For those who are trying to quit smoking: GO MAN!! I quit in 1987 after 13 or so years of smoking (heavily... would rather smoke than eat kind of addiction). I can be somewhat fiercely competitive and was told that something that was only 1/30th of an ounce was kicking my butt... that seemed to make a difference in my perseverance and commitment to quit.
Also, I decided I wanted to be a 'non-smoker' not a 'quitter' so I changed the way I described my effort and began to envision myself 10- or 20- years down the road without cigarettes.
Next, I proposed a deal with my smoking co-worker (ok, ok, the cigarette was smoking and she was just the sucker on the other end...) I knew I'd have to be able to cope with other people smoking and not cave to the habit or I'd smoke for the remainder of my life. We agreed that early in my effort if things got tense for me, she'd smoke on my behalf... smoking by proxy... ahhh, that was a wonderful and effective way to satisfy that nerve-wracking edge of addiction-breaking that thwarts so many attempts. When she continued to smoke, I wasn't bothered by the fact that I was 'missing out' either. Even now if I've had a tense period of time, I'll wake from sleeping and realize that I was having a leisurely smoke in my dreams but there's no way I'd light up in reality!
