Quitting Smoking
 

I've smoked for over 35 years. I've been up to 3 packs a day for a good many of those years now. I'm sick of it.

Today is day one of my quit. I'm using a nicotine patch to help me out. So far so good, I haven't killed anyone. Yet.

I wish you well, same boat about 12 years ago. I tried with the patch a couple of times then I had to quit cold turkey. The patch seemed to leave me with the nicotine urge. The first two months are the hardest. The first year was a fight for me. I did change one thing, I quit drinking beer at the same time. I didn't quit drinking coffee though. I didn't become too much of a bear, my wife still smokes and we didn't get a divorce.

You will have a high probability of success if you are quitting because you want to. If you try quitting just because someone else is putting on the pressure, you will probably fail.

If you really want to do it, no one can stop you.

If you don't really want to do it, no one can force you to.

Here is a quote that has prompted a lot of people to really want to quit. I hope this isn't your situation.

"Cancer cures smoking"

>> "... 3 packs a day ..."

i dont consider by doing that is enjoying smoking ...


//but to think about it ... probably when we think we are actually burning/smoking and inhaling nicotine and plain tar(not cigarettes) then maybe we will quit for sure ...


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Good Luck! Hope you don't work for tech support.

Tried the patch about three times and failed. It's a constant dose, not like the sudden rush of nicotine you get from smoking a cig. Nicorette gum simulated the smoking experience a little better for me. Used it on/off for about six months. Only caveat is flavored kind tastes a bit too good, IMHO. Good thing it's also the most expensive. It's a lot harder to develop a "gum habit" with cheap knockoff brands, like Walgreens'.
http://www.nicorette.com/
http://www.walgreens.com/store/produ...id=prod2672484

I tried quitting once then the other day I forgot I quit and smoked again. I felt disgusting that I had such a forgetful mind. Haven't tried again but I promised my girl, the day we got married I would quit. Right now I don't know how I will but I think I will anyway. Never been anywhere and Never done anything from where I could not take a U-TURN !!!

try enjoying(not smoking) your cigarettes and do hard perspiring exercises(start from younger age) ... you will be able to live well into old age ...

if want to quit(or totally avoid with discipline) any bad things and habits ... go for liquor and gambling , these two are among the worst for mankind ... i witness it myself live quite a number of times on people ...


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There have been several statistical studies on the effect smoking has on lifespan. Some of the prominent entities doing these studies include Stanford University and Loma Linda University. While they may not have come up the the same numbers, they all agree that smoking dramatically shortens the life. The amount shortened ranges from 5 to 11 minutes per cigarette smoked. Do the math over a lifetime if you want another incentive to be a quitter.

I enjoy *not* smoking. It gives me a freedom that to me is more valuable than a free operating system.

Freedom from budgeting smoking expenses. (Do the math of this one over your lifetime)
Freedom from smoking related health problems.
Freedom from smoker's breath, cough, clothes, etc.

By the way, my dad smoked for 30 years, quit for 40, and still died from lung cancer. He had 6 younger siblings, all of them were lifetime smokers, and they all died from lung cancer. His 2 older sisters, neither of them smoked, and they outlived all of the younger ones by several years. Both lived well into their 90's.

So to you who want to quit, go for it. It *will* be difficult, but hang in there and don't let the little setbacks sabotage you. You won't regret it and you will have a better quality of life.

The Trick
 

I tried several times with the patch and failed. The last time, I didn't want my family to know I was trying to quit so I had to find a place to put the patch where they wouldn't see it. So I put them on my ass.

Bingo! Success! I figured out that this must have been the shortest route from the patch to my brain.

I quit back in January with the help of the patches. It is possible and the patches can work. But, as has been said, the willpower aspect is very important.

Good luck.

On a lighter note - I have gone out and got absolutely plastered and not needed to smoke. So not all vices have to be stopped :)

Good luck, Mason. I've been a smoker since I was 16, that's 46 years of it. Tried to quit God knows how many times, longest was for a month. Been rolling my own for past 10 years, average 15 a day. Both my parents smoked, both lived 'til they were 90. Think I've given up giving up.

I don't believe that for a minute. The only clear studues I've seen project an average of 2-5 years of shortened life expectancy. Hardly worth it if that's your only reason for quitting. There are other good reasons related to quality of life, financial interests, the issue of "slavery," etc.

Personally, I'm a (so far, age 60) happy smoker (1 pack a day. Nat Shermans.). I ride a bicycle and do other things to exercise my cardio-vascular system, and I hope that will offset whatever health impairment I may be accruing by my enjoyment of tobacco.

I've known a number of people who quit smoking, but I've never known any who quit talking about it.

LOL :) That's just funny man!

Anyway masonm good luck dude...
I haven't smoked a cigarette in my life and intend to keep it that way...

:D
Very true. Usually those who successfully quit are more fanatically anti-smoking than lifetime non-smokers.

Not me - I loathe fervent anti-smokers and people who start coughing at the sight of a pack. If you got em, smoke em :)

Everyone in my family smoked and no one has ever died from lung cancer. Eating and drinking alcohol excessively is much more likely to kill you. Obesitiy and alcoholism also costs businesses and the government more in lost productivity/taxes. So clearly there should be no place in society for dumb fat arses and three martini luncheons. :p

I probably would have quit sooner had it not been for all the drunk fat arses telling me I had to. Like they're authorities on clean living or something. :o

I quit 6 years ago last month and couldn't be happier that I did. It's a disgusting addiction. I had tried the patch several times but kept going back to ciggies. Cold turkey was the only way I was able to quit for good.
Keep yourself busy physically and mentally and when you want a cigarette, remind yourself that you don't smoke anymore. Sounds silly but it worked for me.

I totally agree. I hope I SUCCESSFULLY quit. I haven't been smoking for 2 months now.
. I remember how I used to light a cigarette after lunch in a cafe near my work. It was a moment I really liked. Now when I am eating there I can smell a cigarette from the other end of the restaurant. I can't stand it. It's sooo annoying!:)

Good luck to all

Thanks everyone. I can assure you that I will NOT become one of those asinine rabid anti-smoking nazis. I can't stand those people. I'm quitting for my own sake, not for some inane PC crap.

Good luck Masonm -- I hope it works out for you :)
FWIW, I tried the patch a number of years ago, and it didn't work very well; plus, I couldn't 'afford it' lol you can always bum a smoke, but it's hard to bum a patch when you don't have one..
I tried Zyban too, and it really worked extremely well; VERY effective for me, but as it turned out I was allergic to it and it made me quite ill. I used it for less than two weeks.
Ya gotta really really really want to quit, for your own reason(s), before you will do it successfully.
Good luck!

people who actually feel irritated towards cigarettes and smoke or whatever they like to call them are quite agreeable and opinion-less towards liqour and gambling which propagate vices of all sorts ... probably got something to do with the probability of returns ... they are actually kind of "helpless" towards themselves ...

will these same people be as "rightous" as how they are towards cigarettes(and smoke or whatever they like to call them) when they are witnessing liqour and gambling on a grand scale ... ??


//damn ... !! its just a stick of innocent looking cigarette ... a bit funny for me ...


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Congrats, Mason!

I've smoked for about 30 years or so. I've quit numerous times... once for 2.5 years. Don't EVER, EVER, EVER put another cigarette in your mouth! It's like a drink for an alcoholic. It only takes one to GET you!

Best of LUCK! If you do happen to kill someone, make sure it's someone who needs killin'. ;)

I'm a very casual smoker, never reached a pack in a day, but me thinks had enough of it now, feels there is no charm left in smoking, so hoping to quit it soon.

Good luck to me and to you.

because of the charming thing that you smoke ... believe it or not , quiting it woud be the easiest for you and it works like charm ...


//all in all you really got no buisness with cigarettes ... should have start quiting them much much earlier ...


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I never started smoking, so I can't quit it. That would result in me feeling left out in these sorts of situations and in missing out on being able to annoy people about it.

So, instead, just recently, I quit sugar, and I feel grrreat! (irony intended)

I had to stop smoking when I got a cold that turned into acute bronchitis. I was too sick to smoke, even though I wanted to at times. I avoided going to the Dr. because I blamed some of it on the smoking (and assumed it would get better since I wasn't able to) and the rest was just my recalcitrance when it comes to physicians. By the time I couldn't make it another day, I was on the verge of pneumonia. I got a whole array of wonderful pills and syrups to try and put me back together and was ordered to seven days of bed-rest... only to get up for the bathroom. And, to be honest, I needed those seven days... I ended up taking ten in reality. And then it took a couple months for the cough to really go away... and another month before I really felt normal again. After all that, I hadn't smoked in four months. At this point, the daily habits and nicotine cravings were completely gone... there was no [good] reason to start again.

Three weeks later I went out and bought some cigs. I swear, I am retarded. But I never really got above 1-2 cigs a day. It just wasn't in me. So I quit again and really don't have the urge all that much. I was thinking that I usually smoke at one or two annual events (camping trips with old college buddies) and that was why I picked up the pack again this time and I know I will want to smoke next time. So I'll probably go pick up a pipe and a bag of pipe tobacco before the next trip... just to avoid the whole cig issue. Slightly better than inhaling it and a lot easier to just put away. When I have a pack, I might want to stop smoking half-way through it but find myself over that idea by the end of it.

I won't say I am done with tobacco. I confess that I love smoking... mostly blowing smoke about like some stinky smoke-stack. Just the whole act. But I don't [internally] consider myself a smoker anymore. I am over it. Hell, aside from this thread it has been a while since I have even thought about smoking. And I am a lot more comfortable with my "quitting" this time than any of the previous times. I think when you make it an ever-lasting battle against smoking that you believe you must fight for the rest of your life... it just seems so much harder and insurmountable. But I've given up quitting along with the cigs. I'm just going to be myself, a non-smoker, and not stress about it. If I happen to smoke a pipe for a couple days in November... oh well. That doesn't mean I have to go back to smoking forever. It is not who I am anymore.

Great!
 

smoking is not good... it'll probably take a lot, but it'll be worth it. I wish u luck in your endevour...

i have personally never been a smoker and will never... :)

Ex-smokers usually aren't as fascist about it as lifetime "liberals". From evolution to global warming you can see the same attitude. The definition of "liberal" must be "I know what's best, debate over". So I really couldn't disagree more with sycamorex...

I'm afraid I have to completely agree with vtel57, however. Nicotine is an extremely addictive drug and you need to treat it as such. Frob23 is setting himself up to fail.

The current culture of addiction (especially in regard to alcohol and tobacco) is just not that accurate in practice. But I have already succeeded so it is not possible for me to fail. That's the major difference right there. It's not an all or nothing situation. Success is not abstinence for the rest of ones life... it is changing one's behavior to a point where you are happy with it.

Then again, maybe I just come from a family of people with very non-addictive personalities. My father smoked for decades and then decided to quit one day. And that was the end of it. He complained for a few days about craving a cig but that was it. No patches, gum, or whatever. And it's been 5-6 years now for him. Did he smoke after he quit? Yes... two cigs. After about a year and then again about a year after that. He just didn't get all worked up about it and realized that it didn't fit who he was. And, as far as I know, those couple times was the end of it. But according to some people he should be back up over two packs a day right now because of that.

A single "slip" (if you even want to call it that) isn't enough to cause someone to relapse completely unless the person thinks that it's going to and acts in a manner to bring it about. I guess the real thing is what comes in the long run. I am not worried about it.

I actually think those that smoked and become very anti-smoking is a good way for them to never pick up the habit. Plus for them, they know what it's like to smoke, know the consequences, costs and everything else associated with it. To me, they have more of a right to bitch about smokers than those that have never smoked.

I quit cold turkey, very easy. It's all in the mind with a little will power too, if you don't have that, then you'll never quit. And I don't care about others smoking and I don't bitch about it, if someone wants to smoke, let it be. If they want to jump off a cliff to kill themselves, then so be it.. ;)

I quit after the first few cigarretes. Did'nt taste that good. Did'nt get much of a high off it either. I thought to myself ... well this is pointless. Sure alcohol is terrible for you health, but atleast it gets you drunk. Cigarretes do nothing for you it seems(until your addicted to them) and they're terrible for you. So I'm just sticking with alcohol.

and smoking is the only thing that they are able to quit ... probably proofing something ...

yup , better than never be able to quit anything at all in their miserable and addictive life ...


//why take the easier and the totally painless route ...


[BTW ::] there are definately much much more bad things and habbits waiting for people to quit them for good ...


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I'd like to congratulate those who have managed to quit, and wish the best of luck to the ones who are trying.

I've been smoking for almost 2 years, and have had approximately 14 attempts to quit, which never lasted more than a few days (the record was a week).
I smoke about 1 package a day, and my lungs started hurting... Smoking combined with the fact that the only sport I practice is typing and clicking... not a very good combination for my health.
Whenever I tried quitting, somebody always managed to annoy me, or something (computer broke, etc).
Anyway, this summer I plan to isolate myself in my home, with just my computer and a few good books, and finally quit. Until then, I've got exams and other stressful activities...

Good luck - may you live long and prosper :)

My attempt at quitting was frustrated by the fact that I am a long sufferer of clinical depression. The withdrawal triggered the depression.

I saw a doctor today and got a two weeks supply of Wellbutrin samples and a prescription for more. Hopefully it will help control both the depression and the withdrawal symptoms and I can finally quit.

The doc said that it's very common for people with depression to self medicate via heavy smoking as some of the chemicals in cigarette smoke act as anti-depressants.

Deal with the under-lying issue first. It's good to deal with both of these.

Yeah that's sort of what the doc said. Have to get control of the depression again before dealing with the smoking thing.

The depression is an inherited chemical imbalance. It killed my father when he was 10 years younger than I am now.

ok , theres a headlines saying "WHO fans smoking-ban flames ..." and "the evidence is clear that there are no safe level of exposure to second hand tobacco smoke" ...

it is estimated that there about 200,000 workers die each year because of smoke during work and some 700 million children(which is said to be "about half of all children in the world") "regularly breathe air polluted by tobacco smoke" ...

and "more than 3/4 of the almost 44% of 13-15 year-olds interviewed in 132 countries who are exposed to second hand smoke at home" are supporting a ban on smoking in public places ... and it mentioned the names of agencies who are doing the researches ...

and everywhere in that passage there are mentioning of "strongly recommending seeking professional help" instead of quiting smoking it alone ...


//but nope ... first thing comes first ... at least for WHO ...

//a bit silly ...

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Cancer cures a lot of stuff, and smoking is (sadly) not a sure killer. One of the world's oldest men was a big smoker, lived well over 100 years old (actually I haven't heard of his death) so it's not smoking that necessarily kills you. And if you don't smoke, you can still die -- of cancer too. Nevertheless I'm glad for you, willing to quit is a good step.

Will is the hardest part I guess, but I'd like to say something a friend of mine told me once:

Pain is just a condition, you can't stop because of it.

He sure was right. I hope your giving up smoking gets easier every day..good luck for that, too.

Thanks bouncer

Alred; the WHO is a political organization and like all political organizations making sense is not a high priority for them.

masonm -

nicotine is a horribly difficult addiction. here is something to think about - it sounds trivial at first, but give it some thought and you may find it's not: when you feel an urge to relapse (and you will), force yourself to think that you survived the last minute without succumbing. and the minute before that. if you survived one minute, you can survive one more. and when that minute is finished, repeat the thought process. or break it into half a minute, or even seconds if you have to.

the point is to break the addiction's pull into small, manageable pieces, instead of long periods which can seem daunting and hopeless. a month seems impossible, a minute less so. no matter how strong the urge, you can wait an extra minute. then repeat.

eventually those periods get longer and longer. trust me, they do.

yes it sucks, but that is the nature of any addiction - it sucks. but others have done it, so you can do it too.

good luck, we're pulling for you.

Thanks Jeltz

>> "the WHO is a political organization and like all political organizations making sense is not a high priority for them."

but since when smoking is an issue for mankind ... ??


//not that they are opium and the like which are a lot more as far as i'm concern ...

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Good luck ..... I can only say that for me it was one of the best things I ever did. I thought that I'd never be able to drink coffee again because of the associations but after a while you are just left with coffee. Go for it!

Alcohol isn't that much better for you and can lead to health problems just like cigarettes do. Sure it doesn't cause cancer but if you're a daily heavy drinker, just ask Mickey Mantle how it feels to lose your liver... a casual drinker that doesn't get plastered daily probably wouldn't cause the same effect.

Yeah, casual drinkers die from driving into trees and telephone poles, not cirrhosis of the liver. :rolleyes:

Alcohol is directly or indirectly related to 40% of all fatal car accidents.

I quit on April 5th this year (2007). I didn't tell anyone I was quitting, since every time someone brought it up I ended up feeling like a cig. Those "truth" and other anti-smoking commercials are terrible as well.

So I basically quit cold turkey, spent the better part of a week on my motorcycle when I wasn't at work, and didn't tell anyone I was quitting until I hadn't had a cig for about two weeks.

Still feel like smoking when I drink though, but I haven't buckled yet. Sure feel a lot better these days in the morning and such, and I get less of a hangover when I drink vs drink+smoke.

I smoke one big expensive cigar each New Year's Day. Tradition a bunch of friends and I have had since finishing college.
I won't quit ;-)

Hey masonm!

I read through the threads without bothering to look at the dates, and I thought, omg this gent is really putting some effort into this, get stuck in there mate! :)

edit* I gave up about 4 months ago under similar circumstances and what really does it for me is walking. Every time there's problems........walk, anywhere, in the garden, in the street, in the office, eeeeeeaarrrly mornings are beautiful, anywhere, cool fresh air, a few slow deep breaths and you will slowly feel your head start to "cotton Wool" = If you do too many, too fast, you will pass out with the rush.

I smoked since I was 10 years old, and I gave up a week before my 44th birthday! Walk and breath mate, let's see them try and slap a tax on that!!

All the best mate! :-)