Fellow Strugglers and General Update

I have a larger post in the works, and it's taking a bit longer to get around to/finish then I thought, so I thought I'd check in.

Usually, such long lapses in communication from recovering addicts indicates that the "recovering" status has reverted back to "indulging."

Not in my case. I am in the middle of Week 9 without even a single hit off of a cigarette.

My lozenge addiction hasn't changed much. 5 days from now, I am supposed to cut back another step further to 1 lozenge every 4-8 hours, I believe. But, alas, I am in a quagmire of 1 lozenge every 2-3 hours, on average.

The other night, I hung out with 2 fellow nicotine addicts. One highly recommended using the lozenges to the other as an aid to quitting. He said it was a major help to him. But apparently, not enough. He said he was doing great for a few months, but stated he was back now, lighting up one of those flavorless cigarettes that makes you suck the hell out of it to feel any rush.

The other friend was excited to report that, after constant, thwarted attempts to quit, he has gone 4 days without cigarettes, cold turkey. Hooray! He recounted his morning struggles of flailing his arms and head about, in a mad scramble for the missing vice, fighting to make it through the diabolical first morning craving.

The problem is, he is also a recovering alcoholic with over a year of sobriety. He has had several near death experiences as a result of his drinking, and all his peers have been very proud of his daily triumph.

Coinciding with his abstenance from nicotine, was a tumbling from the wagon, and back into a routine of feebly concealed alcohol consumption.