anyone quitting smoking?

SpectreFiend

It can be hard, that is for sure. I personally have a very strong - what most people like to refer to as - Addictive Personality.

The first time I was successfully able to quit was approx. 4-5 yrs ago when I had to have all of my wisdom teeth removed. The Dentist highly recommended that I quit smoking or at the very least, not smoke for a few days - weeks and then proceeded to explain to me what "Dry Socket" was. My eyes lit up and I replied "F- that!" and promptly threw away my pack of smokes.

Over the next few days, in quite a lot of pain, mouth full of cotton and some good drugs, I managed to "get over it" and for about 6 months was clean. After few weeks I was going out with the boys and getting into some heavy drinking and mischief, I was still in control and did not smoke.. one night I went through a bottle of Jack, all my friends are there drinking and smoking, I didn't even touch one... However this did not last and I went back to my old ways..

Fast forward to Nov. '12, my girlfriend (and now wife, a non-smoker) introduced me to the world of "E-Cigs". I have been on them since, never looked back. Just the other day we walked by someone smoking and the smell made me slightly ill, I looked at him and just thought to myself "thank god I am not him anymore" the wife knew what I was thinking, smiled at me and gave me a little hug.

You should give all you can to giving up the cancer sticks. I am happy at the moment where I am just being on the E-Cig but would still like to give that up too.

I know that for myself and a lot of others though, when you do give up, you gain a bit of weight, some flab.. I plumped up quite a bit when I got off the ciggies both times, but I expected that and now doing my best to get myself healthy and fit.

Again, this was just me personally but, this is how it goes for me: The first 2 days are the worst, once I got passed them, it got easier. The 2 week mark will make you realize you have done a wonderful thing, then on the 4th week you will have to actually remind yourself "Oh that's right, I used to smoke.."

Granted I do have a substitute this time around but not the 1st. This is also not the only thing I have had to quit in my life that I was heavily addicted to yet it was the same story, 2 days of pain, physical and mental "torment" but once I got over that hump, getting to the 2 week mark wasn't terribly hard.

I have never heard of the book the others have suggested but I would definitely get my hands on a copy, quit those damn things! But just know that there are always alternatives, do the best you can and if you can't manage yet to just go cold turkey, look for something else, gum, patches, e-cig.. don't beat yourself up, pick yourself up.

Friends, family, support networks.. people are here for you, we know what you are about to face and want to help you.

Good luck, you can do it.

Hiker_Rob

I smoked for about 30 years and quit after reading Allen Carr's book, I bought the book for every smoker I knew and some of them also quit. 6 months later I was smoking again and kept going for years, however, unlike his words of; if you start again you will be smoking forever, I did eventually quit.

When I quit it was truly of my own resolve in life, I wanted to quit (not *desperate* to quit - but wanted to) and I did. I took each day on it's own and after a few weeks it got easier and easier. I had good days and bad, but no horrible ones because I was my reason for quitting, not the dozen or two other reasons, just me. My mantra, if you want to call it that was: if you ever smoke again you *will* be doing it for life! I did gain weight because I did not care what it took to quit but I was a very overweight smoker to begin with.

10 months after quitting I was the heaviest I have ever been and I decided a big change was needed, a lifestyle change. Quitting smoking was the first step, then came loosing weight, however if I knew then what I know now, I might have done both at the same time. A healthy life style change is what I needed, exercise, healthy eating and obviously no smoking. Since I began my new life style things have never been better, I don't 'work out' but I do get exercise almost every day by walking and/or biking. I eat better foods, less sugar, less fat, more greens and 'colorful foods', a way more balanced diet.

I enjoy life more now, I rarely ever think about smoking (almost 2 years) and I know with absoluteness that I will never smoke again. I can walk upstairs with out getting winded, I am healthier, my high blood pressure has dropped to closer to 'normal'.

LIFE IS GOOD!

journey2myskinny

Hey there! I quit smoking Sept 4, 2012 using Chantix and I never had 1 craving! It was sooooo easy! But the key is finishing your entire prescription of pills to lessen your chances of going back. I can't say enough good things about it. Everyone says "Oh I heard it makes you have nightmares". No, not nightmares. It can make you have strange dreams or what seem like dreams in color but nothing scary. It's so worth it! The only time I would NOT recommend it to someone is if you have a tendency of depression only because it can increase those feelings of depression.

Soulpaint

I quit in May after 16 years of smoking. I've lost 22 pounds as well so it can be done! I just found it impossible to focus on my health in a real way if I continued to smoke. I feel great...don't crave them anymore except very rarely (like at a party sometimes) but I honestly can't even see myself as a smoker. Can't believe I smoked a pack or more a day for so long....seems like that was someone else. The first few weeks are hard but you can get through it....it's worth it! I found coffee straws to be an enormous help and would chew on them/walk around with one in my mouth because it helped me get past the 'hand to mouth' habit without picking up or holding a cigarette.

P.S. I worked in the tobacco industry for over a decade. If I can quit....you can too...good luck!

punkinkat

The Dentist highly recommended that I quit smoking or at the very least, not smoke for a few days - weeks and then proceeded to explain to me what "Dry Socket" was. My eyes lit up and I replied "F- that!" and promptly threw away my pack of smokes.

I had a dry socket once... from smoking after dental surgery. It was every bit as horrific as it sounds, folks. The treatment was even more awful! Listen to your docs, kiddos!

bada_bing

My quit meter says......2 years, 6 months.......quit the nasty habit after 40+ years (pretty much my whole lifetime except for 13 years). I had one previous quit of 10 months and then picked up again while on a vacation. Stupidest thing I ever did, then proceeded to wait another 5 years before obtaining a prescription for champix (chantix) and going the route. Not easy but totally attainable.

For folks who are interested in quit buddies and more information than you even want to know (lol), I would recommend a forum of reformed smokers who are quitting, who have quit, or who are yelling for help to get through a crave(lol). I have belonged to this forum since about day 10 of my quit and trust me, there are some unbelievably helpful people on there. From veterans to newbies, it is a great community and I contribute Allen Carr's book, (it is downloadable free...just google it), the forum and champix as an NRT for 6 weeks.

Check out the smoking cessation forum at http://quitsmoking.about.com/....it will be worth it to your quit. We all know how much support can help to attain our goals, be it diet or smoking. My posting name on there is Need Freedom.

nrobenolt

I quit cold turkey almost 5 years ago......its not easy but you can do it, good luck!

HulkDiesel77

Well I am totally smoke free at this point. I quit on Aug. 18th, 2012 so its been about 6 weeks for so. I quit cold turkey no medicaitons special patchs or anything and let me tell you it was hard but not impossiable. Prepare yourself for changes in your mood and inablity to sleep well for a few weeks while all the toxins leave your body. When you experience this just look at it as a positive and no that is your bodies way of getting rid of the crap it no longer needs. Best of luck to you and remeber if you really want it and want it for the right reasons you will be sucessful

smesche

I quit cold turkey on July 16th of this year. I was going to the gym and it was just NOT working for me. I couldn't breathe on the cardio machines and I just felt ick all the time. My husband, Mom and I decided we were done. We threw out everything and that was it. Surprisingly, I haven't thought twice about it. I guess I finally reached that point where I did not want to do it anymore.

Good luck!

Solomino

I did just what you are doing. I quit 32 days ago cold turkey after 35 years. I found this website and started logging in my food two weeks ago and I started walking for one hour everyday.

For the smoking. Cold turkey is the only way. Tobacco stays in your system for 7 days. The hard part is the associations. Trust me, if you have a craving and you entertain that craving, you will be doomed. Know that when a craving hits and you choose to take a breath and let it go, it will disappear just as fast as it came. It's tough, I know but oh it is sooooo good you quit. I didn't check where you live before responding to your post but here in Ontario, a pack of cigarettes are over $11.00

Think about never having to stand outside in the rain or when it is freezing and snowing ever again with the rest of the smokers. There is great freedom from not smoking.

Good for you. I know you can do it.

sandikegz

I am 1 year, 36 weeks, 2 days, 5 hours, 44 minutes and some odd seconds free of cigarettes.

By not smoking 9,288.59 cigarettes, I have saved $3,467.72. I have never heard of the Alan Carr book, but it sounds cool. What it took for me was watching a co-worker die of lung cancer and my desire to start a family. Unfortunately, the years of smoking may have prematurely aged me to the point that I am now struggling with infertility.

Please stop smoking now. If you need help, don't be afraid to use nicotine replacements. For me, I used the patch and Wellbutrin. I have a history of depression so Chantix wasn't an option. I will tell you that since I've quit, the benefits have been tremendous. I didn't even like food before I quit. Now I'm eating things I would never even put into my mouth before. I'm in the best shape of my life and seriously look back on my years of smoking and say, like others in this thread have mentioned..."what the hell was I thinking".

I wish you the best of luck! Feel free to send me a friend invite so that I can support you along the way. You can do this!!! Trust me, anyone can beat that disgusting habit!

mishlll

Ok - I have been puttin it off but I'm getting the book for sure!

Coyoteskye

I am 2 weeks quit as of today! I figured since I had been doing well on the diet front, I needed to wholly continue with the healthy lifestyle thing. Plus, I want to graduate from fast walking to running and couldn't breathe so the smokes needed to go. I haven't smoked AT ALL since last Monday. Check out whyquit.com, it's been a huge help. My biggest issue right now is emotional. I started smoking at the age of 13 and I'm now 38. That means for the last 25 years, my ENTIRE adult life, I have had this crutch. Anytime upset, angry, ANYTHING...called for a cigarette. Or fattening, sugary comfort food. Those are no longer options and I am struggling to find an outlet, a comfort, something. It's almost like I have to re-learn how to BE. This is one heckuva a transformation.

Kari121869

I've been psyching myself up to quit for the past few months... my biggest fear and deterant is I'm SO afraid of gaining weight.!! I know that's far less a problem health wise than smoking - but with my impending wedding coming up next July - which is one of my reasons for realling pushing to get healthier - weight wise - I'm so afraid all the hard work I've put into loosing the 17lbs I've lost will be for 'not' if I gain it back...

I know - stupid reasons not to quit... I DO know that I keep giving myself more reasons each day to quit - and I can feel that my mind/body are almost on the same level so that I can actually do it for good this time....

Planning on quitting by the end of the month - presently I'm slowing down on how much I smoke, trying to 'wean' myself off I guess... would love some support and offer it to others... add me if you'd like.

CharlotteAnneUK

I quit August last year. I had the patches but as a light smoker I was on the lowest patches and did not use anything else. My husband quit with me and he had stronger patches and the inhailer. neither one of us have touched a cigerette since our quit date, we didnt even do the cut down thing.

At work I found I missed it first, but I took up going to hte gym or running around the lake a distraction from it and noticed quite quickly how easier it was to run 3 miles. My husband notices it too when we go out on the bikes together.

Its not going to be easy, but nothing worth whilst is. We went on a 26 mile bike ride about 2 days after our quit date, I recall stopping and bursting into tears because I could not go on any more, now 26 miles on the bike (hill dependant) is a breeze.

The first step is making the decision to take the step, stoptober is a great time as there is an excess of support.

GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE DOING IT....

DonaGail

I quit a few months ago, I just cant smoke even though I love it. My respiritory system cant handle it, I get bronchitis so easily.
When Im stressed or mad I really want one but if theyre not handy I can resist.
Good luck!

shadow9193

I quit June 4, 2013 and to date have not touched any nicotine. I must say when I did it, I had a plan and so far so good.

Hiker_Rob

Could not resist adding my smoking stats after sandykegs posting.

From my 'my last cigarette' app:
I've been a non smoker for 1 year, 224days, 19hours.
$7255 saved
17,694 cigarettes not smoked

joni92258

I am one week smoke-free today. I have quit many times before, once for two years. Always went back to the bad habit. I am totally determined this time. I promised my soon to be husband that I would be smoke-free for the wedding (10/26). I am using the patch and lozenges (did a lot of research this time). I tried Chantix in the past but it made me terribly sick. Sites like this really help me when I am having a craving! Someone told me that it takes three weeks to break or make a habit - I'm 1/3 of the way there!!!