything like that, just happy to have done it, and would if I would have known this, I would have done it this way the first time.
To leave on one note and the main point of this article, that we all have heard all our lives, " If you put your mind to it, you can do anything." You have to want to quit first, then you can believe you will quit, then you WILL QUIT!.
-Mike
