Just found this site last night and now I'm sitting here chomping on gum to settle my intense cravings. Today is the first day I haven't had chew in over 15 years. I poked around last night on KTC, thinking long and hard about quitting in the near future with the help of this online community. The longer I looked around, the closer the date got to quitting. Yeah, mind you that this was all taking place in a just a few hours. I'd been wanting to quit for years but excuses always pushed any attempt away. Why the difference now? Think, quite honestly, I was not only ready but the page about "what to expect" really resonated. It seemed like, finally, there was a road map. Also, I read a few posts about using Nicorette. The responses were generally like, "Suck it up. Replacing nicotine with nicotine doesn't work. You gotta go cold turkey..." also struck a cord. So, the date to quit became today.
I will say, it was a crazy crazy feeling for most of the day, being in "the fog." Damn! It was literally like I was outside myself, colors and sounds were muted, reactions slow, and processing skills were questionable. I work with kids, so I kind of rely on all my senses working "normal." Not today. I'm fully expecting this to last for a few days, which is why I thought, "What the hell, let's start on a Friday. The nicotine will be out of my system by Mon."
I did not anticipate the friggin' intense cravings. Holy crap. I cannot get my mind off simply having a dip. In fact, sometimes throughout the day, the response was nearly automatic, depending on what I was about to do. But, I've been successful with one day and I'm psyched. Yeah, I know it's just a day and some of you have been at this for a long time (congrats, btw) but, even though I wanted to quit dipping since starting so many years ago, I began to wonder if I had the willpower to make this day a reality.
I will need the support of this online community. But I'm still a bit confused at how to post within my HOF group (which I assume is December)?
Thanks!
Lou66