I’m proud of you too, good job. In a few more days I’ll join you there.
Glad to see you’re still hanging in there, Sarge: getting any easier? TMINC, Frank, Johnny LA - tales of demons fought, please.
Much easier. I go through long periods without thinking about it, which is great. A few times when I do want one are habit based, and there’s no intense longing for a smoke. It pretty much got easier after the one week mark. I’m just worried about the weight issue now. Eating seems so much funner now.
Wow, you guys are awesome. I haven’t had one since pre-work on Tuesday morning, approx. 49 hours. I started taking Welbutrin last night, it helped me kick it before without having the nearly homicidal mood swings, so hopefully it will do the same again. My wife has been very supportive, so that helps, but she isn’t an addict, so she can’t relate real well. Reading everyone else’s stories in here is really helpful and inspiring. I’ve battled this demon for almost 14 years (wow, I can’t believe it’s been that long), and it’s time I whipped it for good.
yeah, guys, unfortunately, the attack of the 50-foot munchies is next. 
one of the side effects of quitting smoking for many people is the new craving for hi-fat, hi-starch seriously tasty foods now that your tastebuds have been raised from the dead.
i used to smoke roughly a pack every two days, so with that consumption level i didn’t really notice the improvement in taste for about four to six months. then it was ‘look out food, here i come.’ it’s no wonder many high fashion models smoke. it helps kill appetite. coke and heroin do the same, but that’s a tad extreme as a substitute for anyone. :rolleyes:
i am doing better now but i’ve got a few pounds to get rid of. at 5’ 10" in height, weight gain doesn’t really show on me, but i can certainly tell by my clothes being too snug.
try gnawing on non-fat stuff like carrots or other similiar pop-in-your-mouth type veggies and fruits to satisfy the oral fixation that food provides instead of a cigarette. i developed a dependency on canned madarin oranges (don’t ask. i don’t know why).
nuts are good too, but watch the fat content. sugarless gum is a godsend. cuts the cravings and keeps you from eating.
walk. do lots and lots of walking. another way to keep the weight off and yourself occupied.
best of luck to all of you new non-smokers and keep up the good work. truly worth every effort to stay off the little buggers.
I’m proud of you, too.
I was lucky in my life that I never took up smoking, but I really respect those who try to quit. I know it has to be hard. Go you!
Off the wagon.
I’m not doing very well. I am (mostly) not smoking at work or in the car; I am (mostly) smoking everywhere else. I’ve got it cut down to about half of normal, and all I can do is keep plugging away. Sooner or later, it’ll happen, as long as I don’t give up. Right?
Home is the worst part. I was actually at a bar the other night, and didn’t have any problem. But sitting around reading or on the computer gives me fits. I’ll have to find something else to do for a while.
Don’t give up on it Frank, or you either TMINC, it can be done, but it takes a while for most people. I don’t know how many times I have quit and then gone back. I was off for 9 months then went back to it, it happens.
The most successful times I have had are when I tried something completely new that always intigued me to take my mind off the smoke. Try to get immersed in something and become really passionate about it, it will move the focus of the obsession. Try and drink as much water as you can as well. Not only does it help flush the nicotine out and help with the terrible dry mouth that most people get, but it’s doc recommended as well. As in all cases YMMV. (I believe that’s the first time I have used that, doper culture taking hold).
Heh. Wait till you holler out, “Cite?” in real life.
Can I smugly proselytise from my new-found and still extremely shaky high moral perch, or shall I just tell you to give it another crack? Even if you don’t right now, don’t give up on yourself - I think all the experience I gained through previous quitting attempts, however abortive they were, helped this time round. Same goes for you, Frank: I found getting *out * of the house whenever I felt the urge helped, even if it meant getting up and going for a walk at 11 o’clock at night - I’ve always found boredom or routine a worse trigger than stress.
Oh, and way to go, Sarge! Three rousing cheers for you, and many thanks to all those cheering on from the sidelines: it helps a lot more than you know.
And welcome to we happy few, Theodore Striker: maybe you could get your wife to read this thread for an insight into the grumpy bastardhood of the recovering smoker.
Thanks Case, I may just do that to help enlighten her. I will give her credit though, she is being extremely supportuive and sympatheric. PLus, it is really great to get close to her without her telling me how bad I stink.
If that’s not a reason to keep at it, I don’t know what is. Keep going, you quitters!
I’ll have quit for 5 years on February 3, but I wanted to warn you new quitters about something:
You should definitely be proud, BUT be aware that the urge will return from time to time, sometimes with surprising strength. Maybe it’ll be after that fourth beer out with the guys, or maybewhile you’re driving home from work, but it will happen. Be vigilant, because if you give in and smoke “just one,” chances are that one will lead to more, and suddenly, you’re back in the soup.
It’s happened to me many times, and I know of many people who have fallen off the wagon even after several years being smoke-free.
Amen Ogre, I went quite a while (about 11 months), then one day was walking by someone at work, and bummed one. Within a week I was back to the old habit full time. I apologize for all of the spelling errors in the previous post, it was late, and my mind wasn’t all together there.
Anyone else in our little quitter’s circle having problems getting to sleep at night?
I keep dropping in here to see how you guys are doing, so I guess it’s about time I say this:
Keep it up! Resist the cravings! Rah rah sis-boom-bah! Go Quitters!
Anyone else in our little quitter’s circle having problems getting to sleep at night?
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yep. definitely another side-effect of your body losing it’s daily/hourly nicotine fix.
fun, fun, fun.
somewhere i hear or read that nic is more addictive than heroin! i can believe it, considering how many times i quit and then started back smoking again.
the warm milk thing sounds like a bad cliche, but it helps. again, exercise and also deep breathing helps calm down the body in preparation for sleep.
on the deep breathing; i just remembered something: my quitting smoking instructor said that doing that acts directly on the part of the brain that’s whining for a smoke. something about the drawing in of air and holding it for several seconds before releasing it negates the oral fixation issue.
whatever.
all i know is that it works very well on me. those few and far in between (now, anyway) days when i want one so bad i could kill for it, the deep breathing keeps me on the legal side of the justice system. and my family, SO, and coworkers safe.
i wish there was a 12-step program for quitting cigs like there is for alcohol. might go a long way to eliminating smoking.
or am i totally not with it and there IS such a program?
White man speak with straight tongue. We had a barbecue at my place last night - nothing fancy, just some steaks and beers, and my Favourites playlist blasting over the speakers in the back garden. A steak or two, three or four beers, Talking Heads playing “Road To Nowhere”, a couple of my old mates who are fellow smokers from way back, and suddenly a fag seemed just right. You know what saved me? I could smell the barbecue. I could smell the fragrant aroma of grilling meat, a newly rediscovered and slowly returning sensation, and I thought, “Nah.” Be pure, be vigilant, BEHAVE.
Scubaqueen, welcome to our happy ranks: yeah, breathing exercises do help a lot when you get the urge. I learnt them from my counsellor - a long story from another addiction, which may yet be told - and they’re a godsend.
For those unfamiliar, breathing exercises work like this - the aim is to breathe slowly and deeply, ensuring that you get more oxygen into your lungs:
1/ Sit or {preferably} lie comfortably.
2/ Try and empty your mind of all thoughts {this may come more easily to some than others}
3/ Place one hand on your stomach, another on your chest: try to keep the hand on your chest as still as possible, while the hand on your stomach rises and falls as you breathe.
4/ Breathe out through your nose slowly, letting your stomach fall.
5/ Inhale through your nose, letting your stomach rise. Hold it for a few seconds, then exhale slowly nasally - I try and hold a breath for a slow count of ten, but the idea is to try and regulate yourself to about 10 deep breaths a minute.
6/ Think peaceful thoughts. Let your mind drift anywhere but the desire for a cigarette.
7/ Keep it up as long as you have the time - I try and time it for 100 long breaths, which takes about 30 minutes, but do whatever you have time for: even a couple of minutes can stave off the desire for a smoke.
Yeah, I know - it sounds like hippy bullshit. I was a sceptical as all hell when I tried it to combat panic attacks, and was astonished to discover that it works: nothing mystical about it; basically you’re filling your lungs more deeply than usual with oxygen, while taking your mind off smoking. It works really well if you’ve had a shit day at work, too - shut yourself in a dark room for half an hour, put on some soothing music, lie down, clear your mind, and breathe deeply.
Whoa, I’m just getting over a really intense craving, which is weird because I haven’t had any physical cravings since about a week a go. I thought I was over that phase. I mean, I feel like one every now and then, but that’s just habit and easily fought off. This one was like my first week all over agian.
I was just sitting here, messing about on the computer and I kept getting more excited for no apparent reason. That was even with some crashing problems with a game. That rising excitement really made me want a smoke. I was just getting over that when The Cat decided to take a shit and not bury it. That just intensified the feeling even more.
So I got up and cleaned the kitty litter box. Taking deep breaths when I was safe from the cat poop smell. I’m feeling better now. Damn odd though. I thought I was home free.