smoking!

mhwiggins

Ok, I've lost the weight, started an exercise regime I enjoy (weight training and cardio)! Really enjoying the results so far. Now for the big one and probably the most dificult for me.............. quitting smoking!! Anybody got any suggestions or support that may help me in this latest endeavour? I become a real bear when I try quiting and I am also concerned about gaining back the weight I have worked so hard to lose!:smokin:

nokanjaijo

I quit smoking in two steps.

First step was to quit cigarettes. I used nicotine gum. I didn't use the gum the way you are supposed to. I just chewed however much I needed to for a few months. I did it knowing full well that, on the gum, I was still an addict. Getting off cigarettes was almost cosmetic.

Once I felt I had a handle on not smoking cigarettes, I quit the gum. I got on Bupropion and, when it had built up in my system, I quit the gum cold. I didn't wean myself off of it or any of that nonsense. I had heard it was quite common for people to just end up chewing the gum for extended periods and did not want to be one of them.

I put on 15 lbs after my successful attempt. There were many failed attempts before that and I gained each time then took most off again. All told, I put on about 20 from quitting smoking. But I wasn't trying to prevent weight gain. I was too afraid of making it too hard for myself by piling on the things I had to worry about.

antlermass

Try the e cig. Any will do as long as you can buy refilled in different strengths. Strongest dose and ween yourself off. By the 2nd day I started only using it to take the initial edge off from the withdrawals then slowly started going through the miserable 3 minutes (length of a withdrawal time them!) Without even a puff. Read lots of blogs like mfp but are geared towards quitting smoking. The first 2 weeks are horrid! Actually the first week is but IT gets better. Read Allen Carr's illustrated easy way to stop smoking it is like a comic and easy to read with great information! Hypoglycemic symptoms were the worst that is where the over eating comes in and just have a small hard candy but with sugar again that will pass in a couple weeks. You can do it!! Don't let the addiction controls you!! Highly suggest that book. It really is a short comic and easy to read! Okay this is really long just because I just recently quit 2 weeks ago after 13 years of smoking and never want to go hrough that first week again!!! !! Good luck to you!

smilingirisheyes

E-cigarettes are how I finally quit in April 2011 after smoking for 25 years. I tried gum, the patch, and cold turkey in earnest (3 months of not smoking with each) before, but ultimately failed. I'm stil addicted to nicotine, but I don't have the smoker's endurance troubles I had when I was 100 lbs lighter than now, and my blood pressure and heart rate are excellent.

They're WAY less expensive than smoking, and the nicotine liquid comes in non-tobacco flavors (which are the only ones I use). Here's a link to a forum with anything and everything you could ever want to know: http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/

da1128

I once gave Welbutrin a try and it made me a really happy smoker! Seriously, I smoked more and felt good about it! My doctor said, "Only YOU would react to the Rx this way!"

Not so. My sister tried it too and had the same reaction.

aelfrice

I quit three months ago after an almost fifteen year, pack-a-day habit. I made a plan to quit on a particular day by planning to run out of cigarettes the night before. I had been out of work so I could plan on going through withdrawal without caring about how I would affect others--besides my roommate who was a witness to my insanity. I made sure that I had enough food and videos to last weeks. Since then, I've been smoke free.

Ok, so I gained between twenty and thirty pounds between then and a month ago. Was it worth it? Absolutely. Most of that gain wasn't on account of a metabolic change but a change in my eating habits. I made it ok for me to eat a half a tray of brownies in one sitting because I knew both that I was going to be very hungry because of the changes my body was going through and also that I could easily lose it. The good part is that I've already lost ten of those pound and am on track to being a healthier and longer living person. I already feel better than I have in very long and can breathe better than I have since I was a sixteen year old.

Even if I had gained one hundred pounds I'd still be healthier than had I gone on living as a smoker. Smoking will kill you and sooner than you think.

It's harder than quitting heroin. It's harder than almost anything. But it's worth it. The weeks after I quit I had moments of incoherent babbling and rambling, cold sweats, needing to crawl into a fetal position and cry, and a feeling of profound loss and futility. Now, I'm happy and have maybe a craving a week. This is only three months later.

Dude, you can do this because a few vanity pounds aren't worth your life. Hell, maybe you have the skills now to account for that 200 calorie metabolic change and maybe you'll even be closer to your goals after the first month.

Good luck,
BC

chicbuc

If you're ready, you'll do it. Exercise is good. When you get the urge, go for a walk. I'm coming up on my 1 year anniversary of quitting after smoking for 20 years. Keep your eye on the prize and try to remember it will get better!

Muscles_Curves

Have you thought about trying Chantix?

rduhlir

I quit smoking on December 21, 2012.

I used Chantix, and found it very helpful.

I didn't put on weight. I got down and dirty on this site on the 1st of the year and have thus lost 12.6 pounds since then. Nicotine is a natural hunger suppressant. The key is not allowing your mind to replace one bad habit with another (food). Make sure you are eating meals that will fill you up. Lots of protein, etc... The average weight gain is 5-15 pounds. But, honestly....would you rather quit smoking and gain a few or continue to smell like an ash tray?

There are hidden gems that I never realized:
The world smells better!
The world tastes better!
And I feel better!

If you never liked a food before, retry it after a month or so of quiting. You might end up liking it.

Congrats on deciding to take this step. Remember, the hardest part is the first few weeks. Eventually the craves become fewer and fewer and dont' last as long. Recognize it as it is, a craving and nothing more.

smilingirisheyes

If you're ready, you'll do it. Exercise is good. When you get the urge, go for a walk. I'm coming up on my 1 year anniversary of quitting after smoking for 20 years. Keep your eye on the prize and try to remember it will get better!

This made me think of how a friend of mine quit. He made a rule that he could smoke, but only at particular park about 3 miles from his house, and he had to get there on foot. He ended up smoking a lot at first, but got into running as a result. 20 years later, hes still running 10 miles most days.

ThomasNMn

First off - you REALLY HAVE TO WANT to quit. It is as simple as that. Is it easy - no, it's not. I quit 16 years ago. The plan that I used was to take a 2 week vacation away from my regular routine and then tell everyone that knew that when I come back - I was going to be smoke free. In preparation for the trip, I started making rules about where and when I could smoke - no smoking in my car, etc and only so many a day. I also decided to use the patch Set a quit date and then left for my trip. The quit date came and after about 2 hours - I went out and bought another pack of cigarettes. Smoked for another day and realized that I had to save face to all the people I told I was quitting and started over the next day smoke free. Spent the next week keeping myself completely occupied and doing stuff until I fell into bed exhausted. After a couple of days, it got easier and then I got paranoid about getting hooked on the patch, so I stopped that after about 3 days. After a week of no smokes, I started feeling 'normal' again and had so much energy and was enjoying the way things smelled and tasted and never looked back.

To help manage the weight, I joined a gym and watched what I ate. You already have that - just keep doing it. Basically what really worked for me was my desire to prove to myself and everyone else that I could quit.

You can do it, you just have to get yourself to that place mentally. Creating a strong plan beforehand really helps - just like it does with nutrition, exercise and a healthy lifestyle.

joshlewison

I used the NHS Quit Smoking service. It consists of an app that counts the time since you quit, a 'tangle', which is a little plastic toy that gives your hands something to play with and a 30-day calendar with motivational stickers etc, since the first 30 days are the hardest. I also chewed regular sugar-free gum.

If you're not in the UK, I'm sure you can put together something similar for yourself. I did try nicotine gum, but I found it didn't really help with the nicotine addiction.

Another two things that helped were the Smoker's Vow and a fact about cravings. You can find the Vow on the internet. It's basically something that you can read to yourself each time you want a cigarette that reminds you how awful smoking is. The fact I read is that the average smoker has three proper cravings a day, each of which lasts three minutes. If you have twice as many cravings a day and they are twice as bad, that's still only 36 minutes - a little over half an hour per day where proper willpower is needed.

The last thing I found that helped was eliminating the smell of tobacco. When I moved flats I decided not to smoke indoors anymore. That way there was no smell of smoke to remind me. When I actually did quit, I washed/dry cleaned all of my clothes in a single weekend so that none of them smelled of smoke anymore.

All of that in combination meant that I smoked my last cigarette on 19 September 2011 and have not had a single lapse since and have not used nicotine gum, spray etc.

nokanjaijo

The world smells better!

Your sense of smell does improve. But that is not always a good thing.

aelfrice

The world smells better!

Your sense of smell does improve. But that is not always a good thing.

On the other hand, standing next to a smoker in a grocery story line/queue is always revelatory--smokers smell worse than someone who hasn't bathed in weeks.

kbeech06

I quit and the hardest thing about quitting (after you get over the nicotine) is the habit. ALL smokers have their routines. Mine was, get up, get dressed, grab a cup of coffee as I was leaving the house, get into the car and light up. Then, as I was driving to work....when I was at a certain exit...another cigarette. Then when I got to work...another. Those three were the hardest for me. You have to find something to replace those cigarettes. Whether its mints, chewing gum, e-cigs, chewing on a straw (I had a friend who did this)...find something you can replace the cigarette with... preferably NOT food. Honestly the nicotine withdrawal is bad, but the worst of it is over pretty quickly. Its the psychological withdrawal that is worse. I physically MISSED my cigarettes, like an old friend had died.

Good luck...you CAN do it!

aubdobalina

I quit before I started worrying about my nutrition so this may not be the best advice, but the thing that really worked for me was...POPSICLES! It takes about as much time to eat a popsicle as it does to smoke a cigarette and it satisfies the oral fixation aspect. During the times when I used to light up, like when I first get into my car or finish a good meal- I would have a popsicle. You can also get single popsicles at the gas station for a "fix," lol. They have all kinds of super low calorie popsicles now and you can buy molds and make your own from fresh fruit and juice. I know it sounds silly, but it worked for me! The floor of my car was littered with popsicle sticks for weeks! I have also heard having carrot and celery sticks around or chewing on a toothpick can help.

The patch and the e-cig made me really nauseous, however my girlfriend had success with the e-cig. She used blu brand.

Tell the people in your life you are quitting so you are accountable to stick to it and they will know to be a little lenient if you are a bit grouchy! The times when I have been tempted to smoke again, like if I am having a couple of drinks or on vacation, I know I am an addict and I cannot have "just 1," it would be the whole pack...and I tell myself "QUITTING IS JUST TOO HARD TO DO OVER AND OVER AGAIN!"

Good luck! It is a hard thing but so is weight loss! You can do it!

highervibes

I quit a few times. I tried the patch, an Rx pill, cold turkey... all were valiant efforts lasting anywhere from 3 weeks to 3 months. In the end, it was easier than I could have imagined. I read Allan Carr's book http://www.amazon.com/Allen-Carrs-Easyway-Stop-Smoking/dp/0615482155/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363539547&sr=8-1&keywords=allan+carr and never looked back. That was in 2006 so I'm pretty sure it's safe to say it worked. It was the price of a pack of cigarettes, maybe 1.5 back then :P and it was the best money I ever spent. I don't know what it WAS about the book that made me see smoking for what it was but what can you lose by reading it?

AmandaW01

I quit 2 years, 5 months, 1 week, 6 days, 3 hours, 25 mins and 45 secs ago... I know this as I opened up my Silk Quit meter which I haven't look at in, ooh, probably about 2 years :-) I found it invaluable, I like that I can see that (at the price they were then) I've saved £6,378.18 and that I haven't smoked 22,378 cigarettes - wow! It'd be a lot more than that in money though, cigs are much more expensive (download it, it really helped me) But, anyway, I'm another firm believer in Allan Carr - the man was a god in my mind - I quit twice, the first time I stayed clean for about 5 years then in a fit of stupidity started again. The last time I had had enough - I had lost a lot of weight, was running, but was getting off the treadmill and lighting up - how stupid is that?? I was putting off quitting due to gaining weight again, so I was never fully committed to my weight loss as I knew I needed to quit smoking. I injured myself, read the book again and quit again. It wasn't easy, but it is never as hard as you think it is going to be either - its hell for a few weeks but you keep busy, you push through. I always figured that eventually I would have to quit, now it might be when I had lung cancer and was on oxygen, then I would be tied to a bed with drips and forced not to smoke - that would be hell - this way it was on my terms :-) I did put on weight - about 3 stone (40lb?) but that was mainly due to enforced inactivity and being stupid - I ate, I knew what I was doing, it was almost self destructive! Now I'm losing it again, but without the cigs and I will NEVER go back to smoking :-)

antlermass

I quit a few times. I tried the patch, an Rx pill, cold turkey... all were valiant efforts lasting anywhere from 3 weeks to 3 months. In the end, it was easier than I could have imagined. I read Allan Carr's book http://www.amazon.com/Allen-Carrs-Easyway-Stop-Smoking/dp/0615482155/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363539547&sr=8-1&keywords=allan+carr and never looked back. That was in 2006 so I'm pretty sure it's safe to say it worked. It was the price of a pack of cigarettes, maybe 1.5 back then :P and it was the best money I ever spent. I don't know what it WAS about the book that made me see smoking for what it was but what can you lose by reading it?

I agree.. I read the short comic version of his original and had a complete different outlook on quitting. I realized I was giving into the addiction and withdrawals do pass quickly. However I did use an e cig for a week! Definetly recommend Allen Carr!!!

Absonthebrain

I quit on Feb 23rd and i read Allen Carr's easy way which really does work I also joined this forum http://quitsmoking.about.com/ which I go to daily for suppport and encouragement. It can be hard but living is far more important to me now than smoking. You can do this!!!

mhwiggins

A big thanks to everyone who posted posted here! All of your suggestions and personal stories were great!
Day two just ended.......... and I seem to be doing all right.............! I have changed up my routines a little bit which has helped but the worst seems to be when I am driving!
I'll try to keep you posted as to how its going

MHW