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Help me quit smoking

Swimmingdancer

Swimmingdancer

Bluelight Crew
Joined
Jan 2, 2012
Messages
5,430
Location
The Republic of Bluelight
I want to quit smoking cigarettes. It is my only remaining addiction aside from Bluelight ;).

We all know smoking isn't healthy, but I think what has prompted me to actually finally want to quit is that I am now noticing some adverse affects from it. In the past the health risks were just a sort of nebulous thing that didn't really feel real because I couldn't perceive any in myself, if that makes sense. But now I feel like it causes or worsens headaches and hurts my mouth. I have severe pain in my tongue and lips, doctors don't know why, it's similar to "burning mouth syndrome", and smoking definitely makes it worse.

But I don't know how to stop. I don't even really enjoy it, all it does is satiate my craving briefly and help me concentrate a little better. I have tried nicotine gum and e-cigarettes without much success.

My cigarette consumption went way up after I quit drugs. Each drug I quit I began smoking more.

I don't know what to do, it doesn't help that my partner smokes and we smoke in our home.

Please give me some support, my smoking feels out of control.
 
Have you tried Champix (Varenicline)? Almost all of my friends who got onto it have successfully quit. I think you have to go through a doctor to get prescribed it but it's worth it.
 
Re-distributed said:
Have you tried Champix (Varenicline)? Almost all of my friends who got onto it have successfully quit. I think you have to go through a doctor to get prescribed it but it's worth it.
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I already know my Dr would prescribe it, I just haven't decided if I want to try it. I already have a script for bupropion but have been scared to try it. I'm scared of varenicline too because of the listed side effects of insomnia (which I already have) and psychiatric problems like depression and suicidal ideation. At least the bupropion is an antidepressant and mild stimulant, which could be useful for me and was actually prescribed for that purpose (low dopamine, ADHD, anhedonia, no energy, pain, etc). I'm not taking any meds right now.

Any tips for the psychological aspects of trying to quit smoking? I was trying to do the tapering method but am failing.
 
sometimes:) but i think its better to be prepared and only do it once (or once more;) ).. want to get myself in the rite mindset.. yeah CT.. anything else just prolongs the pain.. bring it strong and swift but get it over quick............ shit swimm we can do this:!...... i'm in on the next friday from now.. actually starting saturday.. did you catch the jokes posted a while back, i think on the staying clean thread.. why do people quit herion before cigs, because it easier.. ah but in the so true wisdom of the sdancer, detox is a self fulfilling prophecy.. three days and then three walls yeah this shits childs play<3
 
Full_Ashtray.jpg
 
I feel your pain here but there really is hope. I had a similar experience a couple months ago when I started noticing the effects of cigarettes. Patches didn't work and E-cigs never really cut it for me, too much hassle weird taste not strong enough etc.
Then a store opened my town that sold high quality E-Cigs, so for fun I went in tried them and they hit like a real cig. I ended up getting one with the syrup highest in nicotine and quit right then.
A good E-Cig is nothing compared to the overpriced ones from head-shops and gas stations. You really get what you pay for. I recommend keeping an open mind to the idea.
 
sugarmagnolias said:
I feel your pain here but there really is hope. I had a similar experience a couple months ago when I started noticing the effects of cigarettes. Patches didn't work and E-cigs never really cut it for me, too much hassle weird taste not strong enough etc.
Then a store opened my town that sold high quality E-Cigs, so for fun I went in tried them and they hit like a real cig. I ended up getting one with the syrup highest in nicotine and quit right then.
A good E-Cig is nothing compared to the overpriced ones from head-shops and gas stations. You really get what you pay for. I recommend keeping an open mind to the idea.
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hey sugar.. love the name and the song, plyn it now<3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWuQiGaIsso.. welcome to BL!!
 
there is only one reason anyone starts smoking, and that is to use cigs as an extension of the self, which is probably the worst possible representative of your true self. what i mean by that is using cigarettes to try and fit in where you felt uncomfortable being yourself, or to try and help escape momentarily a situation that had you feel uncomfortable being in as a cause of distraction. there is no other reason to of have started, and there is no reason to continue besides the addiction both mentally and physically. it seems most likely to me that the physical cravings are aroused by chemicals such as melatonin and other hormones produced by the pituitary gland that are instigated by nicotine being introduced into your system, and when the nicotine begins to deplete from your body, a temporary shock occurs from not being able to regulate these inert chemicals on your own; hence your frequent headaches caused by smoking.

i smoked for 15 years...and in the past month and a half have only recently gotten the point where the physical cravings have ceased, and the smell of them disgust me. i have gone back and had one here and there, but rather than using will power to try and stop i have slowly reasoned with myself, and acquired a true disliking for them. it is stunning to me now how polluted the air is with the smoke, the streets are with the cigarette butts, and the sidewalks with advertisements. there is nothing inviting about them anymore, and each time i have had one i literally do become sick feeling.

the fourth day was the most difficult, personally, as far as the physical cravings, then the mental triggers began which are mostly urges to fill time, and it is no wonder after so long, thats part of the trick you play on yourself, you and your time are worth MUCH more than that, you have to trust that, and it isnt easy as insulting as that might sound.

"men with half-burned wood in their hands and certain herbs to take their smokes, which are some dry herbs put in a certain leaf, also dry, like those the boys make on the day of the Passover of the Holy Ghost; and having lighted one part of it, by the other they suck, absorb, or receive that smoke inside with the breath, by which they become benumbed and almost drunk, and so it is said they do not feel fatigue. These, muskets as we will call them, they call tabacos. I knew Spaniards on this island of Española who were accustomed to take it, and being reprimanded for it, by telling them it was a vice, they replied they were unable to cease using it. I do not know what relish or benefit they found in it."
This Is Your Country on Drugs: The Secret History of Getting High in America, Ryan Grim, 2009

smoking is transcendental, inhaling then exhaling and watching the smoke drift along with your thoughts is soothing, but holy shit man how much of your thoughts and effort is worth watching wisp away in the wind, never to return again?! that is why for me, seeing a cigarette as a lousy extension of myself was the turning point for me, what i needed to realize to be rid of tobacco and be more of me.

_________
there was another time i watched an 80 something y/o yogi inhale one minute, and exhale for another minute; that had me feel kind of pathetic and highly motivated at 30 something.
;)

2hzjmg.jpg
 
I smoked for about for almost 10 years through my teens and into my twenties. I quit cold turkey and it lasted a year and then I smoked for about 6 months again and decided that I was really done with it. For me, I had to get angry with the addiction, with the particular habits (after breakfast, always with coffee, etc.) and even with myself. I used the anger against the cravings. When I had a craving I would treat it like someone in my life trying to manipulate me. The thing about cravings is that they do pass relatively quickly but we experience them as eternal. When you can learn to stop and dissect the craving as it is happening ("I know this is short lived and I can overcome it") they lose a lot of power. I still have to do that with foods that I know are unhealthy but which I find tempting. 8)

What about trying a rewards system as well? Put aside the cost of a pack of cigarettes for each day that you go without them (or more if you smoke more). At the end of a week, double that amount for a treat for yourself on the weekend or save it up for something big like a trip. I know this doesn't work for everyone but I like to have a reward as something that I can really look forward to when I am trying to do something that takes discipline.

I know this never had an effect on me when I was younger and a smoker but I'll throw it out there anyway. I have lost every single one of my older relatives to lung diseases--including two who are dying of lung cancer right now. Not being able to get a breath is a horrible way to die. Quitting now, your lungs are young enough to completely heal.
 
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herbavore said:
When I had a craving I would treat it like someone in my life trying to manipulate me. The thing about cravings is that they do pass relatively quickly but we experience them as eternal. When you can learn to stop and dissect the craving as it is happening ("I know this is short lived and I can overcome it") they lose a lot of power.
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Thanks herbavore :). I have learned to do that quite well with other things, but still haven't been very good at doing it with cigarette cravings. It's so easy for me to just light up a cigarette automatically without even thinking about it. Maybe banning smoking in the house (for real this time, lol) would be a good place to start. I always reach for a cigarette whenever I'm working on my computer (or doing most things that require concentration but aren't physically active), after eating, or am stressed.

I don't think the reward thing is a huge motivator for me unfortunately, nor the fact that smoking can cause horrible diseases. Addiction is not rational. But I think I will try to think of some ways to reward myself anyway, surely it will help a tiny bit. I'm so sorry to hear about your relatives :( <3

weekend addiction said:
I'm working on quitting smoking as well. I have started getting shaky, I am tired all the time even though I'm sleeping better than ever. I want to quit but I am going to have to cut back more slowly. I just can't function at work going through CT withdrawals.
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I have never gone more than a day without smoking so I don't even know what the WDs will be like for me, that's kind of scary. How much have you cut back by?

neversickanymore - Want to set a sooner quit date? Anyone else want to join us?

sugarmagnolias - I do have a good e-cigarette. I think part of my problem is they hurt my mouth, and they're only giving me the nicotine and not the other substances (harmala alkaloids etc) found in tobacco. Might give it another shot though.

panic in paradise - Great post, thank you :). I am starting to dislike them too (even though I'm still smoking).
 
I don't actually know anything about clonidine for smoking withdrawal.

Wow you are enthusiastic :). And I like the motivational pics.

However... I am now actually leaning towards thinking maybe you were right in suggesting a later quit date to give us some time to prepare. Like I have a Dr's appt next week and might be starting a new hormone therapy, so it'd be nice to see what she says about quitting smoking and perhaps start the therapy before stopping smoking so I could tell if it's causing me any side effects (if I've just quit smoking it might be hard to tell if something is just due to smoking WD), I'd like to maybe book some acupuncture appointments, and I like the idea of at least trying to taper down before stopping completely. If I can't force myself to taper I would still quit on the planned day, but maybe planning a set day to stop would help motivate me to taper. And maybe doing things like not smoking inside starting tomorrow morning. What do you think? Or are you now gung-ho on the idea of stopping tomorrow?
 
I think the idea that the quitting may have an effect on the hormone therapy has some validity.. tapering IMO is a bad idea as it leads to a greater rush when you do use and it reinforces the cigarettes we really enjoy. on the other hand if we jump tomorrow we could be just about over the acutes by the beginning of next week and then its just trigger and crave control (ha JUST, omg).. I say we go for it as there is never a good time.. clonidine worked really well for me as when i jumped off all the rest I quit the nicotine for five weeks and then to ease some of the insanity I picked back up the cigs temporarily.. but i'm ready.. no time like the present? But let me know what you are thinking..

herbavore said:
For me, I had to get angry with the addiction, with the particular habits (after breakfast, always with coffee, etc.) and even with myself. I used the anger against the cravings. When I had a craving I would treat it like someone in my life trying to manipulate me. The thing about cravings is that they do pass relatively quickly but we experience them as eternal. When you can learn to stop and dissect the craving as it is happening ("I know this is short lived and I can overcome it") they lose a lot of power..
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SO GOLDEN herby!
 
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