Hi, welcome to the You Can Quit Smoking podcast, where we go over stories of success with overcoming smoking addiction. Many people have moved through this radical transformation and use smoking as an opportunity for inner growth, with deeper self-awareness and a greater capacity for compassion. So many have done it and you can quit smoking, too. I'm your host, Jessi Hartnett, founder of Honor Your Heart.

Jessi:

Hi, everyone. Welcome back. I'm so happy to be here with Caren today. Caren, can you introduce yourself to the audience?


Caren:

Sure. I'm Caren Cooper. I'm a trauma-informed mindset coach and former corporate employee.


I used to work in the advertising industry back in the early 90s to the 2000s. It was really a lot of fun. Liquid lunches. It was fabulous. I had the best time. We worked hard, we played hard. It was amazing. But 5 years ago, things changed and I became an entrepreneur.


Long story short, I found my way to mindset coaching through my own work in the deep inner work. And so now I really help Gen X women come home to themselves. It's my passion. Midlife is not the end of the world, people. I'm just saying it's really not.


People think it's like, "Oh no, I should shut up and die. Because I’m 50 years old." And I'm just not here for that, any of that. No shrinking, no hiding, none of that shit anymore. Not on my watch anyway.


I'm a massive, massive disco freak. I'm a huge fan of the disco. My logo is a disco ball and I'm a mom of two young adult children.


Jessi:

Awesome. Well, thank you so much for being here. Talk to us about smoking. What's your story with smoking?


Caren:

Oh, yummy. I'm 57 now, just to give context. I haven't smoked in a while.


But I started at 16 years old and it was the, “Well, if this one is doing it, will you do it?” “Yeah.” So I was sitting around with friends and they were like, “You want to try a cigarette?” And I'm like, “Okay.” There was no thought process in my brain whatsoever about it.


I started smoking and I picked it up. And I smoked from the ages of 16 to 42. I smoked and I was a pack a day smoker. Like I just took to it like lotion on dry skin. Like I don't know how to say it. Like I was like, “Oh this is fabulous.” You know what I mean? Like I actually loved it. I was one of those people who loved it.


But I understand now it was a crutch that I didn't know. But I loved it. And I started smoking at a time when you could smoke everywhere. Fun fact also. So like I can be anywhere: in a restaurant, on a plane.


I know it's like the worst thing in the world to hear that in 2026. But like I could be in a plane and having a cigarette, going to Alcapulco with my friends. It's like ridiculous.


Like even at my wedding. I literally have a picture of me with a cigarette and in a veil. I mean the marriage ended, but that's not the point. But then, you could smoke in places and it didn't matter. And it was one hundred percent an identity for me without question.


Jessi:

So were you around a lot of people too? I know you started, you picked it up from a group. Were most people in your life smoking? You were allowed to do it anywhere.


Caren:

So ironically the irony of this whole thing by the way and I just remembered this. In ninth grade I did a science experiment. I grew up in Brooklyn. So we did science experiments back in the days of yore.


I actually did a science experiment of lung cancer with clay. These are the 80s ladies and gentlemen. And so not just a few short years later did I pick up. The irony is not lost to me.


And I didn't have a lot of people, like family members, who smoked. My parents didn't. My older brother didn't. In my immediate circle? No.


Like these were just friends that I hung out with from time to time. So it wasn't like it was around me all the time. Was it around me? Yes. But like constantly? No.


Jessi:

So you were mostly smoking on your own then?


Caren:

I was smoking on my own. I mean, I did have friends. So the friends I did hang out with were smokers as well.


But at home, like I mean 16. So obviously, I lived with my parents who are not smokers. So I would like sneak out of the apartment. I grew up in an apartment building. So like imagine a 16-year-old like smoking out the window. Like the shit that I did, I think about it now and how my mother had no idea is beyond me also. Because even though she worked full-time, I don't know how she didn't smell it.


I would try to hang out the window, I would sneak out, whatever it was. I became quickly addicted to it, quickly. Like I didn't do any hard drugs because if I'm going to try a cigarette and then get addicted. I’m like, “That's it.” But I craved it all of the time. So when I was home, I wanted it. And then when I would go out with my friends, we were always smoking. Always smoking and drinking.


Jessi:

And then how did that evolve as you got older?


Caren:

Then it became like a thing. So like at 16 it was sneaking and stuff like that. By the time I was 18, 19, 20, we were at bars just smoking and drinking. It was our thing. It was like this is what we did. It was who we were. I was a smoker.


I mean, I started at 16. I was in high school. Then I graduated. Then I was in college. I was smoking. It was who I was. Like I was a smoker and I needed to smoke. I needed to be in places that smoked. If I wasn't in a place that smoked it, it was like, "Okay, how can I get this last cigarette in before I go?" Like when you go into a place and you get it all in, you get that fix in, you know?


Jessi:

Yep, smoke two.


Caren

Right? Even the people I was dating… even at 18, the person I was dating at the time smoked cigarettes. My ex-husband, he smoked as well.


That's why when we got married, I was like, "No, I'm having a smoking wedding." My mother's like, "What's wrong with you?" I'm like, "Why would I not have a smoking wedding? I smoke." You know what I mean? Like, I was such a fucking bitch about the whole thing. I wasn't even like setting a standard. I had such a massive ego about it.


Looking back now, I had a massive chip on my shoulder about it. “Accept it. This is who I am. Accept me.” And I live by that credo, but still it was borderline obnoxious quite frankly.


Jessi:

I'm curious more about that identity. So, how did you see yourself when you're like, “I'm a smoker. This is who I am.”? What does that mean? How did you see yourself as a smoker? What kind of feelings did you have towards that identity?


Caren:

It's an interesting question because then I didn't know this. I'm gonna caveat my answer by saying at the time that I was doing this, I didn't understand that I was operating from my insecurity, my not enoughness, and my unworthiness. Right?


So, my being a smoker, “I'm cool. Look at me.” It was like a way for people to look at me and see me. “I'm a smoker. I'm fabulous.” I equated it to this whole Joe Cool kind of persona.


And so, I wrapped my identity in that. I was a smoker and you were going to have to deal with me being a smoker. And that's just the way it was. And so, I thought that's who I was.


So, fun fact, because now I do the work and I understand it more. But like many insecure people have this massive chip on our shoulders because we don't believe in ourselves. We don't think we're enough or are worthy. So, our egos speak for ourselves.


So, we have this massive chip on the shoulder and we think we know everything and we're not open to anything else, right? We're not open to suggestions. We're not open to hearing anything. Like people used to tell me I smell. I'm like, “I don't give a shit.” I was really like that.


I was taking breaks. When I started working in full-time in corporate America, it was just like, “No, you need to understand that this is just me. And if you can't like that, that's not my problem.” So, that was like the massive chip on my shoulder. I didn't give a shit about anybody else's feelings, wants, needs, any of that nature. It never occurred to me that that should be a thing. I was one.


Jessi:

And did it get tied to your work relationship? So you mentioned that you smoke at work and people would smell it. But was there a relationship between smoking and work for you?


Caren:

One hundred percent. Again, I worked in advertising. The liquid ‘80s have absolutely gone, into the early '90s as well.


So we were eating, drinking, it was debauchery. It really was. It was absolute debauchery. And of course, you were all smoking. It was what you did. It was almost quite like a right of passage.


And when I started in corporate America, I had an office with a door so we could smoke in the office. We didn't have to go downstairs and have a cigarette. Eventually, we did have to do that.


I'll never forget one of my first jobs. I worked literally next door to Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan and I'm outside having a cigarette. People were like, "Where's Radio City?" Like it was like you with the tourists, directing people because I was outside having cigarettes.


Especially working, like I got more breaks because I was going outside and having a cigarette. A lot of people were having cigarettes. A lot of people smoked. We were almost having like these coffee clutches, so to speak, smoking. There was a smoking room. There was stuff like that.


So, we would all kind of be in there bullshitting and whatever, that kind of a thing. So like we all just hung out. Did we work? Yes. And this is not to say we didn't do work because we worked hard just as much as we played hard. We worked really really hard. But like that was the norm back in the day. Just eat, drink, and be merry and just let what lies lie. It was ridiculous.


Jessi:

So what started changing where you were thinking about quitting?


Caren:

I don't know specifically what the change was because I didn't necessarily quit then. I mean I got married. I had kids. And I still smoked. I did smoke in front of my kids. I'm not even going to lie about it. And it is what it is.


Actually, I think the impetus was my father's passing. Because nobody thought I'd quit smoking, including myself. I was that committed. Like, I was committed.


I hated people who social smoked. You know those people who could like have one cigarette like a week? Fuck off. Like, it drove me fucking insane.


Jessi:

[laugher] Same.



Caren:

Seriously, I'm like, “How the fuck do you do that? Like, I don't understand. I did not comprehend that at all. Like, it didn't make sense to me whatsoever.


And it was a pack a day. I was committed and loving it and enjoying it. And honestly, I didn't think I could. Nobody did quite frankly.


And my father passed away, actually it will be 15 years in April, in 2011. It was unexpected. And it threw me for a loop. His death was really the catalyst.


There's a meme called the lifequake. I don't know if you've ever seen this meme called the lifequake. It's like this big event that happens in your life and it shakes up everything in your life. My father's death was my lifequake.


Because it really started me questioning, “What was I doing?” And my kids were nine and five. So understand that. They were not young, not little little at the time. And what ended up happening was I started to work out.


I felt lost after he died. And so my cousin was teaching Zumba at the time. And so I started taking Zumba classes. That was the impetus for me because I was now exercising and caring about that much or at least pretending to anyway.


And a year after I started Zumba, I was exhausted because I'm working full-time. I'm working out. That's when the thought started to occur to me, “Maybe I'll feel better if I quit smoking.” Like it started to occur to me maybe to give a shit about what I was doing to myself.


Honestly, for no other reason other than maybe I saw people starting to get healthier in general. I wasn't there yet. The health came later. But I was like, “Maybe I should care. I'm in my 40s and have my kids. You know things can change on a dime.” And that kind of a thing.


And so I made the decision and that was the impetus actually that really helped me with everything. Because I was like, “I’m done.”


So, a few years prior to that, I had actually done hypnotherapy. I had made a vain attempt to quit smoking. I did hypnotherapy and it didn't stick. And that was my own doing because I wasn't interested in making the decision and doing the work.


And then it came time. I was just like, “You know what? No, I think I'm done with this.” And so, I did Chantix and I had heard interesting things about it. But I was like, “I like the fact that you can still smoke while being on it.” So, I was like, “Okay.”


And then I smoked Marlboro Lights. My ex-husband smoked Newports. And I knew it was getting bad when I was going to his cigarettes. Because I'm like, "What the fuck am I smoking menthol for? This is bad." And so I finally said, "Screw this. I'm done."


And I haven't picked up a cigarette since that decision to be done. It was really what did it for me because I was just like, “I am done.” And so I stopped smoking. And what's so interesting about it is that I didn't start feeling good right away.


Jessi:

Right.


Caren:

I was so pissed. I was so angry about it. But I understood like it took a couple years or whatever. But like I had no idea how much I smelled.


Looking back, it was so interesting to me all the things happening and what people were telling me that I didn't think about. The one regret I have though, I will say this, I never put the money away for like the first year afterwards. I didn't take the money I was spending and put it somewhere and do something with it.


And what was so interesting by the way about it too was the identity. So I talked earlier, right, about I was a smoker.


Jessi:

Uh huh.


Caren:

That's who I was. And so letting go of that identity was wild.


So, I do this as a work for a living, too. Identity evolution and things like that. Anyway, I was like, “I'm not a smoker. If I'm not a smoker, who am I?” I hate to say identity crisis, but it kind of was in a way because I didn't know who I was.


And it would be a couple of years before I figured it out, but it was very interesting. So, it's been September, so it was 13 years since I smoked.


Jessi:

So, what were you doing during that identity crisis?


Caren:

Losing my ever loving mind. I at that at that point, I'm being honest because I didn't start inner work until 5 years ago. So I was losing my mind in the sense of like, “Who am I? I don't know who I am.”


But at the same time I had my children. I became a different identity. I became a working mom. So I switched like, “I'm a smoker” to “I'm a working mom.” So I give myself new identities. I wore the working mom title like a badge of honor. “I'm a working mom!” That's what it was.


I didn't know what to do. It was weird like when I couldn't take breaks and stuff like that for smoking. I didn't know what to do. Like it took me I want to say a good year to figure out my footing. And I just stumbled my way through to be perfectly transparent. I really just did.


I probably bitched, moaned and complained about it too. You know what I'm saying? Like because I didn't know any better then. But I mean I knew I didn't want to go back to smoking. It was weird.


And my ex had smoked for a year after I quit and then he got sick and then he stopped. And so I think that was helpful for me was him not smoking anymore either. Like it didn't bother me that he still smoked after I quit. It didn't matter to me. But like when he was done and I was done I was like well isn't this nice? Isn't this interesting? Like how we have all this extra time.


And at that point my kids were in sports. I didn't have to walk away from the field. My daughter was playing softball. My son was playing baseball. I could actually be in things and see things and not miss things. And no, “I have to go do this because I have to smoke.” And miss 20 minutes of something and try to catch up and stuff like that.


So, it actually became more enhancing to my life that I didn't realize that I was going to get that.


Jessi at midroll:


We will get back to the conversation in just a moment.

If you are listening to these stories and feeling like your own journey is stuck in a loop of broken promises, please know that you do not have to do this alone. I currently have some spots available for one-on-one coaching.

I work with people to help them move out of the cycle of smoking and into a life where they finally feel in control. We use a heart-led framework to address the deeper patterns so your success is actually sustainable.

If you are ready to commit to the work, apply now at honoryourheart.net/application. I would love to support you on your way to reconnecting to yourself and moving past smoking. Now, back to the story.



Jessi:

Yeah, there's so much more freedom and sometimes we just don't even know what to do with it. Like you said, like what am I going to do with this time?


So, I know you said that it took a couple years to actually start feeling better physically. Did you notice any other gains um with the short term or long term?


Caren:

I started my health journey after that. So, I quit smoking and then a few years after that, I actually was in network marketing for a health and wellness company for many, many years. And that gave me purpose.


I've always been everybody's therapist. I'm always the person people come to and talk to anyway. That's always been my forte. I always get, “I love your energy” and “I can't believe I told you that.” Always. And so, I finally channeled it to getting paid.


And so I started feeling better once I started my health journey. And then helping others along on this health journey and helping others along on their journeys of becoming and and letting go and identity evolution and regulating the nervous systems and all these things, that gave me this new form. And then I started doing the inner work on myself years later.


But like that was like, “Wait, I'm healthy now. I feel good.” My son, he's like, “Mom, can you come outside and throw the ball with me?” And I can say, “Yes Jordan let's go!” I hadn't realized what I was missing out on. You don't realize it because at the time you don't think anything of it. And my kids never mentioned it to me.


But like I was able to just do. I did freaking mud runs. I did like shit I never thought. In Brooklyn, when you like go over obstacles and things like that. Like it was not called the mud run but you were in the mud. Like I did one. I would never have thought. Like I was insane.


And I'm afraid height and the last thing was like this big hill thing. Like I am not even shitting you when I tell you this. The last freaking obstacle…and a lot of these obstacles you don't have to necessarily do. You can go around, but like this one you kind of had to do.


So like I had to climb up this fucking ladder and then I had to go like on cargo nets. But the adrenaline gets you. And you're with all these other lunatics who are doing these insane things too. I'm 4’11”. So people are lifting me up and shoving me up here. And who knows what's going on? It was amazing.


You get to the end of this like big inflatable lunacy thing and it's a big slide. And you just go down this slide and then you're done with this race. And it was fucking awesome. And I'm like, “I can't believe I did this.” Like it was craziness and it was all because of working out. It was all because stepping into that Zumba studio had led me to all of those things.


So while smoking gave me some sort of an identity. And it was fun and did its job in terms of that. I shifted my identity and it gave me new purpose and new adventures and new things that I was doing. And just new appreciation. I didn't have the wherewithal to have that appreciation. I honestly didn't.


I know a lot of Gen X. I know a lot of women like myself who don't because we weren't taught this way. We weren't taught to feel our feelings. We weren't taught many things. So we kind of just plowed through, pushed on. We were the strong ones. We basically buried everything and shrunk on it. And so I played that role for a really really long time. And not doing that opened my eyes to many, many things.


And most importantly, my freaking kids, man. Like I missed very little sporting events with my children even though I worked, I always tried to be at pretty much everything. And I was able to do that and not miss a lot of my things. He’ll be 20 on Saturday. Now my daughter's 24.


I mean, I was able to do that. And who knows if I would have been able or had the wherewithal if I had continued to smoke. Who the hell knows? But I know that I didn't have to because I was able to quit and channel it elsewhere.


Jessi:

Absolutely. I like how you pointed out that you can't even know what you're missing out on until you get to the other side. That's why it's so hard to get that motivation to quit. But when you look back, you can see everything you gained for it and be grateful for that change.


And I'm wondering about the inner work because I know you kind of had it separated that you quit smoking and then you started this inner work. Do you think that quitting smoking prepared you for that?


Caren:

One hundred percent, without question. Because I tell you it was a decision.


And it was interesting to me because when people who had quit smoking prior to me quitting smoking would say that, I would say, “How did you quit?” “I decided.” That was always the response that I got and I did not comprehend then. I had no idea what they actually meant.


And the truth is because I made the decision, it was like, “No I'm going to do this.” And so it didn't become something that was actually hard to do because I had decided to do it.


When my corporate career ended and I was becoming an entrepreneur, I found myself in another identity crisis. “Who am I if I'm not a working mom?” Similar to, “Who am I if I'm not a smoker?” See? Same same. You're just transferring it all over the place is really what's going on people.


And that's when my mentor Tracy Litt, she was like serendipitously on a call. And I started the inner work because I knew that I was the one holding myself back. I was still hiding a little bit. There were still moments, not smoking…


And even smoking. Like the discipline. Think about the discipline it takes to be a smoker. Like honestly, commitment.


Jessi:

Yes.


Caren:

It's a lot of fucking commitment to buy the cigarettes. Like I was never without a pack of cigarettes or I always knew, you know what I'm saying? It's like,, I'm 57. I pee all the time. I know where all the bathrooms are. It's the same thing.


Jessi:

[laughter]


Caren:

It's like I know everything, where cheap cigarettes were. So, it's a lot of commitment. It's a lot of knowing. It's a lot of wherewithal to be a smoker. It really is if you really think about it.


And so, same thing with deciding not to, making the decision not to. It's a lot of wherewithal. A lot of making the decision is, “I'm making the commitment.” The inner work is the same thing. It's the willingness. It's the commitment to do the work.


Anything you do, the work works when you work it. It doesn't matter if it's in work. It doesn't matter what it is. But if you're willing and committed to do the work, the work will work.


Jessi:

Well said. You've had a lot throughout your story, but for someone that's in it right now. They want to quit. Maybe they've tried and they feel like they can't, like they've failed. What words of advice would you have for them?


Caren:

That brings up a really amazing point and thank you for that question because the beating yourself up. The beating and the judging, ladies and gentlemen. It's yummy. It's so fun and I've been there, done that. So, I understand it.


I am not shaming you, by the way, and nor am I judging you. But here's what I will say. That's not helpful. It's just really not. Because if you truly want it and you truly make the decision to do so, it it will happen. And you're committed to doing it.


Just because you haven't done it yet doesn't mean you failed. I hate the negative connotations around all this shit by the way, too. Because you know what? I tried to quit a few times and I was like, "What's wrong with me?" Blah blah. There's nothing freaking wrong with you. Let me just say that off the bat. There's nothing, absolutely nothing wrong with you.


You're getting nicotine. It's a fucking addiction. Like, let's call it what it fucking is. It is an addiction. Same thing as a drug addiction. Same thing as alcohol. It's an addiction. You need the nicotine in order to survive. And it does take time and effort in order to make the change to not smoke anymore.


So give yourself a fucking break and give yourself some goddamn grace. The mere fact you even want to quit and are making any attempt to quit should be celebrated and not looked down upon. So that's my advice to you.


Jessi:

Wise words. I love that. It's really, really powerful. Thank you.


And I want to talk more about your work. You've mentioned it throughout this episode, but tell us more about specifically what you do and what services you provide. Because it sounds really interesting.


Caren:

I help women come home to themselves. I work with Gen X women mostly, but I can work with any woman or man for that matter. And really what I do is it's an identity evolution process.


Okay, so you're this person. You're this identity. But you have this belief about yourselves and these thoughts about yourselves. And it's all negative. It's not great. “I'm not enough. I'm not worthy.” Imposter syndrome and self-doubt and all that stuff about you.


And really, I help you come home to who you were before all the bullshit stories, all the conditioning, all the programming. I help you come home to who you were before the world turned you to be. That's what I do. So, it's an identity evolution process rooted in neuroscience, energetics, and somatics.


So, there's a lot of nervous system regulation. There's a lot of energetics. There's a lot of inner child healing that goes on and it's deep inner work. We get to the root cause of why you feel the way you feel about yourself. And then we understand that root cause and we rewire. We reprogram at the subconscious level so that you can change your thoughts and change your patterns and change from the negative to the positive. And understand your biology and understand what's actually going on in your body. And then become the person you were really truly meant to be. You.


Because there's nobody else in the world like you in this world, you know? And yes, it's an identity evolution. Yes, you evolve your identity. But you're evolving to who you were at the true core.


So you can show up boldly, confidently, authentically in a meeting, right? How many times you're in a business meeting and you don't answer because you're afraid of being seen. You think you know the answer but you don't really know the answer. Or as an entrepreneur you suffer from imposter syndrome which is really fear marked as procrastination.


So you know who you are at the core so that you show up that way. And things don't matter anymore because you're the cause and the effect. And so you can make your money. You could be in your business meetings and speak up confidently. You could be visible and not worry about being judged. You can post content on social media and not care what anybody else is thinking.


Because all the freaking keyboard warriors and all that shit is going to come at you and you be like, "Okay, your opinion is none of my business. You can have your opinion.” You're not going to be bothered by all the shit that's around you that bothers you currently. Because it's not going to matter.


Jessi:

Yeah, that's beautiful work. I've seen a lot of people struggle with that time, that midlife change. It's a transition and it's not something that we really talk about in our society. And I've seen people get stuck and spiral. So I think that's really really important work and very helpful.


And just that goal you have to get back to you. It's not about improving. It's about getting back to yourself. That's absolutely beautiful. Thank you.


Caren:

Yeah. Thank you. For my signature program is called unscrew yourself.


Jessi:

[laughter] I love that.


Caren:

Because I'm weird and I own my weirdness okay? Because you are. You're unscrewing yourself. So I have a signature program. Unscrew yourself. You can work with my signature program or I have like an hour long call or I have a 30-day VIP session. And I also have a private Facebook group called the Unscrew Yourself Women's Collective. Just come in and chat and things like that.


So, I'm really all about helping women, midlife women, show up as the disco balls that they are and shine bright like a freaking disco ball. Like there's no more hiding, no more shrinking. None of that. No more being stuck. Because being stuck, it's really the fear.


Our brains are wired for survival. So, like the minute we go to do something that we've never done before, our brains are like, "Nope, keep it the same." And that's why like January 15th, you'll see like three people at the gym, not the 400 that'll be in there now. Because the brain is like, "No, you're tired. You're this, you're that, you're whatever."


And most people don't understand how to welcome actually everything that's going on. And how the fact is that biologically speaking, our bodies are doing exactly what it's wired to do. And how we actually have the agency and the power within us. Like, you know, The Wizard of Oz, right? She has the power within her like Elphaba, “It's me”. You know what I'm saying?


It's like we all have the agency and the power within us to be like, “You know what? Yeah. Love that thought. Thanks for showing up, but I can change that thought and I can rewire that pattern.”


Jessi:

Yeah. And that applies perfectly to smoking as well.


Caren:

Exactly. And so I'm saying I didn't understand it at the time.


Jessi:

Right.


Caren:

But like you're a smoker. It's an identity. The truth is too with anything there's a grieving process.


Jessi:

Yeah.


Caren:

And like this year when we decided to sell my marital home and our marriage, we're now proceeding with the divorce. We had been separated for many years anyway. But like I didn't grieve anything yet. And all of a sudden I was like, “What!?”


And my friend told me that it was grief. I had no clue that's what it was. And so even though you're shifting your identity, you're losing who you thought you were, so to speak, there is a grief process that goes along with that. It's a beautiful yet also fucked up insane process. There are days that you're going to feel like you're dying. Like really truly.


I think about this all the time too like the caterpillar becoming the butterfly. It like literally sat in its own liquid and its own chrysalis. It's not the most comfortable of things. But the end result is this beautiful thing.


And so it's doing all the things we were never taught to do. Feeling the feelings and asking for support and receiving support and doing all of those things. And not being stuck where we are and not judging. There's no judgment. There's compassion.


And honestly, our little girls, right? Our little girls, that's why doing child healing. Our little girls come with us. We don't leave them behind.


But it equates to smoking because you're identifying as that person. If you're beating yourself up now because you can't quit or whatever it may be, give yourself grace. Give yourself compassion to be like, "When it's time and when I'm ready, I'll be able to quit. I'm willing to know that I'm going to be able to do this when it's time for me to do so. And I'm going to be okay with it and I'm going to understand it. And even if I do a little bit of grieving and crying about the fact that that's something that I lost, that's okay, too."


Jessi:

Thank you for mentioning that because it is a death in a way. But yeah, we get to be renewed. That's how we stay alive and thrive. And that's so important.


And you mentioned a Facebook group. Can you say that again? And where else can people get in touch with you?


Caren:

The Unscrew Yourself Women's Collective is my Facebook group. And people can get in touch with me on all the socials, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook. I'm Caren Cooper.


So yeah, just friend me and tell me that you listen to the podcast and things like that. My Facebook group is private, so you need the invite if you want me to let you in. I purposely did that. It's curated for a reason.


But yeah, just reach out. I'd be happy to have chats and have conversations and share more about what I do with the work, that kind of a thing.


Jessi:

Well, thank you so much for coming on and sharing your story, being honest. You know, it's not always pretty, but it's well worth it. And I think you show that. And I just appreciate you coming on.


Caren:

Thank you for having me. This was amazing. Amazing conversation. Thank you. You're doing amazing things with this, by the way.


Jessi:

Oh, I love it. Thank you.


Caren:

You're welcome.


Jessi:

Take care, everyone. See you next week.



End of Interview

Thank you so much for spending time with us today. I hope this episode reminded you that no matter how long you have been stuck, a new way of living is always possible.

I have some open coaching spots available right now for those who are ready to commit to their path of doing the inner work to quit smoking for good.

Head over to honoryourheart.net/application to apply now. I am looking forward to helping you move confidently forward.

Until next time, treat yourself with kindness and cherish the gifts of your heart.​