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The 'quit smoking' thread

Well well.... I drop by and find this thread... spunout!

Over two years after I started this thread, I quit smoking last November. I'm just a few days away from making 6 months, without cheating once. :)

In the end, for all the (literally) dozens of times I had tried to quit before and struggled like hell (and ultimately failed), this time was easy. It really wasn't that hard at all, which was definitely a nice suprise. :)

Here is what worked for me:

1) I downloaded hypnosis and NLP ("neuro linguistic programming" or something) "Quit Smoking" MP3s off Kazaa onto my MP3 player and put it on each night when I went to bed, about a week before I quit. I didn't expect it to do anything and wasn't really planning on quitting. Then a week later I just got up one morning and stopped. It sounds weird, but initially that was really the only major difference to any other time, and this time was much, much easier than any time before.

2) I replaced one addiction with another and replaced smoking with about 1.5hrs of exercise a day. Gym, walking, everything. I literally felt noticably better every day than the day before. I was trying to give myself too much to lose.

3) I quit drinking alcohol and caffeine for a week. Quitting the caffeine gave me a headache for 3 days so bad I didn't have time to notice the nicotine. ;) I re-introduced the alcohol slowly, to try to break the smoke-with-a-drink habit.

4) I didn't go out much for a while. Just exercised heaps.


And now...

I'm 10kg heavier, bench press over 200lbs (though still have lots of fat to lose, dont get me wrong... but physically I'm in the best shape I've been in years), havent coughed in weeks and feel so much better that I have come to view my life as a before-after situation. Before I was an old man. I view those years as wasted years of my life, when I could have been healthy.

And that's how I now view the way I was... as though I suffered a long chronic illness. I cannot tell you the difference in the way that I feel (I could not have been told before), but maybe the best way I can compare it is that it's like I suffered a debilitating illness, like glandular fever, hepatitis or a bad flu that lasted years. Maybe the flu is the best analogy.

Those of you thinking about quitting... do it! You know how even after a few days you feel better? Exercise while quitting and you'll keep noticing change at that rate for months. I had non smokers telling me I looked so much healthier that they were upset that they had nothing to quit. :D
 
doofqueen said:
^^ switch to champion. It's the only one that doesn't use slave labour (or so i've been told by several people)
Click to expand...

But I don't like Champion. I get about as much tar forming at the butt as I do with White Ox. And the point of switching brands is so I smoke a less addictive tobacco, and I found Champion to be more addictive.

I think the gag reflex problem really was because I was rolling fatter smokes, because all the ones I've had this week have been thin and I haven't choked on any. :\

I'm still going back to Ox.

edit: Ewww I wasted my 1000th post on quitting smoking instead of saying something interesting. :o
 
^^ just imagine there is a tumour in you and you HAVE TO GIVE UP!

That's what happened to me and I haven't had a ciggy since! :)
 
I quit in May 2004, again (I also quit in October 2002). On Saturday I had four cigarettes and they were glorious! But they are no longer part of my daily routine, and I don't have any desire to smoke on a regular basis at all. So I still consider myself as having "quit", but might have the odd cigarette without too much guilt. I couldn't be in the house reeking of cigarettes around my kids, I'd feel horrible!
 
I quit for a month last sunday - so far im the only person (out of 4) that hasnt broken down and smoked. I think i can have it
 
It's been about a week and a half/2 weeks, shit i can't remember. All i remember now is the cravings, sweet sweet nicotine cravings.

It doesn't hit me first thing in the morning like it used to. It's stuff like driving in the car, finishing a meal at a restaurant, tea breaks at work that kill it for me. The cravings get so intense that i feel asthough i'm ready to punch a brick wall. Not good when your driving.

My verdict on the patches... meh, they dull down the craving about 25%. The gum.. absolutely horrible. Feels like my mouth is on fire when i chew it for about 10 seconds
 
I had the last smoke from that bag this morning. Then my dad got shitty at me for smoking. I told him I was quitting and he told me I couldn't because I'm already addicted. Thanks for the encouragement. 8)
 
Has anyone ever bothered asking themselves the question, "why do i smoke?"

Tobacco companies and governments have us hooked. Its simple as that. You think if the government really really wanted us all to stop smoking they wouldnt make ciggarettes illegal? just as certain drugs are illegal? Tobacco smoking has become a part of modern Western Culture. The amout of money from taxes is just too much for governments to make them illegal.

Im convinced smoking is habit which quells some sub-conscious urge we all have. Get to the bottom of that urge and direct it towards something else, ull find stopping ciggarettes alot easier. Its more then just the nicotine addiction. Sexual frustration? Anxiety? maybe?
 
I don't think it has anything to do with sexual frustration. Possibly anxiety as in stress etc but i think it's the fact that we all started for probably stupid reasons and got addicted to the nicotine. We don't feel 'normal' without it and that's why it's so hard to quit.

What you said about the government though - no shit sherlock ;)
 
Well I've yet to experience an actual nicotine craving. A craving for a habitual smoke, yes (i.e. waiting for the train and post-lunch). However I have managed to replace the mid-lecture smoke with a biscuit and/or coffee. Those shortbread biscuits are gold, they're going to cost me more than smokes and I'm going to get fat off them. :(
 
Originally posted by endlesseulogy
Im convinced smoking is habit which quells some sub-conscious urge we all have. Get to the bottom of that urge and direct it towards something else, ull find stopping ciggarettes alot easier. Its more then just the nicotine addiction. Sexual frustration? Anxiety? maybe?

I don't think it's quelling some urge, I just think it's a habit, full stop. My smoking is definitely as much about routine as it is about physical addiction.

wake up --> cigarette
waiting [train, bus, lecture, friend] --> cigarette
work break --> cigarette
hot meal --> cigarette
driving --> cigarette

I have a weak personality, one that isn't conducive to self control or determination. I like cigarettes and therefore I smoke. Simple.
 
up all night said:
Originally posted by endlesseulogy
Im convinced smoking is habit which quells some sub-conscious urge we all have. Get to the bottom of that urge and direct it towards something else, ull find stopping ciggarettes alot easier. Its more then just the nicotine addiction. Sexual frustration? Anxiety? maybe?

I don't think it's quelling some urge, I just think it's a habit, full stop. My smoking is definitely as much about routine as it is about physical addiction.

wake up --> cigarette
waiting [train, bus, lecture, friend] --> cigarette
work break --> cigarette
hot meal --> cigarette
driving --> cigarette

I have a weak personality, one that isn't conducive to self control or determination. I like cigarettes and therefore I smoke. Simple.
Click to expand...

I agree with this as well. So much of it is about routine/habit and this is what makes it hard when you quit ie doing the activity that you always do without the cigarette.

Work breaks are the worst. Pre-quitting they were a time for bonding, bitching about that annoying manager. Post-quitting, they are now a time where you (a) sit in the lunch room with 50 somethings watching them eat date slice or (b) go out with smoking buddies and get grumpy because you can't smoke:D :D :D

Has anyone been successful with patches? I did it for a month but they used to get REALLY hot (strange, huh??) and itchy when i would first put them on of a morning. I literally had to stop myself from ripping it off.
 
I think maybe it is harder to quit considering the long term effects are excactly that - long term.

Whereas with other substances things can go start to go haywire quite quickly, it is obviously possible to smoke for 20 years and not feel major health efffects (especially because it is a gradual thing).
 
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