Day 8 Smoke Free

Woke up in a good mood. I ate my All Bran, washed my face, brushed my teeth, got dressed and went for my 3 mile walk in Wyandotte, MI. It felt great to finally go for my walk as it's been about 2 weeks since the last time. That's when I started to feel my health slipping and I was trying to stay in and recover from what ever it was getting me down. As we all know it was bronchitis or pneumonia combined with C.O.P.D.

As I was walking today I was thinking about my last blog about self-discipline. Right now it is something I have to think about regularly(about not picking up that first cigarette). Hopefully in time I will not have to think about it but for right now this is the way I have to do it. They say it takes 21 days to start a habit well, if it takes that long to create a good habit of not smoking, then all I have is time.

The rest of this day I will get my new 32" TV up and running in time for the 8pm LIONS vs Saints kickoff. Life is GOOD! :)

Self-Discipline

The reason I am blogging about this term is because I will be trying to incorperate self-discipline with not smoking and some other areas in my life. At 50 years old there is always room for improvement.

An old timer once told me that whatever you do for the better is a building block for your foundation. I find this true in many areas in my life however, some areas need attention now such as cigarette smoking and over eating which I am now starting to address do to the short stay in the hospital recently.

I am learning that self-discipline is like building muscle. The more you train it, the stronger you become mentially and physically. If I take this approch and think of not smoking for one extra minute, it will be sorta like that extra rep you take while lifting weights. I have to take this one minute at a time for right now and hopefully it will turn to one hour at a time then days at a time. I don't care if I have to screem in my pillow or lock myself in the house. I want this for me and it is going to take self-discipline to overcome.

Old time once said "Ya keep getting what your getting cause ya keep doing what your doing, if you don't like what your getting, CHANGE what your doing"!... I can see his point now!

"Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil"!

Roger's Life with Asthma

I started my young life in and out of Henry Ford Hospital (Detroit main) with asthma attacks. Back then the only way they knew how to control it was to keep me hydrated with I.V's, give me prednisone, and keep me in an oxygen tent for weeks on end. This went on for several years with brief stays at home to which I had to stay in my dust free room and only come out to eat.

As the years went on the doctors found it hard to keep me stable and suggested in 1972 that I go and live at a children's asthma research institute hospital called C.A.R.I.H. As I arrived January 10th 1972 w/ Mom and grandma in tow I remember checking in at the office but don't remember much after that because of an attack. I stayed 2 years and then came back home.

My life has been a struggle but manageable with medications for asthma and A-topic dermatitis however, any slight allergy, cold or flu would set off an attack or a bout of the itchies. Although I have millions of stories I am going to tell just this one.

One day our neighbor came over and set a plate on our kitchen counter and said it was for my Dad. It looked real good, sorta like fried chicken. I was so hungry that day that I thought to myself "Oh' Dad won't miss a piece" and I took one and went in the other room and took a bite. A few seconds later, I feel to my knees gasping for air. Everyone was yelling but I couldn't hear what they were saying. All I remember was Dad picking me up and running me out to the ambulance. It seemed like forever to get to the hospital. When I woke up the doctors told me I had an allergic reaction to the fish. I've never toughed it again.

In my teen years I started rebelling and hanging out with the goof balls and smoking. I am now 50 y/o and finding that my C.O.P.D. is getting worse. I guess it's time to stop rebelling and let it go. IF I want to live! :)

God Bless!

Friday Morning. Smoke Free?

It's 1-6-2012 at 8am in the morning and I'm sitting here with my morning coffee. This isn't a normal morning where I would've already had 3 cigarettes before sitting at the computer. I'm sitting here checking facebook and emails w/o my mind telling me "OK Bud, time for a smoke" well...it is but it is very faint because I am wearing a nicotine patch. Hopefully I have enough patches to last until the obsession and compulsion is gone. If not, well I guess I'll get more.

Being in the hospital this time for five days was a great start quitting smoking and an eye opener too however, I do know that I will have to limit myself as to how much time I can hang out with my friends for a while because some of them smoke too. I don't think they would erg me to smoke but you never know. I might even be in a weak spot in my mind and smell it and trigger off that "GIMMIE A DAMN SMOKE"....LOL We go through a lot of feelings and emotions when we quit and have to keep vigilant of our goal and that is to be smokeless at the end of the night when we lay down to sleep. Yes, if we don't smoke, it's a successful day!

God Bless!

Quitting Smoking isn't Easy in Detroit

Hi Everyone,

Sorry I haven't blogged in a while. I've been busy living life and doing things that I should. Recently 12-30-2011 I checked into Henry Ford Wyandotte Hospital (south from Detroit) suffering from flu like symptoms.

I parked my truck out by the emergency room and had to walk approx. 100 yards to the front door of the emergency room to check in after going to my doctors 20 minutes prior to that to see what the doc wanted me to do. He said "Just go to the emergency room and I'll call and tell them your coming" When I got there, here come the I.V's breathing treatments, coughing up mucus, sweating, stomach and muscle pain from coughing. I was a mess for the first 72 hours. Then the symptoms started easing w/ all the medications they were giving me like I.V. steroids and antibiotics, plus breathing treatments and oxygen w/ warm mist. Now I'll have to tell you that if this ever happens to you, tell the doc that you want the machine that delivers oxygen and warn mist. That really helped a lot.

I will stop in every so often on this blog to let you know about my success or failure of quitting smoking. I hope I won't be blogging about failure because as of right now I feel great but am struggling about not thinking of a cig. Hell I did it subconsciously for 32 years. This is going to be a challenge.

Many, Many Thanks to the nurses and doctors of Henry Ford Hospital Wyandotte for helping me in my time of need. You all are a very special crew. From the ER docs and nurses to the 6th floor nurses. Thanks Again.

C.O.P.D. or chronic obstructive pulmonary (PULL-mun-ary) disease, is a progressive disease that makes it hard to breathe. "Progressive" means the disease gets worse over time.COPD can cause coughing that produces large amounts of mucus (a slimy substance), wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, and other symptoms.