NEED ADVICE FROM EX_SMOKERS

I quit cold turkey because I was ready to start trying to get pregnant and didn't want to be one of those people who waits til they're pregnant to quit. DH had a MUCH harder time quitting. He ended up getting an e-cig. I think he has the ego-C. I can't vouch for their safety vs cigarettes but his doctor said he'd rather him vape than smoke. Have you tried any of the other stuff? Gum, patch, Chantix(sp?) Good luck!

I smoked for more than half my life. This is the longest I've gone without smoking. It's been almost 3yrs. I was on Wellbutrin and the patch to quit. I think the patch REALLY helped take the edge off.

Read Allen Carr's the easy way to quit smoking. Works!

I've quit many times, and currently my last smoke was in October. To be honest - and I am not advising this to others - I will probably have a cigarette at some point in the future. But I'll still have gone from several packs a week (me 5 years ago) to a rare social smoker having several cigarettes a year. It's not ideal but it's realistic for me.

I tried about 10 times before actually finally giving it the flick....over 2 years since my last puff!!

I had a plan for everything.

- When I go out with friends every time I really feel like a smoke i'll go to the bar and get a water.
- When I'm at home every time I feel like a smoke I'll take my dog for a walk or do core exercises
- When I'm at work, I'll go for a short walk or get a cup of herbal tea

Then because I wasn't smoking, I felt like running instead of walking. So I started the C25K program. I had never run very far in my life, so the fact that I was starting to be able to run for minutes was reason enough for me to stick to the non smoking.

Then I decided to go to the gym in the afternoons if there was a good class on, because I seemed to have more time on my hands.

It went on and on from there.

I still occasionally feel like a smoke when it's around me, but most of the time I hate it. Hate the smell, hate the fact that my fiance still smokes, hate the look of it.

I dunno, I think something just finally switched with me.

Make sure you have a plan for all the situations you might face :-)

quit cold turkey. changed all my favorite habits around smoking, no bars, no drinking, long talks on the phone. I had already limited my smoking to outside only. Craved it for months. After a few years there were still times I would smell a cigarette and crave one. Now, finally, I find the whole habit very distasteful and smell of cig smoke, yuck. But it took a long time! Good luck!! I'm 20 years off them. Finally getting around to working on the weight I gained from quitting. lol.

First you have to really want to quit, if you don't want it bad enough you will most likely fail. What helped me was the patch.

I was on the patch and chewing spearmint gum. I had tried every other nicotine replacement gum, lozenge, and the cravings increased...but I finally quit it has been 3+ years the patch and spearmint gum worked well for me.:drinker:

I just failed at quitting again, but my last quit lasted 8 months. I used an e-cig from vapor4life.com. Also, join quitnet.com for awesome support with your quit. I plan to quit again as soon as I get this diet thing under control

Top tips: When you want a cigarette, take deep breaths, as if you were inhaling on a cig. When you want a cig, take a drink of water instead.

The first time I quit, I made it 6 months. My smoking was masking hypothyroid, which kicked in about 3 months after I quit. I was miserable. I read that it's pretty common with women who quit smoking, so if you start getting fatigued or cold or any other symptoms of hypothyroid, go get your levels checked immediately.

I quit 12 years ago with hypsosis. It worked wonders and now the smell makes me feel sick. Never quit quitting, you will get there.

I quit cold turkey. I tried dozens times before. I have no clue why it worked this time. I used patches. Don't go macho. Patches will get you through the rough times. I've been clean for over 3 years. Actually, it'll be 4 in February.

I tried a few times when I knew I wasn't ready. Not a chance.

I tried several times when I was ready, and I failed all of the times except the last one.

My triggers - cup of coffee and beer. When I quit smoking, for six months I quit both. Now I do both and no matter how drunk I get I don't want a cigarette.

All I can say, keep trying and good luck.

I OD'd on nicotine patches so I had to quit cold turkey, so I did a little bit of everything but here are the most important ones:

1. Switch to a brand you hate
2. Cut down to the bare minimum of cigarettes you can in a day- after meals, long drives act.
3. Start exercising.
4. Make smoking literally disgusting, uncomfortable and inconvenient for yourself.

In the mean time, buy some Orbitz bubble mint gum (makes cigarettes taste really odd) and dark chocolate, like 70% or more cocoa and go for it! Good luck.

I love my e-cigg, I haven't smoked in almost a year. You can transition from nicotine levels, so that you aren't going "cold turkey" and eventually work your way down to a zero nicotine e-juice.

I recommend looking at your previous quits for information. You were successful at quitting just not staying quit. Do what worked, investigate what tripped you up, and put a plan in place for the barrier or trigger that had you going back. The person who said she had a plan for everything has the right idea. Whatever triggers you have should be planned for with some alternative. Smoking is not only an addiction but a habit. Replace every cigarette with something else, have a strategy for every craving, trigger and barrier you've experienced in the past, including any signs or symptoms of withdrawal. You've done it before, you can totally do this again. You just need to tweak your planning. GOOD LUCK!!!!

Not real healthy..but lollipops are a great substitute for smoking.