Are there any smokers out there.... Well, let's eliminate th

MamaJess

Here is a new challenge. One that I have not yet seen. and I think this one could be great for many of us. I know that there a re a few of us that are smokers. Well, it is really hard to reach your fitness goals when you keep taking breaks because you are winded or you get sick easier because you are a smoker. Lets have a let's stop smoking challenge. We can encourage one another and give each other helpful tips and advice on how to quit and what has made things easier for us. Or what things have made it harder and so on.
If you are a smoker and truly want to be healthier and happier please join me on this quest for health and happiness.

verbifyvenus

I wasn't much of a smoker to begin with, but I am trying to quit completely.

My weakness is when I drink :grumble:

Feel free to add me as a friend for support.

ana70

I have quit many times but my weakness is when I drink too. I am trying to reduce the amount I smoke and have done so by 50%. Add me too!

kristybenner

I smoke 1 to 2 cigs a day. some days none... but put a drink in my hand and there better be a full pack with my name on it....this is a habbit that I cannot quit... I used to smoke half a pack a day a few years ago. I dont have a good method for quitting. my sister tried the pill thing from her dr. it seems to work until she drinks. but she was a heavy daily smoker a pack plus a day.

ashley_h10

the one thing that helped me quit smoking was this book called the easy way to quit smoking by allen carr! SERIOUSLY, i just quit no problem after smoking for about 7 years...unfortunately i started again BUT it was because i went out drinking I went from 1/2 pack a day to 2 cigs a day thats def better than nothing!

seriously though, the book is AWESOME!

paula7893

Please add me to your friends list, I need help. Hae smoked on and off since I was 18. Quit for 6 years and started back again about 3 years ago, now at least 1+ packs a day... I need strength...

cfolsen

Hi i quit in Feb 2010 I used the new E cig they are the best, I bought mine and never picked up a real one since

janjenva

I am with you! Drinking definitely makes it worse. But, if I am on this quest to lose weight I might as well stop smoking, too! Let's stick together!

MamaJess

Well, I tried to quit Friday and realized that I was an idiot. I definently won't be able to quit on a weekend. I am not a drinker so that doesn't effect me but With all 6 kids here and my husband home all weekend. That won't work. I am going to start on monday. I have done a lot of research and they say the ones who just quit conld turkey are more successful so I am going to give that a try. I just want to be able to breath with out feeling like I am being suffocated.

oats4breakfast

There is no "I've quit X times so I'll try again". You've never quit, you're still smoking.

I quit smoking January 9th this year. I don't even think about cigarettes any more. Even blind drunk binge drinking or any other triggers that have been listed or got me in the past. (I've been on the benders and are still amazed I didn't even consider a smoke). I can stand with the smokers at work on their smoke breaks and be fine ... actually, I am not fine because I don't like the smell etc. It really is disgusting, stings my eyes in fact. I drive in a golf cart with guys who chain smoke or puff on cigars etc. No problem.
My smoking history was about 1 pack a day for about 8 years with the 10 years leading up to those 8 years starting at that "1 or 2 a day" and "only when drinking" nonsense. When I played golf though, which is at least 3 times a week, I'd have a cigarette constantly going. So at least 18 a round (so on those days, I was 2 packs a day). I had "quit" easily two times every year .... which means I never actually quit eh ? It was anything and everything that would get me back smoking. Perhaps I got rained on, perhaps I argued with my wife, perhaps I was drinking, perhaps I was simply standing outside waiting for a taxi. You name it, it was there just waiting for me for every move I made.

So, I know this time is different.

I used an app on my iPhone. It cost $7.99. It's called "Quit Smoking by Max Kirsten". Believe all the reviews. They mirror my experience.
I didn't even really try to quit either. I had 3 packets of cigarettes in my car, which would ordinarily last 3 days. I downloaded the app as a try, because why not, I'd get that money back if I simply did not smoke two packs. I had experienced NLP in the past for other things and figured, what the heck. You listen to this crazy subliminal talking once a week for about 50 minutes (when going to bed) that relaxes you and then bombards you with "smoking is bad messages. Then you listen to a maintenance version that lasts 30 minutes or something for 6 days. Then back to the main one, and so on. When you want a cigarette, you learn to breath (just like controlling hunger pangs and/or nerves when racing or other sports endeavours). Anyway. Long story longer, it took me about 6 days to finish those 3 packs of smokes - that in itself was amazing. They tasted awfull but as a smoker, I was finishing the damn things. I choked them down but starting throwing them away shortly after lighting up. Never two in a row (which was becoming more and more frequent). Once they were done, I stopped. Now, I did drink about 3 gallons of OJ a day the first 3 or 4 days (you'll learn about this) but after that, I was pretty much done. In fact, it was easy because EVERYTHING smelt disgusting. Even someone's deoderant from 200 feet away LOL. I listened to the app for about 3-4 more weeks and that's it.
Now, I don't even consider smoking. Occasionally I may think it would be nice to have a cigarette, but I realize it's boredom and I can "chillax" without one .... I honestly don't even consider smoking.
It's amazing. I'm not trying to sell this app, just sharing. It may or may not help anyone. It's as close to magic as anything I experienced. I'm not even sure I was hypnotized by it as there were times I fell asleep and didn't recall anything (but in NLP, "as you are aware you are aware"), other times I'd be lying there thinking this is crazy and is it working, and other times I'd wake up with a start at the end (when he snaps you out of it). The few main side effects were as follows:
1. I slept great most nights I listened to this
2. I experienced a bit of sensory overload for a while where my thoughts and sentences were a little jumbled, I just had to slow down a bit (this lasted a couple of weeks, it's like I had to re-wire my brain)
3. I'm saving money in excess of the cigarettes too (cigs @ $5 a day, is now $1120 + all the extra crap), because I no longer stop at the gas station every other day and buy a chocolate bar and some smokes etc.
4. My wife is happier, she has also forgotten what it's like to live with a smoker and kiss an ashtray... and it makes my decision easier too.
5. When I see old smokers on TV or simply around, it helps resolve/reaffirm my decision everytime, because they look f'en terrible (it's kind of like since I've lost weight, other people seem fatter now ??? Anyone notice that?)
6. The obvious of stop smoking with the loss of horrible tastes in the morning, or weird sounds coming from within chest cavity, the flem, the smell of my clothes, my wife's complaints, tiny little burn holes in my clothing.
7. I'm not really friggen efficient at work, I get everything done in about 3-4 hours now ..... my boss has noticed too, so now he's even more relaxed about when I shoot of to the golf course
8. Occasionally, I'd become a dragon when something set me off, but at the same time, I also warned everyone about what I was doing ... the breathing and the OJ helped a ton here. I didn't want a cigarette, but would just get super flustered really fast for a few seconds. It took about 1 entire month before I didn't almost piss my pants when someone moved my piece of cheese

I honestly couldn't care a less if someone else does or does not smoke. It's their decision just like it was mine. I haven't became a born again smoker or anything crazy. I just feel like I was never a smoker .

So good luck everyone. Keep trying if one way fails. It's just like dieting, one step at a time and change your habits. This worked like magic for me, but I also believe I was 100% ready this time ... after 200 tries, something's gotta click.
Even though I do believe I'm done with cigarettes forever and never think about it or can't imagine smoking again (no thanks, been there, done that. Was fun for a while but mostly not). I understand that 10 years from now something might happen and I may have the urge to smoke ... but every day up until then, I plan on affirming my decison and making sure I have an ounce of courage to combat it. Just like not adding back the 27 pounds lost - I imagine it's the same feeling/liberation from the extra weight peopl eexperience - you're no longer a slave and just can't imagine why you were there. I'm still cautious about what I say and think and seem to have an inner voice that helps. I ensure I never vocalize that "a cigarette smells good" or "I'd love one right now". It doesn't seem to happen anymore, but I still self check myself and never vocalize those thoughts ... because it's very powerfull to hear yourself say what you're thinking. It's better to simply let the thought be, and not feed it (but acknowledging it by saying out loud etc).

You either quit, or you haven't. If "you've quit" but are still sneaking that one ciggy or puff a day ... then you haven't quit. All you're doing is delaying the enevitable. Smoking the same as you once did. You're also not fooling anyone, including yourself when you say you've quit but you still have the secret stash of smokes and bump one every now and then from someone.

I think some more advice for this thread too:

Whatever method you use. Patches, cold turkey, electric cigarettes etc. Don't joke about it like "oh yea I've really quit this time again ... until I start again ha ha ha ha " etc. Or that " don't quit on friday failure" stuff. certainly, it makes sense to start quit when you can devote the appropriate quality time to it ... but seriously don't willy nilly this. It will only make it harder in th elong run.
In the real world, don't voice any garbage outloud. Anything that you don't want to be true ... like that smoke smelling good, or wishing you had one, or I just want to hold it, keep it to yourself and spin it in positive light when talking to each other. In this 2D online world, try not to degrade this into a laugh about all the ways it's easy to fail and "try to quit".
If it's that important to you all, don't drink for a while. Change your habits and seriously expect it to be hard. It's worth it. (OJ does help the nicotine withdrawls though).

Oh yea, this site helped me from gaining weight after quitting too. Keep tracking those cals and it'll be win win ! Don't give in/up everything because you're felling shietty for a couple of days (give yourself a break on the OJ though, drink the heck out of it and then stop). Track track track track those cals still so that you don't start to binge eat etc and undo any sucess you've had on MFP by doing another positive thing and quitting that horrible habit of yours.

EDIT: Add:
I had already quit smoking in my car .... I smoked like a junky before and after driving sure, and would sometimes stop for a smoke (much to my wife's delight). But I had already quit that seemingly reflex action of lighting up whenever you got in the car. Regardless if you felt like it or not. keys go in ignition, cigarette into mouth, flame to cigarette, start up car. Nonsense and pathetic really. All I did here, was buy a new car .......... I know that's not a doable thing for everyone, but I had under my own steam already purged that habit since 2006. It may well have made my life easier when I quit too.

So, make a note of everywhere and everything that could trigger you smoking, and keep it handy and be ready for it (forever).