Any tips to quit, or limit smoking?

I quit, cold turkey, a little over 20 years ago after smoking a pack a day for close to 20 years. I don't know why but it was easy for me, I just decided to quit and quit. (Of course food tasted so much better & I put on some weight but that poses a smaller health risk than smoking)

I also understand that nicotine is one of the most addictive substances around and that it exceedingly difficult for some people to quit. I never had to use any of the gum or electronic cigarettes but they are useful tools to ease the transition to being a non-smoker, you might also want to talk to your doctor or check with your local lung association for suggestions.

Best of luck.

Same boat here. I like to smoke, I like to drink. I ain't giving up my wine and that makes it even harder to give up my smokes. Sigh.

If you get an answer, let me know.

I quit smoking cold turkey on a Friday was partying on Saturday. That was (9) years ago. If you REALLY want to quit you will.

Gums, the patch, hypnotism... none of that crap will work unless you TRULY, HONESTLY, desire to quit.

I too quit cold turkey. Addictions are more mental than anything. It's mind over matter. Everytime you get the urge to smoke, do something else you enjoy instead. When I go to the bar, now instead of going to smoke with everyone, I use that time to pick music on the jukebox instead. Keeps my mind focused on something else. I also think of how smoking makes me smell and feel (especially when drinking. Hangovers are the worst then!). I agree that you have to truly want to quit before you can ever quit. I would recommend that you don't just "cut back." If you're going to do this, then QUIT! Good luck with this! I know it's hard.

there is only one way to quit. make the decision to do it. and do it.

it's not easy.

but if i did it (and I did) so can you!

This.

I quit in August of last year, and I thought I loved it too. I still miss it - but I surely don't regret it. Oh- and I had smoked for a little over 30 years.

You can do it - you just have to decide to!!

Cold turkey is what worked for me. Anything else seemed like you were just prolonging the agony and slowly keeping the addiction going.

I loved smoking as well, I still miss it and I still wish I could have just one puff - but JUST one puff won't work for me and I think I will enjoy the healthy years I added to my life more than I loved to smoke.

If you stop bying the smokes, then you will drastically reduce your smoking habit.

You could have to stay in the hospital for two weeks where you can't smoke at all. That's how I quit - it's been nearly two years and I haven't had a single smoke. Seriously though, cold turkey. Willpower. All you need is your brain and you have to truly want to quit.

me and my friend are in the process of trying to quit. its definitely very hard, but what helps is thinking about how years from now, your lungs will look like you never smoked!!! its one of the only bad habits where you can reverse the damage youre doing by stopping NOW.

After smoking for 30 years and quitting cold turkey...

WANT to Quit
CHOOSE to Quit
ACT upon the Choice
Succeed.

Nicotine is out of your system in 3 days. Your "Habit" needs to be filled with other activities.

Yep!

Same boat here. I like to smoke, I like to drink. I ain't giving up my wine and that makes it even harder to give up my smokes. Sigh.

If you get an answer, let me know.

I gave up the smokes but continued to drink. You just have to really want to not smoke. No one aroind me smokes so that helped a lot.

Stop inhaling...Oh and every time you smoke spray skunk urine in your mouth Pavlovs theory works in a negative way too.

suemar74 SAID:

I read Allan Carr's book, "The Easy Way to Quit Smoking". I borrowed it from the library so iI was only out a leisurely afternoon of reading if it didn't work.

After many attempts to quit and feeling like I was detoxing from a street drug, I was amazed at how easy it actually was with that book.

I tried the patch for awhile, the gum on maybe three attempts, the lozenges on two or three occasions, zyban, chantix, cold turkey, rubber band on the wrist. I tried quitting for my mom, once when each of my kids was born, for my wife, for myself.

Fail, fail, fail, within a month of making the promise, stopping the medicine or the nicotine aids. I couldn't stop myself, I had to have it, the cravings were uncontrollably strong, you probably want one right now, don't you?

A coworker recommended this book ("The Easy Way") and I read it, and I quit when I was on the last page in October 2011 and I haven't missed smoking at all. I haven't had a cigarette, haven't wanted a cigarette, and am daily joyous that I stopped. I'm angry that I smoked for 15 years, and that I didn't understand the trick. I killed that little monster as easy as you please.

The net enjoyment of my life is WAY WAY WAY beyond what "enjoyment" I used to get from each of those 30 cigarettes a day, for those 15 years I did that to myself.


I have two requests for you, original poster and those who still smoke:

1. Go to amazon, find the book, and calculate how many packs of cigarettes it costs. The chance of never buying another pack should be worth what you'll spend by Friday night on cigarettes.

2. Reflect on the fact that you go to bed at night and sleep for eight hours completely undisturbed by your 'cravings', but the thought of getting on a three hour plane flight may fill you with utter dread.

e-cigarette. my coworker is doing great with that; she takes her little smoke breaks and everything.

This doesn't work for everyone. I quit because I wanted to run more than I wanted to be fat. Cigarette's prevented me from running, which a lack thereof kept me fat. So I just stopped.

I was totally good for 6 months. Now I have a couple cigs a week (usually on one night if I'm drinking with friends) and only on Saturday/Sunday after my long runs. I can absolutely tell if I smoked the day before I try and do cardio so I avoid that completely. Of course, you have to have willpower to be able to turn it on and off like that.

Honestly you just have to find what works for you. I've known people that were able to jumpstart quitting by smoking so many cigarette's in a couple day period that they got the point where thinking about a cigarette make them want to vomit. That wears off, but if it's the habit that's killing you, that can give you the two week lead you need

Get pregnant, and live with someone who tells you how nasty it is fo a woman to smoke LOL.

If those don't work

Remember that the cynergistic effects of smoking combined with any toxin increases your risk factor for illness from those toxins many times more than than they would if you didn't smoke.

What's the point of being ripped if you've made your insides black and nasty.

Oh and Smoking is gross and went out of style in the 50's...along with Corsets. Really...oh and you are generally hated by anyone who doesn't smoke and sees you doing it in public.

Not enough for you...

Call the CDC Quit Line and get a quit coach...these were paid for by the Tobacco settlements of the 90's.

For me I grew up smoking...really I had a my first cigarette sometime around the age of 8 or 9. Became a regular smoker in my teens. Got pregnant, quit regular smoking but picked up a cigarette on occasion in social situations. Any time I was with my mom she and I would share a pack of cigs. In 2010 I got P90X, I'd also finished Couch to 5K ect. But I still smoked when ever I was alone. One day I had this crazy epiphany, why ON EARTH would I do this to my body if I want to be in great shape. Took me a little while longer but I quit. Its been almost two years since I have had a smoke, and really haven't looked back. I find the habit now repulsive and really don't understand why anyone would ever start...its nasty.
One thing I feel really helped me quit for good was that I was only smoking in social situations with other smokers, and didn't smoke every day. I might smoke like 20 cigarettes a month at most.....and at parties and festivals I would have my own pack. Once I realized I could do those activities without a cigarette in hand, it wasn't soo bad. The hardest was telling my mom I didn't want a cigarette or to smoke with her anymore. She was happy ect but it was a habit she'd and I shared for a long time.

When I smoked I absolutely loved it also. I smoked 2 packs per day...more if I went out in the evening. The last thing I wanted to do was give it up....but my body was actually to the point where I would wake up in the night craving one. So I decided I needed to quit. It took me 5 years on and off to finaly get them outta my life. Point being, never give up. You're not gonna quit if you're not trying.