Post for everyone who QUIT evil fags

Irish Wolf

50+ days, 25+ sticks, 20+ years, cold turkey.

120 in a drawer...

tbc

cloud_dancer

GrizzlyMan wrote: »

Day 4, yesterday was Hell. But very proud of getting this far cold turkey. I found this website helpful, theres also an app too.

http://www.exsmokers.eu/

one feature i found helpful was the panic button, when you get that craving, just click the panic button for numberous reasons why you shouldnt smoke.

www.whyquit.com is a great one too. There's so much in it. I think I discovered it day 2 or 3 and it really helped keep me on the right track. Cold turkey is best. After day 3 all the nasty nicotine leaves your body and you only have to deal with your bodys own chemical reactions to the withdrawal after that. Whyquit.com really explains everything that is happening in your body from the sugar cravings to the depression. That's what helped me stay on track. Knowing what was happening to me and why helped me to understand that is was all temporary and that I would feel normal again. Knowledge is power!

You are doing great by the way. On the home run now!

Maudi

cloud_dancer wrote: »

www.whyquit.com is a great one too. There's so much in it. I think I discovered it day 2 or 3 and it really helped keep me on the right track. Cold turkey is best. After day 3 all the nasty nicotine leaves your body and you only have to deal with your bodys own chemical reactions to the withdrawal after that. Whyquit.com really explains everything that is happening in your body from the sugar cravings to the depression. That's what helped me stay on track. Knowing what was happening to me and why helped me to understand that is was all temporary and that I would feel normal again. Knowledge is power!

You are doing great by the way. On the home run now!

im free of the yoke of cigarettes now for ohh..nearly three years...i afraid i dont agree with the cold turkey approach..personally i think if overnight you deprive your body of a chemical its used to getting for decades in some cases..its gonna re-act in all sorts of strange ways..i used patches for about three months..and a combination of will power and self hypnosis...my mantra was ..i dont smoke ..i dont want a cigarette..over and over again ....each time i had a craving id start up my mantra..i likened the craving to a little voice pleading for a cig..eventually the voice got quieter and quieter...what i mean is its very do-able..keep at it..even if you slip up and go back on them so what..be positive an see it as a pratice run..and dont forget your mantra.

cloud_dancer

Maudi wrote: »

im free of the yoke of cigarettes now for ohh..nearly three years...i afraid i dont agree with the cold turkey approach..personally i think if overnight you deprive your body of a chemical its used to getting for decades in some cases..its gonna re-act in all sorts of strange ways..i used patches for about three months..and a combination of will power and self hypnosis...my mantra was ..i dont smoke ..i dont want a cigarette..over and over again ....each time i had a craving id start up my mantra..i likened the craving to a little voice pleading for a cig..eventually the voice got quieter and quieter...what i mean is its very do-able..keep at it..even if you slip up and go back on them so what..be positive an see it as a pratice run..and dont forget your mantra.

Mantra's are great. I did something similar, kept telling myself I don't smoke anymore and I really don't want a cigarette. It really works! Over the course of about 10 years I had tried to quit by using patches, gum, inhalers, Allan Carr book, hypnotherapy (cost a fortune), cold turkey and failed. My success this time was down to looking at where I went wrong each time and avoiding it. I put together a plan of when I would do it, took a couple of days off work and sucked it up. The main thing was that I really wanted to quit this time and I felt getting the nicotine out of my body as fast as possible was the best thing for me.

You are right though, my body did react in all sorts of strange ways – I got acne, felt weak, shaky, headaches, mood swings, sugar cravings, depression. Thankfully within a few weeks I was fully back to normal! I couldn't have been too much of a basket case either since I inspired four people in work to quit themselves

username123

Maudi wrote: »

im free of the yoke of cigarettes now for ohh..nearly three years...i afraid i dont agree with the cold turkey approach..personally i think if overnight you deprive your body of a chemical its used to getting for decades in some cases..its gonna re-act in all sorts of strange ways..i used patches for about three months..and a combination of will power and self hypnosis...my mantra was ..i dont smoke ..i dont want a cigarette..over and over again ....each time i had a craving id start up my mantra..i likened the craving to a little voice pleading for a cig..eventually the voice got quieter and quieter...what i mean is its very do-able..keep at it..even if you slip up and go back on them so what..be positive an see it as a pratice run..and dont forget your mantra.

I did cold turkey, I wanted to be free both of the drug of nicotine and the habit of smoking. I only had to listen to that voice clamouring loudly for 3 days, then it shut up over the few weeks. I couldnt have listened to it quietly for months, it would have killed me!!

Given there was a huge study released around the time I quit showing that NRT versus cold turkey gave the same relapse rate I couldnt really see the point in spending more money lol!!!

I think each individual needs to do their own way that suits them.

GrizzlyMan

cloud_dancer wrote: »

www.whyquit.com is a great one too. There's so much in it. I think I discovered it day 2 or 3 and it really helped keep me on the right track. Cold turkey is best. After day 3 all the nasty nicotine leaves your body and you only have to deal with your bodys own chemical reactions to the withdrawal after that. Whyquit.com really explains everything that is happening in your body from the sugar cravings to the depression. That's what helped me stay on track. Knowing what was happening to me and why helped me to understand that is was all temporary and that I would feel normal again. Knowledge is power!

You are doing great by the way. On the home run now!

Thanks for that Site will deffo check it out I agree cold turkey is the only way. on day five im still moody, a few dizzy spells but i can find myself not even getting too many cravings because i chose to ignore them No booze for a few weekends and ill be on the road to success! Failure is not an Option :cool:

username123

GrizzlyMan wrote: »

Thanks for that Site will deffo check it out I agree cold turkey is the only way. on day five im still moody, a few dizzy spells but i can find myself not even getting too many cravings because i chose to ignore them No booze for a few weekends and ill be on the road to success! Failure is not an Option :cool:

Ah the dizzy's - its all that extra oxygen to the brain

It passes. And youre already on the road to success the moment you quit.

cloud_dancer

GrizzlyMan wrote: »

Thanks for that Site will deffo check it out I agree cold turkey is the only way. on day five im still moody, a few dizzy spells but i can find myself not even getting too many cravings because i chose to ignore them No booze for a few weekends and ill be on the road to success! Failure is not an Option :cool:

Yeah it'll all pass soon enough. I wasn't magically back to normal after two weeks, I did have some mood swings but it's so well worth it. Staying off the booze is a good idea. I was a month quit before having a big night out. You sound like you've got it all under control :cool:

GrizzlyMan

cloud_dancer wrote: »

Yeah it'll all pass soon enough. I wasn't magically back to normal after two weeks, I did have some mood swings but it's so well worth it. Staying off the booze is a good idea. I was a month quit before having a big night out. You sound like you've got it all under control :cool:

Thanks Cloud_Dancer, yeah i feel like im in control, i stayed in last night and have plenty of things to keep me occupied for the rest of the weekend so think at least a month off the boose is a great idea:).

I was in control last year and i remember how easy it was to throw all the hard work away with one horrible disgusting evil cig, not this time I WILL not go through this process again.:) I actually just realised yesterday that I have been smoking 17 years , i honestly didnt think it was that long. Suppose no point in dwelling on the past, Time for an Lovely autumn walk me thinks and breath in some fresh air :cool:

Best of luck to everyone else too:)

cloud_dancer

GrizzlyMan wrote: »

Thanks Cloud_Dancer, yeah i feel like im in control, i stayed in last night and have plenty of things to keep me occupied for the rest of the weekend so think at least a month off the boose is a great idea:).

I was in control last year and i remember how easy it was to throw all the hard work away with one horrible disgusting evil cig, not this time I WILL not go through this process again.:) I actually just realised yesterday that I have been smoking 17 years , i honestly didnt think it was that long. Suppose no point in dwelling on the past, Time for an Lovely autumn walk me thinks and breath in some fresh air :cool:

Best of luck to everyone else too:)

It's so easy to be back to square one. The difference between this time and any other time for me is that I realised I'm an addict and can never have even one cig. Any other time I thought I could turn into a smoker when I'm drinking type smoker. I was smoking 16 years and I'm still hanging into my 20's. It's shocking! :eek:

Enjoy being smoke free

GrizzlyMan

cloud_dancer wrote: »

It's so easy to be back to square one. The difference between this time and any other time for me is that I realised I'm an addict and can never have even one cig. Any other time I thought I could turn into a smoker when I'm drinking type smoker. I was smoking 16 years and I'm still hanging into my 20's. It's shocking! :eek:

Enjoy being smoke free

Well Done to you yeah I have that embedded in my head that im an addict and I can never ever have another drag (which is fine with me ) Well Im not much better Im only 30 and been smoking 17 years

cloud_dancer

GrizzlyMan wrote: »

Well Done to you yeah I have that embedded in my head that im an addict and I can never ever have another drag (which is fine with me ) Well Im not much better Im only 30 and been smoking 17 years

This time in four weeks you will hardly think about them. No time really in the grand scheme of things

Halloween Jack

Yo, im over 3 months off them now, feels so much better and have so much more spare cash, ive taken up running and am running 10k 4 times a week now.

For anybody struggling, hang in there, it gets easier, and its worth it in the end.

biomech

one month tomorrow. has been ok, off all patchs and inhaler since end of week 2. Sleep was very disturbed and by getting off NRT seemed to cure. another reason for getting off NRT was the mouth ulcers. ouch.... have my second one now in as many weeks... not cool.

Henlars67

had made several failed attempts to quit in the past 7 or 8 years but finally thought i had the battle won this time. I hadn't smoked since January 20th until a couple of weeks ago. I smoked a few on a night out and have been having very bad cravings since. I was out again last Friday night and smoked 2. I'm terrified I'm going to end up buying a packet some night. If I do that I'm back to square one again

lester76

Henlars67 wrote: »

had made several failed attempts to quit in the past 7 or 8 years but finally thought i had the battle won this time. I hadn't smoked since January 20th until a couple of weeks ago. I smoked a few on a night out and have been having very bad cravings since. I was out again last Friday night and smoked 2. I'm terrified I'm going to end up buying a packet some night. If I do that I'm back to square one again

I was in the same boat few mths bck said id quit after my holiday but who was i fooling NOBODY but myself, im off them since oct 22nd and my god it was harder this time round:mad: im not going thru it again

TwoBirds

Decided to quit this evening, I'm not a hardcore smoker IMO (usually 5 or 6 a day) but an addiction is an addiction and it's still €20 a week out of my threadbare, student pocket. Dreading the days/weeks ahead! The guy I'm dating at the minute is a smoker so I reckon that'll be a challenge - it's ok to avoid the smoking area on nights out with a mix of smoking and non-smoking friends, but when it's just the two of us and he's popping off for a smoke I'm going to be jealous... Aiming to be completely rid of them for Christmas!

RoundyMooney

Checking in, yet again...

I didn't want to post until I was sure it was safe. This was, and is, my fourth, and I reckon final attempt.

Yep, I broke out again.

I/we had a relapse for a couple of months-then I developed (or at least endured) a bout of sleep apneoa. It's harmless enough in itself, in most cases, but when you wake up around twice a week, bolt upright in the bed roaring for breath, in your mid-thirties, it can be a bit disconcerting. Especially on the wife, when she has to dislodge her nose from the ceiling after an event you barely remember noticing.

Anyway, I think it's safe now. Fourth attempt from me, third from her. And we're on the third month. Cold turkey in my case, a failed run at e-cigs in hers (they gave her wind!).

In terms of the cravings, they don't go away. Actually I got one writing this, but it was very mild. Like I say, they don't just vanish, at least not for quite a while, but every day makes things easier. Really it does. After a week or two you'll probably spend most of your days wondering what the fuss was about-until you get one of the ever decreasing cravings, that is. Emphasis on the ever decreasing! The best part is though, not only do they get less frequent-they also get shorter. I look forward to the annual one second long nicotine urge, I'm pretty close to it already

'Cos, like I say, I got a craving while writing this post. I only thought it worthy of note, because it's the first I've had in about four days.

And I'm three months clean. It gets easier, but you need to forget about á la carte smoking, a fag here and there, can't be done.

Live with the itch. That will eventually fade away too.

lindtee

For the first time in ages I got an awful craving for a cigarette this morning, there was no reason behind it. I just would have loved one. I resisted. Have been off them since last January. Sometimes I can't believe I am not s smoker anymore. I also wonder how I could have afforded them. I was half regretting buying four brand new books for college at a cost of 90 euro today but that would have bought me less than ten days worth of fags which I wouldn't have regretted at all! Mad.

username123

Just thought Id check in.

Nearly a year off them now. Cant quite believe it! Delighted.

Still have a healthy fear of them!

Was out on Saturday night, got very drunk (probably the drunkest I have been this year - bearing in mind Ive only drank more than a drink or two about 6 times) and didnt even think of cigarettes. Never even crossed my mind. Much nicer not having to smoke with the hangover!

I hope this forum gets revved up again around xmas/new years and Ill have plenty of encouragement for those who quit!

quaalude

I'm nearly a year not smoking too - I remember username123 stopped smoking a week or two before me.

Like all smokers, I had the excuses down pat - "I don't really smoke too much", "I only really smoke when I'm in work, or out with friends", "it's really fun", "quite cool", "how could I celebrate without a fag", "how could I get through a difficult time without a fag" etc. etc. - but I thought I'd give stopping a bash after stumbling on this forum.

I wouldn't dream of smoking now - I find it so repellent, I can't believe I ever smoked. Once I hadn't smoked for about a month it was like the scales fell from my eyes, and I saw for real how revolting and pointless smoking is, in a way I couldn't see when I smoked.

Oh, and I had a couple of rules that helped me:

1. For me, it wasn't "quitting", or "giving up". That makes it sound like a sacrifice, when it isn't. It's a filthy habit that I once had, but had ceased. You wouldn't "give up", say, biting your nails. So I always say "stopping smoking", or "no longer smoking".
-
2. Smoking is binary - it's 0 or 1. The only thing that makes someone a smoker is the cigarette in their hand. So no cheeky ones, no pull off of someone's, no having one when drunk - nothing like that is acceptable. If I had one, then I was a smoker, and that's not possible, because I no longer smoke.

I recommend anyone who is thinking of stopping to just go for it - if you're like me, it will become repellent, and turn from something very hard into something very easy.

Sorry for the long post, but I'm really passionate about this now!

username123

Great post Quaalude, delighted that you are on target for the years anniversary!!

I totally agree with what you said, it is exactly like the scales falling from the eyes!

VapeTime

Not completely off them yet, but hoping haha

Congrats to those who have and good luck to those trying

Love2love

10 months free today!

Ive been dreaming alot about smoking lately, waking up elated that I didnt smoke for real - they can be so vivid!

I find it easier not to be a smoker in the winter because I hated having to go outside in the freezing cold / rain / snow for a cigarette. So now is actually a perfect time to quit for anyone thinking about it

I cannot wait for Christmas morning this year because every other year I use to make my children stay in bed while I would sneek outside to smoke (checking to see if Santa has come!) before allowing them open their presents. I feel so guilty about that now but thankfully that won't happen again

I still havent let my guard down - I had endure a 10 minute conversation the other day by one of the other mothers at football practice on the joys of smoking! And how much she loves take a long deep drag first thing in the morning!

blackiebest1

Off them since the 9th of July, over 25 years smoking and a pack of ML's a day on average!

It feels great! I had a couple of hits off a dube at a party a month back (when drunk) but frankly was disgusted with myself. Wife still smokes which is a bit of a problem but also it is a compelling test!

I agree with an earlier post about 'giving up' as opposed to stopping! It is indeed like stopping a horrible habit so I just say I have stopped smoking. I know I will never again be a smoker! This just can not happen!

Best of luck to all who must still make the leap but DO IT. All the 'aids' are fine and use what works for you but at the end you must just see that you are an ex-smoker, one who does NOT smoke!

ft9

Stumbled in here by accident/fortune and saw all the banners in peoples sigs saying how long they are off cigs and how much they saved. I'm using it now and I think it will be a help everyday looking at how much I've saved and how many smokes I've avoided.

Will be saving even more after today's budget.

Biglad

Since I was on here. I will be of them 2 years this January. I ran the Dublin marathon recently in 3hrs58mins...

Haven't felt this good in 20 years. Initially put on 1 stone which took my total to 18...lost 4 stone since by getting active, mostly running.

Give'm up, best thing you'll ever do...

msg11

Not sure of the exact date but December 2 years ago I quit! Can't believe it's been two years ago.

I'm so proud

username123

Well done to the posters above.

It will be a year for me in 2 days time. I deliberately didnt worry about weight gain, figured it was a big enough deal to stop smoking. I havent put on much, a few lb, but could do with a general diet clean up etc... so thats the plan for 2013.

Got running in 2012 so going to keep that up. Delighted to be almost a year off them!

laugh

I gave up today in 2007 with support on this forum, I conservatively estimate at 20 a day (I smoked like a chimney on nights out) at an average price of €8 a pack over the 5 years that I have saved €14600 and more importantly not smoked 36500 cigarettes.