I remember the moment when it was brought home to me in no uncertain terms that I needed to stop smoking. It happened after lying in bed for two days, mostly sleeping, as a way to recover from having pneumonia. My breathing had been labored and I was exhausted, so the rest was really welcome. After two days of rest I felt so much better, so much better that I felt well enough to have a cigarette! Get the pack, whip out a cigarette, anticipation, lighter in hand, strike, deep inhalation! Ahhhhh! Oops! Pain in my lungs! Each breath hurts! Oh-oh, this is new…not good! Oh noooo! Its time… Its really time now, I need to quit! That was the moment - when each inhalation was painful, and I knew it would not get better by itself.
Did I put out my cigarette at that point, never to smoke again? Are you kidding? Of course not! But I knew I needed to find another way if I wanted to live… Instead, I just smoked slower, and breathed in less deeply. That was my bargain with my lungs until I could get well enough to find another way.
It turns out that I heard of a stop smoking program on the radio as I was driving back to my doctor two weeks later. When the student is ready, the teacher appears. I consider now that heath crisis as being Grace in my life. I would not have stopped of my own volition. Apparently I needed an event, a health crisis, to capture my attention. That was the stick. The radio advertisement was the carrot, as well as the guy on the other end of the phone when I called, speaking truth to me in a way no one had before. He was offering compassion instead of criticism of my insane smoking behavior. And on top of it all, he told me to bring my cigarettes to the first class, and to keep telling myself that I don’t have to stop! Who does that?!
I later discovered how brilliant that advice was. And after a time, I went to work for the man who helped me stop. Ain’t life amazing?
So that was my moment of truth. What will be yours? How bad does it have to get before you realize where you are headed? You deserve the same compassion and guidance that was offered me. Let me show you how. Message me with your email for the secrets to success.
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