Liddie's First Anniversary

[James Davis]

Liddie's

First Anniversary

Well it will be a year the 18th of May since I smoked the last cigarette. I started smoking when I was about 14 years old. I used my lunch money to buy cigarettes. They were either 20 or 25 cents a pack. I could get a pack of cigarettes and a coke and potato chips for 35 cents. My parents never knew that I smoked. I would have been in trouble if they had. I smoked even when I was pregnant with my children. No one ever told me I shouldn't.


I started coughing a lot in the 70's. Hard coughing. My dad kept on at me until I did go to filtered cigarettes and changed the brand that I smoked. That seemed to help some. I didn't really notice it affecting my breathing until the early 90's. I began to get short of breath if I walked up hill or did anything strenuous. I went to the doctor and was told that I had COPD. They gave me inhalers and then put me on some pills with the inhalers. I just continued to get worse and continued to smoke.


The doctors started telling me I needed to stop smoking. I tried to quit using the patch, the pills, the nicotine inhaler, the patch and pill together. None of that worked. I continued to smoke. Finally the pulmonary doctor refused to take care of me as long as I smoked. He told me I had Emphysema and that there was no cure. He said to come back when I quit smoking. That was in Sept. of 02. In Oct. 04 I had to start using 0xygen. I started out on 2 liters, in less than a year I had to turn it up to 4.


I quit smoking on May 18th 04. I found Freedom Village not long after I quit. I know that without the help of the people there I could not have kept my quit. Everyone was always there for support. And I also knew I could email them at home if I needed to. They redid my breathing tests April 25, 05. They showed that I am in the last stages of Emphysema. I will always have to wear oxygen. I am not telling you this to make you feel sorry for me. I WANT YOU ALL TO KNOW WHAT MAY HAPPEN AND MORE THAN LIKELY WILL HAPPEN SOME DAY IF YOU SMOKE. Mags, Bubba, Lois, Denise, Suz, Gracie and all the rest. I love all you guys. You have became my second family.


Liddie(Grannyl)