Anyone have any advice for quitting smoking?

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Dork_Vader

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I want to quit. I'm sick of it I'm 29 and I already have early signs of COPD. I'm sick of wasting money on it. But I'm hooked on the nicotine bad.

I hate it I wish i could go back in time and never start. I'm a heavy smoker.. Advice to any kids.. Don't start! smoking has destroyed my life and done a ton of damage to my body. But the addiction is so strong I fool my self into not caring.

You only get one body on this life and the damage that smoking does to it last your entire life.

Any advice would be great.. Anyway i can get the nicotine out of my system quicker?
 
I'm a never have so I got nothing for you but this; when you do quit stay out of bars, if you go to them :p I've known more people that tried and were successful until they hit a bar. I guess the drink and smell together is too much and they "fall off the wagon" and start smoking again.

My mom quit many years ago but it got my dad, he smoked until his last day of a massive heart attack...

Best of luck to you. I understand it's horribly addicting and as hard to break as a heroin habit but the best thing is knowing you'll live longer. Biggest single motivating factor I can think of. :)
 
There should be state-provided help available, paid for by tobacco lawsuits. In Okla. you can get everything from patches, to gum, to all kinds of counseling and help. Try here: https://www.tobaccofreeca.com/quit-smoking/how-to-quit/

Glad you want to quit. I was a Respiratory Therapist in a major hospital for several years. Smokers are headed down a truly bad path. My mother suffered from a number of ailments, from COPD to laryngeal polyps, and finally died of a sudden, massive heart attack - all from smoking.
 
I am an ex-smoker - I smoked for 12 years, and quit 30 years ago. There is one way to quit. Put the nasty things down, suck it up, and never pick them up again. Patches, gum, medication? Bah. In the long run they just make the process harder.

I don't buy that exposure will make you start smoking again. When I quit, I was working in a retail setting that sold gasoline and cigarettes. Once I decided to QUIT!! it was simple. Not particularly easy, but simple. Also, I told nobody that I was quitting - it was a couple weeks before my spouse noticed.

Kevin O
 
There is one way to quit. Put the nasty things down, suck it up, and never pick them up again.

Give that man a nickel. This is the best advice you will ever get. Just put them down and walk away - unfortunately that is the only way you can break any addiction. Just decide not to do it.

It will seem impossible that it is that easy but it is. The mind is the most powerful thing we have - put it to use.
 
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Now that you have decided to quit the biggest step is done. Like the other two after 30 yrs of smoking and trying to quit. The only way I was successful was to throw them out and refuse to light another. I understand that 17 yrs. later I am still an addict and lighting one up and I would be a smoker again. Not easy but you can do it. First couple of weeks is the hardest. From there each day gets easier. Every time you want a cigarette find something else to do.

Dennis
 
You have to really want to quit. that is the key. That is how I did it 38 years ago. I was a two pack a day smoker. I woke up one morning after a friday night party and smoking up alot of cigs and the first one I lite up that morning made me cough so bad and hack that I couldn't take another puff. Thats when I desided it was time to put them down and I did with no help.the bottom line is you have to hate them so much that you don't want to think about them anymore. Then it will work for you. It takes time to get through it and you will have them moments of want but it only last a short time and then the crave is gone. Good luck, it will be the best thing you do for your self for the rest of your life.
 
I want to quit. I'm sick of it I'm 29 and I already have early signs of COPD. I'm sick of wasting money on it. But I'm hooked on the nicotine bad.

I hate it I wish i could go back in time and never start. I'm a heavy smoker.. Advice to any kids.. Don't start! smoking has destroyed my life and done a ton of damage to my body. But the addiction is so strong I fool my self into not caring.

You only get one body on this life and the damage that smoking does to it last your entire life.

Any advice would be great.. Anyway i can get the nicotine out of my system quicker?

I smoked for twenty years. One day I was visiting the doctor because I had the flu, and he expressed dire concern for my high blood pressure due in part to my weight, and aggrivated by my smoking. A long talk with my doctor had he set me on the road to quit and recovery (and he prescribed meds for my high blood pressure). It is not easy to quit, as your mind is your toughest adversary during this process. But going it alone was not in my favor either, and with his help, was able to quit, and I have been quit now for 11 going on 12 years now.

My point is, seek advice from your doctor as he or she will know the best path to take (in most cases).
 
I was a 2 pack a day smoker for 20 years and was able to quit "cold turkey", ..........sort of...
One day I walked to my car after work and didn't feel too good when I got there.
A fer miles later I realized I had all the classis symptoms of a heart attack. Since this stressed me out I decided to do what all smokers do when stressed- I reached for the pack o' Marlboros. I looked at the pack, thought of my current situation, and said out loud "This is pretty stupid". I had 100% blockage in my right coronary artery. So, I had my groin shaved, a plastic tube shoved through a cut made too close to my privates for comfort, and had a stent put in.

Now, the PHYSICAL addiction to nicotine is over within 48 hours. I told my wonderful wife where all of my cigarettes were, and asked her to get rid of them all while I was in the hospital. I got out 5 days later. About a month after this I smoked less than a half of a cigarette, and it didn't taste good at all. That is all I have smoked in the last 9 years since the heart attack.

I have scar tissue from the attack, but it does not affect the heart function at all. My Doctor says that "if I had to have one, this was the one to have".

This was a wake up call, ant I listened.
 
One thing that hasn't been mentioned is the economic impact of quitting.

When my mom quit (I never started, 'cause my mom was a chain smoker and I hated the smell of the things...) she worked out how much each individual cigarette cost, and every time she resisted the urge, she put that much money into a piggy bank. Inside of a month, she needed to upgrade to a gallon jug....

After six months, she started a sizable "rainy-day" savings account.

She quit because one of her best friends (who was a smoking buddy as well) developed lung cancer...

Her catchphrase for the next few years? "Cancer cures smoking"

G.D.
 
The answer I usually give, which sounds cliche but like all cliches is true: How do you quit? Don't smoke, EVEN WHEN YOU WANT TO.

When you're trying to change behaviors you've become addicted to, both chemically and psychologically, it's easy to feel like you've "changed your mind," and decided to backslide, but it's not true. You still know all the reasons you have for quitting. It's just that the desire to smoke and the desire to quit can coexist, and one can be stronger than the other at any given time. There's not a whole lot rational going on.

If you smoke a pack/day or more, you're going to have some physical withdrawals that will be worst for 72 hours but will actually linger for much longer than that. If that's the case, you might find the patch helpful. It takes the biological nicotine craving out of the way, so you only have the psychological part of the habit tugging at you. Of course, that's the more difficult struggle, and it's hard to generalize about what works. I've seen all the suggestions above be helpful for people, and you may think of your own. I don't recommend the e-cigarettes, because you're basically still smoking and haven't changed the behavior or the nicotine intake. Gum and lozenge can help with the nicotine craving part.

Figure out which cigarettes are the key ones for you: first one in the morning? the one with coffee in early afternoon? the one after dinner or with drinks? Those times are when the habit/craving will be strongest, and it will help if you plan ahead to change your routine to avoid the familiar environment and cues that normally go along with the cigarette. Buy your morning coffee someplace else that doesn't sell cigarettes, maybe, or take your lunch break someplace new that's non-smoking. It might help to tell people you're quitting: they'll be a little nicer if you're irritable (maybe) and you'll have some peer pressure and accountability in the back of your mind which might help too.

And remember, you don't have to give up all the cigarettes, just the first one.
 
When you really don't want to smoke—you'll quit one way or another. If you still like it—you won't. Don't listen to non-smokers—they just want to preach. Ex-smokers are quite possibly—worse. When you want to, you will. Don't even talk about it.
 
With respect for those of the cold turkey school, here’s an alternative that worked for me.

I quit in 1972, after being a 3-pack smoker for years. Around that time, I found a book that is no longer in print. I think it was _Smoking: An Easy Cure_. It described a remarkably effective method.
The idea was that there are “Key cigarettes” that underpin your habit, and it helps to start by eliminating these. They are the first cigarette in the morning, cigarettes with/after coffee or alcohol, cigarettes with food, and the last cigarette at night. (You may find you have other special cigarettes.) I discovered that I really did crave these particular ones more than others, and actually had to give up coffee for awhile to eliminate the association. The author suggests washing out one’s mouth with H2O2 after eating. That helped. (Other mouthwash worked too.) The suggested time doing this preliminary stuff was 30 days.

The last two weeks should be spent on a brand of cigarettes that is not your preferred brand – preferably a light cigarette. (If I had it to do over again, I would have spent more time on the light cigarette during that 30 day period.) Switching like this lowers the craving for the specific taste of your preferred cigarettes.

[It’s important to stress that the key cigarette idea isn’t just a gimmick, and you aren’t putting off quitting by concentrating on them at first. There is a real perception that one is quitting something during these 30 days. You really do crave these specific cigarettes. If you have a different experience, the method probably isn’t working, and I suggest you go cold turkey.]

The author suggests not telling those around you that you are quitting, and not making a big thing of discarding the remnants of the last pack. Just decide, privately, to end it. If someone offers you a smoke, just say no thank you. This approach takes pressure off you, and prevents your “Friends” from subverting you efforts.

I added something to the method, since I discovered I was re-making the decision to quit every time I passed a drug store or every time I unconsciously reached for a cigarette. There was too much chance that, one day, I’d undo the decision. I put an index card in my shirt pocket, where I normally kept my smokes. The card had one word on it: “NO!” That word was my decision – already made, already written down. Whenever I passed a drug store or reached for a smoke by reflex, I’d dutifully pull this card out, read it and say it. That was my published decision. It worked.

(I had a friend who liked the idea but used a stack of cards with phrases like “Heart Attack” and “Lung Cancer” on them. That didn’t work so well. These words were not a decision written down, they were influences brought to bear during reviews of the decision.)

A few other things:
1) Cravings will be bad at first, but after awhile, you learn that they will pass. Expect to have cravings for two or three years after you quit. (Yes. That long.) You will learn early on that there is no great urgency, and that these cravings will take care of themselves.

2) You may not feel wonderful for having quit – or you may. Either way, know it’s the best thing for you.

3) If you fail, try again. Keep trying and one day it will stick. It may take a few tries to learn how not to outfox yourself. It may take a few times before you’re disgusted enough to make it work. Eventually, you will succeed.

4) There are nicotine patches today. Maybe these work. (?) Maybe doctors know how to use them. You might consult a doc on this.

My parents handed me a pack of cigarettes on my seventeenth birthday. That’s how accepted smoking was in 1965. (I had been smoking secretly before that.) Men, in those days, _expected_ to have their “First heart attack” around age 50. They would commonly talk in these terms with friends when discussing life plans. You don’t hear talk like this anymore. Why? People don’t smoke as much, that’s why. Yeah, some people are unaffected, but on a population basis, the effect of smoking on mortality is amazing.

Congratulations on your decision to quit, and best of luck!

-LarryC
 
Was easy for me. Two things happened. One, my wife got pregnant and we both quit at the same time.
The other was simple economics. When I quit I had the money for my Harley payment.

Two pack a day is over $500 a month here. That's a lot of rockets and motors. Quit and start buying stuff.
 
When you really don't want to smoke—you'll quit one way or another. If you still like it—you won't. Don't listen to non-smokers—they just want to preach. Ex-smokers are quite possibly—worse. When you want to, you will. Don't even talk about it.

I think this is untrue and unhelpful. Addiction is a problem that affects willpower, impairs decision-making, and generally involves repeatedly doing things we later regret. I don't think we need to debate whether cigarettes are addictive.

If someone has decided to quit and then returned to smoking, it doesn't mean that they really didn't want to. Maybe true for some, but it's oversimplified, and suggests that difficulty with quitting is because of indecision, failure of resolve, or some kind of character flaw or weakness. Not true. There's a reason that there is a whole industry devoted to helping people quit smoking. It's because changing an addiction is hard. If someone is allergic to bananas and eating them is harmful, there are no medications, counselors, TV commercials, self-help groups, hypnotists, etc. around who specialize in "how to not eat bananas." I'm not saying that all those things are necessary or helpful for quitting smoking, but there's a reason they exist. The first thing most people try is waiting until they feel ready and comfortable. If that worked for everyone, we wouldn't be having this discussion.

And I would listen to everybody: smokers, non-smokers, ex-smokers, future smokers... take what you find helpful and disregard the rest. And yes, I would disregard the preaching (although, aside from what I just wrote in the last paragraph, I haven't seen any preaching here) on both sides. He didn't ask whether to smoke or not, but how to quit. Advising him not to listen to non- or ex-smokers is kind of bizarre, since you're suggesting he should listen only to current smokers. The last people I would ask for suggestions on how to do something are people who haven't done it. So I wouldn't ask current smokers for suggestions on how to quit.

If I asked how to get smooth fillets on my rockets, someone saying: "when you really want to get smooth fillets, you'll find a way" wouldn't be very helpful. True, maybe, but not helpful. Asking for advice on how to do something difficult is a good idea. So get lots of suggestions, consider the sources, and decide what to do.
 
I think the point is that's a method of quitting. You just don't consider yourself a smoker anymore. There's no trying. There's no debate. You just don't do it. I think the true test is being able to have one cigarette at a campfire, and not run out and buy a pack. But that's just what works for me. When I feel a huge urge, maybe twice a year or so, I get a pack, smoke it and quit again. That's how I dealt with drinking too. If I tried to say "never again" I'd never make it. Knowing its still out there for me takes the stress away.

I do realize this is the most horrible way to "quit" anything. But my goal isn't total quitting
 
I think the point is that's a method of quitting. You just don't consider yourself a smoker anymore. There's no trying. There's no debate. You just don't do it. I think the true test is being able to have one cigarette at a campfire, and not run out and buy a pack. But that's just what works for me. When I feel a huge urge, maybe twice a year or so, I get a pack, smoke it and quit again. That's how I dealt with drinking too. If I tried to say "never again" I'd never make it. Knowing its still out there for me takes the stress away.

I do realize this is the most horrible way to "quit" anything. But my goal isn't total quitting

Reminds my of my great uncle. He used to say he quit several times a year.
He really only quit once. I sent a card and flowers.....


"Just don't do it, until you do" isn't a plan for success.
 
I think this is untrue and unhelpful. Addiction is a problem that affects willpower, impairs decision-making, and generally involves repeatedly doing things we later regret. I don't think we need to debate whether cigarettes are addictive.

If someone has decided to quit and then returned to smoking, it doesn't mean that they really didn't want to. Maybe true for some, but it's oversimplified, and suggests that difficulty with quitting is because of indecision, failure of resolve, or some kind of character flaw or weakness. Not true. There's a reason that there is a whole industry devoted to helping people quit smoking. It's because changing an addiction is hard. If someone is allergic to bananas and eating them is harmful, there are no medications, counselors, TV commercials, self-help groups, hypnotists, etc. around who specialize in "how to not eat bananas." I'm not saying that all those things are necessary or helpful for quitting smoking, but there's a reason they exist. The first thing most people try is waiting until they feel ready and comfortable. If that worked for everyone, we wouldn't be having this discussion.

And I would listen to everybody: smokers, non-smokers, ex-smokers, future smokers... take what you find helpful and disregard the rest. And yes, I would disregard the preaching (although, aside from what I just wrote in the last paragraph, I haven't seen any preaching here) on both sides. He didn't ask whether to smoke or not, but how to quit. Advising him not to listen to non- or ex-smokers is kind of bizarre, since you're suggesting he should listen only to current smokers. The last people I would ask for suggestions on how to do something are people who haven't done it. So I wouldn't ask current smokers for suggestions on how to quit.

If I asked how to get smooth fillets on my rockets, someone saying: "when you really want to get smooth fillets, you'll find a way" wouldn't be very helpful. True, maybe, but not helpful. Asking for advice on how to do something difficult is a good idea. So get lots of suggestions, consider the sources, and decide what to do.

I was a 2 pack a day smoker for 25+ years. I used Chantix pills from my MD. I had heard about people having nightmares and other strange side effects. After taking them for the prescribed time. I just didn't have the desire to smoke. It's been 5 years now, still smoke free. I gotta say though.........every once in awhile, geez they still smell good. I know I cannot have ONE, or I'll go back. I can say that it's nice to have $$$$$$in the bank rather than going up in smoke.
My 2 cents
Mark T
 
I don't think smoking is an "all or nothing" activity. I realize that puts me in a very small population. "I'm not gonna do this right now" is easier to do mentally than "I'm never doing this again". It's like putting a dog down or giving it away to a friend. Whenever I tried to quit, I'd trigger and then right back into it all. Right now, I've had five cigarettes in the last 10 months, and maybe two packs in the last two years.
 
I never quit smoking altogether, I just decided not to smoke *TODAY*.

The thought of never having another cigarette was what kept driving me crazy more than the physical addiction.

So I decided that I might smoke tomorrow, but I wasn't going to smoke today.

I haven't smoked today for 33 years now.
 
Any advice would be great.. Anyway i can get the nicotine out of my system quicker?


Since you lack will power, get yourself arrested and thrown into the county lock up.

NO SMOKING is allowed.

This could be looked at as a way to stop many bad habits at once.

Think of all the new friends you'll make!
 
I quit the cold turkey method. The main thing is to change your habits. If you get up and have a smoke, go ride a bike or take a run or walk. I you have a smoke after a meal, do the dishes then go for a walk. Keep your mind busy! Don't think about the cigarettes. The main thing is you want to quit. That is the most important thing! Throw away all your ashtrays, lighters and packs of smokes, get rid of everything that will remind you of smoking. Then take one day at a time, you want to quit and you can quit! If you need something for your mouth to do, chewing gum or toothpicks. I know I probably ate a whole tree when I quit. But now my life is so much better.
The biggest plus is the money. You will be able to start to see an increase your back account, which is the best part of quitting!
Good luck with it, you have taken the first big step, you can do it!
 
Sully, you just don't know. I had posted a rebuttal of almost everything you wrote—but it is not worth the debate because you have no clue. At all.

The main thing is not wanting to quit. The main thing is you are quitting. It's that simple. And that hard. Any vacillation or weakness and you're done. No need for any discussion. The more you talk/think about it—the harder it becomes. Hence, shut-up and do it. Or don't.
 
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There are many methods find the one that works for you. Cold turkey is not for everyone and I've seen people actually crack under the strain of addiction and it makes it that much harder to try again. Nicotine replacement DOES work for some. Patches, gum, lozenges can all be sucessful as can chantix and welbutrin. Not everyone has the strength to fight the physical and mental effects of addiction all at the same time. If you do then more power to you, if not then there is no shame using nicotine replacement as a crutch to get you through the physical while you deal with the mental. After a few weeks of nicotine replacement the body begins to heal, you start to breath better, have more energy and generally feel better. This is often the incentive that many folks need to carry them through the mental side of addiction and give up forever. You NEED to quit now while your still young. If you think your breathing is bad now just wait until your in your fifties and still smoking. Hacking up half a lung every morning when you wake up isn't pretty.
 
I had quit once for three monthes but bummed a couple of cigarettes from a co-worker one week, pretty was back to a pack a day quickly.

Next go around, I used ALL the resources available to me : Group counseling once a week for 6 weeks, patches, Wellbutrin, ect . Couple of weeks in started having the 'just one wont kill me' thoughts and was able to keep on track only based on my prior experience.

Other thing I became conscious of was how much of my daily routine was interweaved : computer time in morn or eve - cigarette, walk away from desk at work every hour - cigarette, go anywhere before going in and coming out - cigarette , Don't smoke in the car, but in traffic - cigarette .. ect and so forth.

Stick with it, if you fall off - get right back on and stick with it .

Kenny
 
I used patches but the most important thing was I didn't enjoy it any more. I quit at the rollover of the year, Jan 2000. At the time I was smoking 1 pack per day at $2.00 per pack. 1 year of smokes = 1 N2000 :)Motoreater N2000a.JPG Still off them 13 years later. This was the celebration after 1 year :)
 
Sully, you just don't know. I had posted a rebuttal of almost everything you wrote—but it is not worth the debate because you have no clue. At all.

The main thing is not wanting to quit. The main thing is you are quitting. It's that simple. And that hard. Any vacillation or weakness and you're done. No need for any discussion. The more you talk/think about it—the harder it becomes. Hence, shut-up and do it. Or don't.

Where you're wrong is in making blanket statements like that. On this thread, there are multiple examples of people who talked and thought about quitting a whole lot, and quit. But making a fuss probably makes it harder for some. I don't know what will work for you or anybody else. And neither do you.

The fact is that large numbers of people have quit smoking using medications, patch, gum, etc., and by talking and thinking about it a whole lot. That doesn't mean some people didn't just tough it out, but it's a fact.

Somebody here asked for "advice for quitting smoking." I happen to think that "shut up and do it" is lousy advice, because the people that works for don't come on forums asking for help.

One size does not fit all. This I do know, and have more than a clue. Also, your favorite band sucks.
 
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