Stop smoking tips

[UsedtobeSmith]

I am doing it. I am. It helps that I cant breath.... lol but what happens when I can? I am using the gum right now, and it is ok... is the patch any better? I wont start that until I am off all the meds, just wondering if anyone has any tips or tricks for me for the long run.

And would it be morally wrong for me to request smoking accomdations at HHI to get building 27 if we stop smoking???

[Chip126]

I have quit smoking twice with the patch. The first time was only for 3 months and the second time for 18 months. It is very hard!! If you can stick with it........do it. I have been smoking again for about 5 years now and I would love to quit. Try to change your routine. I know that I couldn't talk on the phone for awhile because every time I was on the phone I was smoking. It was also very difficult in the car, but there was nothing I could change there.

I don't think it would be morally wrong to request smoking accommodations, but if you quit for awhile, you might not be able to stand the smell once you go into a room after people have been smoking.

Best of luck to you! Keep us posted.

[PoohsPal]

No advice but sending you lots of pixie dust! :wizard: :wizard: :wizard:

Hope you're feeling better soon!

[jnrrt]

No advice either, but a little :cheerlead :cheerlead :cheerlead Go, go, go!

You can do it!

[dvcconvert]

The other Laura

First off, congratsulations for being willing to give it a good honest try!
:bluebloun

Not that I'm ANY type of expert
(I've yet to throw off my smoking habit - but realize if I don't, it will most likely kill me-so I'm getting closer to being willing to truely try)
But...have you tried the Commit Lozenges? I have and had this as an observation: as opposed to the patch, using the lozenges forfills that 'oral void', and the 4 mg verison seems to actually deliever 'the goods' so that I never felt any physical/chemical loss from no smokes.

While I have made a couple half-hearted attempts to stop (so far) I blame myself and the psychological urge to smoke, not the failure of these the lozenges.

I sincerely wish you nothing but the best of luck, I hope if you think these might help you, you try them (read directions, I believe you cannot use them at the same time as other aids - read:the patch).

Keep us posted - vents, screams of pains, the small victories, whatever you'd like to say! We all support and welcome you regardless as to the outcome of this, but I for one wish to encouage you to 'win' for your health and long-term happiness! :)

Signed: Hope to be a fellow 'convert' in this department some day soon to!
:D

[UsedtobeSmith]

First, I am feeling so much better... still sick as a dog, and still wheezing, but I have been awake since 9 this morning, and although I feel like I should lay down for a snooze now, I wanted to post a bit... lol

Today I really am feening for a lovely delicoius smoke. Heavenly smoke.... ahhhhh... but I am not going to do it. I have a week of withdrawal under my belt and I am not going to loose it.

The gum is ok. Kinda nasty. DH bought the store brand mint flavor not sure if the more expensive ones taste better.

I spent a good portion of the day today on the computer and this is my number one smoking time. And I am feening. But I have to stop. I have to. I have been wanting to for years. Laying in bed at night thinking about it. For years. Stupid dumb wonderful dreamy sexy marvously killers...... love them. Loved them for years.... geez 30 years I have smoked.

I started around 12 or 13, but not regularly and I didnt inhale until 14 or 15.. I would steal my friends moms smokes or occisionally buy a pack of Dun Hills (yes at 14-15)they cost 1.75 a pack while regluar smokes were 1.25. I was very cool. Very cool indeed.

I did quit for a couple of years in my mid 20's. I had moved back home to help my aged parents (and go to school, who can beat free rent) Anyway anytime I wanted a smoke I rode my bike downtown (Hyde Park to Solider Field 40 blocks or so along the lake) I dont have that liberty this time around, but I do think my kids and I will be talking long walks to the park..... lol

It Sucks. CIgarettes are wonderful, they really are... lol But it has to happen. If I want any chance to help my kids with their kids I need every year I can get.

Sooooo I think today is really day one. Day one of feening majorly. Hope ya'll dont mind if I vent and rant and pray here for a while..... lol I am going to fid out how pig headed I really am.

It is me againt those lovely smokes... just sitting there.... Oh yeah... I have a partial pack left... didnt I mention that?? I am going to keep them too. Ya know why? LOST. John lock made Charlie give him the last of his herion instead of using it all up. That way your quitting by choice... big difference.

DH is still smoking. My guess is he will... at least until after the World Series. That is how it is with us... Oh we will quit NYE.. oh but then there is sthe Super BOwl.. okay... after super bowl... then after this after that.... after WHEN??

I guess I am lucky.... I couldnt breath for 2 days and that is a great kick in the butt. I am still wheezing AND I WANT A SMOKE!!! That is INSANE! And it has to stop. It does. Something so cute and clean and nicely rolled..... is all evil...

Ok... I have ranted enough for now... lol Off to NOT smoke. Maybe a nap IS in order.... lol

[PoohsPal]

Vent away. Tehr aren't many ways we can help, but at least this is one. I wish dh wold stop with you. Seems easier, but maybe it is better if you'renot both in full withdrawl together. ;) Great job for day 1! :cheerlead

[jnrrt]

Okay, here's one more motivator. Every time you DON'T smoke, you add up in your head how much you saved toward an add-on. I do this all the time for whatever it is that we need at the time. It's much easier to not spend money if you think, "Ahh, but now I'm just that much closer to fill-in-the-blank" and we actually put that money there for whatever it is.

30 years of cigarettes, that's probably a lot of points!

You can do it, I'd tell you to make yourself busy, but you have pneumonia! Get some really, really, really good books!

[Rash]

First, I am feeling so much better... still sick as a dog, and still wheezing, but I have been awake since 9 this morning, and although I feel like I should lay down for a snooze now, I wanted to post a bit... lol

Today I really am feening for a lovely delicoius smoke. Heavenly smoke.... ahhhhh... but I am not going to do it. I have a week of withdrawal under my belt and I am not going to loose it.

The gum is ok. Kinda nasty. DH bought the store brand mint flavor not sure if the more expensive ones taste better.

I spent a good portion of the day today on the computer and this is my number one smoking time. And I am feening. But I have to stop. I have to. I have been wanting to for years. Laying in bed at night thinking about it. For years. Stupid dumb wonderful dreamy sexy marvously killers...... love them. Loved them for years.... geez 30 years I have smoked.

I started around 12 or 13, but not regularly and I didnt inhale until 14 or 15.. I would steal my friends moms smokes or occisionally buy a pack of Dun Hills (yes at 14-15)they cost 1.75 a pack while regluar smokes were 1.25. I was very cool. Very cool indeed.

I did quit for a couple of years in my mid 20's. I had moved back home to help my aged parents (and go to school, who can beat free rent) Anyway anytime I wanted a smoke I rode my bike downtown (Hyde Park to Solider Field 40 blocks or so along the lake) I dont have that liberty this time around, but I do think my kids and I will be talking long walks to the park..... lol

It Sucks. CIgarettes are wonderful, they really are... lol But it has to happen. If I want any chance to help my kids with their kids I need every year I can get.

Sooooo I think today is really day one. Day one of feening majorly. Hope ya'll dont mind if I vent and rant and pray here for a while..... lol I am going to fid out how pig headed I really am.

It is me againt those lovely smokes... just sitting there.... Oh yeah... I have a partial pack left... didnt I mention that?? I am going to keep them too. Ya know why? LOST. John lock made Charlie give him the last of his herion instead of using it all up. That way your quitting by choice... big difference.

DH is still smoking. My guess is he will... at least until after the World Series. That is how it is with us... Oh we will quit NYE.. oh but then there is sthe Super BOwl.. okay... after super bowl... then after this after that.... after WHEN??

I guess I am lucky.... I couldnt breath for 2 days and that is a great kick in the butt. I am still wheezing AND I WANT A SMOKE!!! That is INSANE! And it has to stop. It does. Something so cute and clean and nicely rolled..... is all evil...

Ok... I have ranted enough for now... lol Off to NOT smoke. Maybe a nap IS in order.... lol
I can almost see the devil on your left shoulder and the angel on your right, whispering in your ears...

Substitute the word "cigarettes" in your post with any other vice you can think of...it's all the same. The things that are addicting and instantly gratifying eventually kill you, land you in jail, get you divorced, etc.

I hope you succeed. If your love of cigarettes is too powerful to quit for your own sake, do it for your kids, so that one day when they have to quit, they will remember that it IS possible, because you did it. Good luck, and feel better.

[UsedtobeSmith]

I can almost see the devil on your left shoulder and the angel on your right, whispering in your ears.... Other way around... devil is on my right, angel on my left... just ask the toe

Substitute the word "cigarettes" in your post with any other vice you can think of...it's all the same. The things that are addicting and instantly gratifying eventually kill you, land you in jail, get you divorced, etc. . Anyone else trying to think of something sticky good that wont kill you, land you in jail or cause a divorce???

I hope you succeed. If your love of cigarettes is too powerful to quit for your own sake, do it for your kids, so that one day when they have to quit, they will remember that it IS possible, because you did it. Good luck, and feel better. I am highly confident in my success. I have only attempted to quit one other time and I manage to stop smoking for over 2 years.

I hated the first three weeks.... it sucked big time and I never wanted to go thru that again... that alone was motavation to keep going... I have physcally a week into the 3 week withdrawl... day 1 of the reality withdrawl is going good....

Smokes are wonderful. Just ask anyone who smokes.

That first smoke after a meal.... ooohhhh come on you smokers out there... isnt that one the best.... yummmy. A diet pepsi and a smoke was my morning routine. It aint morning till I have had my Dt Pepsi and a smoke or 5.... oh yeah.... if I could inhale deeply right now I can almost taste it... but I am still wheezing, so I cant.

Sad... I cant even phsically imagine a good inhale right now without hacking....

Oh yeah.. I may love my smokes, but I have a new found appriecation for breathing and a strong desire to add as many years with my kids and grand kids....

It has started and it will be finished.... lots of posts here calling out to my love... remembering my love.... 30 plus years by my side... helping me get thru the stressful times... always there for me, never questioning me, never disappointing me... smokes..... yum but done.

[lllovell]

I am not going to be much help here because I don't have any real advice.

I smoked for years. Started much like you did, in my early teens. Hubby didn't smoke, which was a blessing for me when I decided it was time to quit. We were thinking of having kids and I knew it wasn't good for myself and would be horrible for them, so one day, I simply said to hubby that I was on my last pack and I was able to stick with it.

One major melt down (My sunglasses fell out of my purse one day as we were leaving home. I honestly got so enraged that I jumped up and down on them so hard and for so long that they were destroyed - thank goodness I didn't start wearing script glasses until AFTER this - and secondly I broke a blood vessil in my leg so that it looked like someone had hit me with a baseball bat) and I was able to stick with it. Did I gain weight - of course. Did I hate not smoking - oh yes...even now I understand your comments about how amazing that stick of death can be. Did I make it - yes actually - I did. I haven't smoked in years now and I am very glad.

My mother-in-law smokes. It is part of why I hate her being here. She doesn't smoke in my house, but still, the room where her luggage is STINKS to high heaven. My middle child has allergy problems and he is always sick while she is here and the baby has had a stuffy nose since she arrived as well (might just be timing, but I think she is going to be smoke sensitive too). It is very hard, but yesterday I went out of my way to make sure the baby spent as little time as possible in her arms, which is VERY sad because that is why she is here. But, guess what? Today, the baby isn't stuffy. *sad smile* I am just lucky that she normally doesn't come for longer than a few days at a time, not like this time where it is two weeks.

So, ultimately, I don't have advice. All I an offer is that if you truly have decided you are going to quit, then you CAN do it. You are so smart NOT to start again if you already have a week under your belt. Stay away from those activities where you used to smoke the most (the computer was horrible for me too) and replace them with other activities. STaying busy was the easiest thing for me. The busier the better. Believe in your inner strengths and you will find a way to do this. I agree with Rash - if not for yourself, then for your children. I find as a mother, I can do anything for them even if I am always putting myself 2nd.

*big hugs* Talk to us here. Rant, rave, gripe and celebrate when more time passes. We are all here for you!

Laura

[UsedtobeSmith]

I am good with my choice to stop smoking. I really am. It took not being able to breath to kick it into action, but now that the ball is rolling I am determined.

For the past several years... as I drifted off to sleep... I would think...geez.. I need to stop smoking... I gotta stop smoking.... every night... every freaking night I would beat myself up for smoking... and now... HA HA HA.... I know I have done it. I wont have to beat myself up before drifting off to sleep... done.

Sucks that I cant go out and shop for some lo cal munchies... since walking more than 30 feet is still a challenge with the pnmoania (ugh I should look up how to speel the dern thing) still hanging in.... but at least I am awake for more than 20 mintues at a pop which is what things were like earlier this week.

I am very comfortable with quitting smoking. My attitude is on target.... and I dont want to loose the progress I made. I was really blessed to go thru the first week's major withdrawls unconsionuis! LOL

And for the record... I only do things for myself. I dont beleive one can quit for your kids.... you can only do it for you. 28 years smoking has been my friend. My best friend. 28 years. Longer than I knew my mother... 6 years less than I knew my father... smokes... my single longest freind, ever. 28 years.

It had gone very well so far... feening here and there esp while on the computer, which I have sat infront of for the past two days since it is all I have energy for... and the gum is helping.... and munching. LOL Gotta work on the munching... dont want to be a two ton tessy. LOL

Ok... off to work on our Chirstmas trip to the World. SO glad Ousburn lights are back!!
No looking back.... only forward.... life is good.

[PoohsPal]

Laura - Way to go adding another day! Keep up the good work! Hope you're feeling better too!

[bavaria]

Well, my second post on this board is not going to be Disney related! I too smoked in my youth. Believe it or not, I could walk to the edge of my patio of my apartment in Bavaria, reach around the corner, and put money into a vending machine attached to the building which sold mini Snickers bars, Gummi Bears, and two types of cigarettes!!!

Moving to a part of the world where smoking is seen as the ultimate evil put an end to my habit. I quit cold turkey. (ok, I lie. I became a second hand smoker, and still hang out at the smoke pit occasssionally!)

It took a LOT of willpower, and lots and lots of 'smoke dreams' where I am just sitting, smoking... :faint: I still get those occassionally when stressed.

But I've only had one cigarette in 13 years.

Best of luck to those of you trying to quit!!!

[withdisneyspirit]

I smoked for many, many years! I quit twice, the second one was successful. Neither time did I quit with illness to get a start. That is a lucky thing :faint: if illness can be considered lucky :idontgeti

What I can tell you is the urge can last a long time and I used to dream I was smoking for years afterward!! Being successful at quitting is the very best thing you can do for yourself. I just knew they were killing me; that I would be the one with lung cancer and never even meet my grandkids. That was my motivation. I am also hoping and praying to raise a couple of non-smokers. Their father does smoke so it may not work. Rash has given me hope though that my quitting will help them know that they can quit "whatever" when they decide to :goodvibes Thanks, Rash :)

[ripleysmom]

I smoked for about 10 yrs. Started in high school and then quit when I was in my 20's. I had a smokers cough that was truly horrendous which is why I decided to quit smoking.

What worked for me to quit was to just keep postponing having a cigarette. Every time I wanted one I would tell myself to wait an hour and see how I felt, then when the hour was up I would wait another hour, etc. etc. Eventually I got to the point where I was able to tell myself that if I had a cigarette I would have to start the withdrawal process all over.

I haven't had a cigarette in about 22 yrs. The important thing to remember is that once you stop smoking you're done. Yes you will have urges. Hell I still get urges but I know that if I have a cigarette I will probably start smoking again. And no you can't just have one either, some people can but you are not one of them. Accept that.

In retrospect, I am very glad I quit smoking. My mother died a horrible death due to cigarettes. She had emphysema and she literally suffocated to death because of the damage cigarettes had done to her lungs.

[TW1]

Hang in there Laura. Glad you know you are not just doing this for yourself. Mickey is expecting a visit each year for another few decades!

[PoohsPal]

Hey Laura! Just checking in to see how the battle's going today!

[dianeschlicht]

Thirty years is a long time, Laura. Hope you get clean soon. Just imagine all that black stuff leaving your lungs.

I have had asthma my whole life (probably due to my smoking father and grandparents), but I have never smoked, so I can't say I know what you are going through. I do hope you make it though. I know that smoking is terribly addicting, because my Dad quit for 20 years, and then started up again. Mom wouldn't let him smoke in the house though, so he quit again after just 6 months.

Good luck, and rant and rave all you want, we'll try to help you through it.