I quit smoking...any tips on NOT going insane?

[hardygrrl]

I had my last cigarette about 1 am Friday morning. It's 9 pm Friday night and GOD DO I WANT TO SMOKE!!!!!

One thing that's helped is every time I want to smoke I drink water instead ( I've now switched to beer).

Small problem though....I live with a smoker and cannot afford to move out-so how do I not go crazy or kill her for her smokes?


Please.....any suggestions?

[dropzone]

You can do what I did, eat more. :(

No, I guess that isn't much help.

[tshirts]

I switched to cigars, then pipes. And it worked perfectly!
Now I never smoke sigs and seldom cigars. And a pipe is something that's inconvenient enough I can give it up for months at a time.

[longhair75]

friend hardygrrl,

it is possible to quit smoking. i quit a three pack a day habit after smoking for 35 years.

first thing: get nicotine patches! the patch takes the hard edge off of the nicotine craving.

second: today sucks. tomorrow will suck less. every day it gets a little more tolerable. stay busy. the more occupied you are, the easier it is.

third: don't worry about the food. one jones at a time. yes, you will gain a little weight. i switched from marlboros to m&m peanuts. the peanuts were a much easier habit to kick.

fourth: once you kick the cigarettes, then work the junk food off. join a gym. after no cigarettes for two months, you will be amazed at how much energy and endurance you have.

fifth: think about the money. my wife and i quit the same day. after a while i realized that we were saving a substantial amount of cold, hard cash. 18 months of cigarette money added up to a week long second honeymoon in san juan. an ocean view room with a balcony in a five star resort beats hacking up a lung anytime.

sixth: go here (http://www.silkquit.org/main/index.html) for the best quit smoking support web site.

good luck, my friend. most of quitting is in the desire. if you can't do it cold turkey, try the patch. if that doesn't work get zyban, or the gum. once you make up your mind that you are going to quit no matter what, you will succeed.

[Lsura]

Hardygrrl, first of all, congrats. Quitting is incredibly hard. I went cold turkey almost 3 weeks ago, from a pack and a half a day.

What's helped me?

Grapefruit juice-something about the tang knocks back cravings for me.

Altoids work well, but not just after drinking a big glass of grapefruit juice(ewwwwwwwwwwwww).

Chew on straws, toothpicks, even pens if necessary-for me so much of it is having something to do with my hands and mouth(no smartass comments, please :p).

Living with a roommate who smokes? That makes it very tough, but you can still do it. Can you request that s/he smoke outside? Apologize in advance for snapping at them. If they have hever tried to quit, then they understand what you are going through. Or, if they continue to smoke inside, go for a walk when they light up. That will help keep any weight gain to a minimum.

Finally, good luck! Go get a silkquit meter if you can-I love being able to see how much money I've saved by just pressing a button, like this: Time since quitting: Two weeks, six days, 8 hours, 33 minutes and 9 seconds. 610 cigarettes not smoked, saving $94.66. Life saved: 2 days, 2 hours, 50 minutes.It always gives me a kick in the pants when I'm thinking about a smoke.

[ChiefScott]

Blow jobs.

I hear they will really help with your oral cravings plus you instantly become popular!

[wring]

Quitting smoking is the hardest thing I've ever done.

I quit when I got pregnant (but that isn't my recommondation).

I'd tried to quit smoking before, failed after about 3 days. But I knew that if I smoked during pregnancy, it would harm the child, and I knew that I couldn't just one or two a day (didn't realize at the time that even that little would harm the child - cut me some slack, please it was like 17 years ago).

So, what I did was tell myself I wasn't quitting, I was 'merely' not smoking while I was pregnant. I assured myself that on the delivery table, it would be he-he-he whooooooooooo exhaling smoke. Of course, by the time the delivery came around (some 8 1/2 months later- he was late and I knew really promptly), it was a moot point and didn't suffer the cravings.

These days I've been a non smoker longer than I was a smoker. But I don't play around with it at all. I never pick up an individual cigarette, try to never pick up a pack (there are times when I'm around smokers, and may need to hand it to them or whatever). I know that if I picked up another cigarette, I'd be back to two packs a day within a very short time, and I don't think I could face quitting again.

So, during the throngs of withdrawal, I lied to myself and said "you're not really quitting, you just can't smoke until ..... date", and once I was past that time, it's been "you'd have to quit again. You know you would. Could you really go through all that again?"

[hardygrrl]

Thanks everybody! So far the water trick seems to work and my roommate's been nice enough to smoke outside (and hide her smokes when she sleeps).

Chief Scott....I'm way ahead of you there...now if only UncleBill was around...;)

[ChiefScott]

Well... since he isn't and we wouldn't have to tell him anything...

[Jenericho]

Chewing gum really does work...
I tried to give up every month for two years - people would keep telling me to try gum, but I never did until I saw Clerks... I thought, "well if you can't trust a Kevin Sith character, who can you trust?". Yeah, I know he wasn't trustworthy in the film, but it worked for me.

[Doubleclick]

A lot of great advice here.

But just keep this in mind. IIRC, the physical addiction ends in aboubt 2 weeks for so. What you feel after that is mental addiction. (You body nolonger wants the cigg, but your brain does.)

If you keep that in mind, it should make things easier...(Just don't walk around saying, "It's all in me 'ead. It's all in me 'ead.")

;)

[hardygrrl]

ALMOST 36 HOURS!!!!!

Still carrying around the water bottle-my lungs are getting the rest but the kidneys are getting a workout.

So far the worst time is when I wake up but my roommate is being very considerate-smoking outside and putting the butts out in water so I can't relight them-sad to say I did consider THAT-smoking a presmoked butt.

But being a stubborn redhead I refuse to give up. I will win damn it!!

No gum though....just Altoids.

[ruadh]

I quit at the beginning of November. It's still difficult, I still often have to remind myself why I quit. longhair75's suggestions are all excellent. Just keep coming here and posting, we'll all support you as much as we can. Just remember that if you refuse that cigarette, you'll be a lot happier afterward than if you smoke it.

Best of luck (you'll need it :))

[PolarField]

Originally posted by hardygrrl

...my roommate is being very considerate-smoking outside and putting the butts out in water so I can't relight them-sad to say I did consider THAT-smoking a presmoked butt.
[/B]

Been there, done that. Mostly my own pre-smoked butts that put themselves out when I forgot them sitting there smouldering while I'm programming. Relighting them -- they never taste quite right, almost like a weird combination of tobacco and stale fish. (shudders)

I'm really there with you though, I decided to quit last Monday and spent Wednesday night in bed meditating for an hour because my hands were starting to shake. Your joints hurt too, and the headaches -- oooh!

I broke down and bought a pack this morning but after reading this thread I think you've ruined it for me.


No gum though....just Altoids.

Now that's a wicked combination: a severe need for destraction, hardcore oral fixation, and a tin of Altoids. I truly envy the next guy that catches your attention.

[hardygrrl]

Well I was getting headachy but some Aleve knocked that out. As for the distraction I've been working on things that should have been done earlier to keep myself busy. I just finished doing three loads of laundry and reorganizing my cd's.I did get out the knitting to keep my hands busy while reading,watching tv etc.

I think it'll be easier at work tomorrow....except at break and lunch time but my friends WILL not give me cigarettes.....I told them if they did I'd send a company-wide e-mail detailing the biggest secret I know about them.

And as for the Altoids combined with the oral fixtion....let's just say there have been no complaints so far. :)

[ChiefScott]

I'll be the judge of that!

[Sofa King]

Origami. Give it a try. That'll get you over the manual habit, and twist your brain up real good, too.

[kniz]

Go around telling all your friends that smoke what a horrible habit they have and that they should stop smoking at once. This will do two things. First you will have offically become a true non-smoker. Second they will stop inviting you to join them when they go outside to smoke, lessening your temptations to join them.

[UncleBill]

Originally posted by hardygrrl
...now if only UncleBill was around...;)

Hardygrl, my appendage is always available for your oral fixation, keep in mind what I wear when I sleep, and you'll know it is avilable at all times for my honey near Chi-town. For what it is worth, I kiss a non-smoking woman MUCH better than I do a smoking woman! And I don't stop there!

[blur]

hardygrrl, good for you. I've been trying to quit for a while. The longest I've made it has been 2 weeks a couple of times.

[Eliahna]

Handygrrl, look what you've done to me!!
I checked out this thread to see how someone else was going about quitting, and I meant to bookmark the links for future reference (yeah, right!), but then I downloaded that SilkQuit monitor.... I fired it up just to see how it works... 17 hours 39 minutes and 20 seconds down the track, I'm pigging out on lollipops to fight the urge to smoke. I just can't stand to turn that little meter off now that it's on!!
LongHair75 and Lsura are partly responsible too - they both provided the link to SilkQuit.
I think I can... I think I can... I think I can...

17 hours, 41 minutes and 38 seconds. 14 cigarettes not smoked, saving $4.67. Life saved: 1 hour, 10 minutes.

[hardygrrl]

48 hours!!!!!and counting!!!!

So far I've only got bitchy once...and that was when my friend called to whine for the millionth time about her boyfriend but I would gotten bitchy about that anyway because I'm SO sick of hearing about him.

Blur....If I can do it you can to..I send you a picture of Lita in a bikini if you try.....

UncleBill....but are you willing to come to Chi-town to help satisfy my oral cravings? ;) And yes....I remember what you told me about how you sleep...you know my addresses and we can talk about that later.......

[Carina42]

Yay hardygrrl! I quit the same day as Lsura. I've fallen off the wagon a couple of times, but I'm basically hanging in there. The only thing I will add is...stay vigilant! Weeks, months, years after quitting you'll get suckerpunched by really powerful urges. "one won't hurt...." & there you go back smoking again. (I've quit sooo many times. Once for almost 3 years.)

Yesterday I started a cardio kickboxing class with two girlfriends. I'm sore today, but what a blast! My dogs are getting extra walks, and I'm going to look for a drop in yoga class this week. I'm trying to stay busy & active.

And weight gain is NOT inevitable. I haven't gained an ounce. I chew plastic straws & Altoids. My rationale is this: If I want a smoke after eating, why eat all the time? The last time I stopped I lost seven lbs in five weeks. (Then I started smoking again. Feh.)

Anyhow, yay to all of us who are doing this. It's the hardest thing I've ever done, too.

[ruadh]

I also haven't gained any weight since quitting.

[Billy Rubin]

I stopped smoking nearly two months ago. 5 years of three packs a day. Cold turkey, no patch, no drugs, not a thing.

I really enjoyed being a giant pain in the ass to all those around me. My wife quit at the same time, so our household was a pleasure to be near. Those who worked with me avoided me like the plague. It was the best part of the whole deal. Revel in your insanity. Snap at everyone. It'll be your only chance to do so and be excused. Make a point of being miserable to be around. Think of all the work you'll be able to get done with nobody bugging you!

Good luck!
Billy

[hardygrrl]

Made it through work....just chewed straws and sucked Altoids.

I did hang a sign @ my cube that reads...

I just quit smoking. Do not take the mood swings personally.

Please ignore any profanity.




I really appreciate the support guys! There have been times where I would have joyfully sold my mother to a pimp for just ONE drag but being stubborn I just popped another Altoid,gritted my teeth and got through it.

[handy]

Sure, when you get the urge to smoke, have sex instead. This causes your body to produce endorphins, thus, you feel better right away.

[dustMagnate]

Water, lots of it. And dried fruit. This will help with the constipation that sometimes comes with giving up cigarettes. Very kind of your roommate to smoke outside: have her destroy the butts because those can devolve into a relapse.

I am watching this thread: my quit date is coming soon.

It should be successful I have had so much practice :)

I stayed hooked on the gum for three months but that doesn't really count.

Another website: Quitnet (http://www.quitnet.org/qn_main.jtml)

Good thoughts!!

[City Gent]

Start drinking.


Good luck! :)

[hardygrrl]

Today was a close one...godawful day at work.

But I did not smoke!!!!

I did chew about 15 straws to threads and completely shredded a stress ball but again I did not smoke.

Thanks again everyone for the support-I like knowing the mood swings are not my imagination.

I am watching my eating too....I do not want to gain back weight I've lost through totally revamoing my eating habits.

Next habit...caffeine

I refuse to give up on cyberflirting :)