For all the smokers that want to be ex-smokers

mnishi

I quit on January 1st, today is my sixth day smoke free. I woke up this morning feeling good and knowing that I don't ever need to have another cigarette again. I actually feel free, I never realized that I was trapped before but now I feel as if I've broken out of my chains. It's easier than you think, don't be afraid, fear is what is stopping you from quitting.

All you need is the right mentality and a lot of tools;

I hear a lot of people say not to quit until you are ready. I was never really ready, you may never be. You just need the right mind set. I made a list of all the reasons I should quit: health, smell, cost, family. It's ok for a loved one to be on the list, but they can't be first, you need to do this for yourself more than for someone else or you will probably cheat (this is what I did the first time I quit). Then I asked myself if smoking was more important than all the things on my list, it's not and I keep reminding myself of that.

Here is a list of all the tools I used, I'm not sure if one of these did the trick or all combined;

Chantix - prescription to help quit

Celestial seasonings tension tamer tea - I drink this to help calm my nerves

Hypnotherapy - I bought the auidobook, "Glenn Harold's Ultimate guide to Quitting Smoking Forever" from audible.com for about $6 - this one was a long shot but I think it has really helped me. I listen to it every night before bed.

I also decided to do the Chicago Marathon, something I've always wanted to do but felt that smoking was holding me back. Now I have something else to focus my energy on and a tangible goal that smoking would ruin.


Can you quit and still lose weight? Of course, smoking and eating are all about control. If you can control your smoking then you can control your eating. My only goal for January is to maintain my weight, but I feel so in control of my life now that I really think I can lose weight.


Smoking controlled my life, I planned my day around my cigs and never realized it. I always thought of quitting as limiting myself and not being able to do what I wanted. But quitting has actually freed me. You know what you really want a cigarette but can't have one and it consumes you? You never have to have that feeling again!!! It took less than a week of not smoking for that feeling to go away completely. Yes, I do still want cigarettes, but I don't think I need them anymore and I cannot express to you how good that makes me feel.

If you read through this, thank you, I know it got a little long but I really wanted to share everything I could.

If you really want to quit:

pick a date and stick to it
prepare yourself
remember that IT'S EASIER THAN YOU THINK and that FEAR IS THE ONLY THING STOPPING YOU!!!

I'd be very happy to give any advise or support, feel free to add me or ask me any questions.

Hellbent_Heidi

Thanks for the motivation...I'm cutting back now, and aiming for the end of this month as my cutoff date. I've done it before, but started again after some horrible things happened and my husband and I let them drive us back to smoking...ugh! I WILL do it again!

Congratulations to you!

Shishkeberry

Thanks for the motivation...I'm cutting back now, and aiming for the end of this month as my cutoff date. I've done it before, but started again after some horrible things happened and my husband and I let them drive us back to smoking...ugh! I WILL do it again!

Congratulations to you!

This made me think of this article from whyquit.com and thought it might be helpful to you.

http://whyquit.com/joel/Joel_01_13_gradual_withdrawal.html

Quitting by the gradual withdrawal method. I discuss this method quite extensively in my seminars. I always tell how if there is anyone attending who knows a smoker who they really despise they should actively encourage them to follow the gradual withdrawal "cut down" approach. They should call them up every day and tell them to just get rid of one cigarette. Meaning, if they usually smoke 40 a day, just smoke 39 on the first day of the attempt to quit. The next day they should be encouraged to smoke only 38 then 37 the next day and so on. Then the seminar participant should call these people every day to congratulate them and encourage them to continue. I must reemphasize, this should only be done to a smoker you really despise.

You see, most smokers will agree to this approach. It sounds so easy to just smoke one less each day. Thirty-nine cigarettes to a two pack a day smoker seems like nothing. The trick is to convince the person that you are only trying to help them. For the first week or two the one downside is you have to pretend to like the person and you have to talk to them every day. They won’t whine too bad either. When they are down to 30 from 40, they may start to complain a little. You really won’t be having fun yet. When the payoff comes is about three weeks into the scam. Now you've got them to less than half their normal amount. They are in moderate withdrawal all the time.

A month into the approach you’ve got them into pretty major withdrawal. But be persistent. Call them and tell them how great they are doing and how proud you are of them. When they are in their 35th to 39th day, you have pulled off a major coup. This poor person is in peak withdrawal, suffering miserably and having absolutely nothing to show for it. They are no closer to ending withdrawal than the day you started the process. They are in chronic withdrawal, not treating him or herself to one or two a day, but actually depriving him or herself of 35 to 40 per day.

If you want to go in for the kill, when you have them down to zero, tell them don’t worry if things get tough, just take a puff every once in a while. If you can get them to fall for this, taking one puff every third day, they will remain in withdrawal forever. Did I mention you really should despise this person to do this to them? It is probably the cruelest practical joke that you could ever pull on anyone. You will undercut their chance to quit, make them suffer immeasurably and likely they will at some point throw in the towel, return to smoking, have such fear of quitting because of what they went through cutting down, that they will continue to smoke until it kills them. Like I said, you better really despise this person.

Hopefully there is no one you despise that much to do this to them. I hope nobody despises themselves enough to do this to themselves. Quitting cold turkey may be hard but quitting by this withdrawal technique is virtually impossible. If you have a choice between hard and impossible, go for hard. You will have something to show at the end of a hard process, but nothing but misery at the end of an impossible approach. Quit cold and in 72 hours it eases up. Cut down and it will basically get progressively worse for weeks, months, or years if you let it.

I should mention, this is not a new technique. It has been around for decades. Talk to every long-term ex-smoker you know. Try to find one person who successfully used the cut down approach, gradually reducing to eventual zero over weeks or months. You will be hard pressed to find even one person who fits this bill. One other perspective that should help you see the flaw in the approach. Look at people here who had once quit for months or years and then relapsed. One day, after such a long time period, they take a drag and are smoking again. If one puff can do this after years or decades, guess what it will do after days or hours of being smoke free. It puts the smoker back to square one. All that any ex-smoker has to do to avoid relapse or chronic withdrawal is to - NEVER TAKE ANOTHER PUFF!

I've been quit for almost two months and I'm so happy! I maintained my weight for that whole time (even over the holidays I only gained some water weight but quickly lost it) and now I'm back on the weight loss train.

OP, congrats on 6 days smoke free! And good luck to everyone else that is quitting. You can do it! It's hard but I can tell you that it DOES get easier. I barely think about cigarettes now and I certainly don't want them anymore. There is life after smoking.

Shishkeberry

Almost forgot! There is a Quitting Smoking group here on MFP. Feel free to join us!
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/755-quitting-smoking

Missjilly1025

Congratulations!!!! I am so excited for to start your life as a nonsmoker.

erxkeel

Great post thanks!

jazzybean1

I quit August 26 and soooo don't miss it!! I went to a private hypnotherapy session with a friend and we have both been successful. Cost less than smoking for a month and it really took the edge off quitting:)

Krissie_Triaxis

That gradual withdrawal scam is nasty but funny.

OP - well done on 6 days. Keep going. I quit 6 years ago on monday and it was the best thing I EVER did. You can do it (I used a £5 hypnosis CD too and I still maintain it was the best £5 I've ever spent)

Keep going and good luck xx

Hellbent_Heidi

@Shishkeberry

Thanks for the info...I've actually quit a few times for long periods before (over many years) using various methods (including cold turkey) . Last time was using the patch, which worked really well, but unfortunately, we fell back into the trap when some things happened that were really hard to deal with, and then were stuck with some weight gain as well. I've lost the weight, but my husband hasn't gotten to where he wants to be yet before quitting again. Its frustrating, because I'm basically ready to stop, but its much harder to do when one partner is still smoking.

However, I'm setting my quit-date for the end of January, and with or without him...gotta get back at that!

pandsmomCheryl

After countless attempts, I successfully quite 8 years ago. It is - by FAR - the best thing I ever did for my health. Congratulations to you- that's wonderful.

BTW - I'm the world's WORST ex-smoker. I despise them and think they are disgusting....! That after blissfully puffing away for nearly 20 years....LOL.

Lifting_chick

In June I will be smoke free for 2 years, and I am never gonna start that stinky habit again.....and you will be worse on smokers after you quit than any person that has never smoked. Good luck it is tough but worth it

amysj303

I quit 6 years ago. I never really wanted to quit either, I just wanted to prove to myself that I could quit. It was one of the hardest things I have ever done.
Good luck to everyone!
Most states have lots of resources for smokers. In Colorado we have free nicotine patches or gum, online support, telephone support and you might want to check with your health insurance provider, they might cover a lot of things too.
And the other thing is, if you do "mess up" and have a cigarette, don't say to yourself that you failed and start smoking again. when you slip up, just make a note of why-smoking is a coping mechanism for many of us, and sometimes when we encounter something new or an extreme situation (death, fight, work stress, family stress, fight with a spouse), we want to smoke as a way of coping, but the more you cope without smoking the better you get at it. But it takes time for the brain to make new associations. So be good to yourselves and keep at it, sometimes it takes a few tries to get it right.

trybefan

Right on!! I smoked for 8-10 years, saw my g-ma pass away from neck cancer (she was a non-smoker but lived with smokers) and that was it for me....Dec 23 1998 I was a smoker, Dec 24 1998 I was a non smoker and never took a hit/puff anything since that day. It's a mental battle after a few days when the cravings end....period. No matter how long you have smoked, you can quit and the benefits will still be there!

CrystalBailey04

Wow! Thank you all for the motivation! I was doing the "cutting back" with 1/31 as my target quit date. After ready everyones posts and especially the article I'm going to try to go cold turkey on Monday. My husband also smokes and said if I can "prove" that I can quit he will quit as well. I have always been the one to cave and smoke again anytime we have tried to quit. Thanks everyone!

Shishkeberry

@Shishkeberry

Thanks for the info...I've actually quit a few times for long periods before (over many years) using various methods (including cold turkey) . Last time was using the patch, which worked really well, but unfortunately, we fell back into the trap when some things happened that were really hard to deal with, and then were stuck with some weight gain as well. I've lost the weight, but my husband hasn't gotten to where he wants to be yet before quitting again. Its frustrating, because I'm basically ready to stop, but its much harder to do when one partner is still smoking.

However, I'm setting my quit-date for the end of January, and with or without him...gotta get back at that!

Good for you! I quit without my fiance and lo and behold he quit himself three weeks later. Very nice and I hope it happens to you as well! Best of luck to you!

tuffytuffy1

Great job! I quit last January 2nd. I have gone out partying here and there over the past year (about 6 times maybe) and fallen off the wagon, but only for that night. I smoked a pack a day for 30 years before that. You can do it! Stay strong.

nmerley

i quit on the 1st also but did it cold turkey. had some rough days but everyday it gets better.

Raclex

Good job! I also quit (will celebrate 4 years March 3rd) and it was the best decision I ever took. I Read Allan Carr's book and with the support of whyquit.com, never looked back. And I was a hardcore smoker of 15 years.

I did put on temporary weight (approx. 10 pounds) but once my body got into the groove of functionning without nicotimne and a million other chemicals, it slowly went back to normal (within 3 months), and I lost another 15 on top of that!

So remember to celebrate and to never, ever minimize your quit. It's huge and it should be celebrated exactly like that! Remind yourself of the success. As well as others!

Good on you for your success! And you'll see that everyday brings signs of relief of being free from the ball and chain that cigarettes were to you. No more dependance. Freedom, at last!

juleseybaby

AWESOME! Great decision!

I quit cold turkey on August 28th. A little over 4 months later and I feel great. I have made it through multiple 'tempations' (stress, going out with friends, etc.)

It's difficult but it can be done.

Bravo!

SassyCalyGirl

Today is my 6th day smoke free as well. Running my daily 6 miles is already much easier! I tried the patch but it made me sick so I am going "cold turkey" as they say!

hbiffle

I smoked for 10+ years and like you said I never really wanted to quit either. I used Chantix and it worked amazingly well!! I had tried all others - patch, gum, shot, etc. and nothing ever worked. Chantix worked wonderfully and I have now been smoke free for almost 5 years!!

My best friends father also used it and he had smoked for 40 years and he was able to quit using Chantix too! I HIGHLY recommend this!!!

Good luck to everyone trying to quit!

Jconner30

I posted this to one of my friends today...

8 year and 6 days for me w/o a cigarette!!! My words of wisedom on this. If you find yourself smoking when you have a beer - stop drinking beer!!! If you find you have to have a cigarette with a cup of coffee - STOP DRINKING COFFEE! Take away the triggers! It will take you about 6 months to completely get them off your mind. Now, when I am around cigarette smoke, it makes me ill.

Also, I have heard from multiple sources that its easier to quit herione than cigarettes! If you CANT QUIT then try those electronic cigarettes! My stepfather quit smoking cigarettes using one of those. He smoked for over 30 years!

Marll

I was a roughly 14 year smoker and at my height was smoking 3 packs a day regularly, and on nights where I would go out drinking in my younger days sometimes up to 5 packs a day.

My wife and I quit by using the perscription Chantix, and we didn't even need to complete the full month cycle. After 2 weeks we were smoke free and have been for about 4 years now. Chantix actually blocks the "pleasure" of smoking and after the first few days (you are allowed to smoke while taking the pills for the first week) when I would smoke I more often than not wouldn't finish it and found myself thinking "Hrm, this isn't that good, why am I even smoking this?"

While I am generally very anti-perscription, I think that this one is a valid way of quitting smoking and getting back to normal without some of the pitfalls of going cold turkey.

I admit there are times here and there that I feel like I would like a cigarette, but that feeling usually lasts for about 30 seconds and then the thought is gone.

adlwilmot

My reason to quit came as a result of having to interpret for a Spanish doctor and tell my grandmother (who lives in Spain) and cousin (who had flown over to Spain with me from the UK as soon as we heard she was in hospital) that my grandmother "has been a smoker all her life and her lungs are absolutely destroyed. She has a huge tumour in her right lung which has now attached itself to her ribcage. We tried to take a biopsy, but couldn't go deep enough with the endoscopy. We can go in from the side, but due to the emphesema she runs the risk of her lung collapsing and dying. Even if we do find out which type of cancer it is, the cancer specialist will probably refuse to treat her because the treatment will kill her before the cancer" All that with no warning and trying my hardest not to show any emotion on my face as the other two had no idea what was being said. That was at the beginning of Dec 2011.

On Dec 22nd my grandfather collapsed and was rushed into hospital - I was in the air flying over to spend Xmas with the family in Spain. He too had been suffering from emphesema for years and only had about a third of one lung working. We took it in turns visiting him for the next few days to help him eat as he couldn't do this himself. On Xmas day my mother popped into the hospital to give him lunch whilst on her way to my aunt's house for the Xmas dinner (or as Xmas as it could get given the circs). She never made it to the rest of the family, as my grandad was so ill she insisted on staying with him the rest of the day and the night.

Fast forward to the 27th of Dec. I had to visit him in hospital and say "good bye". And it really was "good bye", wasn't it. I would never see him again. I flew back to the UK that day.

30th of Dec he died. 1st of Jan back on another plane to go to his funeral.

I'm now on day 23 of not smoking. I'd wanted to quit for years but always failed. Having to sit there and interpret my grandmother's doctor's message really hit me deep down inside. I ordered some E-Lite electronic cigarrettes for my partner and I, with the intention of giving up on 1st of Jan. They arrived the morning of the 15th of Dec, AFTER I'd already had a couple of ciggies. I tried mine out as soon as they were delivered and haven't picked up a cigarrette since.

I know they're a nicotine replacement so I haven't actually "given up", but I've definitely given up shoving toxins and C02 into my body. I will shortly start to ban myself from "vaping" inside, and will again go back outside if I want my hit. I will then start limiting myself to the number of drags I can have each time, and then the number of times I can use the electonic cigarrette full stop. Eventually I will wean myself off.

But of one thing I'm sure, and that's that I never want any of my children or grandchildren to go through what I've been through this last month, all because of a dirty disgusting nicotine stick!!!

scapez

Today is my 6th day smoke free as well. Running my daily 6 miles is already much easier! I tried the patch but it made me sick so I am going "cold turkey" as they say!

Day 4 here - patchin' it up!

emmyvera

Wonderful post! Thank you! I've totally cut back on my end. I've gone from 2 packs a week to only smoking when I go out to karaoke. :laugh: (Don't laugh.) I had one last night (the only day I smoked was New Year's Eve) for the past 2 weeks. And the one last night made me dislike smoking very much. I couldn't even finish it. I think I'm on to something. I slowly weened and now I feel great. :bigsmile:

Moin78

I just want to say one thing about Chantix. While I know for a fact that it works for some people, others (like me) have horrible interactions with this drug. I took it for almost a week, and while I was really enjoying the vivd dreams I was experiencing and the fact that I wasn't smoking as much by the end of that week, I became very suicidal.

One night, I was secretly planning on taking a gun to my head .A friend of mine sensed something was wrong and he refused to leave my house that night. He made me keep my bedroom door open so that he could see into the room at all times. He waited until I was sleeping before he allowed himself to go to sleep on the couch (which has a straight shot into my bedroom). If he hadn't been there, I am sure I would have followed through with my insane decision to take my own life.

This is just food for thought. If anyone decides to go this route, please, please keep an eye on yourself. If you feel off and are having any suicidal thoughts, stop taking it immediately! I was stupid enough at the time to not realize it was the Chantix and not me. If you know anyone using Chantix, keep your eye on them and look for weird behavior and signs and ask them how they are feeliing. Who knows? You may end up saving their life like my friend did mine.

mnishi

I posted this to one of my friends today...

8 year and 6 days for me w/o a cigarette!!! My words of wisedom on this. If you find yourself smoking when you have a beer - stop drinking beer!!! If you find you have to have a cigarette with a cup of coffee - STOP DRINKING COFFEE! Take away the triggers! It will take you about 6 months to completely get them off your mind. Now, when I am around cigarette smoke, it makes me ill.

Also, I have heard from multiple sources that its easier to quit herione than cigarettes! If you CANT QUIT then try those electronic cigarettes! My stepfather quit smoking cigarettes using one of those. He smoked for over 30 years!

I disagree with this, last night my boyfriend wanted to go to dinner with some friends, I was really hesitant because I know that with dinner comes drinks and with drinks comes the desire for cigarettes. Then I read somewhere on the internet that you can do everything you did before, you just have to learn how to do it without cigarettes. I went to dinner, had two margarita's, wanted a smoke, got over it, and then I felt really good because I realized that I really CAN do everything withour smoking.
However, I did limit myself to 2, usually I'd probably have 3 or 4 on a night out. I didn't want to get drunk for fear of giving in, I will probably continue to limit how much I drink for a little while, but I won't deny myself any pleasures that I had before I quit (except smoking of course). I think it makes it harder to not be able to do things I used to enjoy.

As far as the cutting down method, I tried this many times and it never worked for me, when I cut down, the anxiety I had about smoking got worse and I'd give in. If you really quit, it'll be really bad for a few days, but then it gets better.

amysj303

I posted this to one of my friends today...

8 year and 6 days for me w/o a cigarette!!! My words of wisedom on this. If you find yourself smoking when you have a beer - stop drinking beer!!! If you find you have to have a cigarette with a cup of coffee - STOP DRINKING COFFEE! Take away the triggers! It will take you about 6 months to completely get them off your mind. Now, when I am around cigarette smoke, it makes me ill.

Also, I have heard from multiple sources that its easier to quit herione than cigarettes! If you CANT QUIT then try those electronic cigarettes! My stepfather quit smoking cigarettes using one of those. He smoked for over 30 years!

I did the opposite! I know it may sound crazy but you know, getting in my car after work was a trigger, everyday I got in the car, cracked the window and lit a cigarette. But when I quit I still had to get in my car everyday and one day, after just two weeks, I realized I got all the way home without even thinking about smoking. the brain forms new associations. So I kept drinking beer, and pretty soon, drinking beer didn't remind me of smoking. everyone is different but quitting smoking is hard enough without giving up coffee and beer

Shishkeberry

I actually drink more coffee now than I did as a smoker! Only about 1-2 cups a day but I used to only drink 2-3 a week. After the first two weeks of quitting I only got cravings maybe once a week. It really does get better/easier.

ETA: I did avoid some things at first that I knew would be triggers for me. I did the best I could to avoid long drives, I stopped going outside to the porch with my fiance when he was still smoking, and I threw away all of my lighters and smoking stuff. I can deal with just about anything now. Once you get through the usual triggers a few times (the first morning cigarette, after dinner cigarette, etc.) and the unusual ones (watching the first snow of the year cigarette, the cigarette after having a party and all of your guests have left and it's time to relax, etc.) it gets easier and easier every time.

mnishi

My reason to quit came as a result of having to interpret for a Spanish doctor and tell my grandmother (who lives in Spain) and cousin (who had flown over to Spain with me from the UK as soon as we heard she was in hospital) that my grandmother "has been a smoker all her life and her lungs are absolutely destroyed. She has a huge tumour in her right lung which has now attached itself to her ribcage. We tried to take a biopsy, but couldn't go deep enough with the endoscopy. We can go in from the side, but due to the emphesema she runs the risk of her lung collapsing and dying. Even if we do find out which type of cancer it is, the cancer specialist will probably refuse to treat her because the treatment will kill her before the cancer" All that with no warning and trying my hardest not to show any emotion on my face as the other two had no idea what was being said. That was at the beginning of Dec 2011.

On Dec 22nd my grandfather collapsed and was rushed into hospital - I was in the air flying over to spend Xmas with the family in Spain. He too had been suffering from emphesema for years and only had about a third of one lung working. We took it in turns visiting him for the next few days to help him eat as he couldn't do this himself. On Xmas day my mother popped into the hospital to give him lunch whilst on her way to my aunt's house for the Xmas dinner (or as Xmas as it could get given the circs). She never made it to the rest of the family, as my grandad was so ill she insisted on staying with him the rest of the day and the night.

Fast forward to the 27th of Dec. I had to visit him in hospital and say "good bye". And it really was "good bye", wasn't it. I would never see him again. I flew back to the UK that day.

30th of Dec he died. 1st of Jan back on another plane to go to his funeral.

I'm now on day 23 of not smoking. I'd wanted to quit for years but always failed. Having to sit there and interpret my grandmother's doctor's message really hit me deep down inside. I ordered some E-Lite electronic cigarrettes for my partner and I, with the intention of giving up on 1st of Jan. They arrived the morning of the 15th of Dec, AFTER I'd already had a couple of ciggies. I tried mine out as soon as they were delivered and haven't picked up a cigarrette since.

I know they're a nicotine replacement so I haven't actually "given up", but I've definitely given up shoving toxins and C02 into my body. I will shortly start to ban myself from "vaping" inside, and will again go back outside if I want my hit. I will then start limiting myself to the number of drags I can have each time, and then the number of times I can use the electonic cigarrette full stop. Eventually I will wean myself off.

But of one thing I'm sure, and that's that I never want any of my children or grandchildren to go through what I've been through this last month, all because of a dirty disgusting nicotine stick!!!

I'm so sorry about your grandfather, it's so hard to lose someone.
It's funny that we all know how bad smoking is, but sometimes it takes looking death in the face to actually make us do something about it.
I'm sure that if your grandfather knew that he paid the price for your longer, happier, healthier life, it would make him happy.