Support for those quitting smoking

ZENER · 16-01-2006 11:20pm

It depends on your perspective. In reality anyone who gives up the dreaded weed is only one drag away from taking it up again. It's ones will power, determination and faith in ones ability to handle the temptation that should be encouragement enough to stay free of them.

I feel better saying it that way than proclaim that I'm not a smoker anymore.

Smoking is a horrible sickening and disgusting habit that we all wonder why the hell we started in the first place. That said anyone who has the desire and determination to stop and stay stopped deserves praise and applause and above all respect.

To everyone here trying, well done -

I stopped on the day smoking in the workplace was banned - three months later I joined a gym, changed my diet went from 23% body fat (16st 9lb) to 12% (13st 8lb)- went from puffing and panting going up 10 steps to now regularly running 10Km or cycling 30Km. - I'm 42 and was smoking between 15 and 60 per day from the age of 16 or 17 until I stopped 2 years ago. I looked away in shame when those adds depicting the damage smoke did to arteries and brain came on the box - not any more.

If I was to start again I would lose all of those positives - that's why it's important to do something you couldn't do as a smoker.

ZEN

cuckoo · 29-01-2006 3:15am

I'm almost a month without nicotine, and in that time have guzzled gallons of water, a few sips really seems to distract me from a momentary wanting of a cigarette, and have been churning out knitted hats and scarves.

I took up my dormant knitting needles with a vengence this month - they're keeping my hands busy and helping keep my thoughts off cigarettes.

snorlax · 29-01-2006 12:12pm

tcd run a knitting group in the arts block Cuckoo if your we're interested in joining them. (wednesday 7-9 i think):)

StupidLikeAFox · 01-02-2006 5:43pm

Allen Carr is a legend

Blue Peter · 03-02-2006 1:07pm

Reading the depressingly familiar patterns here have given me hope - I smoked full-on from the age of 17 until about 27, and for the last 6 years have been in an on-again off-again cycle with the blasted fags. I hate the smell of cigs on my clothes, I too turn away in shame from the health warning adverts, I don't like anything about myself as a smoker but I keep drifting back into smoking. Anyway, as of today, 3 February 2006 its bye-bye cigs for good.

Blub2k4 · 13-02-2006 3:43pm

Over two years now and it feels good, the freedom rocks.

Miss Fluff · 14-02-2006 10:08am

Hey, as a committed and dedicated smoker I now haven't smoked in 5 days and I'm really pleased with myself. This thread is wicked btw and is really inspirational so well done to everyone who has managed to quit.

I'm using the Niquitin CQ Step 1 Programme and it certainly seems to be helping. I had thought I may be up for violent disorder at this stage but the patches seem to take that demonic edge of the cravings (not to say I don't want a smoke, I'd love one!!)

Quick query for everyone, the main side-effect for me is really bad insomnia, the last four nights I have averaged at about 2 hours sleep and I now alas closely resemble an extra from Shaun of the Dead :eek: Have tried valarian, camomile tea and lavendar and nothing is helping, I'm lying in bed high as a kite (looked at the clock this morning and saw that it was 3.50am and STILL hadn't managed to nod off!!!) Any help appreciated

LegacyUser · 14-02-2006 11:56am

Miss Fluff wrote:

Quick query for everyone, the main side-effect for me is really bad insomnia, the last four nights I have averaged at about 2 hours sleep and I now alas closely resemble an extra from Shaun of the Dead :eek: Have tried valarian, camomile tea and lavendar and nothing is helping, I'm lying in bed high as a kite (looked at the clock this morning and saw that it was 3.50am and STILL hadn't managed to nod off!!!) Any help appreciated

Wooo Hooo!! Another one bites the dust! I love hearing about more people kicking the habit. Well done

I haven't tried the gums or patches, I went cold turkey completely and it was fine - becuase I really really wanted to just be off them.

The first few times I 'tried' to give up I had major trouble with sleeping. I think now that I have been to Allen Carr that it 'may' have been becuase I was over anxious about the whole 'giving up ciggys' thing.
The main difference in feeling for me between trying to give them up on my own and doing it the Allen Carr way was tremendous. When doing it on my own I got all tense and panicy etc .. whereas that makes no sense.

I'm not too sure about the patches, and how it goes, but you would still have some form of Nicotine in your body at this point - and possibly too much.
If you really really want to give them up, I would drop the patches .. and run .. never look back. Get the nicotine out of your system as quick as possible (only takes 5 days), with patches, you are prolonging it.
The habit is actually easy to enough to break .. if you stay positive.
Keep in touch on this thread ..

B

Miss Fluff · 14-02-2006 12:19pm

Thanks Bubby, thing is, the patches ARE making it easier than I thought and I feel if I get over the actual habitual aspect of smoking I can reduce the patch dose and take it from there so I'm reluctant to stop using them if they are making the whole experience more bearable than I had anticipated. It's just the side-effects are really horrible, YAWWWWWWWN.....so, so tired....Miss Fluff rubs eyes for 100th time today

Blub2k4 · 17-02-2006 9:44pm

Miss Fluff wrote:

Thanks Bubby, thing is, the patches ARE making it easier than I thought and I feel if I get over the actual habitual aspect of smoking I can reduce the patch dose and take it from there so I'm reluctant to stop using them if they are making the whole experience more bearable than I had anticipated. It's just the side-effects are really horrible, YAWWWWWWWN.....so, so tired....Miss Fluff rubs eyes for 100th time today

are you wearing the patches at night?The nicotine is keeping you awake I woulda thought. You dont smoke in the night so why keep the nicotine up? There are patches that you can get that you dont wear at night, try those ones, or alternatively get the inhaler which I have used successfully twice to kick the habit, the first time I was off for nearly two years then went back on 18 months later I tried again and am still off them.
The main advantage of the inhaler is that you only draw on it when you feel like you need a cigarette and thus can break the habit easier I found.
Good luck.

Miss Fluff · 20-02-2006 10:03am

Blub2k4 wrote:

are you wearing the patches at night?The nicotine is keeping you awake I woulda thought.

Thanks a mill, just copped on to this fact recently and my sleep is getting back to normal. Bought the chewing gum as well which takes the edge of a bit but will get the inhaler too, sounds like a good idea for when I'm in the pub. Thanks

sudzs · 22-02-2006 10:30am

Allen Carr.... works a treat! Off them over 2 years now and never think of the bloody filthy things now!

Read the book!

R-KEANE · 10-03-2006 9:44am

sudzs wrote:

Allen Carr.... works a treat! Off them over 2 years now and never think of the bloody filthy things now!

Read the book!

I totally back this up. Will be off them 4 years june I think. All from reading the book. Its about 12 quid or something. You cant go wrong. You smoke while reading the book.

EireRoadUser · 11-03-2006 1:14am

I picked a day to give up.

Overdosed before the date and done everything i could so on that day i felt like **** lighting one up.

I don't mind people smoking,i have nothing against smoking for the smokers of today only that they don't encourage children to be the smokers of tomorrow by showing them how to smoke.

40YardScreamer · 11-03-2006 11:55am

EireRoadUser wrote:

I picked a day to give up.

Overdosed before the date and done everything i could so on that day i felt like **** lighting one up.

I don't mind people smoking,i have nothing against smoking for the smokers of today only that they don't encourage children to be the smokers of tomorrow by showing them how to smoke.

How do you tackle that then? When people smoke, kids see it and want to know. The only way to stop kids from smoking is to completely rid the world of them. Thats impossible. But it still should be illegal.

sudzs · 25-03-2006 6:20pm

Forget about the nicotine replacement therapy, patches, gum etc....

There is an 80% failure rate after 1 year with these methods. And yet this is the method recommended to us by our government... :mad: Wonder why??????? :rolleyes:

The Allen Carr method has a 90% success rate.

sudzs · 25-03-2006 6:21pm

javascript:emoticon(':boxing:')

sudzs · 25-03-2006 6:22pm

fek! knew that wouldnt work!

Jimbob2006 · 07-04-2006 5:33pm

Has anyone tried hypnotherapy ? I have tried everything else , honestly!!! Iried willpower, I have none !!:) Ihave read Allen Carr about 4 times with no affect --- I went to his clinic and last all of about 4 hours. I know its a bad habit and very unhealthy but I just need/love/loath them. I have gone for runs and nearly died after about ten minutes!!
I honestly dont think I have any chance of giving them up on my own. So I tried a hypnotist but it was one of those almost back alley/the upstairs of somebody's house/dodgy type of places and when I had been "awoken" from the trance , I actually had to wipe some drool from my mouth..... that leads me to belive I fell asleep rather than being hynotised!!!!

Anyhow.... after smoking for the past few months since, I did some serious digging and this NLP keeps popping up. I found this place http://www.readysteadystop.com/ but there are 2 drawbacks -- waiting list and high price €400 -- I do remember and earlier poster in this thread saying that they couldn't charge that much unless it worked ... I would really like to believe that but my past experince with hypno sleep incident ---- i don't know what to do !!!! Any ideas folks or has anyone actually been to one of these hypno people.

Hal1 · 07-04-2006 6:09pm

I was going to try the hypnotherapy myself but have been putting it off for the last few months. There has to be an easier way other then going cold turkey and the patches are nearly as expensive as a pack of smokes, your still paying for nicotine.

EireRoadUser · 07-04-2006 7:16pm

I gave up smoking on the first day of 2004 ,it was around the time the govenrment was to start the ban on smoking in the workplace.

My help was in the fact that i considered myself the same as others who were going to push to give up smoking.
I think the group thing is a big help ,I would consider myself a non smoker now,but still feel the after affects from smoking.

When we are all older ,it's not worth all the visits to the GP and all the medical bills and all the time wasted on smoking.
Smoking is a time killer ,can you afford to wait ?.

Gateway · 21-04-2006 3:03pm

Quitting smoking is easy. I've done it loads of times!!

madhitchhiker · 23-04-2006 2:21pm

Thanks Yoda..this is for my Nanor..my ever "im quitting smoking friend"...:D

Chucky the tree · 23-04-2006 8:36pm

havent smoked since monday. yay.

jtsuited · 09-05-2006 12:36pm

i'm on day one of giving up smoking. Gave up for a full year before, and i had never felt better. Here goes. Off to buy some chewing gum!!

SilverTongue · 09-05-2006 7:32pm

Gateway wrote:

Quitting smoking is easy. I've done it loads of times!!

lol

same here..

EireRoadUser · 09-05-2006 7:35pm

Giving up makes you tired ,get loads of sleep .
The fight took a lot out of me for the first few days ,went to bed early .

SimpleSam06 · 10-05-2006 12:22pm

I'll start today

LegacyUser · 11-05-2006 9:16am

I am on day 3 of my cold turkey attempt of givin up smoking. I find the opposite of what is stated above. I find sleep very difficult eg woke up this morning at 5.30 and only went to bed at 12. The strange thing is that i dont find myself exhausted at all. I do find this time that i am sweating a huge amount which i have never done before even when i gave up before. But best of luck to the people who have just given up hope it goes really well for you.

Magnolia Blvd · 16-05-2006 6:48am

"The object of this book is to get you into the frame of mind in which, instead of the normal method of stopping whereby you start off with the feeling that you are climbing Mount Everest and spend the next few weeks craving a cigarette and envying other smokers, you start right away with a feeling of elation, as if you had been cured of a terrible disease." - Allen Carr

Support for those quitting smoking

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