I’m craving hard. I smoked my last cancer stick, like, a week ago or something, and this is the first time I really, really, really just want to go light up. Fuck. What do I do?! I can’t sleep and I’m all anxious and all I can think about is lighting up!
Pain is just weakness leaving the body. This is a last ditch, all-or-nothing attempt on the part of Nic the cancer demon to get you to blaze up. He’s lobbying for the smoking equivalent of make-up sex.
Don’t cave in, buddy! Go for a walk and grab a starbucks. Show old Nic that you’ve got a new mistress now: Queen Caffeine!
Chew gum.
Have toothpicks on hand all the time.
Go outside and take 10 really deep breaths, blow out hard, and clear your mind.
Remind yourself that you’ve made it through the hardest part (for me usually day 3-4). I’ve quit enough times to know that even one stupid puff starts the whole process all over again. And it gets easier, but never easy. Remember you’re doing a good thing for yourself, and you smell better now too!
And when you’re really craving one bad, call someone who can talk you out of it. Reach out to the SDMB. We’re here for you.
You can do it!
If you drink a glass of orange juice the cravings will temporarily go away.
Nicotine gum got me through the worst of it. It’s costly, bitter, and makes me salivate profusely… there’s so little pleasure from it that it’s much easier to give up than cigarettes.
Also, anything that can get your mind off of it… puzzles, TV, porn, video games, etc.
I have nothing to offer but supporting thoughts. I have never been through it, so I can only guess at what you are going through.
Sending a wish that you are able to weather this storm.
The craving will go away in about 10-15 minutes, *whether you have a cigarette or not. *
So don’t.
Lord, I wish I’d kept up my latest quit. Please don’t cave. It’s not worth it. I’m smoking again, and I am not even enjoying it.
I second what Savannah said. Find something immersive to distract yourself for a few minutes and the craving will pass. Failing that, chew some ordinary chewing gum. It really helps.
Get a really addictive new hobby to obsess about to replace the role of smoking in your life.
Most people begin smoking because of boredom, anxiety, or/and to socialize so something that fits the same function in your life as smoking used to.
You cannot trick yourself into forgetting about it. Chew gum, go for a walk, drink orange juice, stand on your head, do the hokey pokey, are all horrible suggestions IMO. Doing those things will actually make your cravings worse by underlining the fact that you’re not smoking. What you need to do is face your craving head on and laugh at it like the little pussy it is. Smile real big and think about how happy you are to be a non-smoker now. You know how when you’re a kid and you close your eyes at a horror movie it gives you nightmares, but if you just watch you’re fine? Same principal here. Don’t be afraid of the craving or it will own you.
-Started “experimenting” with cigarettes at age 10, hooked by age 14, quit at 25. I’m 27 now - August was 2 years.
DEEP BREATHE!
That’s what really gives smokers the calming effect, not the nicotine, which is a stimulant.
If you have to, hold your fingers up to your lips and pretend there’s a cigarette in them, take a long, deep breath, hold it for a few seconds, just like you would when you were smoking, then sloooooooowly let it out.
It’s a common relaxation technique that most smokers don’t even realize they partake in, and therefore forget to do once they stop ingesting the cancer weed.
DEEP BREATHE!
I also highly recommend a sport-top water bottle. Having something to bring to your mouth and suck on in place of a cigarette, but that’s actually good for you (unlike straws which provide no direct health benefit, or candy, which is actually bad for you), will really help you a lot.
Shayna,
former smoker; successfully quit July 4th, 2002, using the above-described method.
All the best of luck, my friend!
I agree with the above posters.Try any or all methods Here’s one more:
If your anything like me (ie; very competitive) try giving your craving a name. I used Zul, the name of a former boss which I absolutely loath. Anytime Zul rears his ugly head I just say “Fuck off Zul”, I’ll be damned if I’m going to let Zul get the better of me. It becomes personal.
Don’t give in! Don’t let it win!
Shayna beat me to it.
It worked for me (I pretended to have a smoke between my fingers) the action was comforting, the oxygen was calming.
Keep reminding yourself that ‘this too, shall pass’.
Keep you hands busy with any simple task (my concentration was shot to hell during this time) like knitting, jigsaws, computer games, etc. I had one mate who nicked her youngest’s colouring in book to get her though late night cravings. Whatever it takes.
Five and a half years later - it was worth it.
Yes, 10 or 15 minutes is all it takes for the craving to go away. So you just have to hang in there a minute or two at a time and before you know it, you’re okay again.
In the meantime, do something that absorbs your focus and energy. When I quit smoking, I played piano a LOT. It took concentration and energy and focus and really blocked all other thoughts from my head. I also took up crocheting, and then knitting, to keep my hands busy; if both hands are full, it keeps them from reaching for a cig. And I’d eat something to keep my mouth busy.
You can find what works for you, and I’d advise you to have plans in place because you’ll probably have a few other strong cravings before it gets all the way out of your system. The more you provide other outlets for your brain to occupy itself with something other than smoking, though, the faster the craving will leave and the sooner all cravings will end for good.
You’ve made it through the worst of the physical withdrawal – now just hang in there through the psychological withdrawal and pretty soon you can call yourself a nonsmoker! Hang in there, it really is worth it. I quit over 30 years ago now after an eight-year heavy, heavy smoking career, and I have never regretted it.
Hold the top of your ear-lope for a minute or so.
Suck sodawater through a straw.
Take two benadryl.
You can do it!! (This from a former 2 packs of Camels a day smoker who’s been cig-less for over a decade now.)
It helps to keep your system alkaline; drink water throughout the day, with a little lemon juice added if desired, and keep a baggie of raw carrot sticks close to your person at all times.
Thanks for all the suggestions and kind words, everyone!
Shayna, you are absolutely right. I had no idea I could calm myself down so much just by breathing air the same way I used to smoke cigarettes.