Quitting smoking...

[bjl913]

So who has any REAL advise? Im not looking for the usual "it will make you live longer", "just put the pack down, i did it you wuss", "dont start in the first place" kinda answers.... I wouldnt ask if i wasnt looking for actual help! anybody have advise thqt has actualy worked fo r them? throw it out there! I have already taken the first step by A; failing stopping before, and B; I seriously actually want to quit. So, i guess, here we go... SHOOT! help me out...
~Ben
[M2]

[Great-Kazoo]

box of ammo next to a pack of smokes.
everytime you walk by, have a smoke or drop some change in the ammo box.

some of the nicotine gum & patch alternatives helped a few friends.
or (don't want to hear this) toss them and walk away. i did 25 years ago

[StagLefty]

Tried the gum once and found myself smoking while I was chewing it !!! I quit 24 years ago-cold turkey and absolutely wanted to. It's not easy and there's no easy answer. Be determined and stick with it.Good Luck !![Luck]

[7idl]

for every cig you smoke/buy the tobbaco company gives $1 to obama


(that aughta do it) ;)

[Hoser]

Cold turkey. Stopped drinking and smoking that way.

[micah360]

I quit cold turkey, but used the gum to help. I tried quitting a few times before, but this time I REALLY wanted too (that is what it really takes).

Another thing that confirmed my wanting to quit was my friend's uncle went into the dr. and they told him he had a week to live as his cancer had spread so badly to his lymph nodes. It really woke me up when he actually died that next week.

[westy1970]

I used the patch with some success. Although it was the anti-smoking pill Zyban that had the biggest effect. It took away the urge to smoke, so when I was down to only 2 or 3 a day (from a pack and a half) I quit all together. If your insurance won't cover that it is the same drug as welbutron (sp?) which is an anti-depressant. I have heard of another one called Chantrix, but I don't know anything about it.

Good luck, it was the hardest thing I have ever done and years later it is still hard.

[vim]

Talk to your doctor and get him/her involved. Different things work for different people, and he/she WILL be motivated to help you.

Lung cancer and emphysema are NOT good ways to go -- I've seen way too much of it in the "older generation" in my family, and they were all smokers.

Good luck!

[Wallary]

Okay this is how my kids and I broke my wife from her habit. We sat down and talked about all the things we wanted to do in our lives together and how important it was for her to quit smoking and get healthier. Lots of support was in order from family and friends and when she was ready she picked a date. Jan. 1st. So before Christmas we made an appointment with the Doc and got the pillz to curve the craving that she never took but it was there just in case. I bought a few months worth of the patch from the strongest to a weaker dosage and stuck them in her sock at Christmas. We got her some hand held video games like Yahtzee & Poker to keep her busy and plenty of straws to chew on. It wasn't easy but she did it and has been smoke free for over 10 years. So if you have a loving family or some really good friends ask them for help. You won't regret it that's for sure. A friend in need is a friend indeed. Good luck.

[BulletBill]

YOU have to want to do it. I quit three times. This last time was for good, so far. Just like an alky you're never really not an alocholic, same thing here. Decided I had enough of my money going to it, sick of feeling like shit. So I decided to quit. Strong wife that kept honest with the path and used the patch. Great thing about the patch is when you find the right area of skin and you rub that patch for an extra jolt....well it's better than 10 cigarettes for the morning smoke.

I did have to give up things that promoted my habbit though, hanging out with other smokers, not going to the inlaws ((yay) they smoked too), and the hardest of hards had to stop drinking. It was a year and a half before I could have a beer without the craving for a smoke. Don't let anyone fool you either you will still have cravings from time to time. I do. It's been 6 years. But you have to fight through it, they're quick these days maybe a minute or two and then gone.

But the big key is YOU, only you, have got to want it. I set a goal, after a year I got to spnd what I would have spent on smokes for a new gun... Helped a little bit but again I wanted to quit.

Good luck this is a powerful thing you're trying to break.

[PhL0aTeR]

as been said, you gotta want to quit... i started pretty young, thankfully i quit rather young as well. But that was quit time #5 or 6.... what really made me stop is the fact that i had to walk thro-ugh a trash compacter room where people smoked right outside of, so the combination of the smoke and nasty trash did it for me..... but i also found that not hanging around people that smoke a lot works wonders.... out of sight, out of mind.

[kwando]

calculate how much it costs... cigarettes, doctor bills, etc.

i just started again but i can quit cold turkey if i wanted to. just a rough time at work lately.

[bjl913]

Thanx for all the advise guys! It really is encouraging to see so many people that have either done it, or helped a loved one through it! My goal is graduation day from the police academy(dec 12th)!

[kwando]

what academy are you in? thinking myself about becoming a LEO.

[bjl913]

I am over at arapahoe community college getting my post. Full time program doesnt allow really any time for work since your in school 6-7 days a week, but if you pass everything you get your post, plus 40 semester hours in 1 semester!

[kwando]

paid training??

[bjl913]

unfortunately not, i wasnt lucky enough to find an agency to sponser me through, so i actualy paid close to 5 grand to go... i had to move back in /w mom and dad while im in school because i just cant afford to live on my own without working! Its not too bad of a gig. Financial aid covered most all of the tuition, and i had about another 3500 in loans to live off of from august to december. most of that money is dried up now, but it definately made things easier!

[centrarchidae]

The time that I quit that it actually worked, I used the patch.

The way I saw it, the addiction had two parts. There's the habit and then there's the chemical itself. Going onto a patch and then tapering off (by switching to a lower-dose patch every few weeks) knocked down the chemical part of the addiction. Or at least most of it.

Missing the habit, I wish I had a good idea. I chewed a lot of gum and got anxious a lot but it got better after about the second month.

FWIW.

[cowxguy]

Its very HARD to quit. I have been smoking less and less every day. I am down to 10 cigs a day!

[bjl913]

ive gone from 20-30 down to about 5-15 a day over the last 3 months. im getting better!

[jason303]

Never heard it suggested before, but my ex-wife claimed grapefruit
juice helped curb her cravings. I don't get how that works, but in
this fight you need anything you can get that might work for you.
I don't smoke anymore, but the juice never helped me. I just got
tired of wheezing and hacking all the time. Good luck.

[scratchy]

I just quit 5 months ago. It's my 3rd time. I'm using Chantix and would recommend it for anyone who's Dr says ok.

[bjl913]

how does chantix work? pill? patch? does it curb cravings? make you sick when you smoke? Im pretty interested!

[Richard K]

Chantex did it for me. I had absulutely no desire to smoke while I was taking it. Ask your doctor for a perscription.

[scratchy]

Chantix is a prescription pill designed specifically to aid in stopping smoking. It interferes with the nicotine receptors. Here's the blurb from the chantix website:

"How is CHANTIX different from other smoking cessation products?
CHANTIX does not contain nicotine. It works in two ways. It targets nicotine receptors in the brain, attaches to them, and blocks nicotine from reaching them. It is believed that CHANTIX also activates these receptors, causing a reduced release of dopamine compared to nicotine.
It's recommended that you begin your CHANTIX treatment a week before you stop smoking completely. This gives CHANTIX a chance to build up in your body. You may smoke during the first week of your CHANTIX treatment, but you should stop smoking completely on Day 8 of your treatment. "



I've been quit for 5 months now.

[Gman]

I just stopped on my own. I just wasn't enjoying it any more and was tired of spending the money.

I have heard that Chantix is pretty effective for breaking the chemical dependency. You will still have to make the behavioral changes.