quitting smoking (need advice)

[TehWhack]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

How about you stop telling people that you're quitting smoking?

You are doing this for yourself, not being constantly reminded about smoking through everyone else.

However, I will say that the only way I've seen any form of success is via cold turkey and eliminating it entirely from your thought process. You can gradually cessate if you would like to weaken the blow, but once you're done, try to stop thinking about how you were re-wired to be a smoker.

Note: It is virtually impossible to permanently quit modern tobacco. Tobacco, alcohol, and coffee have all shook hands at one point to make sure you stay as their bitch.

[jimerax]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

Try "Nicotine replacement therapy".

[psychoangel691]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

Each person is different of course, but as a recent ex smoker that tried a lot of different ways to quit over the years here's my 2 cents.

What ended up working for me was just to cold turkey it. Keeping nicotine in my body with other things like the gum just made it too easy to go back to. If you try to go cold turkey set a day in your mind you are going to do it. Figure out something to keep yourself as busy as possible. Nicotine takes 3 days to leave your system. Drink plenty of water and even exercise if you're up to it to help flush it out faster. After 3 days the physical withdraw is gone now it's all mental.

Best thing is to replace cigs with something else when you get a craving like water, some sort of healthy snack or just regular old gum can help. Exercise can also be your best friend in this. When I play itg or am active in some way, I feel no urge for a smoke at all. I still to this day get cravings once in a while, but it's not so bad anymore.

And you have to give up your triggers that you can help for a bit. Make sure to know them before going into this. Sometimes we have them with certain things and don't even realize it. Of course some triggers we can't help such as after eating which is common with a lot of smokers. I had to combat that by having something sweet after eating. Like a cookie or a couple scoops of ice cream. But things you can help such as alcohol and coffee, just cut them out for a while and slowly introduce them back in.

Oh another thing, coaching yourself mentally. Like when you see someone smoking put it in your head that it's disgusting that they're putting terrible things into their body stuff like that. And remind yourself why you're quitting. Also, another cool trick is say you smoke a pack a day, put the amount of a pack of cigs somewhere each day and watch how fast the money starts adding up. Then once you've quit, take it and spend it on something nice for yourself as a reward.

That's all I can really think of right now. Good luck to you whichever way you choose to try. I never thought I could ever do it and I did it and it is very rewarding. Sorry if it's a bit all over things popped into my head randomly as I wrote this lol. Like now one more tip, get a new toothbrush because the one you have now holds nicotine in the bristles.


I should add I was a smoker for 10 years before quitting.

[Litholia]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

What helped me a lot, was just cutting back slowly on cigs. Quitting cold turkey helps some people, but everyone is different, and everyone has a different addiction.
I used to smoke a pack and a half a day, maybe more if I was drinking that night. Went from that pack and a half to just under a pack a day, less and less, until now, im down to maybe 3-4 cigs a day.
To help with doing this, I've found that holding the cig in my mouth, unlit actually helps quite a bit. It might be just me but heck, it works, its all in the mind, you just gotta fight that temptation.

I've also found that cutting the cigarettes maybe a bit more then half way, also helps, you intake less smoke but still get your oral fixation. Maybe the next week cut it even shorter? Ect. Eventually, your body will become used to it.

Also, sunflower seeds do wonders, lots of sodium though, but that's better then tar in your lungs.

[rushyrulz]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

hypnotism

[robertsona]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

here's what you do

[gnr61]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

From the 'addictive personality' perspective I'd have to advise against quitting cold turkey. At a certain point, even long after the initial god-awful days, your brain will just tell you it's fine to have a smoke and you'll be in a bad enough/stressful enough/drunk enough spot to do it because you've convinced yourself you can just stop any time. I've gone through some long problem patches with drinking, eating constantly and drugs at different points in my life and while I've cut all of those down to manageable or nonexistent levels I still smoke pretty heavily (also both my parents have smoked two packs a day since 5 years before I was born so I'm just around it all the time).

I DO recommend getting the e-cig now. No, it tastes nothing like an actual cigarette. But health-wise it's mostly harmless and it will keep your craving at bay as well as satisfying your hand-oral fixation which is an underestimated component of smoking. With the e-cig I'm betting you'll be able to cut your smoking in half right off the bat, then over the weeks you'll whittle it down to very few per day and rely less and less on it. That's how I quit my first time (starting as a four-year smoker, two years at a pack a day), and I'm confident if I hadn't gone to Europe a few weeks after I could have stuck with it haha.

Best of luck, man. It's never a fun thing =.=

[Syhto]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

Whatever you are smoking right now cut it in half. Ration your cigs out. When that starts becoming easy cut it in half again. Then you can have the occasional cig, but not when you NEED it because of stress, just during ~relax~ time. I started realizing that they don't ~relax~ me at all they just keep you on edge when you don't have one haha. I smoked on and off a bit for awhile, now I just smoke black n milds occasionally. I quit cold turkey though. Since you've been smoking a long time I think a combo of the electronic cig and what I've suggested will help out.

Plan out happily/creatively how it will go down then take the first step with conviction. Both my parents were heavy smokers, my dad did manage to quit but he went rather cold turkey. I think it's easier to start cutting down to 3-4 cigs a day then to 1 then to 0. Maybe 3 a week instead. Take it slow and really analyze your relationship to them. Start experimenting with other means to get what you get out of cigs. Cause yeah they're unhealthy and expensive

nothin but love to ya man good luck

[robertsona]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

and then that's it

[welsh_girl]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

I quit for two years, sadly I caved in again.

Good luck, m0de!

[giganutsauce]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

don't be a pussy, quit cold turkey

[ScarletSky]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

One thing, do NOT get e-cigs. They're multiple times worse for you than normal smoking is.
You may as well down 2 packs of black'n'milds every day because after smoking a few of those for a while, your lungs will look just the same.

The only way I've ever found to be effective at smoking, is to just do it man. =S
No one else is gonna quit for you.

[fido123]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

I have a few friends who couldn't go 40 minutes without craving a cigarette and they all just stopped cold turkey and they say it gets easier and easier as time goes on. When I was smoking and realized I was starting to get cravings I just stopped and after a few months I tried smoking one again and found it so disgusting I just really didn't want to at all.

[m0de]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

Thanks for the feedback everyone. Im cutting back alot. I went from 15 - 20 a day, to 5 - 6 a day. Gets a lil rough at times, but its for the better

[massflavour]

Re: quitting smoking (need advice)

-get a small container appropriately sized for cigarettes
-hold like 3 in it at a time, smoke throughout day
-have willpower not to chip in to your pack of cigs which you are using to fill said container
-smoke 3 cigs spaced reasonably throughout day
if you went down from 15-20 a day to 5-6 a day then this could be another step towards quitting. i did this and eventually i couldn't even finish the three smokes i put in there, which in turn led me to have only one a day, which led to me not being able to finish a single smoke.
gl/hf