Any former smokers out there?

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Vickig602
Vickig602 Posts: 7
in Motivation and Support
I just quit smoking and now I'm walking.
I'm 45 and want to be healthy. Has anybody been through this?
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Replies

  • SteffieMark
    SteffieMark Posts: 1,723 Member
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    I'm 55 and quit smoking 5 years ago, after smoking since I was 11 years old! I am much more active now that I can breathe!
  • lawkat
    lawkat Posts: 538 Member
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    I quit 2 years ago using Wellbutrin. It helped me deal with cravings and the depression. It did take me about a month and I started running again. I found that exercise and having future races, helps me keep my quit. However, these days, I don't think much about smoking unless I am around smokers. Even then, I don't want a smoke.

    Just take it one moment at a time. I found breathing deep and drinking a ton of water helped a lot. I also had to learn how to deal with my emotions instead of smoking, which can be difficult. You will get there.

    Have you been to quitnet.com? It is a great site with people from all different types of quitting smoking. Very supportive and informative.
  • peasantsong
    peasantsong Posts: 107 Member
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    Yes! Me! I quit almost a year ago and never looked back. A friend gave me a copy of Allen Carr’s Easyway book and asked me to read it but not to think of it as pressure to quit. “Just read it,” she said, “There’s no commitment.” So, I started reading it and finished it in one night. When I finished the book, I knew – I really just knew with the fullest certainty – that I would never smoke again. I didn’t use patches or gum or anything. I just stopped. And I swear to you that I am not lying when I say it was really freaking easy. I never felt a craving. Not a single time. I smoked a pack a day for 12 years and when I quit I was just done. Ever since the day I quit, I’ve remained as confident as ever that I will never smoke again. I didn’t gain weight because I didn’t crave and I didn’t have a need to fulfill the non-existent cravings with food. I didn’t suffer. I wasn’t grumpy. It wasn’t torture. It was SO easy. I strongly encourage anyone who wants to quit smoking to read that book.
  • rsharper97
    rsharper97 Posts: 242 Member
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    I quit 7 years ago and it was the best decision I have ever made. It was hard at first but now I don't even crave them. I can be around people that smoke and I am ok. My lung capacity is so much better. Good luck!
  • oldernotwiser
    oldernotwiser Posts: 175 Member
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    I smoked my last cigaretteon 4/1/2012 at 8:47pm after a 48 year habit. The patch and Wellbutrin helped me get through the first 3 months. Deep breaths and lots of water do help. Whenever you feel the need stop and take time to remember why you are doing this.

    I did use hard candies as an oral substitute until I realized they were becoming almost as much a habituation as smoking. I did start working out 1 week after quitting with light cardio and weight training. It helped to have a new, healthy focus to replace the old bad habit.
  • dehere98
    dehere98 Posts: 15
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    How long has it been since your last cigarette?
    Quitting smoking for me was the hardest thing I've ever done, but one of my biggest victories! Good for you for making the choice to stop. All I can say is don't give up, no matter what. Whether you fail to meet your goal or not, just keep going for it, and it will happen.
    I was 1.5 pack a day for many years, since I was a kid actually. You will feel better, you will look better, you won't stink, your clothes, car and home won't stink and you will have reduced your chances of contracting lung cancer by half.
    The dentist did multiple deep under the gum cleaning and picked out pockets of black nicotine, so disgusting. You can do it and you won't regret it. I have 12 years smoke free and I don't miss it. Hang in there.
  • pwnderosa
    pwnderosa Posts: 280 Member
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    Yes! Congrats!! :) I quit last Spring using an electronic cigarette and lots of walking, shopping, hot tea, video games, and crafting to distract me. I probably gained a little weight in the process (not sure, wasn't really tracking it until a few months after) but now I am feeling fitter than I have in years and have improved my walks to walk/run intervals. I NEVER thought I'd be able to quit or to run and it is such an amazing feeling! Keep celebrating your choice every day, especially when it's hard, just pat yourself on the back and go ahead and feel a little smug in your decision to quit. Hooray you!!
  • _DaniD_
    _DaniD_ Posts: 2,186 Member
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    I quit two years ago, and started running a year ago. After I quit, I figured why not make more healthy changes!
  • mains_adam25
    mains_adam25 Posts: 382 Member
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    just decided to quit they other day right now its killing me lol but i dont want to go back
  • juliedozier
    juliedozier Posts: 184 Member
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    I quit 10 years ago. It was hard at first, in fact I quit 3 times before I really quit. Now I can't stand the smell of it at all, I'm soo glad I did it! Good luck!
  • AthenaErr
    AthenaErr Posts: 282 Member
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    Quit 4 years ago, restarted last may, quit again 4 weeks ago, gained some weight quitting but it will go again.
  • alw141
    alw141 Posts: 59 Member
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    I smoked my last cigarette December 19th 2009... I found out I was pregnant December 22nd 2009. Quitting was pretty easy after I found out that little surprise. :love: There are days I miss it...for about a second, then it goes away. I will NEVER go back to smoking.
  • musharooni
    musharooni Posts: 4
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    Me! Me! Me! I smoked my last cigarette at 5:37 pm on April 17, 2012 and haven't looked back. I made a committment to take better care of me and kicking that habit was a big part of it. Good luck with this endeavor, it will be tough, but the rewards are immeasurable and it does get easier each day that passes. One thing that keep me on track was the thought that even if I just took one puff, I would have to start the process all over again.
  • squindles
    squindles Posts: 350 Member
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    It's so good that yr quitting smoking. That'll be the best ever descision you'll ever make. I'll have been stopped for 9 years this September and have never regretted it. Make sure however that you keep on exercising. I didn't and put on 4 stones (56 lbs) :sad: But my doc even says to me know that being the size I am now is better for me than if I was lighter and smoking!!!!!! :noway: Hope all goes well xx
  • ChgingMe
    ChgingMe Posts: 539 Member
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    I quit on my birthday, Jan of 2000.. The reason? My then 4 year old was smoking pens pretending to be like mommy. That is one legacy I didn't want to pass down. Was it hard? Yes the hardest thing I've ever done? Was it worth it? YES. The first 2 weeks to a month are the hardest. Almost brutal because you see cigarettes EVERYWHERE.. I can't imagine ever going back at this point. The price alone will kill you...

    Hang in there and focus on one day at a time (sometimes it was minute to minute for me) and you will succeed.
  • MissMaryMac33
    MissMaryMac33 Posts: 1,433 Member
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    I quit cold turkey when I was your age - 45 after the doctors told me that my heart was 73 years old.
    I was overweight, type II diabtes and smoked like crazy. That was my wakeup call... I didn't want to die before 50.

    It's VERY hard to quit.. the hardest part for me was the habit.. and what to do with my hands.
    I smoked in the car so I driving without them was horrible..
    I sucked a lock of sugar-free werthers and mints for awhile.

    Now I don't miss it all, feel a million times better and wish I had done it 20 years ago.

    You can do it!
  • RiotxRiot
    RiotxRiot Posts: 14
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    I quit almost a year ago. Check yourself while you're quitting because a lot of people crave sugar when they quit and it can get out of hand. I also found I was most successful and actually quit when I didn't tell any of my friends or co-workers. It took off all the pressure, I guess I felt like people weren't watching and waiting for me to fail. Good luck! You can do it!

    Also I hope your sake the anti-smoking signs don't suck where you live. These signs were literally EVERYWHERE when I was quitting.

    http://www.oddee.com/contrib_14797.aspx

    It's kind of funny now, but at the time, these things drove me insane haha
  • itgeekwoman
    itgeekwoman Posts: 804 Member
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    I quit Jan 2010. Loving it! Started getting healthy August 2010.. never looking back!
  • dawn_eichert
    dawn_eichert Posts: 487 Member
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    Hello. Tomorrow is my quit day as I am turning 40 tomorrow. I quit for the same reason that it was time to get healthy.

    Feel free anyone to add me.
  • robsgurl
    robsgurl Posts: 97 Member
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    I quit smoking 11 years ago..I am glad I quit then cause a year after I quit I got pregnant with my oldest. I still have craving once in a while but I just try it ignore it. I decided one day I was done and gave the pack I had to my sister who smoked at the time and said I was done. I just got sick of it...=)

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