This is it, you have all the steps for the model and are well on your way to becoming a non-smoker. This step isn’t really a step, it is something that I experienced and so I thought I would share my experience so folks using this model won’t be surprised if they experience it too. What I’m referring to here is grief. I know that sounds weird but that is the only way I can describe it. Let me tell you about it.
About 5 or 6 months after I became a non-smoker I noticed that I was not my usual upbeat self. There was nothing going on in my life to cause me concern or sadness. So I spent a bit of time on self-reflection and all I could come up with was the possibility that I was mourning the loss of cigarettes and myself as a smoker. As I said, I know it sounds weird. I knew that becoming a non-smoker was the best thing I ever did for myself, but I guess somewhere way back in my subconscious mind was the memory of that old lifestyle. Smoking had been a big part of my life for several decades and cigarettes were like a bad friend. You know they are bad for you and will most likely get you in trouble but they’re fun and you enjoy your time with them. They’re always there when you need them, they leave a hole when they’re gone. Well that’s how I rationalized it anyway.
To be clear, I’m not saying that I was having cravings for cigarettes or even considered sliding back into my old smoker self ways. What I was experiencing was just a sense of sadness and I decided I was just going to let myself experience it and then I was going to shake it off and move on. Just like you would with any loss, you give yourself time to grieve and then you get on with life. That is exactly what I did.
You may or may not experience this grief or sense of loss. Most of you have probably had many experiences of quitting smoking and never experienced it as a loss. But some of you may be like me and I thought it was important to share this and to let you know that it passes quite quickly. I also wanted to encourage you to prepare in case it does happen and to set your intention now that you won’t allow it to suck you back into smoking. Becoming a non-smoker is such a wonderful achievement, well worth a little bit of short term discomfort. This can be another opportunity to spend time reminding yourself how wonderful it is to be a non-smoker and all of the benefits that come along with it.
This concludes presentation of all the steps in the model. Really, they are more components of the model than steps but as a page title, components didn’t sound as progressive as steps, so I chose to call them steps. Whatever you call them please do read through the pages titled Steps 1 to 7 so you get a complete picture of the Become a Non-smoker model.
There is a contact page on the website so if you have questions please feel free to contact me and I will do my best to clarify any parts of the model that are not clear. All the best on your journey to becoming a non-smoker!
Exploring Life Lessons 