Hey cool, thanks! I don’t plan to get totally trashed, just more than slightly tipsy.
I have a case of RC cola and a bottla’ whiskey 
The blinding headaches and non-stop nausea will stop after about six weeks; the feelings of unexplained sadness and the pains in all your joints might last a little longer as will the desire to murder random people. But hang in there and quit; you’ll never regret it.
Seriously your craving will be gone much sooner than you think and you will then wonder why you ever smoked at all. It will be worth it and you will never regret it. Best of luck to you and stick with it.
I know you said this in jest (and I chuckled when I read it), but I don’t want this sentence to discourage people. I’m on day 35 myself. Have I had nausea? Sure. Have I had some worse than normal headaches? I’d be lying if I said I didn’t. With that said, nausea and headaches have been nowhere near the dominant feature of the last month without nicotine. For example, instead of me having one 10 minute headache every two weeks, I’ve had one 20 minute headache every week. Annoying, but nowhere near a dealbreaker. I mean, it’s still less than a percent of the total time I’m awake.
Trust me, you’ll get to week 3 and wonder why you ever smoked when you can walk a mile without getting the least bit winded.
I can’t wait to get to this point! I am at 4 1/2 days and so it’s still a bit on the rough side (though not as bad as I dreaded).
Mush brain happened to me in the first weeks, as well as insomnia.
Keep at it, you can do it. I’m quit two years Jan. 7th.
My current stats:
Time Smoke-Free: 238 days, 8 hours, 54 minutes and 9 seconds
Cigarettes NOT smoked: 4767
Lifetime Saved: 1 month, 6 days, 9 hours
Money Saved: $1,159.15
So I am approaching 8 months now, my husband as well. If we can do it, ANYONE can. I smoked a pack a day for about 29 years, he smoked two packs a day. Read Carr’s book a few years ago and managed to quit for about 3 months then slid right back to it. We had tried gum, patches, zyban, chantix, you name it.
This time, we just stopped. No gimmicks, or crutches. We just stopped. And it has been the easiest quit (and lengthiest) of all. I really don’t see going back to it this time.
YOU CAN DO IT!
Rachelellorgam, I’ll tip the bottom of my glass of Knob Creek in your honor once I get home tonight! At this point in my life I know more quitters than still-smokers, so I think you WILL be able to become a non-smoker for good. One day at a time, and suddenly it will be years ago that you smoked…
whee!
I have quit once before (after a couple years), then started again because the reason I quit was a guy (online boyfriend), and we broke up while I was visiting him for the first time in Nevada, several days before my flight was due to leave (I live in Illinois and don’t know a soul west of the MS river). So the combination of unhappy stress and lack of someone to talk to led me to relapse.
I did not notice any prolonged side effects (headaches or nausea) the first time I quit, but I also had (both times) a very light habit compared to most. I don’t see how people manage to smoke 2 or more packs of cigarettes a day, honestly. I could only cram in 5 or 6 at most during my work day (and that’s if I double dipped on a break, which I don’t), and then I sleep for 8 hours at night. Where do those chain smokers find the TIME? I guess it helps that I never, ever have smoked indoors.
Anyway, the only reason I’m really quitting is for the money. I just cba to care all that much about health. Unless I notice some drastic improvements that make me want to stay quit, I might have a hard time staying quit forever. The only real change I’ve appreciated today is that it’s nice to walk inside to work without smelling a stale fog of cig smoke on my lapels. Which is still really nice in itself. But idk if it will be enough in the long term.
We didn’t smoke inside either, we just made a lot of trips outside 
I would get ready for work and take two or three trips out to the garage for a smoke before leaving. Then during my hour commute I’d get in 3 more. Two breaks and a lunch at work with an average of two cigarettes each time. Then my hour commute home = 3 more. So that’s roughly 15 cigarettes just by the end of the work day. After arriving home I would pop outside sporadically throughout the evening for a few more. So yeah, if your really hooked you will squeeze them in even if it means going outside every ten minutes 
The only time I still miss them is that one I used to light up as soon as I got off work and got in my car. For some reason I still long for that one. But not enough to go back.
Yeah I’ma be running into that (former) after-work puff in about 10 minutes here. Good thing I don’t have any cigs to tempt me!
I’m feeling pretty good now. Been chatting with coworkers and distracting myself since we’re not as busy as usual on Fridays. Talking about vacations for next year and you know, boring stuff like that. But it’s still something to distract me.
My 40-something cubicle neighbor told me in a daring, scandalized voice (heh heh) that she was going to be calling off on Christmas Eve because she has PTO left but couldn’t get it scheduled off. It was cute because I have done that very thing several times, as they don’t care why you call off here, but I never felt like it was that big of a deal.
Generational gap I guess 
I’ve heard it helps to do something with your mouth and hands to help with the cravings. No not that you sickos! I mean like carrots or those stick pretzels or french fries.
I had a friend who quit using those candy cigarettes. And she still uses them today. In fact, I never really noticed her using them until I hadn’t seen her for a while, and thought she’d started up again.
Also, I wanted to point out a home remedy for ADHD, since you mentioned it: caffeine. I’ve heard time and time again that caffeine actually helps people with ADHD calm down, just like taking the stimulants they normally take. And I’ve always wondered if it would help with nicotine withdrawals.
Finally, I’ve heard reports that B vitamins are very helpful in withdrawal.
Good luck to you, Rachel. My only specific advice is: Don’t use the first month’s $90 savings just to pay a credit card bill. Plan to spend it on a special incentive reward, like a dinner at favorite restaurant.
(I don’t know about caffeinated soda, but coffee increased my nicotine craving when I first quit.)
Just wanted to pipe in, Doctor, that I quit a 12 year addiction after reading the thread you started four days ago. And, thank you, Stoid, I read the Allen Carr book cover to cover in a few hours. It REALLY did help me and I have a new attitude. So, that is at least three people who stopped thanks to the Straight Dope MB and you fantastic people! My quit time Dec 2 9:15 a.m. so going on 2 days now but the book helped so much that I am not really craving!
Good work rachelellogram!
Hence my ascent from a petite 120lbs to a voluptuous 140lbs since I quit smoking eight months ago…
Rock on!!!
Funny how that little book seems to help so much. I am just hitting the 5 day mark and still going strong.
I had a smoking dream last night! 
First one. I’ve heard of those from others who quit. However, it did not freak me out as I knew it was a dream.
We need some sort of club - “The Straight Dope Stops Smoking for Christmas Club” or something. Heck, we already have at least 3 members! Maybe we could get some more. 
Everyone is different, but usually by day 5, the physical symptoms are gone. Like others have said, drink plenty of water or OJ, try to exercise, avoid booze and coffee as those two were always triggers for me to smoke.
The thing to keep in mind is that cravings don’t last very long. When they hit, they seem overpowering, but they go away. Just try to put it out of your mind and in a few minutes, it will be gone.
But, be careful. That total deprivation of all things you enjoy can sabotage you.
I have a theory that a big reason none of my other quits worked is because I went so overboard avoiding all things smoke-related that I just felt like life was pretty much over and all the enjoyment was gone. I’d end up smoking again, just so I could continue with all the other things I enjoyed. So this time, I decided that I was giving up cigarettes, period.
And guess what? I CAN have a cup of coffee or glass of wine without smoking. I CAN go out for a short break at work and enjoy the sunshine or chat with co-workers-without smoking! And best of all, because I haven’t turned to a life of total deprivation, I have not been depressed about my quit, it has lasted longer than any other, and feels to me like it will stick forever.
So in my opinion, DON’T avoid your previous pastimes or habits. You’re supposed to be improving how you feel, not making yourself depressed.
I tend to agree with Stillwell Angel. If I had to quit coffee and cigarettes I’d probably turn into a raving lunatic. I’m definitely keeping my other habits and have added some chewing gum as it seems to be a reasonable substitute for cigarettes.