Former smokers

Sorry I'm not much help. :grumble:
I still smoke but nearly as much as most people here.
Yesterday I only had 3 and menthol.
But gradually changing my mind to just quit.
Thank you all for the scary stories. :noway:

I had pneumonia and couldn't smoke for 2 weeks. Never looked back! I am completely free of all cravings, but I do believe I owe that one to God!

Same thing- I had a sinus infection and just never did it again afterwards (unless I am drunk..but I'm trying to give that up too)

How'd you quit? So many different things work for different people. I've heard success stories varying from cold turkey to acupuncture. What worked for you, and how long ago did you quit?

Today is day 21 for me. No cigarettes for 21 days! I love it but hate it.

Cold Turkey and STAY BUSY lol if you start to think about it find something to do!

Chantix. Worked great I quit within a week and haven't looked back for well over a year.

I quit cold turkey two months ago. Whenever I wanted a smoke, I ran up and down the stairs 10 times.

For me, I just got sick and tired of smoking...I only enjoyed two of the more than half pack of cigarettes I smoked in a day (after supper and in the car). I used the patch for a couple of days but then didn't need it any longer. What REALLY worked for me was a menthol gizmo that I could "draw" on like a cigarette when the urge to smoke hit me. I used that for a couple of months. I also tried to drink water every time I had a craving (I now drink 3 litres of day because of that) and tried to distract myself with crafts or doing something different. I also told myself that I wasn't quitting forever, I was just quitting for now (that helped a lot too==doing it in small doses in stead of thinking of NEVER having one again. It's now been 13 years, I STILL get the odd craving (so funny) especially when driving on the highway but I've known since a few months after I quit that I'd never smoke again. The smell of it actually makes me feel naseaus now.

I really wish you the best of luck with this, it is so good for you to quit--they say that after a year of not smoking your lungs are just as good (or close to it) as if you never smoked before. I know that I've had my lungs checked and they are considered younger than my actual age!

Ummmm, I quit 8 in a half months ago. I quit cold turkey. Because Me and my son both have asthma and my son and my fiancee encouraged me to give it up. My mom is 55 yrs old and has severe empyszema from smoking and my grandma died at 58 to the same thing. That was my motivation!

That is awesome, I am trying to get my husband and mother to quit but they say it's very hard. I have tried talking to them and when my husband buys a pack, he tell me to keep them in my purse when we're out so he wont smoke that much, but its a start.

The first time I quit I used nicorette gum and inhaler, and was chewing that gum and sucking on that little white plastic thing for years. Then I fell off the wagon for a couple of months - after that, cold turkey. I didn't try to ease my cravings, just acknowledged them and toughed it out. It is brutal, but I think that feeling those intense cravings and not doing anything to make them better made me realize how strong the addiction is, and made me vow to never start up again. When I was doing the gum and inhaler I just substituted the addition. Feeling the pain of withdrawal was a good choice for me. I actually do the same thing with food, don't try to deliberately fill up on bulky food just so I don't feel hungry - I know I am getting enough calories, and the "hunger" is not true huger. I just tough it out, and now my hunger signals have really died down.

Cold Turkey and STAY BUSY lol if you start to think about it find something to do!

^^^ that's the ticket! I quit 4/13/12 doing exactly the above, after being an addicted, pack-a-day smoker for more than 20 years. The "something to do" started out for me with cleaning, and then turned to exercising. Feeling how much easier it was to breath as the days went on was a huge motivator to keep going!

The difference for me this time (and this is it!) was to let go of all of the drama attached to it. I told my family and friends that I quit (AFTER I did it, no drama leading up to it, either) but that I didn't want to talk about or be asked about it. I didn't want the constant reminders, especially if I wasn't thinking about it and then have somebody bring it up and I start thinking about it. (and then can't *stop* thinking about it!) That worked wonders for me. I decided that I had given cigarettes more than half of the years I've been alive, they weren't getting another day or any more attention from me.

I still get the occasional craving, but I don't miss it one bit. (and the stuff you can buy when you're not spending $200+/month on cigarettes is aaaaawesome!)

Good luck!!

I have been smoke free for 15 months now. I kept telling myself no more.. and I just never picked up another cigarette. Now I feel wonderful and I have no cravings..best of luck!

My one year quit date is coming up, July 29th!! I quit after 11 years by using Chantix for 2 weeks. I eventually got so sick from the pills that I stopped taking them, but the gross side effects from smoking stuck with me. I continued to get sick and grossed out by the smell that I never cheated, EVER! I tried cold turkey and I was never able to do it. Chantix was a wonder drug for me!

I started pole dancing for fitness and gradually added in more cardio as I cut back on cigarettes. It is so freeing to be able to BREATHE when you're working out!! It sounds silly, but that's what keeps me going. I also ordered an E-Cigarette from South Beach Smoke (they are cheap from them) and used a nicotine patch with it. Then, after about a month I didn't even want a real cigarette anymore. I tried to smoke one a few months later and thought I was gonna die! It tasted bad, hurt my throat and lungs, and smelled just awful! I haven't had one for 6 months now!! You can do this, just don't give up! It may take you several tries to quit, and that is OK! Best of luck to you!

Allen Carr, Easy Way ... Did it cold turkey, never looked back after 20 years puffing away.

Seriously, I owe my freedom from smokes to that man.

Same for me. Allen Carr's book freed me from the bondage of tobacco. Cold turkey is the only one that worked for me.No regrets. One year and five months smoke free, no cravings or desires to ever pickup this dirty habit again.