Yes i can confirm there is light at the end of the tunnel :)
Next week i will be five months clean of pot, and will be six months clean by my 29th birthday in April (woohoo!). This is after smoking it all day every day for the last 12 years. I am so proud of myself, i really think i've knocked it on the head for good this time.
I've had tons of ups and downs since stopping, but over the last few weeks my mood swings have started settling down... dare i say it almost to a normal sort of level. i know there'll be more to come but i'm enjoying the recovery process now - i know i'm on a journey that's finally taking me some place i want to be.
But the best part of all is the cravings have gone completely. For weeks now i haven't had a single craving. I don't even want to get high any more - in fact i find the idea almost repulsive. I never thought i would find myself thinking this way, i thought i would be spending the rest of my life craving a joint and constantly having to deny myself getting high. Now the only time i think of pot is the occasional "oh, i haven't thought about pot for ages now, isn't that good!"
Course i don't want to speak too soon - don't want to jinx it, but right now i can say hand on heart that giving up has been a completely positive thing to do. I was so afraid for so long of how hard it was going to be, of how i needed dope to get through life, of how i just didn't know how to cope with life without it. I know now that it's not just possible but life is better without it.
I am more relaxed, more sociable, and slowly learning about who i really am and how to deal with life actively rather than hiding away behind that fog of smoke. I am starting to look forward to the future.
I have tried before to give up many times. Always the cravings got worse and worse and i would fail. My best effort previously was nearly three months clean, but the cravings got too much. I needed to get high because i didn't know how to cope with life while sober. This time around it's been different. i've been seeing a counsellor for a year now who has helped me tremendously. the therapy's focus was never on quitting but as it progressed i decided the time was right to do it. having her support and guidance when i started facing life sober was invaluable. I started smoking pot daily when i was still a teenager so never really learned to deal with life as an adult without it. If i didn't have her guidance i don't think i could've gotten this far with it.
And so when the time was right i drove three towns away from my house, popped my half ounce in an empty coke can and buried it deep in a large public waste bin - never to be seen again.
Maybe my story can give someone out there a bit of hope - it can be done and it needn't be hell getting there.
i know it's a long post, thanks for reading - i wish i could stand-in and do the quitting process for all of you, but of course i can't. Be strong and get whatever help you can. The counselling is costing me an arm and a leg but life is so much easier now it's worth every penny (especially now i don't have to buy pot every week!)
fingers crossed i can stay clean too - i'm gonna fix myself a big treat if i make it to six months :)
Trying.
well done.
Councelling can be expensive however it can sometimes be Govt. funded in some places.
Keep up the good work. Im 2 weeks clean and feel im on such a natural high. Im continuing with councelling and groups and over time i will recover (mind, body, soul).
When you make 6 months a healthy reward sounds great. When i got out of detox i bought myself a ring. When i look at it, it reminds me of what i have achieved but also reminds me of the cycle of depression and sadness that waits for me if i use again.
Take care. WELL DONE!!!!!
Councelling can be expensive however it can sometimes be Govt. funded in some places.
Keep up the good work. Im 2 weeks clean and feel im on such a natural high. Im continuing with councelling and groups and over time i will recover (mind, body, soul).
When you make 6 months a healthy reward sounds great. When i got out of detox i bought myself a ring. When i look at it, it reminds me of what i have achieved but also reminds me of the cycle of depression and sadness that waits for me if i use again.
Take care. WELL DONE!!!!!
trying,.
sounds like you got this thing licked.good for you. i dont crave as much as i thought i would. and the first time i smelled pot smoke after i quit, it made me sick to my stomach and gave me a headache. sounds strange, just a short time ago i loved that smell. congrats.
sharkgirl,
i love the ring ideal. the circle representing the viscious circle of dependency.
thats cool. what a great way to remind you self of the consequences of using.
sounds like you got this thing licked.good for you. i dont crave as much as i thought i would. and the first time i smelled pot smoke after i quit, it made me sick to my stomach and gave me a headache. sounds strange, just a short time ago i loved that smell. congrats.
sharkgirl,
i love the ring ideal. the circle representing the viscious circle of dependency.
thats cool. what a great way to remind you self of the consequences of using.
Trying.... you'll have to change your name to ....doing! Congratulations ...Well Done....I have just emailed your story to my son, who i hope follows in your footsteps....God Bless You...Jenny
my mood swings and anxiety are long gone, now i'm just left with this ache, in my brain.
Congratulations
"I needed to get high because i didn't know how to cope with life while sober ... I started smoking pot daily when i was still a teenager so never really learned to deal with life as an adult without it. "
These sentences are very telling to me and help me understand what is going on in my teen' s mind,
"I needed to get high because i didn't know how to cope with life while sober ... I started smoking pot daily when i was still a teenager so never really learned to deal with life as an adult without it. "
These sentences are very telling to me and help me understand what is going on in my teen' s mind,
hehe thanks for suggesting i change my name to 'doing'... but i am still trying! and now it's the nicotine beast i'm after too :)
i'm moving over to the nicotine board for a good bash at finishing off the cigs for good, hopefully on April 15th (that'll be my 6 months clean date). best of luck to everyone as always!
i'm moving over to the nicotine board for a good bash at finishing off the cigs for good, hopefully on April 15th (that'll be my 6 months clean date). best of luck to everyone as always!
