David Cameron's Diary

For a confirmed smoker like me, it is an achievement to report that I am now over 3 weeks without a cigarette.


The recap:

I am 46 yrs old, smoked up to 40 Cigarettes a day since age 14
Have a couple of daughters under 7, asking awkward questions
Had my last cigarette 20:00 on 22nd January 2007
Started using Patches (Niquitin CQ) and backup hypnosis Stop Smoking MP3
Personally managed to stop after only wearing a new patch for 3 days.....see earlier blog entries for that.

I decided that I would support Cancer Research UK as part of my campaign to stop smoking - whilst I am glad to see a couple of people sponsoring me, it is somewhat disappointing that there are not more - half the sponsorship so far comes from me matching others donations.

Cancer does not necessarilly arise just from smoking....Breast Cancer being a case in point. Huge inroads are being made in the prevention of cancer, especially in the case of cervical cancer whereby an actual vaccine could be fully licensed inside 5 years.

Please don't think of Cancer as being just a smoking related disease. At least 1 in 5 of us will be touched by cancer in one way or another through adverse diagnosis of a friend or relative....or even ourselves.

My sense so far is that many of you are visiting the blog and are somewhat disinterested with the thoughts of cancer....my plea is to think how easily you could be in the one in five affected and to make a small donation to help research the prevention and cure of this horrible disease.

I have already donated £65 directly through this campaign, matching other donations to date, but can't match once off donations indefinitely.

I am now pledging to personally make at least £20 per month donation (matched by my company) for at least the next 10 years, equating to at least £4,800) plus prevailing tax breaks.

If you feel that you could make similar pledges, then please let me know either here or via the forum (at http://www.davidcameronsdiary.co.uk/forum ) and I will be delighted to report your support...there is provision for me to report off-line donations and I would be delighted to report longer term pledges in this way.

If you would just like to make a once off contribution now and record a modest "well done so far", then please visit the donation site at http://www.justgiving.com/iquit.

Note: I don't ask this for personal gratification.....I may already have messed up my health by smoking for so long, but there are so many different forms of cancer..cervical, testicular, breast, lung, mouth........ thate know it is one of the biggest killers around and contributions can help prevent death in the future.

My forum is somewhat slow to take off at http://www.davidcameronsdiary.co.uk/forum ; I would really like it if ex-smokers could come forward to offer their encouragement to potential quitters and talk to the techniques that worked for them. It would equally be great if the potential quitters would come forward and talk about the things that concern them.

Come on.......... a forum is not a forum without participants.

Edited 27th Feb - realised that there was a broken link.

Labels: cigarettes, forum, hypnosis, nicotine, stop smoking, tobacco