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I have been smoke free for all of 2007! I had my final cigarette on December 31, 2006 at about 10:30 pm. I walked back inside to the bar where my husband and I were celebrating New Years Eve and looked at him and said, "That was my last smoke ever."

He was very supportive but not convinced since I had done this many times before. I always meant it when I said it, but something always happened to change my mind and before I knew it, I was back buying a pack.

Anyway this is about the benefits of quitting so here's what I experienced.
For me, since I didn't use any nicotine replacement product the first thing was a minor headache about day 3 and 4. I read an article about headaches in regard to nicotine withdrawal and it suggested increasing water intake to insure extra hydration. I tried this and it seemed to help. At any rate, it wasn't severe or anything but a minor annoyance.

I noticed a major increase in my cardio performance. I have jogged for years and while I was a smoker I noticed improvements in my endurance, but if I skipped a few days or a week any benefits just seemed to disappear! After I quit smoking I saw improvements in both speed and endurance. Even better, the results lasted even when I had to take a week off due to an injury. Not to mention, you just FEEL so much better.

A few unexpected observations, I think my sense of taste and smell have sharpened a little bit. Especially with really subtle flavors. That was a nice surprise.

I've also noticed an improvement in overall skin tone. I had heard for years that smoking was really bad for your skin and contributed to wrinkles and aging. This took a bit longer for me to notice. After several weeks, probably in the second month, I noticed that my skin was clearer (although I've never had problem skin) and just seemed somehow nicer. I can't really think of the right word here, but let's just say that skin tone (as in color and even-ness) was definitely better and skin tone (as in firmer) was better too.

Finally, the single biggest benefit is the mental and emotional lift from knowing that I've made this change in my life. I am a non-smoker. I say this to myself every day and those early days when I wasn't sure I really wanted to stop, this statement helped me. I realize it may sound silly. At first I would say it to myself and immediately think, not really but then I started to say it and I believed it. It was and is my current reality.

I also say a word of gratitude every day for taking the steps I needed to take to do this for myself. A personal private pat on the back so to speak. I have had a few very stressful situations come up that have made me want to stop immediately and get a pack of smokes. Taking just a few moments to quietly realize I have other ways to cope and saying a quick thank you has made all the difference for me.

I'm a non-smoker. I love the sound of that!

Learn more about this author, Phyllis Nichols.
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