12.5 hours so far without a cig

Helice

wtg!! you can do it!

ajfranzen77

Good For You! Keep it up, you will be so happy when it's not controlling your life. Be prepared though, you will cough and it's going to hurt and you will get crabby withdraws suck. Have some healthy things to snack on. I used pretzel sticks and carrot sticks when I quit and held them like I would a cig!

14 days and the nicotine will be out of your system! I know it seems a long way away, But you can do it!!!!!!

Your doing an AWESOME JOB!!!!!!

nikkircaddell

Thanks all!

jarrettd

In 5 days, I will be quit 3 months. I still have days, believe me, when I want one sooooo bad. When stress, a leaky sink, a couple of fighting kids, a grumpy spouse, or a flat tire make me wish for a cigarette, I just have to stop and ask myself "In what way would a cigarette solve this problem?" If I ever get a sensible answer, then I guess I'll smoke, but until then....KEEP ON KEEPING ON!!!

shellshell43

Great job but I knew there was a non smoker inside of you just waiting to get out!!!!

Remember the cravings only last for three minutes at a time...if you can occupy yourself for each of those three minutes then you are doing well...

I posted last night that I used to do jumping jacks whenever I had a strong craving that was enough to occupy myself until the nicotine receptors stopped screaming in my head to light up (jumping jacks released adrenaline in my body similar to the type of adrenaline increase that nicotine gave)

Or you could blast a favorite song and dance or sing through it to keep you busy during that three minutes (studies have SUGGESTED that music elevates the dopamine levels in the brain, this is the same type of effect nicotine plays on the brain, so music is a a good substitute) ....most anything healthy to do during each of those three minutes would be good.

do anything except eating...that's one habit you don't want to replace it with...water is good though.

Also today those nicotine receptors are going to be on high demand because it's the first day and they are wondering why the Heck you're not giving them what they want...think of the cravings as your brain throwing a temper tantrum and don't give in to them...remember the less nicotine in your system the less the receptors cry out for it....and each day the receptors in your brain will get used to you not feeding the nicotine and they will start to quit down...that's one important thing to remember...while your brain may be screaming for nicotine like wild today...tomorrow it will be less and the next day even less...so these crazy cravings DO NOT LAST!

Papillon22

Great job! Your body has already started healing itself!

You can read it here:

http://www.articlesbase.com/quit-smoking-articles/health-after-smoking-98139.html#axzz1PdIH1t88

Keep up the good work! :flowerforyou:

chicpower1

Same here. 10 hours without a cigg.

chicpower1

Assuming you're like me and have quit before--or at least tried--do you find yourself tired? Historically once the nicotine levels have begun to drop I've found myself EXHAUSTED and sleepy. Sleeping through it is not an option since I'm home with 2 young children, but it's nothing a GoJoe shot (sugar free and calorie free) couldn't assist with. LOL. Now.....it's just a matter of getting the shot without giving in to temptation to buy the ciggs. I might just need to do without the shot.

shellshell43

To help me stop craving a cigarette every time I had my coffee I changed to a flavored coffee creamer this made the experience just different enough that I could disassociate it (just enough to help) from the cigarette and coffee habit...may not work for everyone but it's worth a try..

nikkircaddell

I thought it would help having my bf out of town since he smokes too but it just seems to be making it worse. I feel like ive been deserted when i need him most. It's like i had the cigs for company and now I have nothing. I know they arent the kind of company I should be wanting but thats how it feels.

chicpower1

I'm starting to feel the withdrawal now too. I hopped up and did a load of dishes and that got me through the first bad craving, but now the fatigue is setting in. I get soooooooooooooo tired. My lungs are starting to feel "different", only way I know to explain it, and I'm starting to cough and hack a bit. For me the worst part is actually the fatigue. It's all I can do to keep my eyes open. LOL. Trying to use my own stubborness to get through this.

nikkircaddell

i wish i could sleep but im not used to sleeping alone so i keep getting back up.

sbwood888

Stay strong! You can do it. Your lungs will thank you. Your skin will look fresher. Your hair will smell good like shampoo. Your wallet will thank you! It is soooo worth the struggle! :flowerforyou:

nmescalera

Awesome Job!!!! Keep it up. You are doing such a good thing for your body!!!! :flowerforyou:

tamalea

Great job! It's been 6 years for me. It gets easier and you will feel so much healthier.

pmtreasurechest

Good job. I quit a year and a half ago. Go to quitnet.com. It is free and it helps.

Thriceshy

I quit over five-and-a-half years ago. You CAN do this, and what's better? It STOPS being hard. I promise it does. You get to where you never think about them, except to wonder how you could have done that. Every single thing you do without a smoke is a victory that takes you one step closer to being a non-smoker.

Here are some things that really helped me:

Ice water when I had a craving

Sugar free Coffee Nips to suck on (my husband swore by Jolly Ranchers)

A support forum (I used about.com's smoking cessation forum) where people have been right where you are.

A quit meter to keep track of how many I hadn't smoked and the HUGE amount of money I saved (I used this one--it's free if you choose the free version: http://www.silkquit.org/stop-smoking/quit-meter.aspx)

Getting rid of all the smoking accoutrements in the house/car.

Cleaning the house/car/smoking area so that it is now a NON-smoking area.

Deep breathing through cravings while remembering that a craving passes whether I smoke or not, but if I DO smoke, I guarantee the cravings will be even worse next time

And most importantly? I changed how I think about smoking. Rather than viewing smokes as a treat, I realized that NOT smoking is the treat, it's the reward. It's longer life, better life, more money in my pocket, better smells, better tasting food, and an all-around healthier me. Can't get a reward better than that!

What I didn't do? I didn't hang around people who smoked until my quit was secure. I didn't cheat or take even one drag. I didn't pretend to smoke--no sucking on straws or anything that would trigger my brain to expect smoke. I didn't drink alcohol, which makes a lapse likely.

Good luck, and feel free to add me if you want. You CAN do this--I did it, my husband did it, then my sister and mother did it, too. All of us, and we've all been quit for over five years. You can.

Kris

Thriceshy

Stay strong! You can do it. Your lungs will thank you. Your skin will look fresher. Your hair will smell good like shampoo. Your wallet will thank you! It is soooo worth the struggle! :flowerforyou:

Oh, gosh yes, the wallet thanks you! The first year we were quit, we saved enough money for a 10 day vacation to Disney/California Adventure/Legoland/Sea World for us, our son, AND our niece and nephew! The second year, we saved enough for a 17 day vacation to the east coast, and the third, enough for a 21 day vacation to the east coast for us, our son, and our niece and nephew! This was after years of being able to afford nothing more than car camping trips!

Believe it, your wallet will LOVE you!

Kris

shellshell43

You are going to feel lonely and angry and a loss...that is normal...it will pass I PROMISE!!!! even if your BF was in town you would still feel that way- so don't let the feelings of that give you a reason to light up...the feelings would have happened if he was there or not.

I felt like there was nothing left for me...I felt I had nothing to relax, no reward, no peace, no enjoyment...I really felt down the first two days..and tired...and then the 3 day I felt angry..angry that I didn't have any of those things any more..no reward for a job well done...no stress relief...no happy break time..almost as if I had nothing to look forward to ever again....and that made me mad at myself for quitting...but then I thought about all those people who enjoy life without smoking...are they all walking around angry and depressed? No, so I could be like that also...time to think like a non smoker...what would they do to relax etc...

Also the hacking and uncomfortable feeling in your lungs will only last a day or so..that is your lungs clearing out all that tar and gross chemicals from the smoke...believe me- your lungs are healing even though it may not feel like it right now...in a couple days you will notice less shortness of breath and every day after that gets better.

you can do it!!!

halobender

I quit May of '10, so I'm just over a year now.

My case was rather fortunate in that I was just sick of how they tasted. It took me five years to get there, but I found I only smoked just to be doing it by the end and I would have to eat something or have a drink of some sort (whether it was alcohol or soda) to be able to tolerate the taste of cigarettes.

Shortly thereafter I bought a bicycle and began commuting only with that, which made it even harder to have a smoke because I didn't have the lungs for it. This was when I decided to get in shape, obviously, and it made it easier to not have soda as well.

Also, I didn't really notice when it stopped, honestly, but it must have just been in the last eight weeks or so that I finally stopped coughing up that black stuff. It gets pretty far into your lungs. I feel a ton better and breathing is AWESOME now.