Does this count as giving up smoking?

User45701

Ok well when this forum was created i was suprised that i would end up comming here soon. I have always maintained that within mylifetime and before i suffered any major ill effects that modern science would be able to cure me. I do not belive that caner will reamin untretable.

But i am giving up smoking now, not for health reaons more for money concerns, also my docotr said on monday that next time i come back to him with a throat/lung iinfection he would just tell me to go to the hispital because what i have now is the 8th time he has perscribed me anti biotics for a smoking related infection.

Anyway this is my question. If one was smoking 100 or so a week if i cut down to 2-5 a week does that count as giving up smoking or does there need to be no tar in my lungs for them to begin heling? i found it easy not smoking, much easyer than i thought i would but had 2 last night and right now im thinking about a 3rd.

Jeapy

Well done so far. I know it aint easy but you're doing great. I'd recommend (I quit cold turkey Jan 1st 2007) you do your best to stop completely. You might feel like crap for a while and be really narky but its all worth it. I found a good way to keep me motivated was to think of the money and to use the money you save on something nice- a week in NY was mine after 6 months smoke free!! You said you smoke 100 a week, so thats roughly 40 euro a week or over 160 euro a month...itll go such a long way!

If you're still considering that third, maybe go for a nap or call the National Smokers Quitline for a chat to keep you occupied until the craving passes. If its a thing that its not a craving, just more so out of habit that you want one, go for a quick walk. You should try to stay out of situations that will tempt you, like visiting friends that smoke in their houses.
Good luck!

SMK

User45701 wrote: »

Anyway this is my question. If one was smoking 100 or so a week if i cut down to 2-5 a week does that count as giving up smoking or does there need to be no tar in my lungs for them to begin heling? i found it easy not smoking, much easyer than i thought i would but had 2 last night and right now im thinking about a 3rd.

If you smoke at all, then you haven't given up smoking!! I truly never thought I would post a message like this!!! I'm ten months off cigarettes and I still can't believe it!! I had resigned myself to the fact that I was just one of those people who couldn't give up cigarettes. You say you are not giving up for health reasons but from your post it sounds like you are! Those words from your doctor are pretty serious. I've discovered that you can actually live a normal life without cigarettes!!

You have done great so far. Keep going. If you've found it easy not smoking, then why bother smoking? Why bother inhaling 4,000 chemicals if you find it easy not to?

Archeron

Well done on cutting down so much, but I would say no, that is not giving up smoking. My father gave up for about six months having smoked about 50 years, and it was great. Then he seen on some TV show that somebody said 2/3 smokes a day is not bad, and got it into his head that this made it okay to start again.
Once he began with 1 or 2, it invariably crept up. We all know as smokers the way that can and will happen.

I think the only way you can be truly off them is to stop entirely and that will take away the potential to go back to higher amounts. Brilliant work so far though, so thats an excellent start. Like the poster above, I never thought it would be possible to live my life without smoking, but after three years off of them, I now feel the opposite and couldn't picture life WITH them.