Okay, so how did you quit?

1. 0

   lyricsingrayposted 14 years ago

   I am 43.  Have been smoking a pack a day ($10 up here) since I was 14.  Have never tried to quit before.
   
   I do believe you can't until you want to.
   
   My attempts, let's just say, have recently fell short of any success.
   
   How did you quit?
   
   Thank you.

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      A Texanposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      10 bucks? Jeeeebus, thats a lot of money! I haven't been able to quit and have been doing just as long as you, I did cut down after a heart attack, but I'm pretty sure I'm gonna kick off way early! Actually I have lived 15 years longer than anyone thought I would.

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         lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         well I'm glad you have my friend

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      Valerie Fposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I had smoked for two years when I quit. I ran out of cigarettes and as a broke college student, I decided I didn't want to be bothered with buying any more, and I wouldn't bum any off my friends any more, either. Since my smoking friends were quite happy to keep their cigarettes all to themselves, they were great about helping me quit.

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      Will Bensonposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I quit cold turkey - I would vow not to smoke for 1 day, then after that, I'd try for another day, etc. Eventually, I had strung enough days together to quit for good. Most of the successful quitters I've known did it cold turkey.
      
      The bad news...that was decades ago and I'd still love to light one up. It's incredibly addicting, as I'm sure you well know.
      
      Good luck, stay strong, make it work.

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      goldenpathposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I quit smoking over twenty years ago in a different way.  I was a Shipping Receiving Supervisor at a microwave popcorn plant.  One evening on night shift I was dying for a cigarette and it had only been a few hours since I started the attempt, AGAIN, to quit.  So I snuck down to the break room and, low and behold, I could not find my desired cigarette in anyone's belongings on the break tables.  It was the most common brand - Marlboro Reds.  In my little frenzy of heat I took a cigarette from I pack I found.  It was a Marlboro Ultra Light 100.  That did it for me.  The taste was NOT what my palette wanted and it destroyed what taste I had for tobacco.  I put it down and never looked back.  I don't advocate this method, but it somehow worked for me.  Perhaps trying a different brand, on purpose, would canker the taste.  If you use filter then try maybe non-filter Pall Mall.  That might do it!  If you are not a menthol person try that.

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         lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         cool thanks

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         foreignpressposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         You messed up. You could have removed the filter and had a truly fine smoke. Of course, mistakes like that is how history is made. You're better off for it.

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      double_frickposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      i just...quit.
      i was pregnant, that made it easy, both times.
      this time i just didn't start again.
      i think if it is hard it is really important to try to make sure those around you do not smoke or at least will not around you. after the first week or so the cravings go away a great deal so its really about sticking it out "one day at a time" until you are over that initial hump and after that its much easier to be around it and not smoke, though not so easy to not WANT it.

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         lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         You Rock way to go girl

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      mtsi1098posted 14 years agoin reply to this

      switch to drinking   Just kidding - I do not smoke so have no advise other than if you think you can, you will...Best of luck

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      greeneyes1982posted 14 years agoin reply to this

      funny thing is this.. my grandmother also smoked for thirty something years. funny how she had a stroke and ended up forgetting that she ever smoked so after a few days of bein in the hospital when she got home she had no desire to ever smoke and never did again all the way up to her death.. she couldnt even stand the smell of cigarettes so to me I think its more of a habit thing and in the mind...

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         lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         thanks green and welcome

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            greeneyes1982posted 14 years agoin reply to this

            yw and thanks but really hon... if u REALLY want to quit like really bad.. just DONT buy anymore at all. just compltetely refrain from buying them out of habit and have more will power to do so. mind over matter. then when u feel the urge to want to light one you cant because you have none to light gl to you

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               lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               Okay I hear ya, makes sense, I'm so close to ready going  to try tomorrow.  Thanks again

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      SmokeNoMoreposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Hypnosis worked for me.  What I learned is that it's really 100% mental.  My hubs discuss this in detail.

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      Poppa Bluesposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Well, you're right, you do have to WANT to quit! I was a pack a day smoker for 8 years and like you I started when I was 14.
      
      If you want to quit you have to analyze why you smoke. I discovered that I couldn't smoke a whole cigarette with my eyes closed. Basically I was smoking just to see the smoke come out of my mouth. Once I realized that it was pretty easy to stop and it helps to replace that vice with another less addicting one.

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       agrasty2002posted 14 years agoin reply to this

       Well, I just made a hub about it.  But basically had to have a good enough reason to quit and I started working out really hard.  That's what made me quit and stay done with it.  Check out my hub on the issue for more info.

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       danny-roseposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       I know it is very hard to quite smoking, but I did it about ten years ago. I made a promise to myself that next year is going to be a new beginning for me. It was 1999 New Year's Eve, so my last cigarette was at 11:50AM  December 31, 1999. That was it, I never attempted to smoke again. I have been preparing for this moment for about three months, and I am glad I did it. Smoking is a bad habit and as soon as you are able to get rid of it, the better.

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   K Partinposted 14 years ago

   Hi Kim, you are right you'll never quit unless you truly want to. I quit cold turkey, it was the best thing I ever did, not to mention the bucks I'm saving.....and health improvement.I wish you the best of luck, I want you on HubPages for a long, long time!!

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      lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks K

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   wyanjenposted 14 years ago

   I'm not sure whether I'm an ex-smoker or not.
   Michigan has a new law this spring - no smoking in any public place. And, more taxes coming.
   I'm broke as hell anyway, so I switched to the e-cig.
   
   
   I love it.

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      A Texanposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Don't you love living in such a progressive state?

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         K Partinposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         That law is long over due!! We are behind in everything.

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            A Texanposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            Yeah, I want my every vice to be outlawed so I can be a good progressive.

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            wyanjenposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            
            no sh1t!
            

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               K Partinposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               

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         wyanjenposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         It gets a little irritating.
         
         Gotta admit though, when the smokers (every single person I work with!) start to sweat it out, I'm a little relieved. I would be tearing out my damn hair, if I hadn't switched over.
         
         Pack and a half a day, that's a good $12 a day. Figure 2 packs + on a weekend.
         The e-cig: about $1.50 a day.
         
         I'm the most stubborn smoker you'll ever meet. I'd light up in church
         But this was a painless switch and I really like smoking it more than a regular cig.

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            A Texanposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            I'm gonna have to try that.

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            Faybe Bayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            Wyanjen, what brand do you smoke, I have been chicken to try, the initial cost and all.

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               wyanjenposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               I was out of cash a couple weeks ago, so I went to the smoke shop to put a carton of Marlboros on my credit card. Like I said, I'm a bad smoker....
               
               Anyway, I had been reading about it here, a few hubbers have written about it. I saw the package on the counter, and bought it instead of a carton. It cost just about the same.
               Two batteries, one actuator, a case, and 10 cartridges cost $75.
               Oh, and a charger. And it has a warranty. I didn't shop around on-line, so I don't know how it compares.
               
               I bought E-CIGARETTE (that is the name of the brand.) At a few shops in my area, I've also seen a brand called VIP. (Stands for Vapor In Public, I think.)
               The VIP kit was a little cheaper, but the cartridges are more expensive.
               
               Actually I can't say that I have completely quit - I'm still smoking about a pack a week. It's a security blanket. I'll forget I even have a pack of Marlboros for a few days at a time but when I stumble on them, I do still light one up.

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                  Faybe Bayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                  Thanks!

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      K Partinposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Do what ever you have to to stay off em!

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      lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      OK I feel really stupid, what is an e-cig
      
      dont think they are here in Canada
      
      :

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         wyanjenposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         This is yoshi's hub, but search and you'll find a few others:
         
         http://hubpages.com/hub/Are-you-having- … op-smoking

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   thisisoliposted 14 years ago

   I have heard lots of good things about e-cigs, can't give much advice beyond that though I'm afraid, I am a purely social (When staggering around drunkenly with a kebab in one hand and a smoke in the other) smoker.

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   Nelle Hoxieposted 14 years ago

   A good friend of mine with a smoking history similar to yours used Chantix - and has been smoke free for 1.5 years now. It was her first attempt at stoppping.
   
   My sister and her husband who also smoked since their mid-teens used the patches you stick on your arm and it worked for them.
   
   Me I never smoked so I can't tell you anything. But I quit eating ice cream by not buying any more. I can only get an ice cream cone if there's no line. (We all have things we can't use responsibly. And I have a huge weight issue if I'm not very careful)

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      lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      thanks Nelle

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   Shadesbreathposted 14 years ago

   Here's how I quit after 17 years (I chewed, not smoked, but ... same deal).  Do all of these things together:
   
   1. Get a big glass jar (pickle jar or something... clear glass) ... and put $10.00 in it every day. Do this either at home or work, wherever you have someone you can trust.  Tell them they can have the money if you start smoking again.  Pick someone strong enough to take it. Kids are great for that.
   
   2. Get a calendar with big squares on it and get a highlighter pen.  Hang it on the wall near your bed where you can see it getting in and out of bed.  Every night when you go to bed, if you didn't smoke, fill in the day's square.  (This serves as sort of a "bar graph of progress.")
   
   3. Get some gum or sunflower seeds or something to get you through the first week or so.
   
   4. Do not weigh yourself.  You are going to put on weight.  It won't kill you.  You can take it off later.  Death by cancer is scarier than a fat ass, and a hideous, witch's cackle emphysema cough has the same effect on men as a fat ass anyway, so you're not actually affecting your overall 1-10 score of attractiveness, just changing the factors by which it is tabulated.
   
   5. On your calendar, schedule yourself a reward for going 2 weeks straight (a date night or buy a CD or Blue Ray you want - NOT out of your jar though), one month straight (do something fun, or get someone who loves you to commit to a reward for this), and three months straight - the three month mark with have $910 dollars in your jar. Take a trip.
   
   It works.

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      IntimatEvolutionposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Hi Shades!
      
      I smoked heavily for 27 years.  I quit on Dec. 26th, 2009.  I used the gum.  At first I was chewing at least 20 pcs a day, and eventually I got so sick and tired of chewing gum, and the taste of the gum, that I quit that too in Jan.  I smoked marl.reds.  So I'm pretty please with how that all turned.

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         lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Intimate that's awesome, way to go

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         Shadesbreathposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Yeah, I chewed so much gum my jaw joints started making popping noise, so I switched to sunflower seeds.  I jammed so many into my cheeks for so long that the salt started wearing my cheek sore, so, I just stopped all of it.  Been perfectly fine ever since. 

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            lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            

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      lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      awesome Shade, thats a  good plan   thanks

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   WriteAngledposted 14 years ago

   Decades ago, a friend of mine quit on a trip to France. She bought 200 Gauloise with no filter tips. After smoking her way through them, she never wanted to see a cigarette again.

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      lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Write, your plans the best!  I'm going to France

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   megs78posted 14 years ago

   I quit with the patch.  It was very effective.  and you can get a prescription for it so if you have insurance, you can recuperate your money.  I won't say it was easy.  it took a lot of willpower and it was a long couple of months.  yes, i said months.  For me, to fully get over the urges and to start to be able to ignore the things that made me want to smoke (beer, wine, coffee, reading outside, etc) we all have our triggers, it took a good 3 months.  I stuck to my patch and respected the steps and all was good.
   
   I made the decision though.  Nobody pressured me to quit, I wanted it for myself, my future, my health, my kids, etc, and thats how I found the strength to quit. 
   
   It has been 4 years. I wish you all the best Lyrics

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      lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks Megs

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   chinweikeposted 14 years ago

   After smoking a poisoned cig. and was saved by define intervention. The fear of taking another poisoned cig. is keeping me (have i really quit smoking?). This is the fifth year.

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      foreignpressposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Interesting. What's a poisoned cigarette?

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    Kathryn LJposted 14 years ago

    I had a 40 a day habbit untill 2 years ago. I really enjoyed smoking and didn't want to give up.  My husband was working long hours to save for our move to France and I just couldn't square the amount I was spending on something as selfish so I quit.  One week of the replacement patch and then cold turkey.  It was a year before I stopped wanting one but then I started feeling so much better.  Bloody mindedness got me through the worst of it all and although I was a miserable cow for the first few months, the money I was saving kept me going.  Weirdly, I couldn't do it for myself but I could do it for him.  So glad I'm not a slave to smoking now and I know you can quit.  When the time is right for you, you will.  If you fall off the wagon, just hop right back on and if you need a shoulder to cry on, us hubsters will be there for you.

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       lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       I will thanks

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    mega1posted 14 years ago

    I still smoke sometimes, when a friend is smoking sometimes I can't resist.  But I just seldom buy any - and I can't smoke either where I live or where I work - so that made it much easier to do without. 
    
    I honestly don't think about or crave smoking except when I'm around some people - and then I will let myself have one or two, but they never taste very good.  I have to psych myself about it, I never say I have quit, I never tell myself I can't have them if I really want them, but I don't feel like losing my home or job over having a smoke!  and most of my friends have quit.
    
    Long ago when I started stopping, I did it gradually.  If you put your smokes out in a locked car, for example, where you have to really make the decision to go get one - that helps.  Or if you go somewhere, leave them at home.  It is usually true that the craving goes away in about 60 seconds - so just get through each little craving and you've got it made.  Distracting yourself with other good things - your favorite things - also works. 
    
    Oh, and lots of terrific, mind-blowing sex will help you get over just about anything you want to get over, I have found!

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       lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       see, now why didnt I think of that
       
       Thanks

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    Denno66posted 14 years ago

    I just did it cold turkey; I am a sucker for punishment, methinks.

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    Tilecleaninghubposted 14 years ago

    There is only one way to quit smoking and that is cold turkey.  Tried all the other meathods and fail.  One day you just gotta tell yourself that your are no longer a smoker.  No situation or bad day is gonna be an excuse to smoke because your no longer a smoker.  That is it.  Now if only I could do that with the energy drinks.

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       Jewelsposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       Amazing those darn energy drinks, I think they are more addictive and harder to withdraw from than cigarettes.  And cigarettes are harder to get off than heroine, so they say.

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          lyricsingrayposted 14 years agoin reply to this

          as an x heroin addict im telling you cigs are harder-i would never have believed it. thanks jewels

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14. 81

    Jewelsposted 14 years ago

    I did it cold turkey also.  Any other method would be like pulling teeth slowly and painfully.  Cold turkey, and automatically became a non smoker.  Feels great to say I don't smoke.

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    daladycoposted 14 years ago

    When I quit in 1994, i'd smoked for 25 years. I decided to ask ex-smokers what they had done to help them quit and one of the ideas was just great. Drink everything you can out of a straw. It satisfies that "dragging" urge. Works too!

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    foreignpressposted 14 years ago

    Here's one that hasn't been mentioned. Look at x-rays of smokers with emphysema. My dad had emphysema after smoking during the war up to his death. When he died x-rays showed that his lungs were little more than rotted black blobs. Once you understand the effects of nicotine you'll have more incentive.

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    davidseegerposted 14 years ago

    I quit in November 1980. There were 3 elements that made it possible.
    1) I was in the hospital for a week and didn't smoke during that period. When I got out I did want to start again right away.
    2) I had burned a hole in the pants of a new suit just before going into the hospital. I was very angry about that.
    3) Once I started putting off returning to smoking, I kept it up and never did resume. I didn't said I had quit until after about 10 years without smoking. It was just continually postponing it.
    
    By the way, where the heck is the spelling checker?

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    Yoshi Ninjaposted 14 years ago

    www.greensmoke.com/lbp
    
    That's how I quit.
    
    Most amazing thing i've ever tried.

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       tingyi2521posted 14 years agoin reply to this

       my way is easy. everytime i want to smoke i drink a cup of  keemun tea instead. that's how i quit,

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    sxyshiningsmileposted 14 years ago

    i agree with tingyi2521. tea culture is an ancient and unique culture in chinese civilization. in addition, a large-scale tea exhibition will be held in 2010Shanghai World Expo. so tea is healthier than smoking. i strongly recommend you should drink more tea. have a try~

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    HunterGiftBasketsposted 14 years ago

    my tip was remving all the smoking paraphenalia, ashtrays, lighters etc, get everything smelling clean and nice before you stop - since i quit for good Dec 12 2009, I can't stand the acrid smoke smell.

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    Polly Cposted 14 years ago

    My partner was exactly the same, started at 14 and was truly addicted. He'd tried to give up loads of times and never suceeded as he didn't have enough will power to keep it going. He even tried the e-cigarette but that did not work. Last year, however, he tried the new prescription drug champix, which he took for about four months. It does have side effects - it can make you feel nauseous - but after that he never went back to smoking, even at times of stress.

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    chipsdigitalpcposted 14 years ago

    I am in the process of quitting with chantix right now. Have only smoked for about four years, but I became addicted quickly and hard.
    
    With this medication, you continue smoking until day 7 of taking the medication.  My day is tomorrow.  I am pretty sure I'll be ok.  The last couple days, I have smoked about 1/2 what I normally do.  Today, I got ZERO ZERO effect from the nicotine.  Basically that is how it works, I guess.  Blocks the receptors.  On my hub I am actually documenting my process day by day.  Side effects, how much I have smoked, etc.   I write at end of day, so hopefully tomorrow will be "haven't smoked all day" or DAY 1. 
    
    I was "scared" to try this med for a while, but going ok.  I don't work or advertise for chantix, just though I would start a hub since I know there are those out there wondering what it does to "real people" and if it works.

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    shamsulazharposted 13 years ago

    Cold turkey works for me...But there's a bit more to it. When I tried to stop that it doesn't take long for me to fall off the wagon so to speak and start smoking again. I've tried many-many techniques to stop and then it hit me one day. I realized that even though that I stopped smoking, psychologically I'm still a smoker.....albeit one who denies himself the pleasure of smoking.
    
    For instance if you are a alcoholic and one day you are thrown in jail, are you still a alcoholic? The answer is yes. The only difference is that you do not have any access to alcohol. So my point is just denying yourself cigarettes will not work. To really-really stop smoking you have to "be a non-smoker". What that means is that you have to think and have the psychological make up of a non-smoker. Have you heard the saying that to be a millionaire you have to think like one? Well its exactly the same concept.
    
    Smokers and non-smokers are different types of people. If you can walk into a crowded room and then mentally recognize which are smokers and which are not (assuming none are smoking at the time) then you are close. If you lack the ability to tell them apart then this technique might not work for you.
    
    Ok, now lets say that you can tell the smokers and non-smokers apart, question yourself what behavioral characteristics which different. Once you recognize the nuance in thinking/behavior all you need to do is model the thinking patter of a non-smoker.
    
    Once I recognize this in myself, I instantaneously was able to quit with zero cravings whatsoever.

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    waynetposted 13 years ago

    I quit smoking by some old tramp pissing all over me, I soon stopped smoking then!!

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    chipsdigitalpcposted 13 years ago

    chantix

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    leoavinashposted 13 years ago

    hi i know its really very hard to quit but once you decide & engage in other activities surely will be able to quit.

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    CYBERSUPEposted 13 years ago

    You are so right, you must want to stop.
    
    If you say you can----You will !
    
    If you say you can't---Your Right

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