Quitting Smoking

I have a secret that I'm dying to share. I plan on quitting smoking starting June 1st. It all started when our company adopted a tobacco free policy which goes into effect June 1. It means no tobacco products are to be used on company property or neighboring property. I was going to keep smoking and take my breaks down the street in the dollar store parking lot. But then Mississippi passed a tobacco tax on top of the federal one that just went through. This was the final straw for me. From what I've gathered they will be using the extra tax money to make car tags cheaper. So great, you are taxing my smoking so that people who drive fancy expensive cars will get a car tag break. That's just great considering the Medicare debt this state is in. So, I'm going to quit. I put it off till that date because for one, it will be easier to get through at work because I won't be missing out when the other smokers go out for one. I got through that part last time, I just went outside with them and sucked on candy. The main reason for that date is this upcoming weekend is my Super Celebration Weekend I planned for my husband's birthday (also we will be celebrating our anniversary). We will be at the casino and such, so it will make a good last hurrah.

I quit last year and made it three weeks in. My downfall was that the patches worked so great that I forgot to keep up with them. Then my willpower went down. Then we had a drunken party weekend planned with my sister. She quit smoking a few years ago, but when we have our twice yearly drunken party weekend she smokes. So I smoked. Once I started I couldn't stop again. So this year is my year. I WILL go through the entire patch program, even if I feel they are no longer necessary. And the next drunken party weekend is not until December. We had to cancel the July one because we're going on vacation with my FIL.

Anyway, from experience, I've learned that the best way for me to quit is to not tell anyone. I had quit for over a week last time before telling anyone. When at home I went outside with an empty pack and a lighter at all my usual times so my husband wouldn't know. I had errands to run every lunch hour so people at work wouldn't figure it out. I have a problem with people saying things like "I knew you had it in you" or "so glad you finally took my advice". No, it's not about you, it's about me and my choice.

So, has anyone else here quit smoking, thought about quitting, etc.? Any good advice or stories to tell? What worked for you? What didn't? What's the best advice you got? the worst??

Congrats, quitting smoking is easy; not starting again is another story.

I quit in '04 if my memory is correct and that was cold turkey. Patches, gum and other things were discarded since statistics show the best way to quit is cold turkey.

Get some toothpicks, sugar free gum or anything else you might think of to chew on that isn't food since your habit requires it. Withdrawl only takes 72 hours or so. After such the body only has to deal with the mental part of the addiction, which is what will most likely trigger a relapse.

So in short:

Get something to chew (in bulk)

Avoid alcohol (studies show a link between alcohol and smoking)

Exercise regularly (you'll probably eat more like I did and exercise releases dopamine which is a good replacement)

I also drank lots of hot tea; mainly ginseng, green and some mystery stuff that would make your head spin (probably ginko biloba in high density)

Thanks for the tips. I already exercise pretty regularly, but am about to beef up when the gym I joined opens at the end of June. I chewed a lot of gum last time, but my body has .... umm... issues with sugarfree stuff. Splenda makes me break out like a horny teenager and the other stuff, well, ummm, let's just say I spend a lot more time in the bathroom. lol.

1) good choice to stop smoking. Honestly, in today's society knowing what we know about tobacco products, and the fact that more and more places are banning it to the point where smokers are treated like outcasts, I truly don't understand why anyone would smoke anymore. Personally I don't really care if someone chooses to smoke or not, but I get really bothered by second-hand smoke so I'll support banning it in public places all the time. You want to smoke up a storm in your own house, I say have at it.

2) I'm a firm believer in just keeping it to yourself. Any "commitment" i.e. stop drinking, lose weight, exercise more, New Year's resolutions, etc. If you tell other people you only set yourself up for criticism if it doesn't work out. Keeping it to yourself allows you to minimize the ill-effects if things fall short. You can always take the praise after it's a done deal. Be your own critic/cheerleader.

3) Lastly, as intelligent people it's a matter of willpower. You either choose not to smoke or you choose to smoke. The longer you suppress it and fight it the more successful it will be. You may never get over the urge, just keep choosing no to.

4) Good luck and I hope you can kick it. Put that ciggybutt money in a jar and watch it add up.

In my opinion the best product to quite smoking is Chantix. This medication needs prescription but if you go to your family doctor, he/she would write a prescription for you. You cannot believe how easy you can quite smoking with this medication.

Good luck

Chantix all the way. I quit 1.5 years ago as of last Wednesday using Chantix. I'd tried quitting cold turkey, with Zyban, with patches and with gum, and nothing worked like Chantix.

It does have side effects. Be sure to talk to the doctor about these. It tends to cause mood swings.

The only other tip I have is to think in 'minutes' when you have a craving. Put off having that smoke for a minute. If you still have the craving the next minute, put it off another minute. Eventually you'll forget about the craving--but if you think in terms of "I can't have a smoke again EVER!?" that sounds a lot more daunting.

And by the way, I completely disagree with MA_PE's #3: addiction and willpower have nothing to do with each other.

I quit smoking Halloween of 2007. I also quit drinking. To me they went hand-in-hand, so quitting one meant quitting the other.

I have missed having a cold beer every now and then, but I don't miss the smoking at all.

To second what PEara said, our doctor is all the time trying to get Hubby to quit, and Dr. says that folks who've tried using Chantix have had good success.

Good luck.

Oh yeah, I also recommend readin Allen Carr's book, The Easy Way to Quit Smoking. I read it after I quit, but it looks to be helpful.

GulfCoastCivil said:

Thanks for the tips. I already exercise pretty regularly, but am about to beef up when the gym I joined opens at the end of June. I chewed a lot of gum last time, but my body has .... umm... issues with sugarfree stuff. Splenda makes me break out like a horny teenager and the other stuff, well, ummm, let's just say I spend a lot more time in the bathroom. lol.

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ah, sorbital, not everyone's best friend.

mudpuppy said:

The only other tip I have is to think in 'minutes' when you have a craving. Put off having that smoke for a minute. If you still have the craving the next minute, put it off another minute. Eventually you'll forget about the craving--but if you think in terms of "I can't have a smoke again EVER!?" that sounds a lot more daunting.

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Jeez, how could I forget this? Most, probably all, nicotine cravings were done and forgotten about within the span of 5, maybe 10 minutes and life went on as nothing had happened except I was probably a bit angry for a moment. Set your watch, those five minutes seem to be eternity, but soon they'll be over and you'll be in control again.

What did you do when you were pregnant GCC? I would just recommend doing that again.

I quit after college, but in truth, I was a relative lightweight so it doesn't really count. But I have a friend who was hardcore and he had the same epiphany, same time, and went through the same process I did, just on a bigger scale - it was just time to quit, so he did. "Spizzerinctum" is one of my favorite words - "the will to succeed" (sadly, it's lost favor in the English language for it's unfortunate syllabic homonyms).

One thing that works for me in changing a habit is to replace "something" with "somethingelse"- substituting a good behavior every time the bad behavior rears it's ugly head. That way, I'm not quitting, I'm improving. The brain can't succeed at a negative, but it can latch onto and succeed at a positive (my :2cents: worth of armchair psychology for the day!)

Chucktown PE said:

What did you do when you were pregnant GCC? I would just recommend doing that again.

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The Nicosperm patch?

Another vote for Chantix. My father had quit cold turkey a few years back, but put on a lot of weight as a result, and started up again when my sister and I's illnesses came about and the stress got to him. He went from two packs of Marlboro Reds a day to nothing at all with Chantix, has lost nearly 100 pounds since going on a weight loss plan/seeing a dietitian, and has no craving whatsoever after 40+ years of smoking.

Supe said:

He went from two packs of Marlboro Reds a day to nothing at all with Chantix...

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****, I had a coughing fit from just reading that.

Capt Worley PE said:

****, I had a coughing fit from just reading that.

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Yeah, it was bad. He had quit the first time after smoking about a pack of 100 Lights a day. After we got sick, it was upped to two packs of Reds. It's amazing how we were so accustomed to hearing him constantly coughing and having to clear phlegm out of his throat, only to turn virtually silent after quitting. Even the snoring went away.

Congratulations!! I hope you are able to succeed.

MGX said:

So in short:
Get something to chew (in bulk)

Avoid alcohol (studies show a link between alcohol and smoking)

Exercise regularly (you'll probably eat more like I did and exercise releases dopamine which is a good replacement)

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How about expanding the thought to avoiding anything that will make you fall back into a habit of wanting to smoke? Ex Mrs. JR had stopped smoking for nearly 10 yrs and picked up back up before our last split when she started hanging out at the bar and falling into old habits. Otherwise, it would not have been an issue.

MA_PE said:

1) good choice to stop smoking. Honestly, in today's society knowing what we know about tobacco products, and the fact that more and more places are banning it to the point where smokers are treated like outcasts, I truly don't understand why anyone would smoke anymore. Personally I don't really care if someone chooses to smoke or not, but I get really bothered by second-hand smoke so I'll support banning it in public places all the time. You want to smoke up a storm in your own house, I say have at it.

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I have mixed feelings myself about the 'approach' for smokers and the sale/taxing of tobacco products but I tend to get on a high horse about smoking in poorly ventilated areas (i.e. indoors). That's all I will say about that.

mudpuppy said:

It does have side effects. Be sure to talk to the doctor about these. It tends to cause mood swings.

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rlyflag:

JR

No thank you on the Chantix. I had bad depression when I was young (like in middle school) with thoughts of suicide, and from what I've read that would put me at high risk for the negative Chantix affects. A coworker took it and it made him psychotic, like he had thoughts of killing or hurting other people. His doctor never discussed those possible side affects with him and he literally thought he was losing his mind. He confessed the bad thoughts and that he thought he was going crazy to me, that's when I said, well, you are on Chantix. He googled and stopped taking it immediately.

As for when pregnant.... I smoked. I cut down a lot, but did smoke.

It's just sad because I love smoking. Nothing like sitting on the back porch with a cool breeze and a warm cigarette in my hand. I thoroughly, really, and truly love smoking.

And by the way, I completely disagree with MA_PE's #3: addiction and willpower have nothing to do with each other.

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I believe (as MGX said) the physical "addiction" part a/k/a withdrawal is over after a few days, then it's a mental/habitual problem. If what you say is true then an "addict" could never quit something permanently without some sort of lifetime physical interaction (surgery, fulltime medication, etc.), My point is that one needs to resolve to make a lifestyle change and stay with it. That takes willpower and commitment. Same is true for overeaters/sexaholics/drug users/gamblers/serial killers and any other compulsive behavior you can think of.

Of course there are situations where doctors have found links between checmical imbalances in the brain and compulsive behaviors, but I refuse to believe that every smoker falls into that category.

just my :2cents: YMMV

MA PE ~ Are you an ex smoker? Have you ever fought an addiction? Not trying to be nasty, just curious.

On a side note: As for the cost of smoking, it doesn't affect my family or our budget. We have 3 accounts. Mine, His, and Ours. Both paychecks go into the Ours. 10% of mine gets moved into the Mine account, 10% of his paycheck goes into the His. I buy my cigarettes from my personal money. He buys his wine, music, gaming stuff, etc from His money. We also purchase lunches from our personal money too. You can add stuff for lunch to the grocery list, like sandwiches, frozen meals, etc., but anything from an "out" place, like fast food, comes from personal money. We also pay for our haircuts out of personal money, but that was my decision because I felt guilty spending $100 every 6 weeks from the Our money. It's a deal for him because his hair cuts are so cheap. Having this three account was the only way we could see to make our marriage work, especially when you hear about couples getting divorced over money issues. After Katrina when our life was in shambles we stopped this method for awhile and a lot of resentment grew between us over how our money was getting spent. Luckily we got back on track quickly. The best part about this system is we don't have to call each other and ask "Can I buy this?", doing that made both of us feel like small children.

GulfCoastCivil said:

MA PE ~ Are you an ex smoker? Have you ever fought an addiction? Not trying to be nasty, just curious.

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I smoked off/on for a few years. I didn't like it so I stopped and don't smoke any more. that's probably why I'm more sensitive to second-hand smoke.

To answer your second question - I don't know. I have some habits that I'd like to change.

read this wiki entry addiction presenting physical versus psychological dependencies and the word "addiction".

If the addiction is psychological with no physiological component then willpower or the "willingness to change" is needed to kick the habit. Without it one is doomed to fail. Hence my statement that addiciton and willpower are very closely related.