It was a cold evening in Spring 2001, and I was in for quite the shock.

I was visiting Toronto from Vancouver for an interview, and one of my most important stops was checking out the local Spoken Word scene. After being heavily in the scene in Vancouver, I couldn't possibly imagine moving somewhere that didn't have one. I made my way excitedly over to the El Mocambo (back in its glory days when it was still "Toronto’s rock temple" & it had that awesome blinking neon sign) and was welcomed at the Bite show with open arms. I walked into the room, and then it hit me.

Smoke.

The air was absolutely thick and pungent with it.

I admit it. I had been spoiled. Vancouver had already long had that little by-law preventing people from smoking indoors. There would be many breaks in poetry evenings to allow smokers to trundle outside and get their fix. I hadn't realized up until now just how important this was for me. I like to project my voice on stage. To do this, I breathe through my diaphragm. To breathe through my diaphragm, I intake large quantities of air, deeply inside.

Ya.

Perhaps you can see the problem here. Or perhaps not, and further explanation is required. You see, though I myself haven't smoked, my history with cigarettes is a long-standing one. My hatred of the things knows no bounds.

Tracing my history would bring you to painful relationships with smokers, health problems I have had, and much deep resentment when my evening entertainment (bars, nightclubs, pool halls, etc.) has been sullied by asthmatic gasps through clouds of smoke. Most importantly though—the undercurrent to all of this—is my father.

I bring you back to a wee little, scrawny, quiet girl in Grade 2. We were learning in school that cigarettes were Poison. On the list of things that were "good" and "bad," yes, they were "bad." My father smoked, and you can imagine my horrors at finding out the evils of what he was doing. So I, the loving and caring daughter that I was, that very night, carefully and lovingly made up tiny little signs that said things like, "Cigarettes are poison!", "Smoking kills!" and the piece de resistance, my rendering of the skull and cross bones, and put them carefully in every single one of his ashtrays. I was excited for him to come home that night so I could see his reaction for how much his daughter loved him. Did he cry tears of joy and throw out his cigarettes? No. He was upset and tore up the signs. In my 7 year old mind, I thought he loved cigarettes more than he loved me. How could they have so much hold over a person and be more important than his daughter?

As a result of that experience, I decided to dedicate my professional life to help people quit smoking. Quitting is easier than you might think, it just takes a little education and planning. Oh yes… and that little thing called "will-power." With those in place though, it's not so bad. Let me start you on the will-power and education part. (If you don’t smoke, apply these to whatever else that you’re hooked on. Beer… sugar… love…)

Instant will-power! Just answer these five questions:

1. Imagine that you are now a non-smoker. How are you spending your time? What are you doing? Activities? Family life? Work? Hobbies?
2. What difference does this make for you?
3. How will you being a non-smoker affect others?
4. How will your environment change?
5. How much money would you save on cigarettes in a year if you became a non-smoker? How much will you save in 25 years? What would you do with all that money?

And now the education...

There are 3 types of cravings. You will likely have mostly one of these with a little bit of the other 2 mixed in for good measure.

Physical: Once your body is accustomed to a certain level of nicotine running through it, it becomes a thing that the body--on a purely physical level--thinks it can't do without. It lets you know this, very simply, by giving you lovely things like pains and anxiety. (The good news is these are the toxins being released from your body!)

Habitual: When the smoking is associated with certain times of day, like morning or night, and with activities that you do, like talking on the phone, having a beer, after sex…. In those moments it's easy to light up without thinking.

Stress: This keeps people coming back to any addiction long after they have quit and is the hardest to spot. Life is full of everyday challenges—it’s how you deal with them. Do you smoke instead of fighting with your boyfriend? When you'd rather not be working? In social situations, to give yourself that extra confidence? It’s about boosting or avoiding.

Despite the smoke in the air, I decided that Toronto had a great Spoken Word scene, so I took the job and moved here. Since then, I have discovered many venues that don’t have smoking, and hey, the rest won’t soon either after the By-Law this summer. As for the job…. I quit it last year after 2 years of corporate hell to do something that would *actually* make a difference.

http://www.stopsmokingcoach.ca
Jill Binder is a Stop Smoking Coach with a 100% success rate.
Like what she’s got to say? Like her style? Sign up for her ezine: "Turn Your Weaknesses Into Your Perfect Life!" (for smokers and non-smokers alike) Get a free gift for signing up, the e-workbook "What’s Your Smoking Type? The Secret Key to Quitting Smoking!"

http://www.jillbinder.com
In her other life, Jill is also a Spoken Word Artist. She performs all over.
She’s not fragmented… really. She’s well-rounded! You can get on her poetry gig mailing list here.