Smoking - Breaking the Habbit

[switch]

I have been smoking for a good 12 years, fully addicted for about 10 years. In the past I have attempted to quit and once did so for about 6 months. In those 6 months I felt free and enjoyed most of all the smell of flowers as I was jogging past the various houses in my neighbourhood. Being able to taste my food as it was meant to taste also felt great. I never did care about the money I saved as I would have spent it on something else anyway.

I'm at that stage of my life again where I want to quit and quit for good. With each smoke the point of it all seems so destructive and my body is telling me in big clear signals to stop. My weight has once again fallen below my average for my height and my appetite is not what it should be. Each meal all I think about is how good that cigarette is going to taste. All the smokers know what I mean.

Ten minutes ago I just had a shower. After each shower I have a cigarette. It's one of those things we smokers do after or before an event or at a particular time of the day. Some light up as soon as they start up their car. Some as soon as they exit a train. Some before getting to work in the morning and at lunch. We all do it, it's a habbit and most of us do it at a subconcious level.

Ten minutes ago I had a shower but I didn't have a cigarette. Instead, I came down to my study room and I wrote this. I'm hoping it's the start of breaking my habbit and this time for good. I know that I'm going to have more cigarettes. Hell, I'm probably going to buy a few more packets before I actually quit. The point is, I didn't have a cigarette after my shower. Next time, I won't light up after a meal. The time after that I won't reach for the pack when I get in my car. Finally, one day I will go out with my friends and I'll get drunk, the ultimate test, while only inhaling second hand smoke from the people around the bar.

 

[Melissa426]

:asian: Good for you! I hope you succeed in this endeavor. Please keep us informed here so we know how you are doing!

The journey of a 1000 miles begins with a single step.

Peace,
Melissa

 

[Tidy_Sammy]

Good luck, I've just quit myself, it's been about 3-4 weeks since I've had a cigarette.

I'm 18 (nearly 19) and had smoked since I was 15.

I'm starting to slowly see an improvement in my fitness, it will take time though.

 

[TigerWoman]

Here is another lengthy thread on smoking--it was meant to be a support area. Check it out here Congrats on the first move. Mind over matter and one hour at a time.

Probably alot less hard, I am going on the South Beach diet again. My third day and it is so hard. I am carb dependent. Its worse having chocolate left over from Easter around. So I pitched it. Dove chocolate too. Can't have it in the house. You probably can't do that but I would suggest you get some help via patch or some kind of assistance to go off it. Whatever helps you quit. And please do use this as a log for your daily struggle. TW

 

[Maltair]

I'm in the same boat as you. I need to quit, have a couple times, but every time I have a drink, gota have a smoke:idunno: .

Had pretty good luck using Welbutrin. The wife wants me to try hypnosis.

Have talked to my sifu and we agreed to make it a req. for brown belt.

 

[donald]

I tried to quit here, and there. Even tried the patch, but the darn thing would'nt stay lit... Finally, what worked was giving it to The Lord Jesus. On the advice of my then Pastor. I asked The Lord to help me stop when He was ready for me to stop. I can't really tell you when it was that I stopped, but I have'nt smoked cigs for at least a couple years now. By The Lord's grace the desire is gone.

By His Grace,
1st John 1:9

 

[switch]

Doing well so far. I've halved my daily intake and after this weekend I'm looking to half it again.

I haven't tried patches and I don't think I will to be honest. It's bad enough that I'm inhaling nicotine via smokes let alone via my skin. I know they have worked for some people but I doubt I'll be one of them.

 

[Dronak]

Breaking any addiction is difficult, so good luck with it. I was going to say that you could try those patches or gums or whatever other quitting aids they have available. There should be a few different ones so if one doesn't work well, another might. But I suspect they're all versions of stepping down the nicotine intake. You can do that yourself and it sounds like that's what you're doing, making a concious effort not to smoke when you normally would. That's good. If you can keep up with it and cut back slowly, you should be able to avoid withdrawl symptoms and succeed in quitting completely. Good luck.

 

[switch]

This weekend coming up is my birthday weekend. I'm having a party at home so I think I'm going to let loose and smoke as much as I want to. Kind of like spoiling myself one last time before I give them the flick.

 

[Raewyn]

Ive been smoking for the last 21 years of my life. Two weeks ago I decided to give up. My training is more important. (and my health) So I have now been smoke free for 4 days. This is an accomplishment in it self. I spent two weeks planning and psyching myself for the day I was going to give it up. I am using nicotene patches, but I dont really know if they are working or not. It is really all in the mind.!!!!! My partner is still smoking. I told him to remove all the cigarettes from the house. While I was cleaning up I found a pkt of smokes in his draw. I spent about an hour looking at them, until I decided to run them under the cold tap.!!

 

[switch]

That's fantastic! Keep me updated now... If you don't reply I know you have folded.

 

[lulflo]

I smoked from 14 to 23 yrs old. I was having the worst golf game I had ever had, not that any of them were really good, but this one was bad. I am talking like in the 130's and I still had 2 holes left to go on a par 72. So to make things worse, it started to sprinkle, then rain, then pour. I couldn't find my darn ball anyway and as I was running with my golf bag down the middle of the fairway - nowhere near my ball, I just decided that it was useless, I wasn't having any fun anyway, so I got to my car and lit up my smoke (6 years ago now). I had myself a little conversation. I said, "God, if I never have another game of golf that bad again in my life, this will be the last cigarette that I smoke"! That being said, I sure did enjoy that cig, but went home and told my wife that I was done smoking as I threw away my pack of smokes with two camel wides left in it. She laughed and said she had heard that before. But to her (and my) amazement, I quit. Like I said it was 6 years ago now. I still like the smell of smoke for some reason, but I just made a conscious decision that I would no longer do that to myself. I found that, just like you coming to the computer to write this, I had to fill my time up with new habits. I stopped taking breaks outside with the smokers for about 6 months until I felt comfortable again. I also found something else to do for just about every time that was normally smoke time. I liked dum dum lolipops a lot during that first couple of days too. Good luck to you, hope any of this keeps your attention long enough to last a few more moments/hours/days/weeks/months/years.



Oh yeah, my golf game hasn't ever been even close to that bad since

 

[Raewyn]

That's fantastic! Keep me updated now... If you don't reply I know you have folded.

Ha Ha, Im not gonna fold............. Im gonna quit and stay smoke free. Im too stubborn to give up now!!!!!!!!!

 

[switch]

Nice story lulflo And btw, you haven't seen a bad game of golf until you have played a round with me.

Raisin, keep reporting...

 

[Feisty Mouse]

switch ~ keep up the good work! Once you quit - no looking back!

TW ~ I don't know how to give up carbs. Good luck to you - I'm a carb freak.

 

[switch]

Hi all

It's my B'day today and I've resolved to cut down to about 2 per day and then completely cut them off. Today I've had 2 already and I'm probably going to have one more as a celebration before I go to bed but I'm rather proud of myself as I've resisted the urge and only lit up when I permit myself, not when I felt like one.

 

[Feisty Mouse]

HUZZAH! Good for you. I hope it goes well.

 

[raedyn]

Every progress is worth celebrating. Good for you.

 

[arnisador]

Good luck!

 

[Raewyn]

Hi all

It's my B'day today and I've resolved to cut down to about 2 per day and then completely cut them off. Today I've had 2 already and I'm probably going to have one more as a celebration before I go to bed but I'm rather proud of myself as I've resisted the urge and only lit up when I permit myself, not when I felt like one.

Good on you. When giving up you need to devise a plan, on how you are going to do it. Its great that you are cutting down to two a day, it is better than doing nothing about it at all. Maybe soon, you will be down to having none a day!!!! I think you'll do great!