Confessions of an addict

One of my friends has just celebrated 6 months fag free - and another has made it to 1 week. Seems like a huge difference, but the friend at 6 months had a torturous weekend at a festival and still mucho craved a cigarette. She didn't smoke - which was an absolutely awesome accomplishment. She knows how proud I am of her (especially as I told her several times having had a cider or 6 too many).

Wither you are at 1 week, 6 months or on day 2 like me, an addiction is tough to break!

A smoking addiction is defined as a high dependence on a tobacco based substance - nicotine is the product which alters the chemical imbalances in the brain and results in feelings of pleasure (believe it or not).  Over time the brain grows nicotine receptors - the longer somebody smokes the more difficult it is for them to stop because their brain will have grown more receptors over time. When the receptors are starved of nicotine they promote withdrawal symptoms, which result in reactions in the body.

Sounds very sci-fi, but these are the facts and it makes sense. You have to work to become an addict, at first when I started I could go hours, even days without (particularity as my parents didn't know at the time) now a few hours is toture.

The patches are helping - by maintain my nicotine levels I don't get physical withdrawals, but psychological withdrawals are difficult to deal with - and there is no patch for that.

This time though there is a change in me - the power of positive thought. Rather than feeling like I have lost something - I checked myself and I change that thought into something positive - like "I have saved £6 today" or "I have gained an extra hour from not smoking". This seems to be doing the trick and I know that if I can get to 6 months, and go to a festival where there are drinks flowing and people smoking everywhere, and not smoke then my very drunk friend better be telling me how very well I am doing!