I love smoking.
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Congratulations on your decision to quit smoking!! It's truly the best gift you can give to yourself. I quit 18 months ago, after smoking for 40 YEARS!! Right after I quit, I joined a running group at our local Running Room, and set a goal of participating in a half-marathon. I reached the goal, and did the Run the Strip at Night, in Las Vegas with all my family there to cheer me on. It was a blessed event for me and I could not have done it if I were smoking. I am now registered for another half marathon next year.
Best piece of advice I can give you is to set a goal of something you would really like to do, in the future, that you can't do right now because you smoke. And use smoking cessation medication if you need to. You will feel so much better, and the people around you will really notice the positive changes as well.
Good luck.0 -
Smoke breaks are like little happy times throughout the day. They feel like rewards.
That's what makes smoking addictive. You go through withdrawal as the nicotine leaves your system. When you ingest more nicotine the withdrawal stops . . . and then immediately when you're done with your cigarette, begins again as your body processes out those toxins.
You've been hitting that "reward" lever for 30 years, no wonder you think it's a nice thing. But once you get that nicotine out of your system, remember that it doesn't calm you down; quite the opposite. As soon as you have another cigarette, you're picking withdrawal again.0 -
I quit about 3 months ago. Not only can i breathe better and hit it harder when i work out, i FEEL better. Yup. 3 days after quitting, my mood was up, and physically i felt BETTER. I can breathe again. Things taste good. Less drainage (whoda thunk my sinus issues were really cigarette issues?) and i don't seem to get sick as often or for as long.
It wasn't nearly as hard as i thought it was. Don't give up. I too, enjoyed the physical act of smoking. But i really don't miss it.0 -
Hardest ****ing thing ive ever done in my life! Now I can smoke when I have a few drinks but... I wake up with a cigarette headache because I make up for lost time lol. And no.. its not the whiskey. And that makes me all set with smoking for a while. But seriously... I can't workout for like two day's after because I simply can't breathe! Good for you quitting the hardest thing next to smack! And good luck to you!!0
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I quit, but I miss it, I loved it to.0
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I smoked for 15 years..... I LOVE SMOKING.
I vape now. no smell, no diseases, can vape anywhere i want.... im vaping right now as a matter of fact.... mail me if you want some info on how to get started. Dont let crappy ecigs fool you. theres some damn good, realistic ones out there..... i am also a paid vaping blogger.
Edited to add i quit 6 months ago
OK what is this vaping and how does it differ from e-cigs?
Vaping is the act of using an e-cig. e-cigs produce vapour0 -
You don't love smoking. Nobody loves poisoning their body and stinking like an ashtray. I was smoking between 20 and 30 a day for almost 30 years, and used to say the same. It's our way of justifying not being able to quit.
Get yourself an electronic cigarette. I haven't smoked a "real" ciggie for 23 days and NOTHING could make me spark one up again. I have done it, and you can too. Have faith
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Nope- I am not in your boat (anymore).
I once was though. Five years ago in February I quit, and like you - I LOVED everything about it. There are still days that I wish I could smoke, but its so easy to say no. Do not ecig. Get some patches, or Chantix (which is what I used) and get yourself free of that demon.
Its not something you will ever regret.
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My name is Ashley, and I love smoking. But I've been cigarette free for over 4 weeks now. I've been using the nicotine lozenges but I won't do the e-cig because I don't think that will really save me money in the long run.0
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You don't love smoking. Nobody loves poisoning their body and stinking like an ashtray. I was smoking between 20 and 30 a day for almost 30 years, and used to say the same. It's our way of justifying not being able to quit.
Get yourself an electronic cigarette. I haven't smoked a "real" ciggie for 23 days and NOTHING could make me spark one up again. I have done it, and you can too. Have faith
What does the e-cig actually do for you though? Does it just replace the habit of having a cigarette in your hand and puffing on it? Do you get an actual buzz off it?0 -
I hope you're right Shell because I don't want to battle this forever. I've been trying to quit for YEARS and I'm tired of the whole process. Obviously the reason I fail is that I do like to smoke so much so I just keep going back to it.
Wolfman, how's that e-cig work out for you? I've had a couple people recommend it but I'm skeptical...
I have ecigs - They are a great help - but you do have to get used to the fact that it is heavier, it doesn't feel the same in your hand. You don't light or ash it. Having said that though, you feel the inhale, you see the 'smoke', you can get different flavors, different tips, different fun holders. There is a whole youtube world out there with info on the ecigs. If you can get on the ecig wagon, it could be well worth it. Initial costs when I got was about $100 for kit and ejuice. But now I see them cheaper, all over. Best of luck! It is a tough road but will be so worth it!0 -
Nope- I am not in your boat (anymore).
I once was though. Five years ago in February I quit, and like you - I LOVED everything about it. There are still days that I wish I could smoke, but its so easy to say no. Do not ecig. Get some patches, or Chantix (which is what I used) and get yourself free of that demon.
Its not something you will ever regret.
I am on the Chantix and quitting is a breeze with these lovely little pills. It's when I go off of them that I have the problem. This is my fourth (and hopefully last) bout with Chantix.0 -
I don't smoke, but my best friend is a chain smoker. I wish she would quit. I worry that she will die, and I will lose a good friend. She's 51 years old. Her teeth are not just yellow, they are brown. Her skin is so bad, the wrinkles are crevaces. Now, she has cataracts and thinks it's just 'getting old.' She's all into 'designer' clothes and 'sparkle' and 'high heels', but she honestly is going to look terrible when she gets a humped back and totes an oxygen caddy behind her....much less how bad the teeth and skin look now. I bug her once a year, and she doesn't listen. She thinks smoking is a fashion statement.0
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You don't love smoking. Nobody loves poisoning their body and stinking like an ashtray. I was smoking between 20 and 30 a day for almost 30 years, and used to say the same. It's our way of justifying not being able to quit.
Get yourself an electronic cigarette. I haven't smoked a "real" ciggie for 23 days and NOTHING could make me spark one up again. I have done it, and you can too. Have faith
What does the e-cig actually do for you though? Does it just replace the habit of having a cigarette in your hand and puffing on it? Do you get an actual buzz off it?
From what I understand, you get nicotine from it, so you should still get a buzz.0 -
I quit cold turkey over 10 years ago. Last year i started back up and quit again after 6 months. I love the smell of a freshly lit cig. Wont smoke again though.0
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I used to love smoking, gave up in 2007 with the help of patches, and now I feel incredibly stupid and reckless for ever having smoked. The longer you can go without the more likely you are to not stop again, every time you have a 'cheat' one at weekends your addiction starts all over again. It's not like eating where you HAVE to do it to stay alive, cut it out completely and it will be a LOT easier in the long run xx0
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I used to think I was in that boat. Many, many ruined quit attempts because I thought I was in that boat.
I read the Easyway to Quit Smoking by Allan Carr and realized I wasn't in that boat. Finished the book, put out my last cigarette and haven't missed them since. I remember chantix costing a lot . . . the book is less than ten bucks. Check it out, it may help.
THIS...plus check out Quitnet.com The book and that website helped me to quit over 3 years ago...I was a very heavy smoker (2 packs a day for almost 50 years) and I quit cold turkey. Best thing I ever did for myself. I now can't stand the smell and realize how bad I must have smelled all those years.0 -
Well done for quitting! I've quit for almost 5 months now. I was a serial quitter before. Couldn't feel happier to be free of the slavery. I know what you're saying about enjoying smoking, but it's a dangerous thought. If you hold on to that thought you'll feel denied and will cave in. Did you really enjoy every single cigarette though? Sure first thing on the morning and after you've been without for a while. But there are thousands that you smoke without even noticing. I see it now as not as something I enjoyed but an illusion. Like enjoying the relief you get when you take tight shoes off. It wasn't real enjoyment, just relief from constant and never ending withdrawal. I love that I don't need to poison myself anymore and I'm in control!0
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(lets not forget about the acid trip dreams!!).
Oh! I remember those! I kinda enjoyed them, too.
I quit via patch 14 years ago. Haven't had a cig since. I felt like smoking controlled my life. Like I was a slave to cigarettes. I am much healthier and happier now.
Congrats to all you folks trying to quit. It is a hard thing to do, but so worth it! You will all smell better (in both ways) and be healthier for your efforts.0 -
and realize that you don't actually love smoking, you're just addicted, like I was.
I like this, and I really hope it's true...
It is true.
I loved it for a long time. I smoked from 1991-2002, averaging half a pack to a pack a day for a long time. The first time I quit was in 2002 because my boyfriend at the time (now my husband) was a non-smoker and even though he never said a word or pressured me (smart move on his part) I knew he didn't like it. I lasted all of about 2 weeks and then was smoking again BUT I never went back to smoking as much. From 2002-2007 I was basically a "social smoker" - I'd only smoke when going out for drinks or occasionally have one or two cigarettes in the evening after work. So I was averaging about a pack a week. Essentially, I weaned myself off of it.
In 2007 we were trying to get pregnant, and due to my PCOS ultimately sought the help of a fertility specialist. I was very honest about all of my health habits with the doctor and what he said was a huge wake-up call - that he couldn't control what I did, but if I ever came into his office and he smelled smoke on me, he wouldn't treat me. I figured, I knew I'd quit when I got pregnant anyway, and if I wanted to get pregnant badly enough to be seeing a fertility doctor, I wanted it badly enough to quit smoking.
Quit cold turkey July 7, 2007, and never looked back. I was pregnant with my daughter 3 weeks later. Obviously, once I was pregnant, I had even more reason to stay on the wagon, but truthfully, I don't miss it or crave it at all. What's more, as other posters have noted, now that I don't smoke, the smell of it is absolutely revolting.
OP said you're not quitting for health reasons, but a good look at my MIL might change your mind. She's only 67 but looks and acts about 20 years older, and has serious and life-threatening health conditions many of which, if not directly caused by smoking, are greatly exacerbated by it. Everyone has some example of someone they knew who smoked every day of their life and lived to be a hale and hearty 85 or something, but I promise you, those are rare exceptions, rather than the rule.0 -
You don't love smoking. Nobody loves poisoning their body and stinking like an ashtray. I was smoking between 20 and 30 a day for almost 30 years, and used to say the same. It's our way of justifying not being able to quit.
Get yourself an electronic cigarette. I haven't smoked a "real" ciggie for 23 days and NOTHING could make me spark one up again. I have done it, and you can too. Have faith
What does the e-cig actually do for you though? Does it just replace the habit of having a cigarette in your hand and puffing on it? Do you get an actual buzz off it?
You still get that "throat hit" when you take a drag, and you also get nicotine (depending on what juice you put in your e-cig) but you get none of the sh1t you do from smoking real cigs. It's win - win 0 -
(lets not forget about the acid trip dreams!!).
Oh! I remember those! I kinda enjoyed them, too.
One of my favorite side effects 0 -
I used to think I was in that boat. Many, many ruined quit attempts because I thought I was in that boat.
I read the Easyway to Quit Smoking by Allan Carr and realized I wasn't in that boat. Finished the book, put out my last cigarette and haven't missed them since. I remember chantix costing a lot . . . the book is less than ten bucks. Check it out, it may help.
I have heard that book is a pretty big deal. I'll have to look into it. Chantix is very expensive and for me, once I'm done with the pills I go right back to smoking. So it's only effective while I'm actually on it.
I have found that until you truly want to quit nothing works. I tried for 10 years and failed until I gave up the "I love smoking " excuse and decided I really wanted to quit. Overcoming an addiction is mostly mental, the physical part is short term. Get in the mindset that you will quit and you will.
Good luck0 -
On 01/01/2013, it will be 10 years since my last cigarette. I had to quit more than once. If you can last two weeks, the habit is gone and the rest gets easier with every passing day. The only way to quit smoking is very simple, do not smoke the next one. That's the only one you have to worry about. Buproprion works for a lot of folks. Whatever it takes, because smoking kills you. I watched my uncle Tony pass with advanced emphysema, gasping for every breath. Of course I will die, we all do. But not like that. Good luck, keep it up.0
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I quit smoking for all the right reasons over 5 years ago....I too too chantix for the first 30 days. I started smoking as a teenager and smoked most of my days up until I was almost 43. This journey will get easier and easier as the days pass....however, never even have one, it is an addiction and it only takes one to put you back to where you came from. I will not even smoke a cigar with my buddies, I beat this monster and it aint coming back into my life......EVER!!!
I replaced smoking with running....since quiting I have ran over 20 half marathons (PR is 1:53:06) and 4 full marathons (PR 4:03:22)0 -
Yep. Same boat as you. I love it and miss it. Its been 8 months since I quit. I do love that I can breath and I'm saving money. I guess I love that more. Yeah. I guess I do.0
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I used to run in high school and have always wanted to start again. But I've been smoking since I was 16 so that just wasn't possible. Now maybe within the next year I'll be able to again 0
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I quit smoking for all the right reasons over 5 years ago....I too too chantix for the first 30 days. I started smoking as a teenager and smoked most of my days up until I was almost 43. This journey will get easier and easier as the days pass....however, never even have one, it is an addiction and it only takes one to put you back to where you came from. I will not even smoke a cigar with my buddies, I beat this monster and it aint coming back into my life......EVER!!!
I replaced smoking with running....since quiting I have ran over 20 half marathons (PR is 1:53:06) and 4 full marathons (PR 4:03:22)
Great job. My brother runs halves so I know that your PR is pretty damn good! 0 -
I just quit, too!
I have only been smoking for about 4 years, and I can't say that I ever truly "enjoyed" it. Everyone around me was smoking, I hit an extremely stressful situation (I found my neighbor dead), and just gave in. I couldn't stand anything about them, but figured if I smoked, too, then maybe the smell wouldn't bother me as much.
I never could stand the smell. I hated that I stunk. I hated the wrinkles that seemed to pop up after years of none. I hated EVERYTHING about it - and actually was able to quit last year with the help of eCigs...My husband quit, too...and then his mom died (of a smoking-related illness, no less!). He ended up starting back up and I fell right back into it. Finally I said I'm done!
I got Zyban last Monday and started the process of quitting...I gave myself until Sunday (yesterday) and then NO MORE! I HATE the Zyban! I don't know if it's helped with the cravings/withdrawal symtpoms because the side effects are so horrible! I am really irritable at inconsistent times for NO reason! If that is a withdrawal symptom instead of a side-effect of the drug, then the drug isn't working for me anyway! So, I've stopped taking it.
I didn't do Chantix because of the dreaming side-effect. I already have very vivid and memorable dreams....I certainly don't need them to get any WORSE!
There are some times I'm SO proud of myself and wonder why I was so anxious about quitting! Then there are times when I'm having a craving (I compare them to food cravings and I'm able to resist those) and I try to talk myself into having "Just one" - but I don't give in!
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I hope you're right Shell because I don't want to battle this forever. I've been trying to quit for YEARS and I'm tired of the whole process. Obviously the reason I fail is that I do like to smoke so much so I just keep going back to it.
Wolfman, how's that e-cig work out for you? I've had a couple people recommend it but I'm skeptical...
It's the only thing that's worked for me in 20 years, and I've tried it all. I haven't had a puff in 2 months, 16 days, and 1 hour. My lungs are clear and I can run, bike, hike...do all the things used to love before cigarettes took complete control. If you're interested, shoot me a PM and I can be a bit more specifc with some stuff...it gets kind of confusing and complicated at first. Generally, steer clear of the over priced and virtualy worthless pieces of **** they sell at mall kiosks. Stay away from the "cig-alikes"...their ok in a pinch, but really, they're more novelty than anything. Kiosk e-cigs and "cig-alikes" contribute to more transition failures than anything else in my estimation.0
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