anyone here ever quit smoking?

[Underground727]

I quit smoking everything about a month ago to get ready for the Army.

Just stop. That's all it comes down to.

It's all mental. You're not going to die if you don't smoke a cigarette. How strong are you?

 

[RedPickle]

mmmmm cigarettes... nothing like something to kill your breath, your lungs, and cause cancer at the same time. Use something as you motivation. Get someone to be really pissed off at you for smoking, preferably someone really close to you. Everytime you see their reaction, it'll only want to make u quit more.

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

everytime you get the urge, think about all the things you hate about smoking.

your cravings will eventually fade, but there will always be times with you it will be difficult, learn to avoid places that have lots of triggers.

 

[Argo]

I did. Didn't use any help, just simply stopped buying cigarettes on day. Patches are overrated.

 

[FrustratedUser]

I have quit a few times but realized I enjoyed beer and a smoke to much to just quit.

 

[Blieb]

Cold turkey ... it was time, you have to be ready.

Five months, one day, 10 hours, 47 minutes and 12 seconds. 3048 cigarettes not smoked, saving $548.67. Life saved: 1 week, 3 days, 14 hours, 0 minutes. (download @ Silkquit.org)


Also, to anyone who's "quit" but still smokes socially. You're lying to yourself. Being an ex-smoker is like being in AA ... you can't ever touch one again. It's an addiction.

 

[FrustratedUser]

Originally posted by: Blieb
Cold turkey ... it was time, you have to be ready.

Five months, one day, 10 hours, 47 minutes and 12 seconds. 3048 cigarettes not smoked, saving $548.67. Life saved: 1 week, 3 days, 14 hours, 0 minutes. (download @ Silkquit.org)


Also, to anyone who's "quit" but still smokes socially. You're lying to yourself. Being an ex-smoker is like being in AA ... you can't ever touch one again. It's an addiction.

wrong

 

[Javin]

For those of you that are getting all haughty, and throwing around the "I'm stronger than you" bullsh!t, blow it out your ass. You obviously have never known a REAL addiction.

Different people metabolize chemicals differently, and as such, different people experience different 'levels' of addiction. I used to smoke 2 packs of reds a day. When I joined the Army, we weren't allowed any nicotine during BASIC, and I was literally starving to death. I had the shakes so bad people thought I was epileptic (literally, they sent me to sick call) and I couldn't get the food from the plate to my mouth. Eventually, the drill Sergeant ordered me to go have a cigarette so I could just function.

Since then, I've cut down my smoking dramatically. It's what I need to do for my particular body type. I'm now down to just cheating an occasional Marlboro Light when I have a drink.

Quitting is all about determination, and for some people, certain games are necessary. My personal favorite trick was to put a dollar in a jar for every cigarette that I smoked. At the end of the month, I sent that money to PETA (an organization that I absolutely LOATHE).

Needless to say, the shakes aren't NEARLY as bad anymore. My body has learned that it's GOING to be starved of the nicotine, and little by little, it's dropping its dependency on it. The problem is, if you decide to 'cheat' one day, and you go 5 months without a single cigarette, then have a pack in one day, your body IMMEDIATELY jumps back up to the peak level that you've just had, so you're basically starting all over. If you're going to cheat (and face it, in the beginning, there's an 80% chance that you will) be SURE that you cheat in moderation. One or two, then give yourself a few days to get back down to the level you were at before. Your dependency level is a LOT like your weight. Real easy to get up, but takes forever to get it back down.

You WILL need an outlet to replace the cigarettes, though. I started with food, and gained 25 lbs. So I tried to switch to just candy, and got 2 cavities (currently need a root canal.) Now I'm trying tea, and lots of excercise. (Not nearly as fulfilling, but less damaging.

Good luck! I wish you the best, because I KNOW how hard it really can be. Fvck the assholes that don't know what addiction means.

-Javin

 

[yukichigai]

Originally posted by: Blieb
Cold turkey ... it was time, you have to be ready.

Five months, one day, 10 hours, 47 minutes and 12 seconds. 3048 cigarettes not smoked, saving $548.67. Life saved: 1 week, 3 days, 14 hours, 0 minutes. (download @ Silkquit.org)


Also, to anyone who's "quit" but still smokes socially. You're lying to yourself. Being an ex-smoker is like being in AA ... you can't ever touch one again. It's an addiction.

Ehhh, no. That's only if you have the right metabolism and that is not a common thing. A close friend of mine tried quitting cold turkey. Oh yeah, great idea, especially the part where he started going into seizures from nicotine withdrawl.

The fact of the matter is nicotine is more addictive than heroin; that same friend confirmed that because a few years ago he was addicted to heroin. Heroin withdrawl symptoms, he said, were prefferable to what he went through trying to stop smoking.

If the patch works mildly for you then that's a step in the right direction. It may be that you have to do something like halve your cigarette intake every month or so with the aid of a patch. And don't worry about the weight gain, at least not until you're off cigarettes. Tackle one problem at a time. Once you get off the nicotine it should be a little easier to manage your weight.

The only other thing I can really recommend is to smoke a lot of weed. If you can't remember what the word "tobacco" means it's kinda hard to start smoking it again.

 

[Nitemare]

Originally posted by: Blieb
Cold turkey ... it was time, you have to be ready.

Five months, one day, 10 hours, 47 minutes and 12 seconds. 3048 cigarettes not smoked, saving $548.67. Life saved: 1 week, 3 days, 14 hours, 0 minutes. (download @ Silkquit.org)


Also, to anyone who's "quit" but still smokes socially. You're lying to yourself. Being an ex-smoker is like being in AA ... you can't ever touch one again. It's an addiction.

I disagree. I used to drink heavilyl, up to a case a night. My natural father was an alcoholic and drug addict. I will drink occasionally, usually just one maybe 2 tops. It will usually be a glass of wine or a nice beer maybe once a month.

 

[phantom309]

Originally posted by: chr6
i always thought it best not to start

Wow, THAT'S helpful.

I had a 2-1/2 pack a day habit at the time I quit. I went on the patch three times - the third was the charm. One thing that really helped me was buying a mountain bike and riding it every day - it made it really easy to see the benefits of not smoking. One day I broke down and smoked one - and for two days after that I could tell the difference in my wind and stamina on the bike.

Don't let anyone tell you that there's a "wrong" way to quit. People who say the patch is for weaklings are either pig-headed idiots, smug nonsmokers or people who never smoked much to begin with. The best way to quit smoking is THE WAY THAT WORKS FOR YOU.

One other thing. You can't tell now, but after you quit it'll become very clear: smokers STINK. You can smell someone who's just had a smoke from 10 feet away - and it's not like nice fresh cigarette smoke; it's this really unpleasant stale ashtray smell. You'll feel sorry for every nonsmoking girl you ever kissed.

 

[Provider]

The cost $$$$ is what made me quit after 8yrs....
No really..i tried it all and nothing worked...
then one day my co-worker said hey lets go
smoke... i said no i don't think so and that was that
been 1 1/2 yrs. You can do it man... good luck.

 

[kermalou]

move to Cali, where you can't smoke anywhere also helps

 

[LakAttack]

This is a really hard thing to do. I smoked for about 10 years, and during that time, I "quit" for over a month at least six times. The first two weeks are hard, but then you think it is smooth sailing, and at one or two months, you'll say, well, I can have ONE smoke, then your back up to a pack a day in no time. I tried quit dates many times, and they never worked. If you slip up after, it is just that much more demoralizing since basically everyone you told you were quitting knows you failed.

When I finally quit, it was the same time I started a new job. I didn't make any fanfare, or tell anyone other than my wife. Having new routines helped a lot, but not everyone can get a new job just to quit smoking. You can mix things up though. Change around your routines so you don't have those built in "smoke times." Avoid bars and smoky places for at least 3 months.

I've been smoke-free for about 11 months now. I still get a little craving every now and then, but the smell of other people smoking pretty much disgusts me now. AAR, that's just what worked for me. Good luck; it is worth the effort.

 

[Gujski]

One other thing. You can't tell now, but after you quit it'll become very clear: smokers STINK. You can smell someone who's just had a smoke from 10 feet away - and it's not like nice fresh cigarette smoke; it's this really unpleasant stale ashtray smell. You'll feel sorry for every nonsmoking girl you ever kissed.

Indeed.
I quit cold turkey in Nov 2000 after smoking off and on since 1992. But my wife then girlfriend hated the smell and that was good motivation too.

I actually tried cold turkey several times before succeding. I was reall pissed at myself cause I was determined to have quit by y2k and actuall y around mid dec stopped, but New years day I had a few beers and boom i was back to a pack a day.

 

[hzl eyed grl]

Good luck, rudeguy. I know it won't be easy (known people who tried) but it will be worth it!

 

[Amused]

I smoked for 15 odd years, and quit many times. What cliched it? Seeing my mother on what I thought was her death bed, weighing all of 75 lbs and on a respirator.

What keeps me off them?

*Seeing my mother survive that, only to be left with less than 50% of her lung capacity.
*Having my older (43) brother beat me in running, no matter how hard I trained.
*Smelling it on people now that I've been off them for so long. It really stinks.
*Regaining the ability to get and maintain erections.
*No longer being a social outcast.

 

[PistachioByAzul]

It's rough. You can have it all 100% figured out in your head why you shouldn't smoke, and at the end of the day, still crave one.

 

[jdogg]

i constantly quit ... but then i remember my momma didn't raise a quitter

 

[AvesPKS]

This is what I don't understand (though I do realize that people are different). I smoke occasionally, but I have never gotten to the point where I have to have a cigarette. I haven't smoked for about 3 weeks now, because I don't smoke in my car, and I don't smoke in/around the house. It's not really hard to stop when I want to.

 

[Regs]

I smoked for 18 months straight, pack a day habit. It took me a few panic attacks about my health to quit. The first thing that helped me to kick the habit was to tell everybody I was quitting. Because then if I didn't quit, I would feel from my empty promise.

You think you will be bored without smoking, you think you will not be able to calm down without them, you think cig's gives peace of mind. No they do not and you will see that after you quit. After 3-4 weeks after you quit, you will then start to be repelled against cigs. Thinking, "Ew, how they hell did I smoke that crap" .

 

[Avatar26]

I quit for about an hour or two every day.

 

[Booster]

Originally posted by: rudeguy
I have been trying to quit for the longest time....I have tried everything, the patch, the gum, the pill and the only thing that has even mildly worked has been the patch. I know I should quit, its expensive and a nasty habit...but I just cant seem to do it...someone help me out here and give me some words of wisdom

Go on smoking then. Just don't smoke the cheapest crap, and better lights, and it may not seriously shorten your life. There are many heavy smokers who have lived up to 85 y.o., something not all non-smokers can achieve. Don't smoke a pack a day, maybe just 1 or two if there doesn't seem to be a chance for you to quit.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: Avatar26
I quit for about an hour or two every day.

You smoke in your sleep???

 

[imprezawrxwagon]

it's mostly mental