I have been a smoker for over 30 years but decided a week ago that I was going to quit. My health and the cost were both factors in my decision. It hasn't been easy but I am very determined this time. I have tried to quit in the past but never made it passed three days, so I'm doing well.
I used to smoke when I was younger occasionally, but I never got addicted to it. Right now I think I last smoked last 2010. I never really craved for it after that. It's good to know that I'm immune to being addicted to it.
Eating a poor diet is far more addictive and will kill you faster.. yet everyone jumps on the smokers lol. I find that amusing actually
You are so lucky you never got addicted to it. I am on my 10th day of quitting and still crave a cigarette. I wonder if the craving will ever really go away!
It will if you make the effort to keep pushing through. Good for you! You know what helped me? Fruit. Your body is deprived of vitamin c when you smoke, so my body craved it like never before after I quit. I practically overdosed on oranges lol. I also sucked on a lot of candy.. Worthers, so amazing. I didn't mind doing that because anything at that point was better than smoking and it kept my mouth busy through cravings and they passed quicker and quicker. I did gain a few pounds, but I also changed the way I ate after I stopped craving night and day and cut out the candy.. so I've never felt or looked better. It does pass.. you just have to be confident it WILL pass and keep reminding yourself of that.
Thanks for your support, Josie. Actually I have been drinking a lot of orange juice because someone told me, it had helped them. I never drank it before, but find myself craving it now. I have been sucking on straws which seems to help a bit. It may look funny but it helps. I am so determined this time and I know the craving will pass eventually, I just have to stick with it.
I don't know what it is but recently I have been wanting to stop smoking. The desire has been getting stronger and stronger, and I am traveling soon, so saving money in order to make that happen is another source of motivation to stop smoking. I have stopped smoking weed altogether, and it really hasn't been that hard. It never has been actually where weed is concerned. It's hard for me to see where people are addicted to Marijuana, save the mental link. Recently I have been having one or two small smokes a day, and that is it.
Yeah I guess so, can you just imagine the money I'd be wasting on cigarettes? And I don't like the taste of regular cigarettes, the ones I smoke are only menthol ones. I heard that there are also other flavors, but I haven't tried them yet.
I don't know why, but so many younger people smoke these days, I guess it has continued to be a "fashion" over the years. I personally know a lot of people who started smoking because one of their friends, or someone close to them was a smoker. I've tried it a couple of times but I really don't like it, it gives me a headache to be honest. But I still don't see why people start doing it (apart from the reason above), I mean it's not like hookahs where you are getting flavor or something out of it. I think some people just start doing it and then they get used to it, and then can't stop. But I would advise all younger people to stay away from it, the health hazards are obvious.
I never took up smoking. For me its a nasty habit and there is nothing appealing about it. I have been around those who smoke and have had to deal with second had smoke in the past. I hated it, but I couldn't tell them to stop smoking around me. Fortunately, now there are a whole lot more warnings about the fact that second hand smoke can be dangerous for individuals so people who smoke are now made to understand that their habit isn't just dangerous for them but for those around them. Many places now prohibit smoking in the place of work and many public places prohibit it as well. I have a few good friends who smoke but they know to only do it outside and not in a car or in their home especially when I am around and I appreciate that.
So awesome! Good for you Dreekster, I'm happy to hear that ))) For the money aspect alone, it's huge. The pride in it once you've quit; amazing. I honestly felt all giddy when I could finally call myself a non smoker lol. And it was getting more and more uncomfortable and effecting my looks and health. Anyway.. all stuff you know.. just proud of you
The very first time that I tried it, I was very young and it made me cough and I hated it. Later on in the years, I tried it again, and had terrible nicotine rush and headache. But I guess life got too much and I needed something to fill the void. Smoking became something that I could rely on I never smoked due to it being a cool fad. JosieP, thank you The tip about the vitamin C will certainly come in handy. I've known that I could not sustain this habit for a while now, but now I'm thinking more practically in terms of getting rid of it altogether I have always thought of you as a woman of strength, but knowing that you have been through the quitting smoking thing just adds another layer to the onion
That is great news Dreek and I hope the desire stays strong and you succeed. I would like to say the struggle is getting easier but I'm on day 12 and still struggling, but I haven't smoked, so that is something. Here in Canada a package of the cigarettes I smoke are almost 12 bucks so I will save tons if I can keep it up. Traveling these days is hard on smokers because there are very few places we can smoke. Best of luck to you
Yes exactly, it's so expensive here. Remember that 5 minute experiment where cigarettes cost 2 or 3 dollars a pack? What was with that?? Then boom, over ten bucks. Already sounds more expensive than when I quit. 12 days is great and nobody should expect to be done with the addiction at that point. At around the same time was when I had a major detox experience. It takes a long time for that stuff to leave your body and cravings will come and go the rest of your life, but I promise, they will be manageable. When I get a craving now, I'm like "huh.. a craving".. then I shrug and move on haha. You're doing awesome.. "Nobody said it would be easy, but it will be worth it". @Dreekster: I'm an onion! Woohoo.. just like Shrek. Yeah, if I get anything, it's addiction. I was the excuse queen for years. Getting honest with yourself and deciding to make such a big change WHILE addicted, is amazing. I know you'll do it
Well the first thing is that I am noticing that after I smoke I am starting to feel bad. Like, my body feels bad and I kind of feel sick?? Kind of like when I tried it for the first time and that nicotine rush hit me, and I wondered why a smoker would enjoy such a sensation. The congative dissonance of a smoker is very interesting to me. Blueeyes, thank you very much!! Firstly congratulations for making it the 12 days!!!!! I cannot believe that cigarettes are so expensive there :O If I had lived in Canada, with prices like that, I may not have ever picked up the habit in the first place Keep going!!! 12 days is amazing, and as a fellow smoker I understand what that would take. JosieP, I find that the act of smoking itself isn't all that enjoyable?? It's the emotional reliance on it that is my problem. There are days where I am doing other things, and will not 'need' to have a smoke all day. BUT, I like knowing that I have smokes there if I so choose to smoke them?? It's weird and annoying lol. If I have got smokes, I often don't smoke them, but if I run out, I have to go to the shop and restock as soon as possible, just so that the smokes are there lol. I am there with the honest with myself part. It is the actual making the change part that I have to kick my ass into gear over now, my dear onion
Haha, yes exactly. For the first little while after I quit, I had to have a pack in the house or I'd feel all panicky. I had to know they were still there for me if I needed them lol. I smoked most of my life, it was like cutting off a body part and relearning how to live without it. So it was a comforting to know I had a safety net.. but only because I knew I was finally ready to go through every discomfort possible in order to throw them out forever. They never got opened. I couldn't imagine you being anything but honest, so I know you're being as rational as you can be. If you're not quite ready, you're not quite ready. Or another option; the one I finally took... just jump. Maybe not now or tomorrow, but for me, I realized there was always always something stopping me (I was cutting down to nothing, but obviously still holding on) so I needed to not think anymore, ready or not and just go with it. I stopped that moment, scared as hell lol.. and I haven't smoked since. I did it when I was least ready LOL. But that may not work for everyone, my dear....... cabbage?? lmao!
I used to smoke. In fact, I just quit last December 31, 2014 and one of my new year's resolution is to stop smoking - and to this day, I am proud to say that I have never touched a single stick since. To be honest, it was difficult. I had an on and off relationship with cigarettes and since my father died of cancer, I promised that I will quick this terrible habit and thank God, I was able to. I just stay away from those who smoke so I will not be exposed to it again... pleaseeeee.
I do not smoke and also I hate those people who smoke. I think it is just another slow and steady way to kill you. I do not understand why people ever start smoking. It is just too dangerous.
YES!!! Exactly. You described the emotional process, as well as the thought process perfectly!!!! It's having that safety net that is the main thing, or I feel like I have nothing to fall back on and get all panicky lol!!! One of my spiritual teachers used to smoke. She quit years ago, but she keeps an unopened box of cigarettes on her mantelpiece as a reminder that she kicked the habits butt, and even seeing the box every day, makes her feel grateful, and proud, and strong I'm going to have to do this You are right again!!! Quitting is definitely going to have to be one of those things where I just jump and stop. I'm definitely going to have to keep a box in the house at first though. It's even more of a feat, knowing that you quit after having smoked your entire life. I have only been smoking for up to four or fie years now, and it is difficult to remember a time where I didn't?? So for you, it literally must have been like cutting off a limb!! Yet you still did it, which is super inspiring. Thank you for sharing your story, JosieP PS: Cabbage??? Lmaooo!! That's the best I get?? Hahaha!!!!
You are welcome and thank you too. Today is two weeks and I will admit I had a rough weekend. I got through it but I was really antsy and hyper. Trust me when I started, cigarettes were much more affordable or I wouldn't have started either. You mentioned running out of cigarettes. That used to be such a concern of mine, too. I would really panic if I didn't have any for the morning with my coffee. Its funny because my roommate suggested I keep a couple just to go through the motions without lighting it and I didn't think it was a good idea. I guess I know myself too well. I didn't take his advice and I'm glad I didn't because I know I would have smoked this weekend. I am so determined this time and I think that makes all the difference in the world.
