My hardest assignment ever

[bones1]

I have to do it this time. Anyone have any tips, ideas or stories on how to quit smoking.How you did it etc?
Thanks for any ideas.

 

[Farmwithjunk]

I can't offer much on smoking. I've tried cigarettes years ago. 2 of 'em in fact. I couldn't handle them so I never tried any more. I CAN offer some help on quitting an addiction though. Mine was drinking. A case of beer a day or a bottle of Wild Turkey, or BOTH. Did that for better part of 20 years. One day I just had enough. I told myself that my family deserved better from me. It wasn't easy for sure. Neither was continuing to drink.

Do WHATEVER it takes. Join a support group. Use nicotine patches. sew your lips shut. Just do it. You can handle it.

There isn't any magic trick. No 2 people follow the same program. Just find all the friends that'll provide moral support and lean on them. In the end, you'll be so proud of what you've done for yourself and those you love. And they'll be proud of you. If you stumble, pick yourself right back up and try again. NEVER give up. It's worth that much effort.

Good luck! You've got at least one person pulling for you.

 

[GaryE]

Bones1,

I did it over 20 years ago… Hard to believe it was that long ago! It was the toughest thing I think I have ever done.

The only thing I can tell you is you have to be ready. I decided I was going to be nasty (more so than normal) ill-tempered, snap at everybody…… and enjoy every minute of it!!! It worked. For over a year my last pack of Winstons sat on the console of my 77 Trans Am. I broke my big toe kicking a chair and several fingers putting my fist though the garage door ( I know, not real smart!) But it worked…. I have not had one since!!!!



Enjoy telling people, "get out of my face, I just quit smoking." They will listen!



Good luck.

Gary

 

[Iowachild]

Bones1,

On this coming Sunday, July 23,2006 I will have 5 months of not smoking under my belt. That is after 35 years of smoking. I used the nicotine gum. I found the Sam's Club brand to be the best for me.

Because of restrictions at work, etc., I was down to about 15 per day when I quit, so I went with the lower dose gum. That's 2 mg of nicotine. I won't say it has been easy. I won't say there hasn't been some days I really, really wanted a cigarette. But, the desire is now almost non-exsistant some days. The gum is supposed to be a 12 week program. I am still using some, as needed to curb really rough cravings, but as my doctor said, he would rather see me chew the gum for three years than start smoking again. I do recommend you give the gum a try.

The patches drove me goofy when I tried them.

Ask for support! Tell everyone you are doing it. Tell people when you reach mileposts! (A week, a month, 100 days, etc.) They will congratulate you and it will feel good!

I wish you the best of luck!!!! I can tell you attitude is a major part of it. Every time to get a craving just keep telling yourself you have made it this far, you can make it!!!

Once more, good luck! I'm pulling for you and I know you can do it.

 

[Bob_Skurka]

I have to do it this time. Anyone have any tips, ideas or stories on how to quit smoking.How you did it etc?
Thanks for any ideas.

It might sound obvious, but you have to WANT to quit or you will fail at quitting. So if you want to quit, then do it.

There are 2 components to smoking addiction.

• The first is the physical addiction to nicotine, nicotine remains in your system for several days and beating that addiction requires you to first get it out of your system, and second to resist putting it back into your system.
• The second component is the psychological addiction. For example if you smoke when you drink coffee, or smoke when you drive a car, or smoke when you read, then during the initial period of your quitting smoking you will find that your body will try to smoke while you engage in those activities. When driving your car, you will probably come to a stop light and pull open the ash tray & push in the cigarette lighter. Those are habits and you do them 50 times a week.

So you will have to alter your patterns inititally. If you work during the week and have the weekend off, then leave your smokes in the garbage can at work when you go home Friday evening. But don't go home, take your wife to a non-smoking restaurant and then to a movie theater. Both are places where you can't smoke. Saturday get up and go to the shopping mall with your wife, or take the family to the water park, then dinner at another non-smoking restaurant, and another movie. Do something similar on Sunday. But make sure you stay away from your normal routine. Whatever your routine is, do something completely different and engage your wife/family/parents/grandchildren to help.

If you get past the first 3 to 4 days, then you have gotten the nicotine out of your system. You have beaten the first and hardest part of the physical addiction.

Keep doing what you don't normally do each evening. Don't go to the smoking lounge at work, or the bar afterwards. If you can, take the bus/train. If you can't then switch cars with your wife if she is a non-smoker.

Many people fail because of the little things that keep triggering them to pick up a cigarette. Many other fail because they don't wnat to quit.

 

[PineRidge]

Watching someone I loved die from cancer, and the gum worked miracles for me.

Sitting in an area where people smoke now actually assaults my sinuses. I'm hoping that soon all states will follow New Yorks example.

 

[LMTC]

I "quit" 3-4 times, once for almost 6 weeks. I smoked from age 16, was smoking a pack a day by 18, two by 21, and 2-1/2+ when I quit 11/7/01, at age 52. I know I have quit. I knew it early on this time. I used patches from SAMS Club, in stages, for about 7-8 weeks. The worst was the first 2-3 days, then the first day after leaving the patches. As Bob said....you have to want to. Even then it is tough. You need to clean the, uh, "stuff" out of your system. Lots of fresh fruit juices, lots of good clean water (not like what comes out of my tap), try to exercise even if just a brisk brief walk, or ride a stationary bike, etc. STAY AWAY from smokers. Smoking friends who really cared about me understood. The jerks who offered me cigarettes I didn't care about.

DO NOT allow yoursef to fail. The issue is not whether you can withstand the temptation....well, at least for me it wasn't, because I KNEW I couldn't. The issue was to stay away from temptation. That meant new patterns and behaviors, to some extent new office "friends", and it absolutely meant not even an old butt around the house or shop....because sooner or later I would have held a flame to it and sucked on it. Oh yeah...I had those moments. They eventually lessened, and it got pronouncedly better after 3-4 months. I still worried, and planned to avoid some situations....and I still have a nightmare once in a while that I bummed a cig and lit up. Once every few months I get an urge, and it is surprisingly easy to suppress it. But I still know that one lousy puff could put me back into a 50 Marlboro a day habit in just weeks...or less.

Write/email if you need/want support at any point. It is tough....and it is worth every bead of sweat generated in doing it. I don't stink anymore...oh yeah, smokers really cannot know how bad they smell. I enjoy lots of foods and beverages at a whole new level. I don't burn myself while driving. Lots of pluses. Have at it, but make a plan. MAKE A PLAN.

 

[Ronbo]

This is what I tell my patients.

You have to be ready. YOu have to be quiting for you, not someone else

If you smoke 1 ppd, put 1/2 pack in a zip lock baggy in the fridge. Only cary 1/2 pack. That is all you smoke. Do not beg, borrow or steal.

After 2 weeks, only carry 5 cigs. That is all you smoke per day.

After 2 weeks, cut those 5 cigs in half. Throw the unfiltered half a way. That is ll you smoke.

For the entire 6 weeks, carry a small notebook. Everytime you light up, write down what you are doing and why you are smoking. Analyze this continuously.
Eliminate the things that cause you to light up. If is is just social, don't socialize. Chew on a staw or something similar. Do not substitute food.

Good luck. Let me know how you do.

ron

 

[AndyM]

STAY AWAY from smokers. Smoking friends who really cared about me understood. The jerks who offered me cigarettes I didn't care about.

Every office has those people.
I've never understood how someone can get a warped pleasure out of getting others to start smoking again, but there are a couple where I work who offer cigarettes to those who just quit... It's just not nice at all!

 

[BubbaJr]

I quit April 23, 1985 after smoking cigarettes and pipes for 18 years. My daughter had been having ear and throat infections for several years and it finally dawned on me that my smoking was either the cause or the trigger for her problems. I had quit several times before, but I was determined to do it this time for her.

I had her bring the trash can into the living room and as she stood there with her mouth hanging open, I started throwing all my smoking paraphernalia into the can. I had a fancy pipe lighter and several mid priced pipes and all the junk you need to clean a pipe, and it ALL went in the can. Then I announced that I was going to quit, and they should expect me to be grumpy for a while, but I still loved them and I was determined to make this work. So if they would put up with me, I would reduce the level of pollution in their lives.

It took me several years to completely get the urge out of my system, as it was a gradual process. But now I can't stand to be anywhere near a smoker, even after they put out their smoke. After you have been smoke free for a while, you will regain your sense of taste and smell, and only then you will realize how disgusting smoking was for everyone around you.

As others have said, you won't be able to quit until YOU really want to. It's not easy, but it was the smartest thing I have done for my health and my families health.

The very best of luck to you, You're making a wise decision.

One bit of advice, KEEP YOUR HANDS BUSY WITH ANYTHING, until you have lost the urge.