Debbie Burton Coaching

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2 Are You Sick And Tired of Smoking? So many of us started smoking cigarettes when we were young and foolish. We thought it looked sexy and cool. Our friends were doing it. We believed it made us look older and more mature. Little did we know what an expensive, stinky and non-productive habit it would become! AND HOW HARD IT WOULD BE TO BREAK THAT ADDICTION! I don t know about you, but I have an addictive personality. If it feels good (whatever it is), I like to do it. Always have. However, over the years I ve found that many of my addictions were only hurting me, so I ve done my best to break them. I ve quit alcohol, drugs, sugar, promiscuity and under earning. But, out of all of them, without a doubt, giving up cigarettes was the hardest thing I ve ever done. Why? I don t know. I ve been told that nicotine in the brain is just as mind-altering and addictive as cocaine.

3 I ve actually done cocaine, but getting off of it was a breeze compared to getting off the cigarettes. I had to quit nicotine several times before I finally got it to stick. The longest I went was 2 weeks before I picked it back up again. Have you tried and failed in the past too? Believe me, I get it! Well, thank God, I was finally able to kick the addiction. After 20 some years of smoking, I was up to almost 4 packs a day. I started on January 1, but my final quit day was January 26. It took me a few weeks. But, I finally made it. That was many years ago. I am proud to say I ve never had another cigarette since that day. That meant no more stinky clothes and hair, car and house. That meant no more yucky looking ash trays. That meant no more panic when I was out of cigarettes and didn t have the cash or transportation to go get more. That meant no more gross looking teeth. That meant no more bad breath. That meant no more bronchitis episodes. That meant no more dry coughing. That meant no more cravings after a while. That meant no more embarrassment of society frowning on me. That meant no more greasy, yellow nicotine covered belongings. That meant no more feeling like a loser! And much more.

4 YOU CAN MAKE IT TOO!!!! Now I know of some people who have awakened in the morning and decided, I m going to quit smoking today. I wasn t one of those people. I needed to get my head (and heart) in the right place and worked my way up to it. If you are like me, and want to quit, but need to mentally prepare for quitting, then this e-book is for you. There s nothing wrong with that. Mental preparation never hurt anyone and it certainly has led to hundreds of thousands of people quitting cigarettes. HOW TO PREPARE TO QUIT SMOKING FOREVER There are so many things that we can do to prepare for quitting. Here is a list of 20. You are welcome to choose any and all that you feel you need. They also are not in any particular order. You will know by looking at them which ones are right for you and which ones should be priorities in your life.

5 1. PICK A QUIT DATE Pull your calendar out and choose a good date. There is no Perfect Time, so don t even try to go there. Life will never be stress-free. But, then again, don t pick the day of your wedding or when you are vacationing in Las Vegas. Make it a non-eventful time.just during a normal week, unless you want to easily remember it. For me, I chose New Year s Day, because it was a great day to start my New Year s resolution. 2. WRITE DOWN YOUR REASONS FOR WANTING TO QUIT. Also include the emotion it makes you feel and the number of intensity between 1 and 10 of that emotion. For example, I want to quit because I am sick and tired of being made to feel like a 2 nd class citizen. (Emotions: Humiliation-8; Resentment-9; Embarrassment-10) 3. WILL YOU WANT OR NEED PRESCRIPTIONS? If so, make sure you visit your doctor ahead of time and get them filled so they are ready on Quit Day. (For example, I used a nicotine patch. I hear these days that both Wellbutrin and Chantix are doing a great job. My sister used Nicorette gum. There is no shame in taking advantage of these tools for a while until you can actually break the addiction. They will help with easing the physical withdrawal, while you can deal with the mental withdrawal. The only thing is, they are not cheap.)

6 4. RITUALS THERE WERE SOME THINGS THAT I ALWAYS DID WITH A CIGARETTE: The minute my butt hit the car seat behind the wheel, I always reached in my purse, grabbed and lit a cigarette. My ashtray would sit on the side of the tub when I took a bubble bath, and I d smoke as I soaked. The second the phone rang, as I answered it, I d also grab a cigarette. And on and on What are yours? Those ritual times that YOU have are going to be rough because you ve probably smoked during them for years and years. Now when you go to do them, you re going to feel incomplete and weird. No problem. I suggest that every time you go into a restaurant or fast food joint, or even a gas station, that you grab some of those little plastic coffee stirrers. They work wonderfully as replacement cigarettes. I m serious. The kind I used to get would allow a little air through them too, so I could suck on it like a cigarette, hold it in my hand like a cigarette, and it really helped take the place of the real thing. It may sound silly, but it works! I had someone tell me yesterday that she used McDonalds drinking straws,

7 and stuffed tissue paper in it. She said that it was the same size as a cigarette, and allowed just enough air through that it felt exactly the same as the real thing only no heat and no taste. So anyways, the minute my butt hit the car seat, I would reach for my purse (as always) and pull out my coffee stirrer and go on my merry way. It worked like a charm. 5. STOCK UP ON PUZZLES, crosswords, adult coloring books, etc., to keep your mind busy. 6. PLAN ON BEING GENTLE WITH YOURSELF. Quitting smoking is not easy and you will find that you may be grumpier than usual, more anxious than usual and downright bitchy. That s OK. Just keep a lid on your mouth when you can. That way you won t say anything you ll have to apologize for later. 7. TAKE AS MANY WALKS AS YOU CAN. Like I said, I quit in January in Michigan and I walked through several blizzards because I needed the exercise and fresh air in my lungs. You ll want to prepare your coat, boots, gloves, hats etc., so they are ready to go when you need them.

8 8. ONE WEEK BEFORE YOUR QUIT DATE, each time you light up, remind yourself how good it will be when you are free of this lousy addiction. 9. SURROUND YOURSELF WITH SUPPORTIVE PEOPLE. Let your friends know that you are quitting and invite them to quit with you. Or, find a coach who will help you with this process someone you can trust and can vent your feelings to. Join a program with other people who are quitting too, and stay in touch with them on Facebook or social media. 10. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. Know that you can do this! 11. PLAN ON TAKING IT ONE DAY (one hour one minute) at a time. 12. ON QUIT DAY, wake up with excitement that this is the beginning of your new, healthy life. 13. BREATHE DEEPLY. Breathe big breaths through your nose and then release them out of your mouth. BIG Breaths. 14. RE-READ THE REASONS why you wanted to quit smoking in the first place, and remind yourself that you are now a non-smoker! 15. REJOICE IN THE FACT that you have had (fill-in-the-blank) hours without a cigarette. 16. KEEP YOUR coffee stirrers close. 17. BRUSH your teeth. 18. MEDITATE.

9 19. SPRAY YOUR house, car, and closets with Febreze or another fabric deodorant. Air them out too 20. PRAY TO THE GOOD LORD for help. He will see you through the rough times. Congratulations! You ve done it! Way to go! And, if for some reason, you need to start over, no problem. Just rinse and repeat and you will get there before you know it! Just don t quit quitting! Good luck and may God Bless you.

10 Meet Debbie Burton. She assists and encourages people to overcome their addictions and become confident to live their best and most productive and radiant selves. Helping people change their mindsets has been her passion for over 25 years, beginning as a Human Resources Specialist at the U.S. Postal Service and then as a Business Success Coach. She lives in Grand Rapids Michigan with her husband of 20 years Jim, and their little dog Geno. She also is step-mom to 5 and Grandma to 14 grandkids.