need help from FORMER SMOKERS!
Replies
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Read this book -
http://www.amazon.com/Allen-Carrs-Easy-Stop-Smoking/dp/0615482155/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1389376676&sr=8-1&keywords=allen+carr+the+easy+way+to+stop+smoking
It's worked for millions of people.
I quit 2 years ago after smoking a pack a day for 20 years. You can do this.0 -
Keep dowing your "downsizing." Allow yourself 6 cigarettes for two days, then 5 th next two days, then 4, etc.
I figured out why I liked smoking (beyond the nicotine addiction). I craved the buzz you get a.if something triggered a stress response or b. something triggered a pleasure response. You reach for the smokes when a problem is stumping you at work, you hear that your car needs $300 in repairs, etc. your brain identifies the cigarettes a s a coping mechanism b/c the buzz is making it feel good.
When you have that good meal, drink a beer or get some freaky time, you reach for the smokes b/c your brain likes the good feeling and wants ore. Cigs bump it to the next level.
You need to figure out a different coping mechanism. When stressed, don't smoke--eat some walnuts, take a walk, play Angry Birds or shoot some hoops. Do something physical to redirect and retrain your coping reflex. After that meal, eat a little dessert. After sex, hae more sex. Cut out the beer until you feel you can handle a beer w/o smoking. For me to quit, I had to give up alcohol for awhile until I got past the cravings. They will subside.
Also, tell yourself "this is simply a conditioned chemical response. I DO NOT NEED a cigarette, I just WANT one." Those things are crazy addictive. It takes willpower.0 -
I smoked for decades, finally got mad at the waste of health & money and bought some Nicorette gum. I've been "clean" now for 7 years. Clearly, everyone has a different success story, and I hope you find yours.0
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I quit smoking almost 6 years ago. I smoked almost 2 packs a day. I smoked for almost 30 yrs.....yes, I was a kid when I started. I wore a patch for 13 days #14 is still in the top drawer of my dresser. I realized I didn't know how to do anything without smoking. I had never driven a car without smoking, so I started chewing gum in the car. I didn't know what to do after I ate, so I had a cup of hot tea. Between loads of laundry or while the pans were soaking in the sink or when I wanted to pull my hair out ....a cup of hot tea. I don't have to chew gum or drink as much hot tea anymore, but I do lean on a cup when I get stressed about something. You can pick your own "replacement" to suit you. After about 2 weeks I smelt smoke for the first time because I grew up in a family of smokers.....yuck! Now I don't know how I ever smoked.
I guess I had incentive....I watched my grandmother and mother die from smoking. COPD and emphysema are a hard way to go. I'm scared of ventilators to this day. I'm not a preachy ex-smoker either. I wish you the best of luck and feel free to message me if I can help.0 -
I smoked for over 30 years. I ranged from half pack a day to 3! I tried every aid out there with no permanent success. I am at over 2 years smoke free but I made it to 3 years once. I guess I never believe I have truly quit so I never let my guard down. I view my addiction to nicotine like an addiction to any other drug. It is never ok to take another drag. This last time I quit cold turkey with no aids. The first few days are hell. You are not fit for exposure to others. Forewarn people around you and apologize in advance.
Accept you may gain a few pounds. I try to replace smoking with exercise so my weight has always stayed under pretty good control. But really, the most important thing is to quit so a few pounds shouldn't deter you. In time it will be better and you can lose them. I had a friend who ate oyster crackers instead of smoking and put on about 10 lbs which disappeared the next year.
It is probably one of the harder things you will ever do but it is possible. I managed to quit while my husband continued to smoke. He smokes in our cars and house so I never escaped it. All of my friends smoke. I am always surrounded by smokers. I have survived major surgery, several moves one of which was half way across the country then moving back several months later when we hated where we were, my husband having a bad accident and his continuing disability from that, unemployment, finals and a host of other stressors. My replacement addiction is running. It keeps me sane and pumps endorphins into my system so I can cope.
When you are ready, just take the plunge and grit your teeth. You can do it if you are determined.0 -
Cold turkey mostly, with the occasional piece of low dose nicotine gum if cravings got bad.0
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I quit when I got pregnant. :-) Probably not the best choice for you, so my suggestion is to go cold turkey. Buy lots of gum and fidgets to keep your fingers busy. Everytime you want a smoke, pop in a fresh piece of gum or a lollipop. Keep your mouth busy. The 1st week will SUCK, but if you REALLY want it you can do it! Good luck to you!0
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I recently quit smoking. It's been 4 months. It was probably the hardest thing I have ever done. You think you're a *****, u have no idea. I'm surprised I still have a fiance and my children still love me. You have to really want to quit, if u really want it then you can do it. I used the Blu ecig only if I had bad cravings, just a puff or two and used a "hookah" type ecig that has no nicotine just for the habit or if I was around people that were smoking. That angry feeling and that feeling like you lost your best friend will go away after a couple of weeks. I'm so happy I got through it, I feel like a brand new person! You can def do it. I also used this quit smoking app called Butt Out, the community on the app they were very helpful. Good luck!0
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Quitting smoking is much easier than losing weight. Not smoking gets easier with time, losing gets harder. You need to find a reason you want to quit that is important to you. Even if it is as simple as not dying young or saving money. Then truly believe in that reason every time you want to smoke. Also pick up a good habit to replace the bad. When you want to smoke do as many push ups as you can, take your mind off of it. If you make it a month or two cigs will start tasteing nasty again and you are good to go. I smoked 3 years, clean almost 3 now it isn't complicated, just do it.0
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If you hate smoking, then stop!? I smoked for 23 years, but hid it from family. I read the book 'how to stop smoking' by Alan Carr, finished the last page and never wanted a cigarette again. It just seemed so easy. I didn't like smoking. so I just decided not to do it anymore. Best thing I ever did.0
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I quit kind of cold turkey with a little help at the beginning. I didn't want to spend all that time and money on patches so I put on 1 nicotine patch as a kind of a security blanket I guess and left that 1 patch on for a week. The first 24 hours it helped with the cravings, by the second day I knew it probably wasn't doing much but it was a psychological thing for me to have the patch on anyway.
The other thing that was a huge motivator for me was the money side of it. Cigarettes are extremely expensive where I come from and the price just keeps going up. I worked out that if I quit smoking I could save around $7000 a year ($25 a pack, 5-6 times a week). I then wrote that figure down, along with a list of all the things I could buy with that money and put it somewhere I could see it as a constant reminder.
For the first week I plowed into the lollies, maybe not the best for the weight but it gave me something to do whenever I got a craving. I ate so many licorice and butterscotch lollies, but it definitely helped.
Good luck!
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Smoked for 17 years, successfully stayed off for 14 years.
I used the patch, but I didn't follow it's step down schedule, I stayed on one step as long as I needed until I'm ready for the next smaller dose. took me about 6-8 months all together. But I stopped from day 1, 0 cigarette.
What worked for me is that I know I care about my reputation, I'm the kind of guy that says when I say I will do something, I will do exactly that, So 6 mths before I start, I started telling the world that I will quit smoking, so if I fail, I will be a failure to everybody, to me that's unacceptable, And I have great friends that bet good money against my effort, and I took the pool. And the one guy that did bet $100 for 6 months, at the end, I've collected over $250 from my friends and I treated them to lunch. And 9 months into it, I took the money that I saved from buying cigarettes and got myself a new set of eyes (Iasik surgery) Not a bad tradeoff!
So the story is, do this and promise this effort to someone more important than yourself, Your spouse, your kids, God, whoever you think and not allow yourself to fail, because smoking less is still smoking.
Good Luck and hope this helps.0 -
Cold Turkey, in October 8 years ago.
i had smoked for over 15 years. I tried a few times to quit using gum, patches, slowly cutting back, wellbutrin....you name it, i tried it. none of it worked. It wasn't until i fully accepted that i was going to have to just suck it up & suffer that i was able to stick with it.
One day, on day 3 of my umpteenth attempt to quit, i got laid off of work & a close family member fell gravely ill. The urge to smoke an entire pack hit me like a ton of bricks. Instead of breaking down & lighting up, I decided that i was not going to let my addiction control me anymore, and that i couldn't use "times are tough" as an excuse to quit later. I had this nagging voice tell me that i had to follow through this time or i might never do it. So i stuck with it.
I'm not gonna lie, it was a miserable experience for me & everyone around me. Especially after I got the quitters flu 2nd-3rd week. it was awful. Headaches, body aches, feeling off balance....i also got a little bit of a cough for a few weeks but it cleared up soon. I gained a few lbs, but not a whole lot, probably about 4-5 lbs. and I had to learn how to manage stress on my own. My cigs were a crutch, i have anxiety and the drug withdrawal left me feeling kind of off kilter mentally. it took me months to get back to feeling "normal" again.
i just reminded myself that it was only temporary and in the long run i would feel better. The withdrawal symptoms are harsh but it kind of fueled my desire to quit even more. i channeled my grumpy B#$%#% attitude towards the thing that made me feel that way. I got angry at the cigarettes. sounds dumb, i know, but it worked.0 -
Cold turkey....and then I chewed a lot of pencil ends lol0
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Don't use people telling you go smoke as an excuse to start back up. Take responsibility for your behavior while quitting and don't use quitting as an excuse to be a *****.
Of course, if you really, really want to quit, you will.
*I smoked for over 20 years and have been quit for 7 years*
Exactly this.0 -
well I've quit 2 times... first for 2 years, then again 10 days ago, much easier this time, i knew what to expect!
I tried quitting quite a few times before with little success.. the thing is to keep trying, you want it bad enough and you'll make it happen...
some things to replace a cig...
dumdum suckers
hot cinnamon toothpicks (toothpicks and cinnamon oil)
one of the plans i tried was great for making me want the change...
brush your teeth after every meal, sugar free alcohol free cinnamon mouthwash after brushing, and unsweetened grapefruit juice whenever you have a craving....0 -
cold turkey.
Changed everything I did. stopped driving cause I smoked in the car. stopped going to bars. stopped drinking coffee. stopped doing crossword puzzles. stopped waiting for bus.
i was a miserable hermit for months, but it worked.
that was 20 years ago and am happy to say, can drive, wait for buses, drink coffee, do crossword puzzles, and thank god bars are non-smoking now!0 -
thanks guys, some of you offered some really good advice0
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Cold turkey
This.. I quit a little over 5 years ago. I got sick and wasn't able to smoke that day. I woke up the next day and thought if I can do it one day, let's try two.. I made it through!! So the next day I said, let's try three! 5 years later I wake up and say, let's try 1825! If I were to have just one, I would be a smoker again. I hated what it did to my health, but I liked smoking. It's tough, no lie, but it's sooo worth it. By day 3 my chest felt better, my throat felt better and there was no cough which was amazing!!
I compare quitting smoking to this losing weight thing. I have to push through the cravings, just like I did when I quit smoking. If I did that, I can surely lose weight!0 -
Started vaping. Accidentally quit smoking cigarettes.
I'm totally serious.0 -
Going on Day 2 smokefree for me. I am also doing cold turkey. I smoked the last cig out of my pack and that was it for me. Sometimes I feel like I am losing my mind because I have a strong oral/tangible fixation to be holding a smoke. So now when I want a cig, I reach for a few Jolly Rancher hard candies( you can pick what you like), cinnamon fire works for me. I will calculate the entire bag into my "diet" if I need less I can remove some. At least I can hit a treadmill to burn that off and help restore my body to a health state then, better than the damage you would do with cigs.
Just my 2cents, try using a hard candy to curb your cravings.0 -
I did it with an ecigg, eciggs can be a little stronger then real ciggs at first. If you ever go down that road again I can point you to the good ones.
^This
I saw my son pick up a cig. butt and imitate daddy (he was only 3) and That was it. bought a cheap ecig - it helped with the cravings and the habit of bringing it to your mouth or smoking while driving. That was back in march 2013 - with the exception of a night of fishing (helped keep mosquitos away) and the passing of my grandfather...been cig free ever since. I do have a cigar every now and again, but I never ever inhale! 0 -
I quit in 1999 after 2 to 3 packs a day. I went to a hypnotist that only did solo sessions. I walked out of his office a non smoker, so I know it worked for me. I was a jerk to everyone for about 2 weeks afterwards and I did gain weight. All things that can be fixed easily!
I wish you the best of luck on quitting!0 -
I took a day off, making a three day weekend. Threw my cigarettes away and walked for three days -- all day. While walking I thought about what I would do with the extra years in my life. After three days, my legs were sore, but I was a non-smoker.0
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I was a two to three pack a day smoker. I quit with the patch and considered myself a non smoker from day one rather than a person who was quitting. It always felt better to be definitive and over it instead of being in the process of quitting.0
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THIS IS WHAT WORKED FOR ME!!!
Smoked for 8 years I didn't like hair, house,clothes etc smelling like smoke. Also I could tell it was effecting me physically.
I simply prayed asked for strength to fight the craving went cold turkey 2 year later still smoke free. And loving it also saved lots of money. Good luck to you and anyone else struggling to quit.0 -
Two words: Cold turkey.
It is literally the only thing that worked for me. The ecigs just made me feel really sick. They hurt my stomach more than actual cigarettes ever did. The patch didn't work, the gum gave me terrible side effects (heart palpitations, sweating, stomach pains, etc), and all those 'quit quick' tricks were about as effective as those 'lose weight fast!' scams. I always ended up cranky and after a month would start smoking again. I was a pack a day smoker, too. At one point, i was a two pack a day smoker. The first time we went to Michigan in the winter, it was 0 degrees outside and I STILL went outside to smoke. That's how bad I was addicted.
I finally realized that I couldn't do it anymore. Part of why I got so inactive was because I was so out of breath most days that I didn't want to do anything except sit on the couch smoking. This time, though, I just quit cold turkey. I ate a lot of mints during this time. Often, it helps to keep your mouth occupied (that was the idea behind the gum in the first place, I'm sure). So, chewing on mints or something like Big Red gum helps a lot for the first few weeks. I, also, gnawed on a few straws. You will get cranky. That's normal. This part really helps if you have supportive friends. I'm sorry that it sounds like you don't. The best thing I can tell you is that if you feel yourself getting cranky, just take a breath and walk away.
Best of luck in however you decide to do it.0 -
Cold Turkey.
(what a strange phrase by the way )
I got sick for a week and couldn't smoke (food poisoning, bad enough to land me in hospital).
Once I was well again, all the cravings were gone. I tried to have a smoke (because hey, my mind said thats what you do, its who you are) and found that I hated the taste, smell and feel. So I just didn't do it any more.
Goes to show the physical cravings don't last long - a week tops. I think still getting angry after that is just an excuse to play up (sorry, honesty), and if your loved ones can't go a few days with you having a short temper while you do something that saves your life, then there might be other underlying issues there.
Best thing I ever did. Changed so much of my life that I never imagined it would.
Looks like majority of people that have had success went cold turkey! I think if you're "cutting down" but still smoking, you're just continuing the pain and cravings... your body will still crave what you're giving it, even if you're not giving it very often.
Yep occasionally I still get that "I think I'd like a smoke" feeling, but it passes quickly if I don't dwell on it. A glass of water, strange as it may sound, helps (smokes and water don't go well together, I never felt like water after a smoke and never felt like a smoke after water) .0 -
Quitting smoking is much easier than losing weight. Not smoking gets easier with time, losing gets harder. You need to find a reason you want to quit that is important to you. Even if it is as simple as not dying young or saving money. Then truly believe in that reason every time you want to smoke. Also pick up a good habit to replace the bad. When you want to smoke do as many push ups as you can, take your mind off of it. If you make it a month or two cigs will start tasteing nasty again and you are good to go. I smoked 3 years, clean almost 3 now it isn't complicated, just do it.
You're absolutely right. I am having SO much more trouble quitting bad food, than I did quitting smoking. I guess because you don't need to smoke to live, so you can just give it up. Eating, you have to eat and always make good choices. I have no willpower yet
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I quit in August of 2009 and I went cold turkey. I was actually deployed (which can be stressful and make you want to smoke) but it was so dag on hot that I said I was done smoking. I just got my husband to quit smoking a little over a year ago. You can do it. You just have to WANT to do it!0
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