Smoking

[hung-solo]

i have quit for almost 2 years. i had gotten bronchitis and couldnt get rid of it. since i didnt smoke for the few weeks i had it i figured this was a good time as any.. since then i may have had 3 cigs. i couldnt finish them either. tasted like shit! so i just dont smoke.. the first few months are pretty hard. esp if you drink. when you think about a cig go do something to take your mind off of it. eventually you get used to not having one and the cravings will disappear. good luck

 

[LMT66]

bump this up for motivation.

 

[sherlockbonez]

I've been off it for about 2 months. I have one here and there while I'm drinking ( I don't drink much anymore either). It's tough, but I'm getting the hang of it. The problem for me is I always relapse and end up buying a pack.

Just stay strong bro!

 

[munckmb]

I smoked for over 15 years. One day I felt I was ready to quit. I don't no why, I just was ready for it. I was, as are all smokers I believe, in the back of my mind thinking about quitting 'soon' for a long time. Maybe that slowly prepared me for the struggle. The first 3 days were not fun, it was really, really hard not to smoke. But after that it went easier. A week later my wife told me she was pregnant and that gave me so much more reason to keep it up that I still don't smoke. I now have a little girl, 16 months old, living in a house where no one smokes and I'm so happy and proud of that I know I will never light a cigarette again. Ever. For her:

Good luck and hang in there! It is so worth it!
Barry

 

[safetyman]

I was never a smoker and I never will be because of one simple day when I was 13. The last time I saw my grandpa, who was a chain smoker, before he died the doc said he had 10% lung capacity. 10%!!! I was like, no way am I going out like that. He used to get winded walking from the dinner table to the bathroom, which was a total of about 12 feet. It was a pity to see him like that, and I vowed to never let myself even get close to the condition he was in. So just keep that little number in your mind....10%.

 

[Alberta Ed]

I started jogging, 40+ years ago. Still smoke the occasional cigar and pipe, tho'.

 

[fujita yuji]

It's about ten years since I quit it.
Still want to smoke sometimes, for example when having coffee after lunch.

 

[koyote]

One thing I found out myself that really cleared things up for me was the survival mechanism that forms the psychological basis of the addiction.

you eat, you smoke. you drink, you smoke- for me, for MANY years, to get outside and see blue sky when I worked indoors (from secure facilities with no windows to server farms....with no windows) - I smoked. Sex? smoke!

the brain learns that smoking IS SURVIVAL. This can have a huge impact. Knowing this helps you deal with it- some things I did was take 3 weeks off from EVERY regular hangout place I had. I also developed short term replacement behaviors. Pshups were one. hourly ten minute walks for those 3 weeks were another. (I won't tell you what my girlfriend offered for every day I didn't smoke, but you wanna talk about trainign the hindbrain in survival behavior!!!!)

 

[JCavSD]

After many false starts I quit about a year and a half ago...cold turkey. There were several realizations that finally came together that helped me along. Smoking is expensive, time consuming, stanky, and unhealthy. As I've grown older there have been other health related issues that have cropped up out of my control. I figured that it was time to do something about the issues I could control so I could live a better life. Also lost about 25 lbs in the last 4 months. For me it was really a choice of taking control back as opposed to allowing myself to just be carried along.

 

[PayetteRucker]

I smoked for the necessity, used to work 15-20 hour days 5 days a week and pound the caffeine all morning to stay awake, and smoke to stop the shakes. Never got addicted, thankfully, now that I'm done with that lifestyle I smoke a pipe once every few days. Try smoking a pipe versus smoking cigarettes, the nicatine intake is there but extremely small. It might help you ween off of it. I think it's all in your mind, personally, the psychological outlook you take to quitting. People successfully quit cold turkey. I know a few. People DONT quit cold turkey because they don't have the willpower.

 

[Mr.Bojangles]

I'm sure someone already said this...but I didn't see it. I only made it through the first page and skimmed the rest. Something that really helps is to put the amount of money a pack costs you into a jar every time you'd purchase another pack. Just seeing how quickly that cash adds up is a big deterrant. Treat yourself to something once a month with some/all of the money you save not buying smokes. Also, perhaps just "try not smoking" for two weeks. It's less of an intimidating commitment that way. I'm sure you will find that, though you very well may still want one, you'll have a little clearer perspective by then. Also, cutting back at first might help ease the tension, but you eventually just have to go cold turkey. Stay busy. And do something besides eat every time you want a cigarette (that's not too great for you either, unless it's carrot sticks). Keep those hands busy, and good luck.

 

[Toucan Oasis]

I'm one of those guys that can take them or leave them.
If I go out drinking I'll buy a pack and smoke 1/3 or so of it and leave them on the bar.Once in a while after dinner, if I'm with a smoker, I'll have one.
I'd say in the last month I smoked maybe half a pack.
It's still idiotic.I need to leave the damn things alone.
If I'm going to inhale smoke I want a buzz !

 

[August West]

Been quit for about 2 years, I used the nicotine gum, worked for me YMMV. Chris