Anyone here a smoker or have quit smoking???

live2smyle · January 2011

Or is it just me??? I have been reading and reading all these posts hopeing that I am not the only snapper head with the dreaded smoking habit but I have not seen any :sad: I did not know where to post this

I hope motivation and support would be the right area.

I have been smoking for 31years (yes I started at 10) :noway: I have so far cut down to 5-6 cigarettes a day from 10 or more. I am doing that by using that vapor cigarette, still get nicotine but no smoke. The filters are able to go down in nicotine, we have not done that yet.

Both my husband and I are trying to quit at the same time. I can honestly say I am at a loss how to kick this habit. I dont want to eat more, dont want to gain weight. However I know this is hindering my progress because I dont have the lung capacity to work out as hard as I would like to. I am litterally gasping for air and turning red.

I cant believe it but after I excersise my immediate thoughts are to smoke. I am ashamed to admit that but it is. I have been reaching for that "fake" cigarette at that time. In the am when I first wake up cigarette and a soda

I have switched to Pepsi Max and trying to consume only 2 sodas a day from who knows what that was all I drank. Then in the afternoon cigarette, if I am on the phone cigarette, driving cigarette, after meals cigarette

I smoke outside not inside (its not my kids fault I smoke and I dont want to kill them) and even in the freezing cold I will still go out there to smoke. It has that much of a hold on me.

Any advise as to how you quit or cut down would be helpfull. Thank you for your support. No need to bash me, I am a grown woman and know this is wrong but for me this is harder than quitting any other addictive thing I was doing (there is a long long list). :embarassed:

LizzieBrayden · January 2011

I have one vice...cigarettes...) you are not alone

haydenbeagle13 · January 2011

I also have been a smoker for 24 years...hard to believe how time flies. My body can tell though.
I have used lozenges along with prescription medications and it does make it easier. I thought I had kicked the habit but
went back after only 6 months.Going to try again. Good luck toyou.

jkestens63 · January 2011

I quit 5 years ago and honestly did it cold turkey. The other stuff just wasn't working for me. A few of my friends have used Chantix with a lot of success.

My doctor told me that if I ultimately only had one choice - he would rather have me quit smoking that lose weight. He said the smoking was so much more bad for me. So I quit, and about 2 years after that I started losing weight. I did gain about 15 lbs but then again at that point I was so heavy it hardly mattered.

Personally I would focus on quitting and trying to maintain your weight as best your can - but don't stress if you gain a little ((worry if you gain 60). Once you are past the initial stress of quitting (at 6 months) then tackle the weight.

gina205 · January 2011

Me too. One problem at a time for me. I found i can't do both at once. I've tried. I do Leslie Sansone work outs and I have been doing them for a month now. I don't feel winded anymore. Some of her work outs are only 15 minutes. Also, you don't need to kill yourself as far as exercise goes. Start out by parking a little farther away at the store. Walking is a great form of exercise.Every little bit helps! Hope that helps!

Thomasm198 · January 2011

I'm a smoker as well. Not quitting at the moment, when I get my weight under control I may look at the cigarettes (I can only deal with one problem at a time :laugh: )

Mads1997 · January 2011

Hi, after 27 years a pack a day habit I just decided one day I was done with it. I gave up cold turkey in february last year and have not smoked one ciggie since. The first month was dreadful. I couldn't sleep for any longer than 1 hour at a time for the first week but it gradually over a month increased and started to sleep about 5 hours a night. I didn't crave the ciggies much it was more finding something to do with my hands. I ate and drank the wrong things (why I'm here now)

elephatacia · January 2011

I quit about 9 years ago. Did it cold turkey!!!:sad: I was as evil as all get out :devil: I gained weight but i figured a few pounds is worth way more than my life. Went thru tons of sugarless gum and sunflower seeds. U have to want to do it for you and nobody else when its time u will do it u can do it:smokin: I still have the urges but believe me i am way better now as a non smoker!!!!

jocelyne2 · January 2011

Smoker with asthma here also :grumble: I totally understand the running out of breath thing when exercising but that why I tend to stick with more strenght exercising rather than running my @ss off for a few mins to end up out of breath and discourage , So when I hit the treadmill I usually just go at 3 mph and use the incline instead its great for the butt :laugh: I would rather deal with one thing at a time and right now my weight is first. The last time I tried to quit I was like a *kitten* on steriods wow was I nasty :mad: I swear if you looked at me sideways I wanted to knock you on your @ss. So rather than be fat and mean ,Ill take the skinnier and happy person

brendansmom1 · January 2011

I too quit....it has been about 4-1/2 years. Honestly, I think there are two "secrets". #1, you really have to WANT to quit, and #2, keep your mind occupied to help the cravings pass.

Once the initial withdraw is over....(three days) it is all mental. I tried other ways to occupy my mind during the times I would crave a cig. I would do cross word puzzles mostly. I SWEAR that is what helped me quit!! Honestly, keeping your mind too busy!

I also quit cold turkey...just said, enough is enough, threw the rest away and was done

Donna

samrockrocks · January 2011

i also quit cold turkey. i wasn't quit the addict that you are (because i'm only 22) but it was still a challenge. you just have to tell yourself to stop making excuses. think about how much extra money you would have if you didn't spend it on your nicotine habit!! you definitely have to find the willpower to quit.. just like you needed the willpower to lose those 10 pounds! i used to work at a candy story and we sold this candy called sin-sin. they're a really strong mint. this man used to come in every week and bought a bunch of them. he said they were the only thing that helped him quit smoking. i think everyone has their own way of doing it, you just have to find yours

Jag13760 · January 2011

I quit after 35 years in Oct. 2 packs per day! When I decided the extra weight had to go, I was the same way..red faced and hard to breath.

This site helps should you decide to give up smoking. http://whyquit.com/ They have excellent articles and helpful hints. I spent alot of time over there in the beginning of my quit.

I also wanted to say it takes 100lbs of extra weight to do the damage to your body that smoking does. You may not like the extra 20 -30 pounds you gain when you quit smoking, but it is healthier than smoking.

Good luck!

jkestens63 · January 2011

I was one of the lucky ones - didn't have any mood swings when I quit smoking, even friends and co-workers were surprised I wasn't a cranky witch when I quit. However, as I mentioned before some of my friends have tried Chantix with a lot of success. But one gal turned into a demon, I literally think she was possessed. We actually had to have an intervention with her because she was so bad. Got her to go back to her doctor who gave her anti-depressants (and I'm not a big fan of pills but some do help).

That was 2 years ago. After a year of not smoking she started switching to a healthy lifestyle, went from 220 to 150 and no longer needs the meds. So if you are having trouble quitting cause of the mood issue, enlist the help of your doc. You really are killing yourself with the smoking (and yes I speak from real experience, BOTH my parents died of lung cancer).

robin52077 · January 2011

I quit cold turkey almost a year ago, March 13th. I did it in conjunction with diet and exercise, tackled everything at once, and never gained. In fact, I think I was able to lose faster because I could exercise without dying. I used to wheeze after running 30 seconds, now I can run 45 minutes.
I am a thousand times healthier than I was just one year ago thanks to MFP!

SweetTooth68 · January 2011

I quit in 2002 after smoking for 14 years. I did try Zyban for the first week but didn't feel like it helped, so quit it after that week - but who knows, maybe that's what got me through the first week.

The first 3 months were total hell and I was a complete B**** to be around!

My experience with quitting smoking has helped a lot in my approach for quitting making bad food choices.

What I did for the smoking and I am doing right now is to take it 3 hours at a time.

Do I reallllllly HAVE to have this right now or can I wait 3 hours? I couldn't look at it long term, I had to break it down into small piece of time and celebrate each 3 hours I went without picking one up.

I also found it very motivating to look at a chart of how your body recovers after you quit eg like this one: http://www.suite101.com/content/how-fast-does-your-body-heal-after-you-quit-smok-a197868

By next year I will have pretty much completely recovered from my 14 years of smoking and have similar risk factors of a non-smoker!

I hung on every goal - the best thing is the first improvement comes just 20 minutes after you quit...

I hope this helps you! Feel free to give us a shout if you need motivation to stay on track!

PJilly · January 2011

I quit in 1996 after smoking more than 20 years. I used Nicorette gum, and it was a godsend. I tried cold turkey, and I tried the patch, but I think the reason the gum worked well for me was that it was something I could physically do (pop in a piece) when I was having a mad craving. It's a tough habit to kick, but it can be done, and it may not be as hard as you've convinced yourself it will be. I remember feeling that way when I quit, that it wasn't as "impossible" as I'd thought it would be. One thing I can pretty much guarantee is that you'll never regret it if you quit. Do it! :flowerforyou:

kettlewitch · January 2011

I'm a smoker as well. Not quitting at the moment, when I get my weight under control I may look at the cigarettes (I can only deal with one problem at a time :laugh: )

I'm right here. If anything I'm smoking more at the moment, about 20 a day. I am going to lose a lot more weight before I even consider trying to give up. Even my doctor understands to a point although of course I should give up. My husband gave up 4 years ago (although he does have the odd sneaky one) and has put on 2 stone.

Betsy1111 · January 2011

I smoke too. You are not alone. I started back about 2 years ago (dumb) after having quit for 9 years.... ahhh. I am takling the weight loss first. Cutting back a bit, cause yes, working out really stinks being a smoker. I have about 50 more lbs to lose, and am entertaining the thought of quiting when I have a good regiment in place. I'm really motivated right now, and really building good eating/working-out habits. I will shoot for July 1st as my quit smoking date! Best of luck to you friend, and remember, Rome was not built in a day!

skinnyb450 · January 2011

I gave up May last year - I took Champix - A prescription from the Doctor - I smoked for 32 years (uuggg!!) I put on 30 kg when I gave up but joined MFP on 1.1.2011 and have lost 5kg

Just DO IT !!!! You will feel SOOOO SOOOO much better.

Please ADD me if you would like support - Good luck and believe in yourself - Take one day - one hour - one minute at a time with your smoking (or not smoking) just distract yourself and the craving will pass

:flowerforyou:

JennyJH · January 2011

I'm quitting on Tuesday - Feb 1st.

Last time I quit I last about six months, then fell down at the works Christmas Party. But, now you can't smoke in pubs etc I hopefully won't have as much temptation:laugh:

Last time I actually lost weight when I quit as I had so much more energy and one of my distractions was to go for a run.

I could do with encouragement & fellow quitters if anyone would like to add me as a friend

taletreader · January 2011

I'm down to 2-4 cigarettes a day. I'd stopped for about 6 months in 2004. My friends seemed to think that trying to quit entirely and losing weight was a bit much to try at the same time. But I find I'm reluctant to smoke on days I exercise, or at least not until the late evening after the exercise.

I'm moving out of the country in less than a week, and at the place I'm moving to, I rarely smoke, or at least not for several days at a stretch, so I hope to be able to kick it then.

bethann1976 · January 2011

I quit by taking Chantix (aka Champix, depending on what country you live in). I know there are some horror stories out there about this medication, but for me, it was a miracle drug. Yes, I had some sleeping issues and some nausea, but I was only on the drug for 2 months and here it is 6 months later, I don't smoke.

I quit once before with the patch, it only lasted 10 months, and during those 10 months I thought about a cig every single day. That's not the case this time around.

Chantix is awesome. Give it a try and see if it'll work for you.

Mirabilis · January 2011

I quit cold turkey and I just had my 25 year anniversary of quitting. Smoking was a huge mistake in my life, started on a dare and hooking me for 8 years.

When I quit, I had three weeks of really anxious/irritated feelings (a lot like PMS, but a little worse), but then, it was like a switch was turned on and all of a sudden, I was on an endorphin high that must have lasted a month!

Before I quit, I had a cold every 3 months. After... no colds for over a year.

Also, I had lots of people come up to me later and tell me that they weren't interested in hanging around with me until I quit. Lots of guys don't like kissing smokers, and I agree with them.

What you have to do is make a commitment, a strong one, to never pick up a cigarette again, ever. There has to be that final decision of "NEVER AGAIN" or it won't work. You have to mean it. Don't try to say "I can just have one". You can't.

You will find that within six months, you have more friends that don't smoke and it becomes so much easier to forget you ever had that nasty habit. You'll also notice that when you hang around smokers, the smoke particles stick to your hair and clothes. When I go to my (smoking) neighbours' house for a visit, I deliberately dress in clothes I can throw in the washing machine after I get back and I generally have a shower afterwards because the smoke stays in my hair and smells just horrible. Smokers generally have no clue that non-smokers smell the smoke so much more strongly than they do.

Best of luck. You can do it!

chopsusie · January 2011

I'm one of those people who can take them or leave them. Usually only smoke when I meet my husband for a drink on Friday after work. Thought I was doing great. Went to the doc to talk about surgery (new smaller boobs). Doc said he wouldn't do surgery unless I promised I wouldn't smoke for a month-not even one. He was more concerned about smoking than the weight. Haven't smoked since new years, but haven't gone out with hubbie either. Hope to stay quit after surgery. Doc said if you don't smoke for a month you're a non-smoker.

bethann1976 · January 2011

I'm with the previous poster -- I had a cold (most often which turned into bronchitis) all the time. Since I quit, NADA! Also, I think as "reformed smokers," we are very sensitive to the smell of it. I will say, though, if I'm drinking, I enjoy the smell and will jokingly "sniff" a smoking friend, but never do I desire to actually smoke one myself.

Anyone here a smoker or have quit smoking???

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