Any other ex smokers out there?

andympanda

First off I am not trying to make excuses. I have been off cigarets for 13 months, and off nicotine replacement therapy for about 10 months. several times a day I still I get urges to smoke or have something in my mouth( i.e. food). I have been losing weight. I do not want to stop my progress because of another former bad habit. I am trying to stay strong and on tack. What I want to know is if and when do the urges go away for good?

fish2find

I quit "cloves" a couple years back and gained a ton of weight, now Im fixing the weight part. Being mindful of this is a awesome step in the right direction and I think MFP is a great tool for that gaining weight battle. I wish I had noticed myself sooner and acted faster.
I quit using Zyban but the reality was they outlawed cloves and gave us these nasty clove cigars to replace it with so it was bound to happen. I quit "real" cigarettes 20 plus years ago and don't miss those nasty things.
I cant say exactly when my urges went away cause I replaced them with food and still feel hungry much of my days.

I_Will_End_You

I'm a cheater, I use an e-cig.

minkky

I've been quit about two years from all nicotine. I still have the urge on a weekly basis but it goes away quickly. I read this website called whyquit. That guy is hardcore, but it helped inspire and motivate me. Also, identify your triggers. I didn't sit out in my back porch, where I used to smoke, for over a year.
Stick with it! To this day I count it as my greatest accomplishment. If I can do that, I can lose this weight too!!

dbrhseny1

I am in the process of quitting now. Lots of exercise help my cravings along with water or a toothpick. It's funny but the exercise actually makes me want to control my food intake and not smoke.

andympanda

dbrhseny1 wrote: »

I am in the process of quitting now. Lots of exercise help my cravings along with water or a toothpick. It's funny but the exercise actually makes me want to control my food intake and not smoke.

I used to go for walks, and sneak cigarettes. It is often a reminder of my smoking day, and is a mental triger. I keep up the walking for exercise sake, and all the other health reasons to do so.

D_squareG

I quit smoking 30 years ago. I was smoke free for 15 years and then I had one at a bar with a friend and that was the beginning of 10 more years of smoking. I gave it up again 5 years ago now and I can honestly say that the fear of what smoking does to my body is enough motivation to not smoke. The first time I quit, I craved it. The second time, I realize that if I have just one, I'll be hooked and I will die from smoking. I honestly don't crave smoking now. I see it for the dangerous habit it is.

andympanda

D_squareG wrote: »

I quit smoking 30 years ago. I was smoke free for 15 years and then I had one at a bar with a friend and that was the beginning of 10 more years of smoking. I gave it up again 5 years ago now and I can honestly say that the fear of what smoking does to my body is enough motivation to not smoke. The first time I quit, I craved it. The second time, I realize that if I have just one, I'll be hooked and I will die from smoking. I honestly don't crave smoking now. I see it for the dangerous habit it is.

That is what i am afraid of. I am hoping the craving will go away, so i am not tempted to smoke or over eat to composite. I am doing fine so far, but some peace of mind would be nice.

dbrhseny1

I guess the more I try to add movement to my life the more relaxed and peaceful I feel, even if it's something as simple as dancing to my favorite song.

D_squareG

Hang in there. It gets better.

inked_Calimom82

I smoked for about 15 years, tried quitting a few times (basically while
I was pregnant), but fell back into it after having each kid. I finally quit just cold turkey in 2009, smoking my final cigarette the day after my bday in June. I have been smoke free for 6 years now I got lucky because the smell of smoke disgusts me now! Never craved a cigarette after I quit.

shrinkingletters

I broke at one point on a trip. otherwise I've been smoke free for over a year. The urges only come up at this point when I'm out and have one too many drinks, which isn't something that happens often these days. It took a while to get there, though.

ninerbuff

I quit cold turkey in winter of 2003. I promised my wife that when she got pregnant I would and knew I would keep that promise because it was VERY IMPORTANT to me. I did dream about smoking for about 2 weeks straight, but it slowly subsided. I didn't gain excess weight, but I did become more fidgety because it helped. Anyway, I've been smoke free from more than 11 years now and believe that it can be done IF it's something you REALLY WANT to do.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

mojohowitz

I smoked form the age of 13 until I was 30. I had to minimize my exposure to my tiggers which were fatty foods, carbs, other smokers, alcohol and driving for a solid year. The cravings will diminish but I'm not sure they ever go away. I still get the occasional adrenalin jolt when I pass other smokers or see it on tv but it's not overwhelming and passes quickly. E-cigs are not the answer because you are still addicted.

I found running actually helped reduce cravings after my lungs started to get pink again.

The other thing that helped me was when a friend of mine (a psychologist in the hospital where I worked) explained the Freudian-ness of smoking. It's basically regression behavior going back to thumb sucking and ultimately teet-suckling. There may be something subconsciously making you feel vulnerable and not-safe. Then again, it was Freud who said sometimes a cigar(ette) is just a cigar(ette).

Good luck mate. Welcome to the non-smoking world.

Jebber99

Try hypnosis. You can get hypnosis sessions on MP3 at Amazon. Probably I tunes too. They are very inexpensive. Load it into your phone and relax and listen to it as often as possible. It will give you reinforcement. You can get sessions for quitting smoking and for weight loss. Some are better than others. They are cheap enough that you can do trial and error. I quit using hypnosis and didn't gain any significant weight.

Another tip is that I always have a drink with a straw with me. I get plenty of fluids and the straw helps.