Ok ex smokers

[MadDuck]

It is time. I got the Nocobrevin and it is time to give the fags away (that is cigerettes not what you might want to condur up).
Any of you here had to beat the cravings? Give some advise on how best to bet this. Chewing gum, rude mags, biker mags.....whatever it takes

[wari]

It is time. I got the Nocobrevin and it is time to give the fags away (that is cigerettes not what you might want to condur up).
Any of you here had to beat the cravings? Give some advise on how best to bet this. Chewing gum, rude mags, biker mags.....whatever it takes

Thats one of the tuffer battles you're going to have MD ...

I managed it going cold terkey ... took more than one attempt mind.

Havn't hada smoke and a pancake since 1986 ...

ALthough ... I did havea cuban or two after my mate got back from you know where last year ... :doobey:

[wkid_one]

Switch to cigars!

[Her_C4]

Different strokes for different folks..... :yeah:

I had been trying to give up smoking for as many years as I had been doing it. Trust me - that is a LOT of years...... ;)

Nothing worked for me - I tried gum, patches, pills, (some of them many many times!) and willpower and felt totally frustrated that I was destined to be a smoker forever.

I read a book by Allen Carr (can't remember the title - I lent it to someone and never got it back!) about stopping smoking and vs beliefs, habits, subconcious and so on.... thought 'bah humbug' and chucked it onto the bookshelf. Got it out several times to read bits of it again....and put it back again. Never did me any good......

Or did it<?> On the 26th gazillionth attempt I managed to quit cold turkey. That was 18 months ago. I know that if I even puff on another cigarette then I am lost, so I stay away as much as I can ......

Identify your weak points - substitute... after a meal do something different - try make sure you run out of smokes earlier in the evening - surround yourself with non smokers - smell your clothes after you have been without a ciggie for a day or two (ugh) - find yourself a buddy that you can 'share' with.

Most of all - congratulate yourself every minute of every day that you go without, becuase in the beginning it is all about the minutes.......

Good luck:-)

[maybe]

I had an easy time giving up late last year, had two heart attacks on the 4th December, ended up on life support for approx 22 hours and was told if I didn't stop smoking the chances of another heart attack was pretty good and the chances of surviving pretty slim so I guess that was a pretty good incentive to stop......

My wife is on her third day of not smoking and is using patches.......

[Jackrat]

I gave up while spending a month in hospital after my big prang.
I don't recommend that.
The book by Alan Carr that B4 mentions is quite good,you can get it at Whitcols.I think it's called "Smoke free for life".Just ask at whitcols,they sell heaps.My wife gave up last year after trying all the patches,pills and other things with no success.She just went cold turkey and so have most of the others I know that have been successfull.
Best of luck.

[riffer]

Cold Turkey is the only method I ever found that worked. Started smoking at 12, gave up at 22.

I've been smokefree for 15 years now. And I can never have another cigarette or I'll be straight back into it.

There's no magic pill unfortunately. You just have to not smoke. But it does get easier. It took me about six weeks before I stopped feeling really bad. And about a year before I stopped missing that first fag of the day, the one just after dinner, the smoke with the beer.

They're the tough ones - the ones you associate with other things. But it does get easier.

Congratulations on your decision.

[PuppetMaster]

Have a read of this site m8.
http://whyquit.com/whyquit/LinksCAids.html

Im pretty much in the same boat as you. I actually gave up a while ago for 6 weeks, but Ive started again, hopeless.
I tried patches but they didnt seem to make any differenece at all, so ended up going cold turkey. And eventually i did it. But the sweet lure of nicotine dragged me back to the dark side, but I see now that that was my choice, damn freedom of choice.
I have read that people whom use anti-depressants are able to stop smoking easier. The new stop smoking drugs are based on anti-depressants. next time thats what Im gonna do, get all high on happy drugs.

Good luck. :eek:

[toads]

Well I gave up 20 years ago well before patches were available routinely, I just went cold turkey, it was really difficult but I made up my mind that I was a non-smoker and told everyone I knew I was giving up, that way they would all get on my case if I dared to put one near my lips, I took vitamin b complex ( helps the nerves) and adopted new routines, gave up coffee and alcohol at the same time temporarily as coffee and fags always happened at the same time, I sat in a different chair, took lots of fresh air and chewed a lot of strong mint gum, I have to say 2 years ago I was very stressed and smoked 2 rollies one after the other and realised to my horror the pschological addiction was still lurking after 18 years of being free of the smoking habit, it's a mind game pretty much after the first 2 weeks, tell yourself you will never be a smoker again every day, keep a couple of old cig butts in a jar of water and smell them when you are tempted, man they stink!! good luck man

[claire]

but I just stopped cold turkey about 18 months ago after not being too well. I think Toads is right just tell people you're a non-smoker and you just might believe it!! Although like everyone else here I wouldn't dare have a cigarette as I would be addicted again I think. My partner still smokes (can't/won't give up) and very considerately smokes outside now as I am now a true reformed smoker and complain about the smell - that never worried me when I smoked.

GOOD LUCK

Claire

[pete376403]

I gave up when I bought my first new bike on HP (1972 Kawasaki Bighorn, new price was $1169) couldn't afford bike and ciggies. Fortunately I'd not bee a smoker for too long so wasn't deep into the addiction.
Never felt tempted since and have no problem associating with smokers

[MikeL]

FWIW I think that people vary so much both psychologically and physically so what works for one person may not work at all for another. But there is no doubt in my mind that the key is understanding why you smoke (not easy, because there are lots of sub-conscious factors involved). Then you can start to develop a strategy to quit. But don't beat yourself up too much if you fail. Try again. Sooner or later (when you are ready) you will succeed.
I think it was Mark Twain who said that giving up was easy: he had done it dozens of times!

[Jackrat]

Have a read of this site m8.
http://whyquit.com/whyquit/LinksCAids.html

Im pretty much in the same boat as you. I actually gave up a while ago for 6 weeks, but Ive started again, hopeless.
I tried patches but they didnt seem to make any differenece at all, so ended up going cold turkey. And eventually i did it. But the sweet lure of nicotine dragged me back to the dark side, but I see now that that was my choice, damn freedom of choice.
I have read that people whom use anti-depressants are able to stop smoking easier. The new stop smoking drugs are based on anti-depressants. next time thats what Im gonna do, get all high on happy drugs.

Good luck. :eek:

Hey PM,first off thanks for posting that link to the quit smoking site.
Then again mate,Please!! what ever you do keep well away from any anti-depressants.
For reasons I won't go into here I use anti-depressants on a daily basis and they create more problems than they solve.I no longer need these things but I am addicted to them in a far worse way than smoking.
Start using whose things and you will end up anything but happy.
Thanks again for the web site,I will be using it myself as it confirms some of my own views on the subject.
Cheers.

[erik]

it depends what type of antidepressants they are. I was on aropax and then switched to cipramil (both ssri's) for a while and when I stopped, I stopped cold turkey (you're supposed to taper your dose down gradually) and felt kinda out of touch/dizzy for a few weeks or so.
MAOI's (another type of antidepressant) and other drugs might be worse, I'm not sure. I dunno what type the antismoking drugs would be based on.

[magnum]

patches worked for me[12years smoking,5years without].mother smoked for 25 years and hypnotism worked for her.good luck

[Big Dog]

It is time. I got the Nocobrevin and it is time to give the fags away (that is cigerettes not what you might want to condur up).
Any of you here had to beat the cravings? Give some advise on how best to bet this. Chewing gum, rude mags, biker mags.....whatever it takes
Been a smoker for 9 years.
I quit saturday afternoon.
Failed on just about every substitute known to man.
Quit successfully for three month's once (was aided by the fact I had no income and no cigs for the first month. But as It was not something I really wanted to do when dad died I was half way through a pack before I realised what was up.

This time I am trying Pavlovian aversian therapy.

Put a rubber band on your wrist all day.
Snap it hard EVERY time you:
* have a drag.
* think you want a cigarette.
* hear or think the word cigarette.
* smell cigarette smoke.
* or someone smokes on tv on in a movie.


My wrist itches every time I think about it already.
I only craved twive yesterday (I started when I had half a pack to go but my book reccomends a whole pack to condition you properly).
I have not had a single single craving all day, but I am drinking a lot of coffee trying to quell the shakes.

Good luck and don't give up.

[What?]

Educated types could put volumes of psychobabble behind this, but the guts of it is: If you want to stop, you will. If you "can't" give up, it's because you don't really want to.

I went cold turkey after deciding that I wanted to stop. The above advice to tell people you don't smoke is probably the best help you can get - it's the knowledge that everyone will think you are a loser if you start smoking again.

[Ogri]

One thing I will say............

Stay the hell away from the "stop smoking drug" ZYBAN. I ended up in hospital for two weeks back in the UK because of this drug. Didn't even get to the stage where I stopped smoking! Nasty, nasty stuff. They have "linked" two deaths in the UK to this drug.

As for the smoking - I 'm still tring to stop. I reckon it has to be cold turkey - I'm just not ready yet.

Good luck to you and when I'm ready, I'll join you.

[MadDuck]

Thanks guys and gals for some constructive (and not so constructive advice - CIGARS!). This weekend is it!!!!! God now I said it I am committed.

I had not smoked the ciggys for years but had some bad times last couple of years and resorted to them as a comfort (after the initial head spin) only to find ...damn addicted again. Peps at work wouldnt even know.

[scumdog]

It is time. I got the Nocobrevin and it is time to give the fags away (that is cigerettes not what you might want to condur up).
Any of you here had to beat the cravings? Give some advise on how best to bet this. Chewing gum, rude mags, biker mags.....whatever it takes

The old man gave up cold turkey after 30+ years and never looked back, I was speaking to a guy yesterday who I know smoked like a train, gave up 4 months ago using Nicobrevin and reckons it's the bees knees.
He and his wife smoked quite heavily and he reckoned it was costing them $120 a week, both have quit now.
Says he is o.k. at parties etc and reckons he's feeling better for it already

[Big Dog]

Over a week, no more rubber bands. No more cravings in three days. My lungs hurt like f*^& as they try to shed all that tar but if makes me feel good to know its almost over.

I can be around people smoking without wanting one but my wrist aches at the thought, which is an issue working in a store where I sell them all day.

[What?]

Good on ya, BigDog. The one time I don't give people (good natured) shit is when they are kicking the weed. The only thing harder than stopping is staying stopped, so support is the go. {from a sanctimonious reformed smoker}

[babyB]

wants to stop too ,got the nicobreven on hand now, just need the mind to agree lmao

[Big Dog]

wants to stop too ,got the nicobreven on hand now, just need the mind to agree lmao
Try the rubber band thing it really does cause you to associate smoking with unneccessary physical pain.