Question for people who have quit smoking

[Dawn]

First, let me say that i'm not the kind of guy who feel ashamed of smoking, neither the kind always voicing he will quit but never do.

It's the very first time that i consider seriously to end my habit.

I'm smoking since i'm 14 (1984) and i will soon celebrate my 25th smoker anniversary... which happend sometime in 2009.

Few years ago, i was saying to myself that 25 years of smoking was enough. The idea grown and while i'm suspecting it will be hard, i'm more and more convinced that i will give a serious try at quitting.

With the plethora of methods to quit smoking, i was wondering if one worked better for you?

With the (partial) infos i collected, so far, patches seems a progressive way to go. Not sure yet if that's the way i will go.

Younger, i had a drug addiction and i quitted the cold turkey way and it worked. Took over a year to no longer have withdrawal symptoms. I was decided and confident i will be able to quit and it have been enough.

I dont think i have the same kind of iron will regarding nicotine - and my motivations to stop are not as solid, which makes my auto-motivation a tad shaky.

So, you that have been able to stop, how did it worked for you? Have you been able to do it only with an iron will or you needed some kind of help or support? Which method was effective?

Thanks in advance for your inputs :hatsoff:

 

[Legzman]

Your 25th smoker anniversary? wow, congrats! Seriously. I managed to quit after 12 years of smoking. Weird thing is I was always proud of being a smoker. In fact I enjoyed it. Tomorrow will be 1 year smoke free for me!

I did enjoy smoking, but one day I was thinking "I don't wanna die from this shit" That and it's to fuckin expensive and damn near impossible to find a place to smoke without someone bitching about it. Even if you are outside.

I psyched myself up for a few months before hand. And used the patch to quit. It's a 3 step program I only made it halfway through the second step before I just quit using them as well. They irritated my skin to much. My arms were covered in red circles that itched something fierce!

I won't lie though, you still gotta have the desire to quit. or you will fail. I don't know how many times I tried to quit before I finally succeed. The gum was the last thing I tried and it didn't work at all. I think the reason the patches helped so much is because I'd put em on in the mornings and never have to think about it again.

OH I also told myself that this won't be my last cigarette. I left myself an out. Now I'm just seeing how long I can go between cigarettes. It's been a year now. I don't even have one when I drink as I am scared I'll start buying em again. Like I said, I enjoyed it and I'm sure I would again if I started again. So I refuse to give in when it gets hard.

Good luck to you :glugglug:

 

[bodie54]

Cold turkey for me, about nine years ago.

I tend to think if you're completely committed to quitting you don't really need patches, gum, hypnosis, etc.

Best of luck to you. I expect you'll feel great about conquering this addiction.

 

[RealMenSwallow]

Eh, I wish I could help, everyone in my family struggles from addictions, and most have overcome them, but I decided just to never start. Too many addictive personalities in my family, and everyone has been an alcoholic except myself, so I think I'll try to break new ground by not doing it from the get go. It's been good so far. Plus, I figure, if I get to be too old and get tired of this world, I can just start drinking then, and smoking, and hitting the pipe, just to speed things along.

 

[RogueWolf]

I also quit cold turkey.

I just got tired of waking up coughing...hacking up that nasty brown phlegm in the morning...the expense...etc etc.

 

[calpoon]

quitting cold turkey is the best way to go. that tryptophan is a sedative, it helps to replace the craving for nicotine.

 

[Galactic]

I'm going through it right now.....and it sucks. Won't lie to you. But you already know that it will not be easy.

The patch. It does work, BUT, none of the stop smoking aids helps with the mental aspect. Somehow, you have to figure out a way to not think about it any longer.

I wish you the best of luck. It can be done.

 

[DELTA007]

I gave up 20 odd years ago and have never been tempted back.
For me, it was just saying no whenever I felt the urge.
I guess different methods will work for different people.
Good luck with your efforts!

 

[24788]

Well, looks like you mean ciggerattes can't help you there.

If you feel you've come addicted to weed someday. Come talk to me then.

 

[Jagger69]

Younger, i had a drug addiction and i quitted the cold turkey way and it worked. Took over a year to no longer have withdrawal symptoms. I was decided and confident i will be able to quit and it have been enough.

I dont think i have the same kind of iron will regarding nicotine - and my motivations to stop are not as solid, which makes my auto-motivation a tad shaky.

You hit on the key element right there. I quit after over 35 years of smoking by simply deciding with an iron-will that I was going to quit. Moreover, I really, really wanted to quit. Within 3 days, the withdrawal symptoms shrank away to nothing and now, 3 years later, I cannot even imagine lighting up another cigarette (even when around others who are smoking, while drinking alcohol, other "trigger" experiences). Wish now I had done it years ago.

Interestingly, the main thing that prompted my quitting was this gnawing feeling that I had that someday I was going to end up going to the doctor for what I thought was just a bad cough and he tells me "Guess what? You've got lung cancer". How stupid and helpless and afraid would I be if that were to happen? Scared the living shit out of me and that's when I made up my mind to quit. Plus, having lost my mother and 2 very close friends to lung cancer really made me want to avoid that possibility at all cost. Not a fun way to go.

Take a look at this website. I found it to be very helpful while I was going through the process.

http://www.quitnet.com/

Good luck!

 

[thanksimout]

Thanks jagger69, I am trying to quit as well and it is the hardest thing I've ever tried to give up. Rep to you and Dawn for the posts

 

[tiger1977]

1 year, 1 month, 1 day for me...cold turkey

 

[Baill Inneraora]

I'm an expert..............I've quit 5 or 6 times.

 

[pastyphil]

Quitting smoking was the hardest thing I have ever done. I gave up last year after smoking for 33 years.
The things that helped me the most were
1.Support from family and friends. Mine used to leave posties with words of encouragement on them all over the place. Fridge door, car windscreen (windshield), computer etc. Emails from friends it all helps.
2.Really want to quit, if you go in half-hearted you will fail .Willpower is the No. 1 necessity.
3.Change your routine a much as possible. If you always smoke when using your computer leave it alone or limit your time on it.
4. Get out and do something if you can, go for a drive, walk anything but keep busy.
5.A thing that really helped me was the smoking ban in British pubs, it was the kick start I needed. I set the date for the same day.
6.I used to (still do now 18 months later) put the money that I would spend on cigarettes away each day and then once a month spend it on something to celebrate another 4 weeks. The wife really liked that bit.
7.Get rid of all associated paraphernalia, lighters, ashtrays etc. It took ages to get rid of the smell in our house. I never used to notice but after 10 to 12 days I could smell it.
8.If the cravings get too bad, go somewhere that you cannot smoke. Immersing myself in a book in the library really helped me.
9.You notice an improvement in your health in an amazingly short time. Breathing is easier, cough goes, that helps to spur you along knowing that it is worth it. Having said that I had the worst cold I have ever had after giving up for two weeks and this sometimes happens.
10.Don't be tempted to have one under any circumstances. You would just have to start all over again or fail.
11.Patches, gum etc. I tried but did not find them that helpful.

These are my tips based on personal experience, it is hard but worth it and you just have to keep telling yourself that. Could I smoke a cigarette now? Yes but I won,t.
Let us know when you decide to quit and we will send you words of encouragement, no doubt someone will be threatening to take over Jenni lees porch if you should fail.
It is hard but worth it.

 

[Jagger69]

Quitting smoking was the hardest thing I have ever done. I gave up last year after smoking for 33 years.
The things that helped me the most were
1.Support from family and friends. Mine used to leave posties with words of encouragement on them all over the place. Fridge door, car windscreen (windshield), computer etc. Emails from friends it all helps.
2.Really want to quit, if you go in half-hearted you will fail .Willpower is the No. 1 necessity.
3.Change your routine a much as possible. If you always smoke when using your computer leave it alone or limit your time on it.
4. Get out and do something if you can, go for a drive, walk anything but keep busy.
5.A thing that really helped me was the smoking ban in British pubs, it was the kick start I needed. I set the date for the same day.
6.I used to (still do now 18 months later) put the money that I would spend on cigarettes away each day and then once a month spend it on something to celebrate another 4 weeks. The wife really liked that bit.
7.Get rid of all associated paraphernalia, lighters, ashtrays etc. It took ages to get rid of the smell in our house. I never used to notice but after 10 to 12 days I could smell it.
8.If the cravings get too bad, go somewhere that you cannot smoke. Immersing myself in a book in the library really helped me.
9.You notice an improvement in your health in an amazingly short time. Breathing is easier, cough goes, that helps to spur you along knowing that it is worth it. Having said that I had the worst cold I have ever had after giving up for two weeks and this sometimes happens.
10.Don't be tempted to have one under any circumstances. You would just have to start all over again or fail.
11.Patches, gum etc. I tried but did not find them that helpful.

These are my tips based on personal experience, it is hard but worth it and you just have to keep telling yourself that. Could I smoke a cigarette now? Yes but I won,t.
Let us know when you decide to quit and we will send you words of encouragement, no doubt someone will be threatening to take over Jenni lees porch if you should fail.
It is hard but worth it.

Great advice!

:thumbsup:

 

[mongo18]

If you really, honestly, sincerely want to quit, from what I've heard it should be as easy as throwing them away. Trouble is, most of us don't really want to quit, it's more a case of we feel like we should, and that's really the only thing that makes it hard. I promised I would quit when my wife got pregnant, and at my daughter's first birthday I decided I'd failed enough to go to a doctor and ask for drugs. I honestly can't say how much they're helping and how much is just me, but I'm on day 17 of being smoke free and I feel ok. I really think this time it might stick.

 

[Will E Worm]

Why would you want to stop? That's for quitters. :tongue:

 

[Mr. Daystar]

Quit cold turkey for 3 years, then started again, smoked even more, and apx 3 years ago, I quit again, this time I used a combo of tooth picks to help with the fidgety thing, and the Dr. gave me a Prescription to Welbutrin, which is an anti depressant, and the same active ingredient as the stop smoking aid, "Zyban". He gave them to me, and said, just keep smoking, it'll be a couple of weeks. I smoked like he said, and then one morning, I only had 3 smokes left, and said to myself, I'll stop today, and I did. I miss it a little, mainly if I'm drinking, but I remember how hard it was to quit, and how much it costs, and that helps a lot. Good luck, I hope you are successful, but like any addiction, expect setbacks, and remember, you gotta want it.

 

[Dawn]

A very sincere thanks to everyone. Great advices. Different experiences to learn from. And some humor!

I haven't fixed a date yet. But i will quit in a matters of weeks. I see my doctor late january/early february and it might be when i will ask for patches and/or medical support. I'm worried that i'm not feeling as much Iron Willed as i was for drugs - i don't think i will be able the cold turkey way.

Keep up the good work if you are already in the quitting process! I will join you soon

**********

Let us know when you decide to quit and we will send you words of encouragement, no doubt someone will be threatening to take over Jenni lees porch if you should fail.

Thanks. Very nice offer. :thumbsup:

All support will be welcome and no one will have my porch!

 

[Nester6]

I have doctor friends tell me that smoking is the worst possible thing you can do to your body. Zyban, an antidepressant worked for me for a year or so, but I always restarted smoking.
For some reason, I can't fucking quit. You are young, you must try and keep trying to quit. Best of luck.