Taking Care of Me

I’m really proud of my husband.  He is taking steps to take care of himself by quitting smoking!  I learned a lot time ago that nagging at him to quit didn’t help.  The decision to quit smoking is very personal and needs to be made when the person is ready.

He tried to quit about five years ago.  Unfortunately, right after he quit his dad was diagnosed with cancer and died within a month.  That was a very stressful time for him, and he ended up going back to the comforts of nicotine to get him through. He has not attempted to quit since.

Now, my husband is only a few years younger than his dad was when he had his first of three heart attacks.  Not to mention, the price of cigarettes is just ridiculous!  He surprised me a few weeks ago when he said he had made an appointment with the doctor to talk about using Chantix to help him quit.  Last week he went and got his prescription.

He hasn’t started taking it just yet.  I think he’s still taking it all in and thinking about the best time to start.  He did say his goal is to be completely smoke free by May 17, the anniversary of his dad’s death.  I told him that I would post about his goal, and if you have any words of encouragement for him I’ll be sure to let him know.  I’m really proud of him, and I’m confident that he will be able to do this.