Help - I'm going to be throwing away my smokes...

I quit the cigs on 2nd January this year so i am over 6 weeks into my quit ...i have lost a total of 15 lbs too in that time ( 4lb since i joined MFP) the thing that works for me is keeping myself occupied with my diet and exercise inpires me to not smoke ...so i suppose its a win win situation for me ...... having said that though I have failed on both counts so many times before with the diet and the smoking so who knows .....but I am determined that this time i will succeed ........I was a 25 to 30 a day smoker as well and i used patches at first but now I am completely cold turkey , good luck to you xxxxxxx

Congrats! I wish my mom would ... Just let us know if you need help. :flowerforyou:

i quit 3 years ago (feb 26) with chantix. my doctor told me that smoking will cause more damage to your body than the extra weight. some things the chantix site suggested for a successful quit is.

1) plan your meals and snacks and stick to them.
2) move your home around. you will want that cigarette when you sit in your spot. if you move your spot, you don't think about it, cause it didn't happen.
3) change the after a meal rountine. i know me i always had one after i ate. now i do the dishes right after.
4) sit the no smoking section.
5) don't be around it.
6) find new hobbies with your hands.
7) if you find you need just one. we made ourselfs go outside. when it's inconvient you don't want to go outside.

these are just some simple ideas. they worked for me. good luck

I quit smoking a little over 3 years ago. For me, the challenges were about control. In order to overcome that, I used nicotine gum. I used the 4mg kind, and it helped a great deal. You know you are going to have withdrawal, and when it's really bad you have the power to do something about it by chewing a piece of the gum.

If you are ready to quit, you can do it. You ARE A NON SMOKER, you just don't know it yet. In about 2-3 weeks, you will have made it over the worst part. Then you will start smelling other smokers. That smell will make you gag, and you will realize that you smelled like a dirty ashtray all of your smoking life. Your clothes, your hair, your whole being stunk. Yes, stunk of cigarettes. Once you get to the point you are aware of the smell, you are home free.

If you fall off and smoke, get MAD!!!!! You have control over your life, not food and not cigarettes!!!! You can do it.:flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:

Good for you on the quitting smoking! I quit four months ago and it was the best thing I ever did. tried quitting many times before but always seemed to go back. Did it with a support group this time as well as the patch. Gained 10 lbs afterwards. Now today....I have lost those ten pounds...working out. One great thing... I can BREATHE! Comes in handy when you are exercising. Best of luck to you...never give up!

I quit when I found out I was pregnant. Cold turkey. Couldn't smoke knowing I was pregnant. Just my personal agenda.

It was not fun, but I made it through easily enough. I would literally put a Bic pen to my lips and inhale..... exhale.... inhale.... exhale, as though I was smoking. I started to think that maybe part of my addiction was the quiet inhalation and exhalation in smoking. "Smoking" my pen would relieve the cravings a bit. (Isn't that absurd? :laugh:)

I would also verbalize my cravings. I'd look at my husband and say, "I want a cigarette." He'd look at me, smile, and simply say, "I know", occasionally followed with praise on how good I was doing, not having one after that positive pregnancy test. After a few weeks, I was excited to say to him, "Do you realize I haven't said I want a cigarette all day???" As time passed, I was able to stop saying it altogether.

Find what works for you. Change your routine. Keep gum handy or anything else to help with the oral fixation that you also have to break. If you are visual and it works, add a sticker to a chart for every time you crave a smoke and don't. See how fast those gold stars add up! Or better yet, make a change jar. Add a coin of any denomination anytime you crave and don't smoke (because you won't be smoking any at all!) and see how quickly that adds up. Toss in the $5 a pack too, every time you would have finished a pack. That should add up quickly! Get rid of the lighters and ash trays. Hide them, give them away, toss them. If you smoked in your car, clean it and Febreeze it to cover the old smell that might linger and remind you of smoking.

Reward yourself. This is a great goal and one you can easily achieve!!!

Also, warn those around you: for the next couple weeks, you might be a teensy bit cranky.

GOOD LUCK!!! You can do this!!!

Good luck! The three day hump is the worst part, but after that you've got it licked

I ;just read a book by the Biggest Loser doctor and some of the contestants come in as smokers and quit while at the ranch and they continue to lose weight , lots of it! I did it over 12 years ago. It is not easy and sometimes when I smell smoke I crave one all over again, but I do not give into that temptation. You can do it!

Hope you are getting through the day okay Betty. Hang in there!!

I quit when I got pregnant, and it was long before MFP, so I can't help you there, but what you need is one very strong reason for quitting, and you need to hold on to that thought whenever it gets difficult. For me, I was pregnant, so that was my reason, and then after I gave birth, I wanted my baby to smell me and not the cigarettes.

To overcome a bad habit, you need to replace it with a better habit- like gum.

Hang in there, and stick it out. My neighbour smoked literally like a chimney all day long- one after the other, and she hasn't smoked in 3 and a half months. If she can do it, anyone can.

Good luck.

Quit 11 days ago, and I've already gained 5 lbs... but I told myself that quitting was temporarily more important than the weight loss. So if I wanted a handful of chips in place of a cigarette, I'd do it. In my mind, better that than another layer of tar in my lungs. But now I'm comfortable enough with the not-smoking that I think I can get back into my normal MFP routine.

I reckon what I'm saying is... don't worry too much about it if you take a dive into some munchies here and there. Quitting smoking is seriously hard business, but seriously worth the effort. It's a bit easier to recover from a stumbling episode in dieting than it is to recover from a stumble in quitting smoking. Just do it in moderation. If the "lesser of two evils" gets problematic, kick yourself in the pants and start paying attention. Five pounds in 11 days is really ridiculous, which is why I'm back on here and ready to kick some calorie-count butt