CELEBRATING 14 SMOKE FREE YEARS
October 17, 2013
By Olivene Godfrey
About the middle of November, I will celebrate 14 smoke free years. If I had known how easy it was to quit the nasty habit, I would have quit years before I did.
I started smoking during World War II which was a period of my life unlike any other. My teenage friends and I thought smoking cigarettes was sophisticated and romantic. And no wonder! Cigarettes were advertised on bill boards, magazines, radio and actors and actresses smoked in the movies, later after the war on television.
The few people who spoke out against cigarette smoking were considered old fogies. My parents disapproved so I slipped around and never smoked in public. After my late husband and I married I started smoking with him all the time.
The years went by and cigarettes didn't seem to harm our health, but we finally did have to pay the piper. If you are a smoker, you may not have lung cancer. But, you can be pretty sure you'll get COPD as I have. I can tell you from experience that COPD is a hellish condition. Look at an x-ray of your lungs and you'll see that there is no cure for COPD.
Through the years I'd have horrendous bouts of bronchitis. Finally 14 years ago, I had a horrible case and I fervently prayed to God to let me recover and I would quit the nasty habit. I kept my word and went cold turkey and haven't smoked since. After about 2 weeks I had no more craving and haven't since then.
I'm so proud of Barry who has never smoked a cigarette in his life. Now I'm proud of Tam, who hasn't smoked in several weeks and swears she has quit for good.
I continue to suffer at times because of the damage to my lungs and keep oxygen on hand and I'm afraid that one day the COPD will end my life. Meanwhile, I strive to live a healthy lifestyle and pray for a longer life. I'll be 86 December 10 and I don't think I would have lived this long if I hadn't quit smoking 14 years ago.
See you next time. Comments welcome. (As told to Tam)
By Olivene Godfrey
About the middle of November, I will celebrate 14 smoke free years. If I had known how easy it was to quit the nasty habit, I would have quit years before I did.
I started smoking during World War II which was a period of my life unlike any other. My teenage friends and I thought smoking cigarettes was sophisticated and romantic. And no wonder! Cigarettes were advertised on bill boards, magazines, radio and actors and actresses smoked in the movies, later after the war on television.
The few people who spoke out against cigarette smoking were considered old fogies. My parents disapproved so I slipped around and never smoked in public. After my late husband and I married I started smoking with him all the time.
The years went by and cigarettes didn't seem to harm our health, but we finally did have to pay the piper. If you are a smoker, you may not have lung cancer. But, you can be pretty sure you'll get COPD as I have. I can tell you from experience that COPD is a hellish condition. Look at an x-ray of your lungs and you'll see that there is no cure for COPD.
Through the years I'd have horrendous bouts of bronchitis. Finally 14 years ago, I had a horrible case and I fervently prayed to God to let me recover and I would quit the nasty habit. I kept my word and went cold turkey and haven't smoked since. After about 2 weeks I had no more craving and haven't since then.
I'm so proud of Barry who has never smoked a cigarette in his life. Now I'm proud of Tam, who hasn't smoked in several weeks and swears she has quit for good.
I continue to suffer at times because of the damage to my lungs and keep oxygen on hand and I'm afraid that one day the COPD will end my life. Meanwhile, I strive to live a healthy lifestyle and pray for a longer life. I'll be 86 December 10 and I don't think I would have lived this long if I hadn't quit smoking 14 years ago.
See you next time. Comments welcome. (As told to Tam)
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