for all the smokers out there....

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what helped u quit?? i have quit smoking once before when i was pregnant with my son and breastfeeding and it was totally different bc i told myself i was doing it for him. since then, i have started back up. stupid i know to go all that time and then start back up! i have tried again since then, but ALWAYS replaced it with food. i have come too far to do that now. and im scared that if i quit again, i will do the same thing. please dont list all the harmful side effects of smoking, as i already know them all. i am one of those ppl who have i guess what they call an "addictive personality". i go from one addiction to the next. it used to be a serious pothead, but gave that up. i was quite the lush when it came to drinking, but i have pretty much also given that up. the only thing i havent been able to succeed in is smoking. i have tried medicines from the dr, but that didnt seem to help either. it just gave me anxiety over the issue so i smoked even more. just curious to what helped u stop smoking.

Replies

  • johnsummerton
    johnsummerton Posts: 86 Member
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    i tried loads of timesthen one time it worked . just keep trying.dont beat yourself up for slipups .will get there in the end:happy:
  • misskimlilac
    misskimlilac Posts: 306 Member
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    You said you did it for him (your son) in the past, DO IT FOR YOUSELF! Love yourself enough to do it for you! :heart:
  • phinners
    phinners Posts: 524 Member
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    I quit by reading a book.


    Allen Carr's Easy Way to Stop Smoking.


    After 23 yrs and 20 *kitten* a day he helped me to quit overnight. And I'm 400 days today clean. Man, I feel so good it's unreal!!

    I've ended up replacing my *kitten* addiction with a sewing and cross stitch addiction!!
  • cyans1996
    cyans1996 Posts: 63
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    all i can say is good luck.
  • staciekins
    staciekins Posts: 453 Member
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    getting on that treadmill and trying to run...felt like I was going to pass out and die right then and there...i don't wanna be that wrinkly, coughing, smelly 40 year old woman that looks 60. Gum helps. So does chewing on a straw. It's an oral fixation. YOu can even nibble on a couple squares of dark chocolate. It helps maintain metabolism and curb cravings. :)
  • QueenofCups
    QueenofCups Posts: 365 Member
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    I am right there with you. I quit when I got pregnant with my daughter, then was breastfeeding, then got pregnant again, then breastfed, and when my son was 7mos old I started back up. I am trying to quit right now but its so hard!! I don't really WANT to quit, that's my problem. I have had some slipups here and there, but overall its just mind over matter. The best thing I can think is do something to curb the cravings like walking in place, jumping jacks, making friendship bracelets (I am doing this also to stop night time snacking while I watch TV, my other addiction). All of those things are *helping*. I am not completely done smoking yet, but I feel like eventually I will get there. I like what someone else said, just keep trying. Eventually it will stick. But beating yourself up about not quitting is only gonna make you smoke more.
    ((HUGS)) Hang in there, its a beast of an addiction, I know.
  • luckyinlife
    luckyinlife Posts: 81 Member
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    Prayer and a book called, The Easy Way to Stop Smoking by Alan Carr. Read the reviews on Amazon!
    Much luck to ya!
  • donicagalek
    donicagalek Posts: 526
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    I stopped smoking two months ago. I had been smoking for almost 20 years and was doing a pack to a pack and a half a day. I ordered some e-cigs and the day they came in the mail I threw my leftover cigs in the freezer "Just in case".

    There never was a "just in case". My husband wound up smoking them weeks ago. I don't even miss it.
  • dkug1964
    dkug1964 Posts: 13 Member
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    I smoked for 20 years. I quit probably 3 times total. One day in 2000 I decided I didn't want them anymore. Nothing special. I just didn't want them. I quit that day, and haven't even thought about smoking since. Never even had a nicotine fit. I guess it was just time. I don't know.

    It'll work out, just give it time. Good luck.
  • Choltor
    Choltor Posts: 65 Member
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    After sixteen years of smoking, I just stopped, and haven't smoked in the past five years. The biggest key for me was to just not be around it anymore. My friends and family have all either quit or never started, and very few people smoke these days where I live. The thing is, I still crave it, and figure that I probably always will. That craving is my trophy, reminding me that I am beating the addiction.

    To be honest, I don't think I would have the strength to quit if my life were still filled with smokers. So, try to start there, if you can. If your friends smoke, try to get them to quit, or find new friends. Sounds harsh, but this is your health we're talking about.
  • kenrae
    kenrae Posts: 12 Member
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    I quit using laser therapy. It worked great for me with very mild nicotine fits. I also joined Quitnet.ca for support from peers. I did gain weight but I found this site and have lost most of it. I have been quit for 20 months now. I wish you luck in quiting as it is tough but worth it. Never quit quiting.
  • Spayrroe
    Spayrroe Posts: 210 Member
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    My husband is deployed for military combat right now, however at this point, he's still in the country. We agreed that while he's overseas, we're both going to try to quit smoking. I've quit a few times before, but always end up coming back to it. We can work together :).

    Some of the things that worked for me in the past are; gum, celery (it's a negative calorie food, so you can eat as much of it as you want), and things to do to keep my hands busy (like I took up knitting for a while so I didn't have a free hand to smoke). I also recommend cutting down gradually, instead of just trying to stop. One of the things a doctor had recommended to me was to start a 'smoking journal', and try to only smoke the 'important' ones (like after a meal, after being intimate, when you first get up in the morning, etc). One of the things that cut my smoking way back was just not smoking in the car anymore. I used to chain smoke on my way to and from work. Also, when I go out on the balcony to smoke (we don't smoke in our home), I only take one out with me instead of the pack. Sometimes I'll sit out there for a bit after I finish my cigarette, but because I only had the one, I don't smoke anymore where as before I would smoke two or three if I just wanted more time outside.

    Hope some of this helps you (and me for that matter, lol)! :)
  • rngreen
    rngreen Posts: 16 Member
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    I was a pack a day smoker for 13 years. I tried quitting numerous times, but finally quit permanently while trying to get pregnant. That will be 2 years on May 31st. I used the patch to deal with the cravings. I never went back to smoking, and continue to use my daughter as a reason not to. You quit while pregnant and breastfeeding which is a wonderful thing! Just continue to think of how your smoking affects your child. Third-hand smoke (yes it is real, it is smoke that lingers on clothing, upholstery, etc and contains carcinogens) has harmful side effects on a child's health as well.

    I would suggest replacing it with something active to do with you kiddo. Maybe take a walk, play at the park, something like that. It might get your mind off of it long enough to get over the craving. Also, drink a glass of water every time you feel a craving coming on. It will help you stay hydrated, make you feel full, and hopefully keep you from reaching for some type of food item.

    I am happy for your decision to quit! It is one of the hardest things you will ever have to do. Just take it one day at a time and try not to beat yourself up if you slip. You will get there if you have the determination.
  • phinners
    phinners Posts: 524 Member
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    Prayer and a book called, The Easy Way to Stop Smoking by Alan Carr. Read the reviews on Amazon!
    Much luck to ya!
    This, this, a thousand times THIS!!


    Allen Carr should be knighted for all the people he has freed. I also read his fear of flying book, and then last week I flew to Canada and back - 16 hours in total and for the first time I was able to relax and not sitting there thinking we were about to drop out of the sky.

    The man was a genius!!!
  • bdeezy3396
    bdeezy3396 Posts: 89 Member
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    Out of all the times I quit curving the need for the nicotine was always the easiest whether it was through the patch, gum, or inhaler. The problem I had was that I couldn't curb that urge to smoke. The thought of inhaling that cigarette was like filet mignon to me. I too decided to quit for my children and am pround to say I have been smoke free for 8 months, and nicotine free for 6 months. Everyday posts it's obstacles as sometimes I still feel myself wanting that cigarette, but I'm scared that if I have one I'm a smoker again so that keeps it at bay.
    What I did that was finally successful for me was I went to war over it, I gave myself every tool to beat it, plus the biggest thing was I really wanted it this time. I used the nicotine patch plus the electronic cigarette with nicotine cartridges. For the first two weeks both the patch and the cartridges were high nicotine so I was getting more nicotine then I would when I was smoking but I wasn't getting the harmful toxins that came from smoking so that was my excuse. After that I gradually cut down so I wasn't using any nicotine after two months. I also used that e-cigarette like it was a pacifyer, and smoked it as I was still smoking - took cigarette breaks with it, smoked in my car, in my recliner, after a meal how I would normally smoke. If my urges got stronger to smoke I used it more sometimes going through a cartridge in 15 minutes which was suppose to be equal to 8 to 10 cigarettes. I also didn't worry about gaining weight, and I put on 25lbs in 6 months, that's where I'm at now since I feel I'm now a non-smoker I'm working on my wieght. Don't try to do too much or you will fail at both. Concentrate on quitting smoking and then you can concentrate on eating healthy and excercising later.
    I'm not sayign this is the best way or even the most healthy, but after smoking for 25 years and smoking 2 packs a day for the last 10 I haven't had a cigarette in 8 months. I wish you the best of luck in your journey and know that if you find the right mind and focus on quitting you will succeed. Good luck.
  • mishelnkiki
    mishelnkiki Posts: 775 Member
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    thank u all SOOOO much. im trying to become a runner. and while im up to 2 miles straight now, it just sucks because i cant breath. and u are all right. its gotta be for myself as well as for my children. im not one of those people who can gradually quite anything. im either all or nothing. as i was sitting here reading through these, i think ihave found the inspiration that i need! for my children, and for myself! (i also got the motivation to get up and go to the gym now too.) thank u all so very much!
  • noexcuses1218
    noexcuses1218 Posts: 332 Member
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    Here's my story; it's kinda long but bear with me.

    I quit about 8 million times before it finally took. When it did, it was a combination of factors: nicotine patches, following the directions religiously, support from my daughter (who was five at the time), and circumstances beyond my control. What clinched it was something that happened about six weeks after I quit.

    My mother died of complications from lung cancer when she was 52. My grandmother had breast cancer that eventually metastasized to her brain. Approaching 40 myself, you might think I would have gotten the picture by then. I hadn't, not really.

    Then a few days before my daughter's sixth birthday, I started feeling a slight pain in my shoulder and chest area. I started having problems taking full, deep breaths. Those symptoms were consistent with my mother's right before she was diagnosed.

    At that time, I still laid down with my daughter for a few minutes at night to help her go to sleep. For five nights, I looked at her lovely sleeping face, so much like she looked as an infant, and thought, "It's lung cancer. I'm going to be dead in six months. I'm not going to see her graduate from high school, or college, or be there when she gets married, or see my grandchildren. And I won't be there for her when all these things happen, or to comfort her through her first heartbreak, or..." It went on from there, made even worse by remembering how hard it was for me to get through those things while still grieving for the loss of my own mother.

    And it made me really seriously mad, too, because at that point I'd already been quit for six weeks. How ironic would it be for me to develop lung cancer after I quit smoking?

    Five nights of that. Five days when those things went through my head constantly as I planned and prepared for her birthday party, thinking "Enjoy this. It may be the last party you ever give her."

    Once her party was over and all the out of town guests left and things went back to normal, I woke up one morning and found that I could breathe again. From that day on, although I've certainly experienced the physical and mouth cravings you get from nicotine withdrawal, the emotional involvement isn't there. Not once has my brain kicked in and said, "Gosh, I'll feel SO much better if I just have a cigarette." Not after a couple of beers, not after dinner, not with my morning coffee, never.

    I substituted with food, yes. And there are times when the craving comes back in the form of vicious attacks of the munchies, which threatens to derail my fitness goals. I don't care. I'd rather be overweight and have a chance to struggle with that than be dead.

    That's what helped me quit, and stay quit. Sometimes paranoia and an overactive imagination can come in VERY handy.

    Wishing you the very best of luck, strength, and hope.

    ~Andi
  • threechins
    threechins Posts: 35 Member
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    Agree with lots of the others. Basically, you just have to want to quit enough to go through a few months of pangs (which isthe basic premise of the Alan Carr book)!

    I smoked for 7-8 years, usually 20-30 *kitten* a day (many many more if I was out) and tried quitting a few times but never succeeded. However, I'd always - and I don't know why - said I was going to quit before I was 30. Finally gave up a few months before my birthday and it worked.

    There are probably other factors, I used nicotine patches (although I'd used them unsuccessfully before) and I'd met the woman who would become my wife (who was a non-smoker) but it wasn't part of any health kick, I ended up putting on a lot of weight. I might be kidding myself, but I'm sure it was the years of telling myself that I'd be a non-smoker by 30 that became a self-fulfilling prophecy.
  • QueenofCups
    QueenofCups Posts: 365 Member
    Options
    Here's my story; it's kinda long but bear with me.

    I quit about 8 million times before it finally took. When it did, it was a combination of factors: nicotine patches, following the directions religiously, support from my daughter (who was five at the time), and circumstances beyond my control. What clinched it was something that happened about six weeks after I quit.

    My mother died of complications from lung cancer when she was 52. My grandmother had breast cancer that eventually metastasized to her brain. Approaching 40 myself, you might think I would have gotten the picture by then. I hadn't, not really.

    Then a few days before my daughter's sixth birthday, I started feeling a slight pain in my shoulder and chest area. I started having problems taking full, deep breaths. Those symptoms were consistent with my mother's right before she was diagnosed.

    At that time, I still laid down with my daughter for a few minutes at night to help her go to sleep. For five nights, I looked at her lovely sleeping face, so much like she looked as an infant, and thought, "It's lung cancer. I'm going to be dead in six months. I'm not going to see her graduate from high school, or college, or be there when she gets married, or see my grandchildren. And I won't be there for her when all these things happen, or to comfort her through her first heartbreak, or..." It went on from there, made even worse by remembering how hard it was for me to get through those things while still grieving for the loss of my own mother.

    And it made me really seriously mad, too, because at that point I'd already been quit for six weeks. How ironic would it be for me to develop lung cancer after I quit smoking?

    Five nights of that. Five days when those things went through my head constantly as I planned and prepared for her birthday party, thinking "Enjoy this. It may be the last party you ever give her."

    Once her party was over and all the out of town guests left and things went back to normal, I woke up one morning and found that I could breathe again. From that day on, although I've certainly experienced the physical and mouth cravings you get from nicotine withdrawal, the emotional involvement isn't there. Not once has my brain kicked in and said, "Gosh, I'll feel SO much better if I just have a cigarette." Not after a couple of beers, not after dinner, not with my morning coffee, never.

    I substituted with food, yes. And there are times when the craving comes back in the form of vicious attacks of the munchies, which threatens to derail my fitness goals. I don't care. I'd rather be overweight and have a chance to struggle with that than be dead.

    That's what helped me quit, and stay quit. Sometimes paranoia and an overactive imagination can come in VERY handy.

    Wishing you the very best of luck, strength, and hope.

    ~Andi

    My goodness, Andi, thank you for sharing your story. That must have taken a lot to open up like that to us, and I am sure it will help someone - it certainly has made me realize how fragile and precious every moment is. So, again, THANK YOU. And may you get to experience all you can in your daughter's life for many, many years. <3
  • phinners
    phinners Posts: 524 Member
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    Agree with lots of the others. Basically, you just have to want to quit enough to go through a few months of pangs (which isthe basic premise of the Alan Carr book)!

    I smoked for 7-8 years, usually 20-30 *kitten* a day (many many more if I was out) and tried quitting a few times but never succeeded. However, I'd always - and I don't know why - said I was going to quit before I was 30. Finally gave up a few months before my birthday and it worked.

    There are probably other factors, I used nicotine patches (although I'd used them unsuccessfully before) and I'd met the woman who would become my wife (who was a non-smoker) but it wasn't part of any health kick, I ended up putting on a lot of weight. I might be kidding myself, but I'm sure it was the years of telling myself that I'd be a non-smoker by 30 that became a self-fulfilling prophecy.
    RE: Allen Carr's premise. I have to say in all total honesty, I dont think you have to be in the mind frame that you want to quit. I certainly wasnt, I thought the book was total horse **** at first!! I think you just need to be open minded enough to listen to what he has to say, and you will find yourself very quikcly believing and agreeing with everything he says.

    And there are no pangs either, he promises you this. He doesnt say anything about getting through months of pangs. You might think about having a *kitten* but then you also think 'nah, dont want it' very quickly, it's not a pang, more of a passing thought.

    This is what I found anyway.