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Sunday, March 18, 2012

Quitting Smoking.


Cantrell & Son, originally uploaded by Christopher Rauch.

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 I spent a little time at the Flint River over spring break...A solo, ill-conceived trip early on where I nearly died of hypothermia... and then a later day paddle with Tony and Ryan. I theorize that a very low-stress environment for the initial nicotine detox with a slow, gradual reintroduction to real life may be the ticket to successfully putting down the cigarettes for good on this, my 100th( or so) attempt. The Flint River, and the wild country around Blood Mountain/The Coosa Trail are perfect for getting away from the urgent annoyances that drive a man to smoke. Lost in the quiet, he can endure the withdrawal process, and the simple unavailability of cigarettes helps allow the mind to be distracted from the spiritual/mental/physical itch of unsatisfied addiction.
     Allowing a man to reach a calmer place during that critical 72 hours of initial nicotine cessation greatly increases his ability to withstand the unavoidable stresses awaiting in the future. It gives him a state of mind already invested in a short period of sustained abstinence. If it has been years, or decades since he had any significant freedom from tobacco, this is a pleasant novelty. His mindset is more committed, better suited to maintaining a new healthier way of breathing. He is like a wounded warrior forced to defend himself before he is healed. It cannot be helped. In my fantasies, He returns from the outdoors with a little time under his belt, so to speak.  He is better prepared for the inevitable battle with the nicotine demon that must be faced soon, under real-world circumstances, far from the soothing sound of water trickling over rock.

     That's the theory anyway. Prayers, please. :) I got 83 and a half hours...
Tony, my friend from antiquity, has been a huge blessing in my life lately, and watching him as a father and observing the impact time and love have had on his growth are inspiring to me. I love to go paddling with the Cantrell boys...
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