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I quit about a buck a pack ago. I quit because I was tired of feeling the addiction, and watching my money go to something that wasn't fun anymore. Went on the patch at the same time as my now wife and we quit smoking together. Your Quit Date is: Saturday, January 03, 2009 at 10:00:00 AM Time Smoke-Free: 303 days, 16 hours, 46 minutes Cigarettes NOT smoked: 5163 Lifetime Saved: 1 month, 9 days, 10 hours Money Saved: $904.40 Actual money saved is closer to $1100 due to the rise in cost right after I quit smoking.
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Nov 19, 2009 18:13
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I quit on Halloween. (I technically has quit a few days before then, but drinking tends to bring out the smoker in me..) So all days of November are smoke free. Completely cold turkey. Mostly I have just replaced the small cravings with eating food, but since I have an underweight BMI, I don't really mind. Haven't looked back at all. Also on average was paying about $5.50 per pack or so, coming to $104 being saved. Cha-ching.
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Nov 19, 2009 18:20
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I need to quit. My husband and I plan to try to have kids next year, and I need to quit well in advance of that. It's just so freaking HARD. I think at my next Dr. appointment I'll ask about Chantix. I read Carr's book and yeah, it felt like a huckster sales job combined with telling me things I already knew. I did everything he said in the book, and made it three days before caving and smoking again. I just gave the book to Goodwill yesterday because I don't really feel that it did me any good. I can understand the things he was telling me and still want to smoke... I'm going to try to make an appointment with my doctor for the week after Thanksgiving.
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Nov 19, 2009 18:25
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Hey, I quit on Halloween too! Drinking less has really helped me quit, as for me that usually was when the cravings were the worst. Except for when my sister took my gum out of my car without me knowing and I almost punched a hole through my dashboard.
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Nov 19, 2009 18:30
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I quit smoking... poo poo, it must be over two years now, I know it was in february but I don't remember which february. Anyhow, the method that finally worked for me was the "Sickness and poverty" method--I got bronchitis that lasted for a week and then I was broke for another two weeks. By that point, I had been off long enough that my willpower easily overcame the urge to smoke (and when I gave in to the urge, I couldn't tolerate the smoke anymore).
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Nov 19, 2009 18:30
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4 years quit here, and I posted in a thread just like this right when I decided to do it. It's not as hard as you would imagine guys, especially if you get past the first couple of weeks. My advice is to start exercising as soon as possible, and try to cut back on your drinking for at least the first month. I did it cold turkey by just convincing myself I didn't really need that cigarette and everything within me saying I did was just loving lying. My quality of life has improved so much since I quit. Good luck guys.
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Nov 19, 2009 18:35
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Comfy sponk posted:
I quit on the 3rd of last January too.  Good luck to those who are going to embark down this road. The first three days are rough; the next three weeks are even rougher, but then one day as you're lying in bed, you'll realize you haven't thought about smoking once and that's a great feeling. I'm not going to lie and say I don't ever think about smoking again, I still do, but the craving isn't nearly as strong.
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Nov 19, 2009 18:35
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Fl0yd posted:Yes; why are you approaching it with such suspicion? If the first few chapters don't strike some sort of chord with you, or you don't genuinely want to quit, don't read it. I'm naturally suspicious with the premise of the book, as I think most reasonable people would. As one who has tried quitting many times unsuccessfully I am willing to read his book, but I am not one who will blindly believe everything I read (which Carr fully agrees to and states multiple times himself in his book.) I do genuinely want to quit and I find his book interesting, but any normal human (that smokes) would find it hard to believe that quitting smoking is painfree and easy, which is the basis of his system. All I wanted to know is if others have read his book and what their opinion of it is.
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Nov 19, 2009 18:43
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I smoked a pack a day for 13 years and quit cold turkey July 5th. I'm at the point now where any occasional craving I get is fleeting and easily dismissed. I know people that swear by a variety of methods: cold turkey, Chantix, patches, etc. A friend of mine quit at the same time I did through the use of e-cigarettes, and he's still going strong as well (although that thing is in constant use). My advice is that the best method of quitting is simply the one that works best for you. Cold turkey worked best for me, and looking at information on sites like whyquit dot com provided a lot of additional support. Three important things I found, however, especially for the cold turkey folks: 1. "Cutting back" is just about useless, unless your primary goal is saving money. You'll be slipping back into your normal routine in no time. 2. As cliche as this sounds, YOU REALLY HAVE TO WANT TO QUIT. If you're already making contingency plans for yourself ("Well, if my girlfriend dumps me..." "If I'm stuck in traffic...") you're simply giving yourself license to cheat. Don't pretend a half-assed trial run is anything more than that. 3. Don't continually avoid social situations in which you know you'll be especially tempted to smoke. Other people here may disagree, but I feel this very strongly. Avoidance for the first couple of days is understandable, but after that it's all a psychological battle. The longer you avoid those situations, the harder you make it for yourself. If you're at the bar and your friends go outside for a smoke, walk out there with them. Maintain your routines, just without the action of smoking. You'll quickly realize you weren't actually having any more fun or enjoyment while you were smoking, and you won't feel like you're "missing out" on anything. Additionally, I found that the two week period marks a key transitional point, and everything becomes much easier after that. Take it day by day. Don't cheat, not even one cigarette. Develop some stupid mantra if you have to: I am a nonsmoker. Once you get past the rough patches, you'll be amazed how much better you feel about your life. Just prepare for an endless number of dreams in which you have a cigarette and feel terrible about yourself before waking up relieved. Man, I'm tired of that poo poo.
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Nov 19, 2009 18:58
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I am on day two. Please god, why must I give up my delicious Newports!?
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Nov 19, 2009 19:05
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Magonian Pancake posted:Just prepare for an endless number of dreams in which you have a cigarette and feel terrible about yourself before waking up relieved. Man, I'm tired of that poo poo. This is the absolute truth. I'm going through the quitting process now and it's always brutal, but not as tough as I thought it would be. It's pretty amazing how much easier it is to NOT smoke when there are no cigarettes around. I use the lozenge and have one or two of those a day. It takes the edge off and the mint ones taste quite nice. A few pieces of advice: 1. Try not to hang around with smokers for a while 2. Date someone who doesn't smoke 3. Break all of your old cigarette habits (this is actually a great starting point. If you have one first thing in the morning, have one a few hours later or something...anything to break your normal habits). 4. Don't drink.
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Nov 19, 2009 19:10
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I quit smoking in March 2008, after roughly 14 years of pack a day (with the last 5 being more 2 packs a day). Cold turkey after 2 days of patches, as they were giving me rashes. The only advice I can give is that the desire/urge to smoke never really goes away - you just learn to relegate it to background noise, rather than at the front of the mind. Don't expect to be completely smoke free after 1 month, 6 months or 2 years, the thought will always be there. It will progress from "oh man if I can't smoke now I will die" to "Hmmm a smoke would be nice right about now" to "If this was 2 years ago I would be smoking a cigarette right now". You will never be a non smoker, but always an ex-smoker. The sooner you come to terms with this, the easier it gets.
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Nov 19, 2009 19:12
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I quit on Jan 1st 2009. I didn't really quit quit because I DO enjoy a cigarette every now and then but I made myself smoke free for 2 months before I allowed myself to bum one. For awhile I was bumming them from a band mate because the only time I really wanted to smoke was after playing and drinking. This got to be too much though and I've since quit bumming unless I'm out with a bunch of people drinking. Drinking is the hardest time I have with not smoking. You also learn that if you're not constantly smoking, you're not constantly drinking either which has helped me not drink as much. I always told myself that I would never be one of those quitters who would NEVER be allowed another smoke. I just ban myself from ever buying a pack. Also, saves money. I'd like to think that I've saved over $1,000 so far. The worst part of quitting is the weight gain. Oh, and the smell of other smokers. JESUS, does everyone smell that bad when they smoked? Yes, you stink. EDIT: CONTENT I Might Be Adam fucked around with this message at 19:24 on Nov 19, 2009 |
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Nov 19, 2009 19:21
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This poo poo is killing me AND making me broke. I'm in; I can't afford 'em anymore, and they're totally not loving worth it. I used to enjoy a smoke or three daily; when you go to a pack a day, though, it's just something to loving do.
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Nov 19, 2009 19:22
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I'm in the process of quitting right now. I have already cut back dramatically, to only smoking when I drink, but I want to get to the point where I don't even want to when I drink anymore. I'm totally down with this. I haven't smoked since last Saturday, the 14th, which isn't terribly long but I suppose it's a decent start. Edit: Doesn't help that my roommate is a gently caress and asks me every 20 seconds if I want to smoke a cigarette with him or blows it in my face on the way to class when he's driving (we carpool). I guess part of quitting though is being able to shrug off temptations like that though. sonikburn fucked around with this message at 19:28 on Nov 19, 2009 |
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Nov 19, 2009 19:25
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blastdoctor posted:I've been quit for 1.5 years, I still chew the 2MG Nicorette. It took me 3 yrs to get off those loving lozenges. Traded one monkey for non-harmful although still expensive one I guess. I finally quit everything though. Hooray for me. loving poo poo habit. Expensive and worse than any illegal drug there is.
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Nov 19, 2009 19:34
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I've tried to quit so many god gently caress drat times, no luck. Everyone I know smokes and I don't know how the poo poo I could commute, work, do school, or basically anything without smoking. It really isn't a matter of needing to smoke per se, its the fact that if I quit smoking, it leaves a really large hole in my life habits and such if that makes sense. Like I enjoy taking breaks at work to go outside and smoke, or smoking when there is heavy traffic for an hour, or just anything like that, so if I'm not smoking it would seem that I need to replace smoking with something else rather than remove it, because that would make me go nanners. Any ideas from people who are this way? Note: It isn't just the drug that I enjoy, in fact I hardly care about the drug, I just flat out simply like smoking. The feel of the smoke, blowing it out, the fire, the ash, the entire thing is what I like, so if I chewed gum it would not replace for me everything I enjoy about smoking. I was thinking maybe hookah or e-cigs would be a way to replace it for now, that wouldn't be too detrimental to be, but I do not know. Help?
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Nov 19, 2009 19:44
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George F Dorn posted:It really isn't a matter of needing to smoke per se, its the fact that if I quit smoking, it leaves a really large hole in my life habits and such if that makes sense. This was one of my biggest hangups. I was deathly afraid of how smoking would screw up my daily routines (like work breaks) and generally ruin my fun (going to bars/parties). The first couple such situations are going to suck, but I assure you that this anxiety passes fairly quickly, as you realize that smoking wasn't actually making your life any more fun...it's simply a daily ritual that happens to be pretty bad for you. As soon as you can, do everyday you would normally do in your day without the smoking. Worry about the social situations as you come to them, and don't use your anxiety as an excuse to avoid them. Again, you'll be surprised at how quickly you adjust.
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Nov 19, 2009 19:58
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I had a 2 year period of smoking probably about a pack every week and never got addicted. Is there something wrong with me
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Nov 19, 2009 20:01
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nah mate u kl posted:I had a 2 year period of smoking probably about a pack every week and never got addicted. Is there something wrong with me You kind of sound like me, i have been smoking for 2 years but usually a pack a week, which is about 3-4 smokes a day. Id like to say im not addicted, but whenever i run out of a pack, i always think to my self, gently caress it would be nice to smoke right now. I need to quit, maybe i will work up the balls to do it finally after i finish the last 3 in my pack.
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Nov 19, 2009 20:08
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It's not exactly hard to do, it's all just about breaking habits. I smoked for about two years or so, with one year of that being a pack a day. I stopped sometime mid-october, I'm not quite sure. My best tips for everyone out there trying - 1. The first three days are the worst. Try to have not much to do for those three days so you can spend it frustrated without caving in. 2. Yes, having just one cigarette will eventually put you back at square one. It will feel great, I'll be honest, but it feels great for about five minutes, and then you'll want another one, which ends up ruining weeks worth of work. 3. A great motivation tool I used was food. Slowly but surely, everything has started to taste better, and that's loving awesome. 4. Try to take a weekly run, even if you don't normally run. Over time, you'll notice it gets drastically easier, and that's another drat good motivator. Speaking from the other side, my friends - it is worth it. Stop as soon as you can, it's pretty great to be free from nicotine. This is a rather specific tip, but if you smoke weed and own a vaporizer, save your vaporized weed, and if the craving to smoke something becomes overwhelming, smoke the vaporized weed in a nasty joint. You really won't get very high, but at least you'll have fulfilled that smoking craving. This doesn't exactly work in certain situations I guess, but it helped me stem the craving for the first few weeks.
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Nov 19, 2009 20:08
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I'm switching to an e-cig, about 2 weeks in so far. I still have 1-3 cigarettes on 'special occasions', which does not include parties etc., but i'm willing to trade them for some vapor more and more often. I really hope it doesn't suddenly turn out to give me some late-blooming astro-supercancer or whatever. It's all good, the only issue is that I like taking walks, and then I tend to naturally reach down to my favorite pocket to take out my good friend Nico and burn him down. I really like this alternative, but if you want to quit smoking - don't buy an e-cig, because it's just an alternative (a better one), but still - it's an alternative. Edit: I guess I should add that i've been smoking for about 8 years now. Sedes fucked around with this message at 20:41 on Nov 19, 2009 |
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Nov 19, 2009 20:17
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I quit cold turkey about two months ago. I have to constantly stop myself from buying a pack if I'm going to be in the car for longer than ten minutes. It seems unnatural to drive without smoking.
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Nov 19, 2009 21:53
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I quit back in January. So far, so good. In my opinion, when you are trying to quit try to live life normally. You'll eventually have to break all those little smoking habits anyway so you might as well start now. I'd also steer clear of any nicotine replacement stuff. The nicotine is the addictive part of cigarettes, so funneling nicotine in your body will not make quitting easier.
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Nov 19, 2009 22:00
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Schistosity posted:I'm naturally suspicious with the premise of the book, as I think most reasonable people would. As one who has tried quitting many times unsuccessfully I am willing to read his book, but I am not one who will blindly believe everything I read (which Carr fully agrees to and states multiple times himself in his book.) I do genuinely want to quit and I find his book interesting, but any normal human (that smokes) would find it hard to believe that quitting smoking is painfree and easy, which is the basis of his system. So, basically, you have the feeling of "this is too good to be true"? I took the premise of the book to be "smoking is easier to stop doing than you think", not that its actually easy. He takes the "easier than you think" theme and really hammers it into you. Repeatedly. I read it about 5 years ago and haven't smoked (or even wanted to) since. My wife and 4-5 of our friends read it, only one of them is now a still smoker. It wasn't "easy", but after three weeks of not smoking, I was free. I can still remember exactly where I was (standing on Platform 2 of my local train station) when I realised, after almost twenty years, that I was no longer a smoker. I just find the notion of steadfastly refusing* to go along with the book, based soley on the off-chance that every word isn't 100% fact, bizarre. Sure, there are some arguments in there that are a bit strange or wide of the mark, but its like the atheletes training mantra of "pain is just weakness leaving the body" - well, stricly speaking, no, its not. But Mr Athelete is repeating that poo poo to himself a hundred times a day and its helping him get to where he wants to be. Surely, the positive effects on your life are worth allowing yourself to slightly tricked/hoodwinked into making it 99% easier to quit than you thought it was? Seriously, one day you will want to quit (or worse, be told by someone in the medical profession that you have to). Might as well do it now. Three weeks is nothing. Good luck. *ok, not 'steadfastly refusing', thats a bit strong.
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Nov 19, 2009 22:08
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It's still kinda difficult when I go out to the bars, especially the ones that have a rack of smokes above the register. I keep catching myself starting to ask for a pack on my tab after two or three drinks.
KOTJ fucked around with this message at 23:42 on Mar 18, 2012 |
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Nov 19, 2009 22:27
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Fl0yd posted:So, basically, you have the feeling of "this is too good to be true"? It's not that I think it's too good to be true. It just feels like I'm reading an infomercial between the introduction selling his clinics and the testaments of former readers plastered on almost ever page. As someone who has had a hard time trying to quit in the past, it's not inconceivable that I might find it hard to believe that quitting isn't this arduous task. At no point did I ever say that I was 'steadfastly refusing to go along with the book.' In fact, the point that I'm still reading it, that I bought it in the first place after looking into Carr's book states that I'm interested in what he says and am willing to try using his book to quit. Additionally, I have found some of his chapters helpful. I'm realizing that I'm not actually enjoying smoking the way I thought I did. I'm being more conscious of when I'm actually smoking and am paying more attention to the fact that it makes me feel like crap when I smoke. I'm by nature a skeptic, so any sort of tricking/hoodwinking isn't feasible. As for me wanting to quit, I have already stated in this thread that I want to quit. I have been thinking about quitting for months now and over time, my desire to quit has only strengthened. It's just the panic of getting through the first week which has stopped me from succeeding in the past. And with hope after reading Carr's book, I'll be better prepared.
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Nov 19, 2009 22:42
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Coincidence, about 3 hours ago I seriously decided that I really wanted to stop smoking. It has taken 15 years of smoking for me to reach this point. What kind of support would an American get to stop smoking? Over here the NHS provide free groups and one to one sessions and free or reduced rate NRT. Do you get anything like this?
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Nov 19, 2009 23:14
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Quit on the 4th, tried one on the 6th and felt sick, so I'm done. Haven't touched one since. Been smoking about a pack a day for two years, until then. Feels good having money and knowing that I won't have to go buy cigarettes, and after about a week I just felt really good about myself for not having smoked in so long, and I don't want to give that up. Edit: oh, and being in a car with a friend that smokes, or around someone that is, I've regained the ability to actually smell their cigarette as I did before I smoked, which is a good sign.
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Nov 19, 2009 23:14
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I've not quit smoking yet. What I have done is reached a point where I can't smoke more then half a cigarette or about 1 cigarette a day. -What I did was identify the my stressors, and made a plan of action. -Break the pleasure associated with smoking. Next time your sick, puff on a smoke and you'll probably vomit. Or when you don't want a cigarette, have a cigarette. -Breaking the comfort zone- ??? I'm not gonna lie, it's helped me tremendously. Now, I don't crave a cigarette, and reluctant to smoke. I still do, just not in the same frequency anymore. For those tough spots, I'll pop a piece of Camel Snus into my mouth. When I feel that the edge is gone, I spit it out. I don't let the pleasure seeking to set in. Good luck Goons!
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Nov 19, 2009 23:15
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Two months and going strong. For me it was a combination of needing to do a sport at university and down right not wanting to smoke anymore (I heard cigarettes were bad for you). Being an ex-chewing tobacco guy, I've turned to snus, the cheap and seemingly less harmful was to diffuse tobacco through my gums. It's been great thusfar as I can still go out and drink and pop in a snus when I get drunk cravings as opposed to smoking. If you're in the States I recommend Camel Snus as it's pretty much the only one available in gas stations/convenience stores. If you're abroad or care to pay shipping from Sweden I highly recommend General brand snus. I don't plan on ever smoking again thanks to it.
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Nov 19, 2009 23:15
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Chantix. Without a doubt the reason I quit after smoking for 20 years. The crazy dreams were bad, the price was bad, the not enjoying anything for a month was bad, the taste was really bad, but I don't smoke any more
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Nov 19, 2009 23:19
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Magonian Pancake posted:Just prepare for an endless number of dreams in which you have a cigarette and feel terrible about yourself before waking up relieved. Man, I'm tired of that poo poo. Dear god yes. I quit cold turkey in April and these dreams are the worst. If I'm going to feel like I hosed up the whole not smoking thing it would be nice if I actually did it. I don't have too many cravings at this point, and they're way different than they were the first few weeks. At the beginning it's "I NEED a smoke". Now it's more like "Man, a smoke would be pretty pretty awesome, but I quit so I can't have one."
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Nov 19, 2009 23:22
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What a weird time for a thread, I am on day 4 of round 6 of my attempts to quit smoking. 4 of those rounds really were just short-lived (week or less) whims, though. I've smoked for five years and my family has a history of lung cancer. It hadn't phased me much, and still doesn't, but it's a bit creepy to think about. First of all, what caused it: I'm tired of waking up feeling like poo poo. Sure, I drink, I smoke pot, but at least with hangovers you feel like you actually did something the previous day. So I woke up a week ago feeling like poo poo and looked at the leftover Nicoderm envelopes in my closet from my last attempt. Date of expiration: March 2009. That made me pretty drat sad, so I decided to try again. This time around I'm making sure to keep routines but omit the smoking--if I get a craving at work, I'll go outside and walk around the block. Somehow, this makes my temptation to run to 7-11 and pick up a pack a lot less pressing. P.S., on the flip-side of the dreams issue, nicotine patch-induced dreams are amazing, typically speaking.
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Nov 19, 2009 23:32
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I was told i have to quit, had a massive heart attack Friday, so i haven't smoked a single cigarette since Friday. I want one but getting a heart catheter and two separate angioplasty's kinda seals the deal. Getting that sheath taken out of your thigh will make you do whatever you need to make sure you don't have to do it again. I'm 35 and i'd been smoking for 22-23yrs. I had recently cut back to a pack per day. I want a cigarette badly but i've made it almost a week so i just count the days.
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Nov 19, 2009 23:44
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I just spent over $100 on an e-cigarette and the stuff for it. It seems like a lot of money but I know that in the long run I'm going to save money and also not get cancer. I just hope it works. It drat well better work considering the money I spent on it. 
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Nov 19, 2009 23:57
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I smoked a pack a day for about five years, and two and a half months ago I started taking Chantix. I haven't smoked since September 16th, and besides a few rough spots here and there it's been pretty smooth sailing. It's also nice because you're getting rid of nicotine completely - there is no more addiction to feed. Quitting is the best thing I ever did for myself. I don't smell like poo poo, I don't wake up feeling like poo poo, I can taste food, I can climb stairs without wanting to die. And get this! The circulation in your body will improve - this includes the circulation to your member. There's a noticeable difference, and your lady will be glad for it.
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Nov 20, 2009 00:26
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Necronomicon posted:I smoked a pack a day for about five years, and two and a half months ago I started taking Chantix. I went with the wellbutrin xl just because i didn't want the chantix dreams. I know chantix is basically a guaranteed quit but the wellbutrin fits my needs better.
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Nov 20, 2009 00:30
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Is there a way to make my mum stop smoking other than tearfully telling her that I don't want her to die? She has no other motivation and apparently that's not enough 
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Nov 20, 2009 00:50
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Quit smoking on my 30th birthday not too long ago. It was just time. Been smoking for 10+ years. Cigarettes are up to $8/pack here in Hawaii. Screw that. Besides, I knew my now girlfriend just wouldn't put up with it. If there's any incentive, that's it. Your Quit Date is: Saturday, October 24, 2009 Time Smoke-Free: 27 days Cigarettes NOT smoked: 160 Money Saved: $64 I just want to say good luck to all of you. It's a pain in the rear end but you can do it!
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Nov 20, 2009 00:51
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