UberNoggin

Not everyone is into social media. Most folks don’t blog or IM or Twitter. In the grand scheme of things, those of us who choose to express ourselves via technology, those of us who choose to develop networks of friends whom we may never meet, are a very small segment of the population.  There are many critics who can’t see the value of these technologies but lately my sense of the their value has been renewed in a pretty powerful way.

About six weeks ago I was diagnosed with extremely high blood pressure. A pretty rare thing for someone in her early 30s. As it turned out, my doc gave me a pretty stern talking-to. Stroke, heart attack…lots of very scary consequences were mentioned. Not only did I have to start taking medicine to reduce my BP, I also had to make significant lifestyle changes including getting up from my desk for some exercise, and hardest of all, I had to give up my pack-a-day smoking habit. It was time. It had been time for a long time. I was ready. But I knew it wouldn’t be easy.

My family, my husband, and my friends were all supportive and encouraging but I knew myself. I knew that at some time I would be away from them either traveling or just home alone. I knew I’d be tempted and need support even when my support system was away. I turned to Twitter.

Five weeks ago today I posted that I was quitting smoking. Dozens of responses came pouring in. Some included tips (suckers, coffee, long walks, yoga). Others were just warm verbal hugs with loads of “atta girl” encouragement. Over the next few weeks, when I was tempted for “just one!” I twittered and got loads of encouragement from my community.

Meanwhile, I’ve been doing a bit of yoga, taking lots of walks, and replaced my smoking compulsion with a golf compulsion. Yep, I actually managed to lose weight while giving up smoking. I know! I’m shocked too.
Not only did social media give me a support system, it also gave me someone to answer to. Once I had declared that I was quitting I knew that sneaking a smoke outside at a conference wasn’t going to work. One of my Twitter buddies was bound to see me. Even having a cigarette while driving around town here in Bloomington could result in a “I saw Intellagirl smoking!!” Twitter before I was even back at my desk (Bloomington is a small town).

It’s been five weeks since I had a cigarette. Five weeks since I turned to my family and friends (both near and wide, both in the flesh and in the digital) for help and got it!

Thanks

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