Trying to quit smoking! Need advice!!!

I can only give you what worked for me.

I tried the patch 4 times and it failed every time, and made my mouth dry, was horrible. It just makes you sick.

When I quit, I finally deep down wanted to quick badly, I was on a vacation and stopped. I think maybe being removed from my every day routine, smoking wasn't part of it.
But that was the first time I truly wanted to stop. The more I talk to people, the only thing that seems to work is going cold turkey, or that chantix.

Something that helped my father quit smoking (he smoked for almost 50 years) he replaced cigs with a straw or suckers. Eveytime he felt he needed to light up. he would "smoke" a staw or put a sucker in his mouth. He didn't use the patch or any of that other stuff. straws and Tootsie Pops, worked for him, might work for you.

Hi! First of all, congratulations on your decision to quit. It is not easy....believe me. I quit 7 times. I have now been smoke free for 3 years after almost 30 years of wanting to quit. First of all, my success was due simply to being SCARED....we thought I had a heart attack. Both of my parents died of undiagnosed heart disease until it was too late. Once those leads and the oxygen mask were put on me that was it. So....I found the strongest flavor gum I could locate. For me it was 5 brand, Cobalt flavor. I'd put the gum in my mouth, give it one or two bites and start breathing deep. It's like menthol (BTW, I didn't smoke menthol) but for me it was that almost burn you get with the first smoke of the day. When I get stressed I pop in a peppermint or cinnamon Altoid and do the same thing. Now I can get the same result by just taking real deep breaths....sloooooww. Since you're now coaching the excercise will help as well. I cannot give any info on weight loss, though, because I've managed to gain 30 lbs....even being on here....not a help for that. I still keep celery and carrot sticks on hand and when I get a REALLY strong urge I talk, I talk to my co workers, I talk on the phone, I'll talk to myself or read out loud if I have to, because I associated smoking with just real good visits. Sorry this is so long, I just want to help. Good luck to you and let me know how it goes :-)

I stopped smoking cold turkey almost 2 years ago(in Jan). Best thing I every did for myself and my family. The #1 thing is you really want to quit, you need to quit for you not anybody else. You can be motivated by your family but you really have to be mentally set to quit. Like I said I just quit cold turkey because I have heard horror stories about the prescriptions to stop(sis tried them can't remember their names). I have the personality of...... if I want something bad enough I go all out to get it done. So the patch wasn't an option for me because I didn't want to quit gradually I just wanted to quit. I just said ok this is my last cig and thats that. Has it sucked quitting? absolutely! Did I gain weight? Absolutely!!! For me the biggest life saver was sunflower seeds and that helped my hubby stop too. Whenever I wanted a cigarette I threw a handful of Spitz Smoky BBQ seeds in my mouth and started crackin' away. Heck I still love my seeds when I crave a cig and from time to time I still crave one. I just remember this.....NOPE which means Not One Puff EVER!!! I have friends and lots of family that smoke and it doesn't bug me....I have to admit some days it smells so good and I just want to have a puff but I just have to remind myself that would be insane to trow away almost 2 years smoke free!!!! Good luck you can do it!!!

I forgot to add that I tried not to avoid my triggers because thats what I needed to work though. I have 4 kids so of course I get stressed......I just realized that I was stressing myself out more trying to find time to sneak out and have a cigarette. I always started my day with coffee and a cig well I have to wake up and I love my coffee so that wasn't something I stopped doing. I still like an occasional beer and drinking was a huge trigger for me......I just learned to get over the craving. I found a site online I think it was www.about.com and typed stopping smoking. The info was great and I realized I wasn't the only one going through withdrawals. It really is a mental game or at least 75% was for me

Cold turkey worked for me 24 years ago. It was hard... I gained 20 lbs the first month, but I lost it. You can do it if you REALLY want to. Good luck!

I just quit smoking 3 weeks ago. I did it the cold-turkey style combined with a lot of exercising and wellness.
I started to take a lot of nutritions --especially vitamin C -- before i went on cold turkey and I always have a box of nuts and a bottle of water close to me in case i feel the urge to smoke - I also heard that sunflower seeds should work very nicely.

I know your pain all to well. I tried the patches, the pills, etc... in the end I just did it one day, extremly hard at first; but as time went on it got easier and easier. Been smoke free since Nov 2010. Another thing that help this time around, we moved to Japan and all my new friends I have meet since I've been here don't smoke. I guess it was just my time, and a lot of will power. "Never quit, quitting"

I did it, after 30+ years of smoking. I had always put it off, because a ) I kind of like smoking - except for the wheezing, hacking, stinking, and expense part and b ) I quit once and put on 10 pounds, so never wanted to deal with that again.

So, I made a plan.

I decided that on THIS date (May 22, 2009)), I would forever quit. I told everyone that I was quitting on THAT date. Family, co-workers, friends, etc.

I joined a gym and planned to start working out and joined MFP and planned to eat at a deficit to fight against the potential weight gain. I utilized my cost savings from the cigarettes to pay for a YMCA membership.

I knew that the action of smoking was a big thing with me, so I bought fake cigarettes (all filter, no tobacco), mints, hard candies, and lots of veggies sticks.

I was aware that I would be fidgety in the early days, so I started a very difficult beading project (loom weaving) to keep me focused and busy.

I took two days off from work to coincide with my quit date, so I could establish new habits before going back to my old "routine" of work and smoke breaks. And so I wouldn't inflict my addiction-breaking grumpiness on my co-workers.

On the quit date, I destroyed all remaining cigarettes, holders, and lighters and threw away all ashtrays. I cleaned out my car and made it smell pretty. I washed all my clothing so they wouldn't smell like cigarettes anymore.

The biggest obstacle was my own mind. I kept arguing against myself...self, you don't have to do this TODAY, do you? You could enjoy your vacation and do it later. Over and over and over, for 3 days, I had to tell myself to STFU. And I had to tell myself that I AM stronger than this puny little weed, and that I CAN do whatever I want to do , and I really WANT to quit smoking. After 3 days, I was no longer shaking or jittery or trying to talk myself out of it. I used the fake cigarettes for a few months, to help deal with the habit of holding one - you know, during coffee or first thing in the morning, or while driving, or when going outside with friends for a smoke break. But you have to remind yourself that if you ever smoke again...just ONE drag, you have to start ALL over again, including those first, horrible 3 days. So I did not ever give in. I didn't use any drugs or gum or other aid, although I had patches available if I felt I needed them.


It's now been more than 2 years and I've lost 40 pounds since I quit. I don't miss it a bit. In fact, I was able to go off all my asthma medications (nebulizer, inhaler, pills) and have started running, something I could not do for more than a few feet, when I smoked.

So good luck!! And feel free to friend me if you want a friend who knows how hard it is.