Celebrate

It is the season to celebrate, it is the season to celebrate quitting. This holiday season, from Thanksgiving to New Years, is a time when we think of what we are Thankful for, how important family is and think about what we want new and different in our life. If you quit smoking in 2009, then it is time to be proud of the strength and fortitude you found within yourself to quit. To be grateful for the help others offered, and to be grateful that you have quit! Take a few minutes and think about what it took to quit and savor the feeling of success. It was a hard won effort but you did it. Remember all of the things you didn't like about smoking and how good it feels to be smoke free. Remember that you worked through the cravings and that you are a stronger women because of the effort you gave to quitting. Congratulations, you are strong and committed and you have accomplished a difficult yet worthwhile achievement!
If you haven't quit this is a great time to quit. It is an opportunity to think about your family and what a great gift quitting would be to and for them. It is also a gift of health and life to yourself. Your family's health is really important to you and quitting will improve their health and protect them from the many toxins from exposure to tobacco,and tobacco smoke. You have been contemplating quitting and now is the time to really make the commitment to quit and give the gift of being smoke free to yourself and your family. The new decade is just around the corner, make the next ten years and more smoke free! A new year and a new decade is such a great time for a new beginning of health. It is a wonderful beginning for you and your family.

Celebrations

During this season there are many things that are celbrated, Hanakah, Christ's birth at Christmas, and the New Year. These events bring with them times with gather as families, friends and office parties and with food and drink celebrate together. For pregnant and nursing mothers this means celebrating without both the usual alcohol and cigarettes which is often a very difficult. It is a difficult decision but an important one. Alcohol and cigarettes are both very harmful and babies should not be exposed to either of these substances. I have often written about the harm done when babies are exposed to tobacco but let me also speak to the harm caused by exposure to alcohol. Babies bodies are not as able to process alcohol or tobacco and the toxins associated with it. Their bodies are much smaller but their blood will have the same amount of alcohol molecules in it as you, yet your body is larger and better developed to handle it. Please don't ever drink while you are pregnant. It is not good for your baby.

Holiday Stress Busters

Well the holiday season is going full strength. There are some wonderful reasons to love this time of year, with children being at the top of my reasons to enjoy Christmas time. It is such a busy time of year, with lots of stress built into that we sometimes get overwhelmed by it all. Beware of the stress sometimes bringing a person back to tobacco as a stress reliever. Remember that it is a temporary solution that will bring long term stress of quitting again. If because of the many things to do, the stress will sometimes take you to a cigarette. Know that relapse is not unusual, the difference can be in your reaction to the relapse. The important thing is to not continue to turn to a cigarette during times of stress but to remember breathing, exercise or any of the many things that you have used to handle cravings and stress. Let this be an opportunity to go back to better ways to handle stress than a cigarette, to return to the other ways to handle cravings. I would like to remind you that it is ok to take a short break from children. By this I mean when you used to give yourself a cigarette break when the children would bicker, whine or be difficult in any way I would encourage you to take a break with a book, or to do some breathing exercises, whatever would work the best for you and your situation. I would suggest that you take this break in a different place than you use to take your cigarette breaks. Your brain associates places with where you use to smoke and if you take breaks in those smoking places people often find that they will have stronger cravings in those spots or times. Choose a new place of momma breaks and try some deep breaths maybe using 4-4-4-4 breaths. If you have forgotten what that is look at the archives and review them. Take a deep breath and chill.