I have lately
 

lost weight and stopped smoking. I feel like crap. Is this the way this is supposed to work?

I have rheumatic fever... I think this is the way this is supposed to work. I just hate it.

I Admire your effort Da Duck..........as a smoker i envy your committment to ridding yourself of this awful addiction......DONT GIVE UP NOW:eek:......PLEASE


Whe the R/F Passes you will feel much better, healthier, slimmer, and smell gorgeous:D

just remember you could,, still be smoking/carrying more weight and still have R/F.....now that would feel a lot worse.....

imagine the scene three months from now..
1 free of pain:D
2 nice new dress;)
3 ability to taste..breath in fresh air..[and enjoy it]:p
4 a healthier body:)

things will look up [ i bet you :cool:]

David:hug:

PS.........DONT GIVE UP

To stop smoking is a giant step. And losing weight at the same time is absolutely incredible.
Congratulations!! Keep it up.
But, gee, having rheumatic fever is awful. Take care of yourself and know that lots of us are holding you in our hearts. Best wishes.

I hate that you feel awful Ducky. :( But I agree with the others..it will get better. I must admit that as a former smoker...I love the way a burning cigarette smells and I have, on occasion, been tempted to have one or two. Ask Barbo! :rolleyes:

When were you dxed with RFever?!! That is really scarey stuff!! Is anyone helping you? Please know that we are here for you. :grouphug:

Hey Ducky... your poor body and mind is going through hell right now... I can only imagine! Wish I was there to help you through it... my spirit will have to come visit instead. :hug:

Any better today dear duck? It's less humid up here so hoping you are getting some cooler air too. :grouphug:

thank you all so much. I found out something the other day. Facebook is fun but SOS is home.
Alffe, it still hurts a lot and the nausea makes eating very, very difficult. ( and trying to eat healthy at the same time....not working as well as I would hope). BUT... I am stronger than I was and , as long as I get a nap in the afternoons, I still get to work so the bills get paid. I have had R/F several times in my life. I have a sensitivity to the strep germ and this time it got me.
Addy, just knowing that you are out there, and every time I need a kind word you are right there ( and Alffe and Liz and Doody and so many))..that makes things better every day. And you visit in spirit each day.
Wren, thank you so much... I felt so alone and so downhearted. You made me smile...thank you.
David... this not smoking thing is hard, but you sure made it seem worth it. LOL. I refuse to give up... but may bump this up when I need a "nudge". Thanks

Hope you feel better Ducky!
 

I agree with you... Facebook is fun, but this is home. None of the friends on facebook really "get it" when we have a bad day. They just want to hear about and brag about all their great lives.

This is where the "real" hugs are. :hug: These are the people that understand what pain really is. :grouphug:

I only come here once a week or so, but it's a good visit every time.

So so sorry you're feeling so bad. Hope you can stick with the no smoking! It really does change your life! It's been 25 years for me and I FINALLY don't enjoy the smell of someone else smoking!

Ok... so which one of you is Liz ? :confused: ... lol.... we're now friends on Facebook and darned if I can figure out who you are here... but I figure any friend of Ducky, Alffee, Doody et al is a friend of mine :D

QUACK quack quack QUACK QUACK (Duck talk)

Loving the holding up that's happening here... sure am grateful for all its worth :Heart:

:sing: Addy

Addy, check your private messages....*grin :hug:

OFF TOPIC FIRST: ADDY :mad: How come I dont have you in facebook ?? Who are you !? WHERE are you !? :mad: :mad: :mad:

And now Ducky !! :hug: :hug: :hug:
I feel everything has been said, so I will only repeat what others have told you... KEEP FIGHTING ! DONT GIVE UP !! YOU KNOW YOU CAN DO THIS !!! :hug: Im cheering for you !!! I know it's hard, but, some more days of hell and then... PARADISE !!! :D Just like David said !!!!

I admire you SO MUCH !!!!!


:Excited: You are my warrior !!!

P.S Have you asked for something for the nausea ?? to make things easier...
:hug:

Ducky..:grouphug:. I wonder if strep doesn't lie dormant in your system all the time and "gets" you when your resistance is down. This is what a dr. told me many years ago about the fact that I constantly got strep throat. He put me on long term anti-biotics that knocked it finally out of my system and I never got it again. Of course in this day and age it's possible that anti biotics don't work anymore because of over use...whatever but I think it's worth asking him about it. Strep is so hard on our hearts...sending you love and keeping you in my prayers.

Congrats on not smoking, that's hard enough without being sick on top of it! :hug:

you know, Alffe, I have wondered that same thing about the strep. I have always shied away from most antibiotics so that I wouldn't build up an immunity. The dr gives me a huge dose of penicillin...the only time I ever take it.... but never a course of it. I may talk to him about that.
Blue...thank you so much. I am not much of a warrior, but I am still fighting.
21 days today without a cigarette....
soon it will be a month. Can I say then that I "don't smoke any more"?

ABSOLUTELY :yahoo: shout it out - you don't smoke anymore! Girl, you are rocking your world right now... hang on.... hold on!! Seems to me you've just climbed a huge hill... ... yikes, there's probably another hill behind it... and you see it there...

so pull on our strength... you're worth it!

and YES, strep can lie dormant ... I've known this for years as it appears kids who have a higher rate of strep/allergies/asthma also have some neuro disorders (Mrs.D - if reading - perhaps you can point us in the right direction to knowing if strep lies dormant... altho I recall you may be away right now... I digress).... Ducky, google "strep throat dormant" - you'll find a few articles that will give you some "ah-ha" moments to ponder.

xo... love ya!
:sing: Addy

Ducky
 

Yes you CAN say "I'm a non-smoker!" I quit in 1989 and still say it's the hardest thing I've ever done - harder even than having babies! I am STILL proud of my self as you should be. It gets easier every day. Congratulations!

And it wouldn't surprise me a bit if that darn strep that's been lying dormant just chooses to poke its ugly head out when you're under stress ...

(um... wouldya think quitting smoking would fit this category... um, big time!!)

Hi Barbo! :You-Rock: Congrats on your amazing feat!

I smoked tobacco from age 16 (40 years ago) to age 19. When I had a good paying job, I had whatever it took to quit. I'm so grateful I did.

I smoked for thirty years and this is my first real try at quitting. I have played at it before, but this is the first time I have ever said " I am not doing this any more. Period."
Do you know, I never really got addicted to the nicotine. I have never had a nicotine fit or anything like it. It is the stress... it is a perfect crutch for me. Now that I am feeling a little better, I miss that crutch a lot. So it is getting harder again.
But I will stick with it. I will not count myself out if I slide a little ( I am NOT planning on it) and I will do this. I really will. But man it's tough. LOL.
Thank you,my friends, for your help. I lean on you more than you know.

Ducky
 

Please know that I don't mean to offend you but I always said when I smoked that it was a lot like sucking my thumb. But it feels better to breathe and get actual air instead of choked air filtered through clogged lungs. Keep going - it's worth it - I promise!

oh no, I'm not a bit offended. I agree...it's just getting harder instead of easier and I am telling myself that is normal...
plus tonight will be a big test. I am going to be with friends who all smoke...and I am not going to. But I a gonna want to. LOL

When I was quitting being near ANYBODY was rare .... but on trips to hospital, while he parked car, I dashed to that usual little group of smokers on the edge of the garage. Huddling as close (to total strangers) as I could get I inhaled all I could :o.
It worked. I never smoked one but I inhaled lots... lol
I've made it almost 5 years - you can too.:hug::hug::hug:

That's what I meant...for years I would stand "downwind" of people smoking and breathe deeply. lol So very much of smoking is the habbit of holding it while on the phone, while drinking coffee, right after dinner..etc.
I would reach up to the cupboard for years after quiting..it's where I always kept a carton. It helped me to hold a skinny pencil between my fingers when I was with smokers.

It's getting harder Ducky cause you are beginning to feel better. :grouphug:
Good luck tonight!!!

I've been down that strep road too ducky.....it takes so much out of you to fight it. The doc also told me that it would never be out of my tissues. It did help, though, to take my tonsils out. I did get it again, but, not near as often. I think stress definately plays a part. Our immune system gets stressed out when we get stressed out....lol

I still crave a cigarette now and again. I was never addicted to the nicotene either but, rather, the psychological crutch that it was. My granddaughter was the reason that I quit. It was hard, but, I just threw them away and did not look back. Gosh, and what they cost....that alone, keeps me away.

Save that money, seriously, and put it away for something nice for yourself, or for someone you love. Hang in there, we are ducking for ya.....:hug:

Of course you can say you quit smoking darling !!!!!!!!! :winky:

By the way, it is good that you are not nicotine addict... this makes things a little, a veeeeeeery little easier... At least your brain wont need that stupid substance...

Keep fighting !!! :hug:

P.S

Dear Ducky, I just remembered... A friend of mine use to "smoke" this cigarette like things... they have differet flavour vapours... I think they might help you with stress as like you said, you dont really need nicotine...

HAve you heard of them ?? She gave me a card with the website... dont know where it is :o but I can try to help it if you are interested...

Love,
Majo.

Oh yes, Dear Ducky, some people do carry strep. I haven't had that problem in awhile, but had it throughout my whole life into adulthood. The worst was when it got so bad it spread. It is very serious when it starts spreading throughout your body and oh crikies, how sick you get. And it also leads to RF. You been so sick!

But...you go girlfriend! Way to go on the non-smoking! :hug:

Aww Ducky! I know how you feel. :hug:

In 9 more days it will be 3 years for me since my last cigarette. I never thought I'd ever be able to say that because my favourite saying was always.... "Giving up is easy! I've done it many times!"

But .... I feel that I've almost done it. I still (occassionally) inhale deeply as I pass a group of smokers, but not nearly as much as I did (say) during that first year. For the first few months, that was almost my undoing, now it's just a treat. :)

Do I ever feel like a smoke now? Yes I do, but just very occassionally. Now I stop and think about it, tell myself that it's almost 3 years...... and go get a glass of water or similar to take my mind off it. It works, trust me! I don't ever want to go back to where I was before.

Sorry about the Strep. Sometimes it takes low dose antibiotics over a period of time to clear it up completely. Hope you feel better soon. :hug:

{{{{HUGS}}}} You can do it

Ducky
 

Y remember the first few weeks and the occasional wonderment thet I HAVEN'T SMOKED - ME - maybe I can do this. And should you fall off the wagon and sneak one smoke just start again immediately. Youll be so pleased and amazed at yoursrlf! Keep at it - it is possible. As my brother used to harange at me "IF I CAN DO IT ANYONE CAN DO IT." I could have smacked him.

You are all so sweet, thank you. Today is four weeks... it hasn't been as hard as I feared nor as easy as I had hoped. LOL.
I am going to call the dr this week about the strep thing. Lord knows I get it all the time. Maybe I do have a low level constant infection. I need something done.
Every time I want a cigarette I think of you all and how much you are all pulling for me. Thank you all... I am not perfect. I do not think I will never have another cigarette... but I know that I will never fall back to where I was and I know that I can always lean on you all to hang tight.
thanks

Smack Jack!
 

Yes, he was like the proverbial reformed drunk. H about drove me nuts. He couldn't look at me without lecturing me.

Smack Jack
 

Yes i was crazy about him. I can't believe he's been gone 10 years.

Gone but not forgotten. Speaking of forgetting...yesterday was Cassie's 5th birthday and we didn't even say Happy B'day. :rolleyes:

Oops!
 

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY CASSIE!! HERE'S A BACK RUB FROM ME! Love, Aunt Barb

(((Duckaluck))) I bet one of the hardest things has been sitting at the computer without a smoke???? I am SO impressed with you. Now, has da brother stopped smoking as well??? ((hugs))

yeah, Doody, I have been making sure not to sit here for long. But the hardest part is putting gas in my car. I always bought cigarettes when I filled the tank. I could buy a pack and keep it in the car and no one would know. I have not done it, but man have I thought about it.
And the brother is thinking about it hard....I think I am making him feel bad, though I don't mean to. I don't care if he smokes in the house or even in the same room, but he seems to. He is talking about quitting too, but I told him that he had to do it on his own... for himself.
24 days :)

Ducky...(((hugs)))

Ducky
 

24 days!! AREN'T YOU PROUD OF YOURSELF??!! I am. You worry that you aren't far enough from them for them to grab you. YOU ARE IN CONTROL! They can't get you. It sure takes me back. I was never proud of anything else as much as whipping the habit! Hugs Ducky!

correction folks ... 25 days !!!

:sing: Addy