One month ago, I smoked my last cigarette

I have been a smoker on and off for the last 27 years.  I am not sure why I started smoking. Be it Rebelliousness, thinking it was “cool”, or some other reason.  I just remember that I started when I was about 12 years old.   I used to go out to the back yard and sit in the far corner and try to smoke.  Eventually, I got hooked.

In that time, I have never WANTED to quit.  I have had times that I needed to quit. (incarceration, hospital time, etc)  I had one time that I “tried” to quit for a living arrangement I was in.  (that didn’t work out because my room mates hated my mood swings so bad they actually bought me a pack of smokes and asked me to start again)

This is the first time I have made a conscious decision to quit.  On the evening of Nov 1, 2009  I was walking up to the local convenience store from my home.  I lit up a cigarette and said to myself, “This tastes like shit” and put it out.  That was my last cigarette.  I decided that I just didn’t want to smoke anymore.  That was that.

It’s been a month.  No patch, no pills, no nicotine gum.  Surprisingly, no major mood swings.

I get a lot of people going CONGRATS! etc etc.   For me, that’s not the point.   I did not do it for my health or for any “guilt” reasons.   I just decided that I didn’t like doing it anymore.  If I decide that I miss it enough, I may just start again.  But, they do taste bad and I hate the aftereffects.  So, for now, I am a non-smoker.