Smoking...The Ugly White Elephant In The Room

As a small child, though born in Saint Louis, spent my early years in the small town of Jeffersonville, Indiana along the banks of the Ohio River across from Louisville, Kentucky.  Remember with fondness the Belle of Louisville and Delta Queen steam wheelers going up and down the river, picking golden rod to take home to my mom who never told me until I was much older that she was allergic to them.  Sunday evenings after dinner were spent in front of the black and white television watching Ed Sullivan, Bonanza and of course Disney World.  

About half way through Disney World (think back then it was called the Wonderful World of Disney) they would have a Marlboro commercial...I and my older brother would watch in both awe and envy a cowboy ride his horse up to the top of the bluff, dismount, reach into his saddlebag and light up a Marlboro (red pack) as he watched the sun go down...he had everything a kid growing up in the country could want.  A horse, chaps, cowboy boots, a saddle and bags, and FREEDOM...in short, myself and many others like me wanted to grow up an be the Marlboro man.   Sure that commercial played a big part in my brother and I's thievery of my father's non-filter Pall Mall cigarettes from atop of the refrigerator all those years ago when I was just six years old.  We would sneak out behind the barn, light up and pretend we were that cowboy on his gallant steed...that was fifty, almost 51 years ago.

Sitting here today on what is my twelfth day in Isagenix thinking again the same thoughts I have thought about so many times before...you know, you really should quit smoking, it would be good for your health.  

Fact is, it would be good for my health, the issue of quitting is that proverbial White Elephant in the room, perhaps the biggest obstacle in my path as I try to embrace this new Isagenix lifestyle, as I work toward letting a new me emerge from the ashes. (pun not intended)  I've tried quitting before,  once making it almost ten months before life issues and (perhaps) a lack of personal will power saw me succumb; thinking I would just have one or two...much like most of my life, as I sit here writing after having gone outside to have a smoke, realize that my habit has been pretty consistent at a pack and a half too two packs a day for probably four decades...became what one could call a habitual smoke around the age of 16.

Not sure why, but over the past few days have been having a nagging thought, that little voice in the back of my head whispering to me..."Your success in this (Isagenix) depends on you giving up that nasty habit".  That other little voice saying, "Don't listen to that...you've been a smoker your whole life, and you enjoy smoking don't you?"  Ignoring the second voice mostly because I don't want to answer that question.

So, as I sit here pondering this, so methodological questions about the when and how pop up.

1.  Is it too much on my plate to try stopping in the middle of my first 30 day cleanse?

2.  If it is too much, then when is a good day to stop, and should I go cold turkey?

3.  What can I do differently this time to MAKE IT?

Any one have any thoughts, opinions, suggestions...