Hi Brooke. This month I want to believe that I can be a happy, skinny, non-smoker. I’ve been a smoker since 1995, off and on, mostly on. In my most recent re-start I switched to e-cigs because there isn’t much smell. But they are still bad, and I really want to quit. I have a lot of reasons to quit. I know all the health reasons, and social reasons, but that has not stopped me from picking up a cigarette and re-starting every time I think I have successfully quit. One of my main beliefs is that in order for me to stay skinny I need to continue to smoke. I know this isn’t true, but when I think about the past, my fat periods in life were all when I wasn’t smoking, and my skinny periods in life are when I was smoking, so this is what my mind thinks. Or, I have to spend hours in the gym to be a skinny non-smoker. I don’t like the gym so this isn’t motivating- honestly I’d rather smoke than go to the gym! But I know lots of skinny non-smokers, who don’t spend 10 hours a day in the gym, so I do intellectually understand that skinny doesn’t equal being a smoker, but my mind keeps believing this truth, I think based on my past.

As for believing new thoughts, these are the thoughts I’m developing on not smoking:

There are times during the day I don’t smoke.
I want to not want to smoke.
Many women who don’t smoke are skinny and are not gym rats. They don’t smoke, and they are skinny.
I’m thinking I want to be a happy, skinny, non-smoker.
Someday I won’t want to smoke.
I don’t ever want to smoke.
I am free of smoking.
I will never smoke again.
I will be a skinny non-smoker.
I will not gain weight as a non-smoker.
I don’t want to smoke.

Am I on the right track?

Also I’m wondering if I can apply the Stop Overdrinking principles to smoking? I just watched the first video. What would be a good “replace action”? Is nicotine gum or the patch a good replace action or not? I’ve read a lot of different opinions on this and I’m quite confused. I’ve used your over-drinking methods to limit my drinking to one drink a day and I’m happy with that. But for this, I want to absolutely not smoke- I can’t just have one cigarette or e-puff a day- I really believe it’s all or nothing with smoking.

Thanks for your help!!!