Help stopping smoking

I'm smoking for close to 12 years and i turn 31 the 15th of this month and i feel it has been enough and have tried a couple times before but never survived longer than 3 months.

I'm only smoking cigarettes L&M for those that want to know no weed or anything.

I got that feeling i really need to stop because i want to be a good example for my 3 kids and i kinda want to be around for longer than my 50's and be in somewhat decent shape so i can play with my grandchildren one day.

So any advice for those who have done it please shine a light on this subject and maybe give some pointers on how to get of this horrible addiction
|
hillbilly
Posts
9079
Joined
8/16/2006
Location
Afton, TN, USA
10/11/2016 3:10pm
I've quit so many things thru my life I'm sumwhat a expert.

The only way I've found is cold turkey ,sweat it out.

With cigs i chewed gum,not nicotine gum,just gum,like a physco.

And,i was drinking at the time which goes great with a camel.

Don't see how the patches or nicotine gum could work since you're continuing the thing you're addicted to.

Or,you could just sneak and smoke.

Like the guy that got caught on Google earth ,he was outside when the car with all the cameras on it goes by,his wife sees it somehow and hits him with a skillet or whatever,lol.
TXDirt
Posts
7786
Joined
7/29/2015
Location
Plano, TX, USA
10/11/2016 3:15pm
Get a vape. Get 6 or 12 nicotine level. Pick a few tobacco flavors. Nicotine is not what's bad for you.

Take a few puffs when you feel the urge. Eventually you can try with other flavors and lower nic level if desired.
10/11/2016 3:37pm
I think that Hillbilly's advice is hard but maybe the only way so i'm going to try the cold turkey way first before i'm getting alternates to help me stop smoking , first try the hardest way i guess.

I'm starting tomorrow because i just smoked my last out of my pack so it seems like a good time to get started on quitting
10/11/2016 3:56pm
Went semi cold turkey after over 30 years. Always bought by the carton and the last carton I told them give me the cheapest you got figuring it would probably be some of the nastiest tasting as well. After quitting I almost immediately stopped having any morning coughing fits.

Did okay for a week or two but then really started jonesing and started doing some e cigs. Unfortunately did those for a couple of months but finally have been free of them for about 5 months now.

I had been in the hospital several times over those years and never really needed one, in fact was accused of sneaking some smokes several years ago because of the amount of packs per day and length of time smoking that I had told them.

Wish I had all or even part of that money back that I spent on those nasty things. I've done a lot of things, quit a lot of things, smoking was the hardest but it's not impossible, just set your mind to it.

Worst part about it, I still crave one of those f!ers every once and awhile.

The Shop

MR. X
Posts
6913
Joined
6/24/2010
Location
North Tonawanda, NY, USA
10/11/2016 4:45pm
The patch works really well . After a couple days ,you can almost go through the day without even wanting one except for the ones that you always have, like for me was the one in the car when i leave work , you know what im talking about ,the ones you have at the same time everyday ,but the cravings are really easy to manage until they go away.
TXDirt
Posts
7786
Joined
7/29/2015
Location
Plano, TX, USA
10/11/2016 5:01pm Edited Date/Time 10/11/2016 5:03pm
First time I quite smoking/dipping I use Nicorete. You can instantly get a craving to go away. I was probably having 10-20 a day. Basically anytime you would normally have a dip or smoke just pop a piece of gum. You can feel it wash over your brain just like a smoke does. After about 15 years of being nicotine free I stupidly thought I could have a single smoke one night when I was having a few glasses of wine. Big mistake. Very next day I was back in to it full time. Pack a day. Did that for 8 months. Got phnemonia twice over that time. Switched over to vaping and been good ever since. I know I'll need to quit vaping some day. Since I quit smoking again I have not been sick once. Nicotine is not bad for you and even has some health benefits. It's all the other nasty shit in cigarettes that kills you.

Good luck! Once you get a few months under you you will wonder why you were ever a smoker in the first place. It's quite liberating.
Titan1
Posts
9436
Joined
2/3/2010
Location
Lehi, UT, USA
10/11/2016 5:08pm
Will power...you just have to want to stop more than you want to smoke...and commit to yourself that no matter how hard it gets, no matter how bad your body wants it you will NOT smoke. You just won't do it.

But there are other things you can to do help:

When the cravings are at their worst...change your environment...if you're inside, go outside...if your outside go inside. Do push ups until your arms give out.

Avoid your triggers.

Find a stop smoking forum on reddit or something...when the cravings get bad, go there and give others who are trying to quit advice and help and encouragement.

Tell everyone you know that you are quitting.

Get rid of every single cig in your home, car, work place, garage, anywhere that you might be make sure there are no cigs there.

Good luck!
10/11/2016 5:40pm
Thanks for the support and advice so far, its not that i smoked a lot about 10-15 max per day and i'm awake around 18 hours per day so not that bad,

I'm going too keep this thread going with day by day facts of how it went and what kind of obstacles may accuse along the way.

Thanks again for your input guys it's much appreciated
Tim507
Posts
3483
Joined
6/8/2010
Location
Oregon City, OR, USA
10/11/2016 5:48pm Edited Date/Time 10/11/2016 5:49pm
Smoked .... liked it..... realized one day that I was a fkn smoker.....COLD TURKEY is the only way to quite. It's a test of your resolve and who you really want to be. Yes it is difficult. The reward when successful is over the top. After that effort, nothing on the MX track will ever hold you back A partial steps are foolish steps in my opinion.
TXDirt
Posts
7786
Joined
7/29/2015
Location
Plano, TX, USA
10/11/2016 6:02pm
I disagree with your statement on partial steps being foolish. Nicotine is a very strong set of chains. Cold turkey is great if you can do it. Definitely not foolish if you need to take a few steps to breaking the bonds. Just my opinion. Different methods work for different folks. Cold turkey leads many to relapse. The habit of smoking/diping is almost as bad as the physical addiction of nicotine itself.

It's a tuff addiction and I support any and all methods to quitting. Including cold turkey.
rongi#401
Posts
1635
Joined
6/20/2016
Location
southern, CA, USA
10/11/2016 6:16pm
do NOT vape, i smoked from when i was 18 til 22, then vaped for two years, and in january i dropped the vape and went to nicotine gum. now im on day #4 of no nicotine gum, the first three days were tough as nails, and now i feel normal, i assume it will get easyer to forget it in the next few days. im not sure if ill pick it back up again. im feeling pretty good compared to yesterday and the day before. day 1 was the worst
10/11/2016 6:24pm
Titan1 wrote:
Will power...you just have to want to stop more than you want to smoke...and commit to yourself that no matter how hard it gets, no matter...
Will power...you just have to want to stop more than you want to smoke...and commit to yourself that no matter how hard it gets, no matter how bad your body wants it you will NOT smoke. You just won't do it.

But there are other things you can to do help:

When the cravings are at their worst...change your environment...if you're inside, go outside...if your outside go inside. Do push ups until your arms give out.

Avoid your triggers.

Find a stop smoking forum on reddit or something...when the cravings get bad, go there and give others who are trying to quit advice and help and encouragement.

Tell everyone you know that you are quitting.

Get rid of every single cig in your home, car, work place, garage, anywhere that you might be make sure there are no cigs there.

Good luck!
Good points Titan. A few more-

Avoid any drinking for a month or two, going to bars or places people are smoking.
Use gum, patches or whatever else is available. I used Chantix successfully.
Break the smoking cycle for yourself and your kids. If you don't, the chances of them becoming smokers greatly increases.
When the pain of being a smoker is greater than the temporary pain of quitting is when you can finally do it, and do it for good.
And the thing that helped me most- if you can avoid smoking the first one, all the rest will take care of themselves.

Good luck, bro, you can!
10/11/2016 6:28pm
Avoid drinking should be no problem I've been sober for 9 years since the day my first son was born and never went to a bar again.
10/11/2016 7:04pm
Buy the strongest patches, I think they're 21mg. You don't need the name brand. Try a whole one. Switch arms daily. You may not need it all day. If it starts making you sick take it off. Cut the patch in half. Then cut it into 4. You'll be wearing them for weeks. Go like 8 weeks, 4 weeks then 2. Keep weening yourself off them. If you can wear the patch less do so. Don't wear it to bed. And drink lots of water and avoid caffeine. Don't be afraid to fail. It takes time and patience so hang in there.
MR. X
Posts
6913
Joined
6/24/2010
Location
North Tonawanda, NY, USA
10/11/2016 7:19pm
If you try the patch ,buy some medical tape as well , mine were always falling off.
10/11/2016 7:33pm Edited Date/Time 10/11/2016 7:35pm
So when I worked at ups I piloted a cessation smoking program. Of the 50 that entered into it 32 stopped completely. 16 relapsed after 6 months. 5 relapsed after 12. 2 after 24 months.

Here's how I did it:

Set a quit day. Say 30 days from now.

Smoke normally the first day.

Second day remove one cigarette From your norm. And chew a piece of extra minty gum. Smoke the rest.

Third day remove 2 cigarettes from your norm. Chew two pieces of gum.

Continue this until your down to 0 cigarettes a day and 30 pieces of gum or whatever your norm is.

Once your at 0. Chew gum only.

DO NOT GO OUT ON A SMOKING DECK after your done. You'll relapse. All it takes is one. Combo of will power and tapering down your nicotine will help fight massive cravings.

I was awarded wellness champion for the year because of that. Looks good on a resume now.

FIREfish148
Posts
5485
Joined
1/20/2009
Location
Kirkland, WA, USA
10/12/2016 12:40am
Cold turkey is the only way to go. I chewed Tabacco from 18 till 28 and I'm at a place now where I can still go bum a dip from pops and not need to buy a can. hardest thing to quit now is sugar.

Go one day cold turkey. Next day will be half as hard and first and so on.

Make that commitment and it's easy. Just like hitting a 50 foot booter for the first time. Sometimes you crash and you just try again. Quitting takes practice I suppose.
Electro21
Posts
2142
Joined
6/11/2008
Location
Dumfries, VA, USA
Fantasy
10/12/2016 1:07am
MR. X wrote:
If you try the patch ,buy some medical tape as well , mine were always falling off.
I always rubbed the spot I would put the patch with rubbing alcohol and let it dry and then place the patch on it seemed to help keep them in place most of the time.

I think the patches really work. I used them to quit chewing.

My advice is to put the patch on in the morning. If you put it on before bed it makes it hard to fall asleep and then when you do fall asleep you have some pretty crazy dreams!
MR. X
Posts
6913
Joined
6/24/2010
Location
North Tonawanda, NY, USA
10/12/2016 2:44am
MR. X wrote:
If you try the patch ,buy some medical tape as well , mine were always falling off.
Electro21 wrote:
I always rubbed the spot I would put the patch with rubbing alcohol and let it dry and then place the patch on it seemed to...
I always rubbed the spot I would put the patch with rubbing alcohol and let it dry and then place the patch on it seemed to help keep them in place most of the time.

I think the patches really work. I used them to quit chewing.

My advice is to put the patch on in the morning. If you put it on before bed it makes it hard to fall asleep and then when you do fall asleep you have some pretty crazy dreams!
I've fallen asleep with them on ,i can also confirm the crazy dreams.
10/12/2016 4:03am
Well its noon here and its getting harder every minute, my wife bought a new pack this morning she did not realise i was trying to quit, and to be fair it was manageable when i knew there were no smokes in the house but now knowing there is makes it a lot harder. i'm going to hopefully make it true day one without a smoke and we will see how it goes tomorrow. i'll keep you guys up to date and will let you know if i made i true day one tonight
MR. X
Posts
6913
Joined
6/24/2010
Location
North Tonawanda, NY, USA
10/12/2016 4:52am
Moens_Andy wrote:
Well its noon here and its getting harder every minute, my wife bought a new pack this morning she did not realise i was trying to...
Well its noon here and its getting harder every minute, my wife bought a new pack this morning she did not realise i was trying to quit, and to be fair it was manageable when i knew there were no smokes in the house but now knowing there is makes it a lot harder. i'm going to hopefully make it true day one without a smoke and we will see how it goes tomorrow. i'll keep you guys up to date and will let you know if i made i true day one tonight
Sent you a PM . Stay strong today.
reded
Posts
3682
Joined
3/26/2011
Location
USA
10/12/2016 5:16am Edited Date/Time 10/12/2016 6:45pm
I came home one day after smoking for 10yrs and said fuck it. Threw the pack on the table and sweated it out for a week. Think about it, a week out of your life to enjoy the REST of your life without being tied to those stinking mfers. Its a rough SOB for the first few days but quite a relief once you get to the point where you only have a craving once or twice per day and know that it soon will pass. It's now been 7yrs and I'm smoke free even though I still drink socially.
10/12/2016 7:59am
Fuck i crashed and burnt right after dinner feel so bad right now i took about two tugs and throwed it away thinking to myself wtf r you doing loser.

Back to zero so dumb of me i could kill myself right now

MR. X i cant see your PM on my profile is that normal?
MR. X
Posts
6913
Joined
6/24/2010
Location
North Tonawanda, NY, USA
10/12/2016 8:02am
I think it sends them to the email you signed up with.
10/12/2016 8:12am
Could you try to send it again please, i adjusted my email because the one i was using has been out dated for years and did not use hotmail anymore i wouldn't even know how to get it open to be honest Grinning Grinning Grinning
Skidaddle
Posts
1707
Joined
7/19/2016
Location
Woodland, CA, USA
10/12/2016 12:12pm
I could tell you how to stop permanently in 1 sentence.
However it would get me banned here.

10/12/2016 2:27pm Edited Date/Time 10/12/2016 2:29pm
Moens_Andy wrote:
Fuck i crashed and burnt right after dinner feel so bad right now i took about two tugs and throwed it away thinking to myself wtf...
Fuck i crashed and burnt right after dinner feel so bad right now i took about two tugs and throwed it away thinking to myself wtf r you doing loser.

Back to zero so dumb of me i could kill myself right now

MR. X i cant see your PM on my profile is that normal?
Ok. Try the approach I listed above. After you do that for 30 days. Set your cold turkey quit day. That way you might not be jonesing so bad for a smoke because in the 30 day plan you've weaned yourself down on the nicotine slowly every day.

Try to get your wife to commit to quitting. She's gonna take a drag and your gonna be foaming at the mouth....

Don't vape. That shit damages your lungs way quicker. Essentially boiling the tissue by sucking in that steam. that stuff is tearing up lung tissue faster than smoke.
KMC440
Posts
7764
Joined
4/1/2008
Location
USA
10/12/2016 6:04pm
I grew up in a house of practically chain smoking parents. I had no idea what I smelled like till I was out on my own and went home to visit.

All I can ssy is ehat I've told those that want to quit. Get completely away from it for 6 weeks, clean everything new flooring if need be and paint the walls... after those 6 weeks you'll damn near puke when smell it again. And unfortunately yes you do smell like an ashtray.
reded
Posts
3682
Joined
3/26/2011
Location
USA
10/12/2016 6:24pm
Yep! Kansas banned cigs in bars around the same time I quit and I just about gag every time I go to a bar in Missouri where smoking is still allowed. Damn sure doesn't make me miss smoking.

I'm telling ya, throw everything you've got at it for a week and at the end you'll look back on yourself as a total puss for not being able to do it sooner.
10/12/2016 6:47pm
Moens_Andy wrote:
Fuck i crashed and burnt right after dinner feel so bad right now i took about two tugs and throwed it away thinking to myself wtf...
Fuck i crashed and burnt right after dinner feel so bad right now i took about two tugs and throwed it away thinking to myself wtf r you doing loser.

Back to zero so dumb of me i could kill myself right now

MR. X i cant see your PM on my profile is that normal?
That sucks, but it's ok man. Start over. Sometimes it's a process. You've got to get to that point where smoking pisses you off SO much that you can resist. Sounds like you're close!

And you only have to resist the first one. Cravings only last a few mins. Get the wife to quit too.

Lots of good suggestions on here. Hope it helps many trying to quit.

Post a reply to: Help stopping smoking

The Latest