Day 15 of being smokefree!

Today is day 15. I happened accidentally, but I’m so glad it happened for me. I couldn’t have smoked for the last 2 weeks due to illness, but it turned into the perfect opportunity.

Having stopped smoking before, several times, I’m aware that even after this key time frame, it’s easy to slip back into it. And once again as I’m learning with my mental health, there’s a difference between a lapse and a relapse. I hope I don’t, but I’m aware I may slip up a smoke when I have a drink or a night out with friends. I’ll try not to, I’d like not fox but what I have to do is promise myself that if I slip up, I won’t give up, but just carry on as if the previous day didn’t happen.

Now I’m not exactly a healthy weight currently. I’ve always been chunky but over the last 3 years I have gained significant weight. I can blame the hystetectomy, menopause, bereavement, my medication like quitapine or the steroids, & whilst these won’t have helped, I’m honest it nothing else, it’s the chocolate, the comfort food, the laziness in convenience food that I had long ago broken the spell of. It’s the fact that often I get little of mo exercise and as with everything else in my life, it’s all or nothing. Last October I jogged/ walked a half marathon for SOBS… a half marathon! Then I have hardly been running, or to be fair even walking much since. So I have to try a new approach with exercise too. Little & often!

Health is health! Mental & physical. And everyone is on the spectrum somewhere on both. Stopping smoking is great, fantastic, but if I use that as an excuse to gain more weight, where will I be, obesity & going without exercise is just as unhealthy, as this sedentary article explains. Becoming more stressed due to stopping smoking could impact my mental health. So after 2 weeks it’s about planning the long term. The strategic game. I want to be both physically & mentally healthier & it won’t happen over night. Small steps.

I usually spend around £50 a week on cigarettes. It’s such a lot of money, it’s over £2,500 per year which is the best part of a family holiday. Today after my first day back at work I decided to spend a little of this on self care on my nails before my sisters wedding this weekend. I know it was last minute and the lovely Alex (check out her page here), who has a salon at her own home fitted me in for these beauties! I feel like tinkerbell! What’s also great is that her salon is at her home & she takes real time to reduce my anxiety! I’m sure hairdressers & beauticians are like therapists!

So as with all addictions, recovery, treatments etc I’m taking it one day at a time. But this is my mini celebration for being 15 days smokefree! ❤️