Well technically it'll be 24 hours tonight at 9pm est but I'm not buying a pack today so I already count it as a day. Been tough so far, cravings came on hard and lasted for about a couple of hours. I want to see if I can beat 20 days smoke free, I can do it again and this time stick with it for good, I hope.
i will hit 4 years free in February. among many other tactics, when i would get a hankering, one of the moves i did was look up the benefits-over-time (example) to take stock of what i had accomplished and what i could look forward to next).
i also remember reading that the desire for a drag fades away over a few minutes if one can distract oneself in the short term.
also, for the record, it gets much easier once your sense of smell+taste fully returns and you've washed all those clothes / vigorously cleaned old smoking areas.
my last year of it, i pushed myself to try and hide the habit. no smoking at work, in my car, or out in public. no more bumming from strangers even when anxious/awkward (hard!). only hidden/outside in my back porch, in the late evening and only in shitty home-only clothes about to be washed. and all lighters/papers/etc would have to be put away after. i would make myself brush my teeth / mouthwash afterward. i have no doubt all the extra rigamarole helped me finally stop for good, because jesus what a hassle.
anyway, good luck. it's one of the kindest things you can do for yourself.
ty!