Quitting smoking!

I quit cold turkey--tried the gum, but that stuff has more nicotine that the half pack I smoke. My biggest problem was what to do on breaks. I used to smoke--what else was there? So pick something to do--something that isn't eating, like walking, or reading a book, etc. Keeping busy was my best defense against smoking--and not being around a smoker during 'down' time.

I lasted 9 months last time--couldn't resist when we went camping and my boyfriend smoked. Sigh. Good for you though--it's worth the effort!

I quit cold turkey one time and it took three days to quit craving a cigarette. Which is what the professionals say. About 72 hours.

Unfortunately I was on a ship in the Navy underway and was so bored I started back up. I knew people in the Navy that only smoked on the ship. And one guy who had quit for 5 years but started back up when he was sent to the ship.

I really need to quit. I'm tired of it.

<sigh>

I smoked for 12 years, pack a day of Marlboro Reds. I finally got tired of spending $3.50 a day, waking up coughing, reeking like an exhaust pipe, and not being able to smell or taste anything.

I'd tried to go ColdTurkey about 6 years before, but didn't do too well. I'd been reading about "memes," a useless name for an incredible idea: malevolent concepts that enveloped someone's mind. Funny in scifi, but applicable in real-life (for instance, "patriotism" is a meme. Think about it). So I decided I'd let someone "infect" me with an anti-smoking "meme." I was ready to quit.

I went to a highly successful psychotherapist here in Dallas. He waved his hand, said "You don't smoke anymore" to which I replied, "Yeah, I don't smoke anymore, do I?"

That was Oct. 2002. I haven't picked up a cigarette since. Part of the treatment was to make my mind think about something else when I wanted a smoke, so for the first three days, I pretty much forgot everything. But since I truly wanted to stop, I was able to stop. Cold turkey. Never again.

The only drawback I can find is that occassionaly I still dream about smoking. I'm so ingrained about NOT smoking that I wake up feeling guilty tho.

Congratulations to you, Tara. Keep up with it. And if you find you're having problems, drop me a line and I can hook you up with my therapist. He has a *98%* success rate.

I used to smoke and quit. It was hard, especially for the first month or two. You have to really want to stop, and if you do, whatever helpers you can engage (nicotine gum, the patch, hypnosis, other therapy) only serve to increase your odds of success.

Sounds like you're ready to be done with smoking. It's a great feeling when you wake up in the morning and don't have ashtray mouth. It feels great to not have to run out at 11 pm to buy a pack of cigs because you don't have enough for the night. It definitely feels great to realize you are able to enjoy a cup of coffee, or dinner, or a movie without craving a cigarette.

Good luck! Keep coming back here for support if you need it!

Jim

I smoked for 21 years and quit cold turkey on 5/13/2001 (1207 days, not that I am counting) and it took a few days to not constantly crave them and a few months to not think about them every few minutes. Ever once in a while I do have a sudden urge for one or a dream about smoking but those are less and less frequent. No matter how you do it you really have to want to quit, the addiction hangs around a long time, maybe forever.

Alex

I never smoked, but growing up in Quebec (Canada's smoking section) I was around lots of them. I've also known a lot of people who've tried to quit. It ain't easy, it's the most addictive drug we've got. A good deal of that, I think, is society.

All I really have to say is congratulations on your decision (and congrats to everyone who has succeeded) Tara and good luck with your resolve.

JSchmidt said:

I used to smoke and quit. It was hard, especially for the first month or two. You have to really want to stop, and if you do, whatever helpers you can engage (nicotine gum, the patch, hypnosis, other therapy) only serve to increase your odds of success.


Good luck! Keep coming back here for support if you need it!

Jim

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Fully agreed, the tools mentioned can be helpful but it still comes down to mindset, and perserverance. Trust me, I've quit 6 times in my life. one thing that will help with the chemical addiction is vitamin C (lots of vitamin C), it cleans the blood pretty well, and helps you get over the nicotine cravings sooner. IMO the physical addiction is the tough one. Mints and gum are OK. but they will replace your current addiction if you aren't careful. It may sound weird, but try something you don't like. I use candy in flavors I don't particularly enjoy, that way I'm less apt to keep eating them later. I've been 2 years this time, and love it. To me the most dangerous time is after you have succeded, your mind plays games with you and you end up trying one again because you know you can quit. And as other have mentioned, if you need support, ask for it. If you feel like screaming and cursing at someone send me a PM, It will be just like work for me and may help you.
dave

I smoked 1.5-2 packs of Marlboro Reds a day for about 7 years. I had my last one on January 8, 1999.

I used Zyban to quit. I had a doctors appointment where she said "Have you thought a bout quitting smoking?" I told her I liked it too much to put any real effort into quitting but if there was a magic pill that could make me quit I'd be all for it. She said "Actually, there sort of is." I planned my quitting in advance and told a bunch of people. Since you can't drink (or at least aren't supposed to) on Zyban I decided not to start taking them until January 2 (after New Years festivities ).

I didn't feel like smoking for the whole first day on the meds. I smoked anyway because you were supposed to but I didn't care for it. After a week I quit and never looked back. I continued to take the stuff for a week after quiting but then stopped because I had NO desire to smoke anymore and I don't care for taking any kind of drugs.

From the beginning I told myself that relapses happen but no matter what happened I would not buy a pack of cigarettes. I could bum them, I could steal drags but posessing a pack was absolutely off limits. I think that gave me enough flexibility so that I wouldn't feel like scrapping the whole thing just for a drunken screw up. Luckily it never came to that. I haven't had so much as a puff of a cigarette since I quit. I still have very vivd, very real dreams that I slipped up and smoked though.

I worked with smokers at the time. We used to all go out for butt breaks together. When I quit I decided to continue to go out with them so I wouldn't deny myself the social benefits. A weeks worth of trips outside just to watch others smoke was enough of that. It was important though that I got sick of going outside rather than thinking that not smoking was denying me something I enjoyed.

I took care of the oral fixation byt drinking water. I keep a 1l bottle of Poland Springs on my desk and refill it from the water cool. I drink any where between 1-2 gallons of water a day that way. I think this also helped flushing my system of nicotine to some extent too.

For me, the biggest thing was being ready to quit. I was done with it so the quitting was easy. I had tried several times before without the same convinction and failed miserably. You sound like you're ready to be done so you will be.

the first few months are easy in a way because you have constant cravings. They hit you all the time and remind you that you are still fighting. Its later, a year or two after you quit, that it gets harder because you really forget how much cigarettes had control over your life. It gets easier to rationalize having just one here or there or only smoking when you drink. After 5 years I STILL get cravings at times. You just have to remember why you quit.

Good luck, Tara! You can always PM me when you want a ciggy so bad you're ready to punch someone

Tom