A New Day

Tuesday. Third day on the patch and smoke-free. So far, so good. It sure is easier to use a crutch (like a patch) than to go cold-turkey, whew! Still feel like lighting up sometimes, more so in the afternoon/evening than in the morning, which I think is an artifact of the potency of the patch declining over its 24 hour effectiveness period. I sure do hope Camille gives this a try.

I have yet to increase my exercise level, although I've been walking the dog a bit more. It's not enough, though. I really should be wandering over to the exercise room and using the treadmill, then relaxing in the hot tub for a while after. And I should take my bike and get the tires pumped up and actually use the Sammamish Trail in back of my apartment. Getting out would be great for my health all-around, since I'd get the benefit of being out in the sun (there is sun even when it's cloudy). Might begin to break out the light box again.

The Patch: Day One

It is 8:46 pm and I haven't had a cigarette today. I woke up this morning and put on a patch. Frankly, I decided I had to catch up on my taxes, and paying for cigarettes put a crimp in that. I should have done it for my health, but I didn't. I did it to save $230 a month. I was even cheap about the patches. Instead of buying the brand-name patch, I bought the generic, Target-brand patch for half the price -- less than two packs of cigarettes for a week's supply. I had been trying to quit cold-turkey, after finding that I was unable to take the C brand pills (if I write the name, some joker will find my website and leave an advertising comment). They made me sick, and when I tried again at a lower dose, in two days I found that they were affecting my mood. I do look forward to feeling better, to having more energy, and to not feeling like I smell like smoke (let alone the stigma of smoking in the Seattle area). It's getting a little tougher now as evening rolls on -- I think the patch starts running out of steam after a while -- but I'm going to keep it on all night and put a new one on in the morning. It will be great to be a non-smoker again.

Spoke to Camille tonight and told her what I was doing. She said she couldn't afford to smoke either. I told her about the generic patches and she said she would look into it. Clearly, she also wants to be a non-smoker.

The only fly in the whole ointment is making sure I don't gain weight. I bought a scale a few weeks back and I'm going to use it daily, watch my diet, and exercise. Alas, every time I quit smoking, I gain wait. I think it's a metabolism thing. It is a real drag (but not that kind of drag!) and it's going to take focus and energy to stay slender.

Repercussions of Karate Lesson...

My right calf is sore -- limping around a bit. I am trying not to be discouraged. I remember being sore from Karate when I was in my 20's. It's just that, at 57, I worry about it more. I don't think it hurts more than it did in my 20's. Maybe I just don't want to go through any pain right now. And in the back of my mind I am afraid it isn't just pain from doing exercise, but from damage, and I am afraid it will last longer or won't go away at all. But doing the Karate lesson felt good both during and after, and I had a sense that my health really just might be okay.

I am looking for a mirror to practice my Karate in front of -- a big one that I could lean against the wall. I seem to have plenty of wall space for shelves and it might even accommodate a big mirror.