Knocking tobacco on the head after 30 years

Just into day 4 of quiting , keeping busy seems like the best way to divert the mind , I had a lash of pints last night and sure enough it wasnt long before I caved in and took a cigarette from a friend . I dont see any point in vaping nicotine or any of the other nicotine based 'keep you hooked' products .

Im already seeing some small benefits from the short lay off , less lethargic and less coughing first thing in the morning .

Id be interested to hear any methodologies people have used sucessfully to give up .

Try not quitting but, put it off until after work or around that evening time. Then go nuts if you want........

After a couple of weeks, chances are you won't be looking forward to it as much and it just kinda stops....... Start off cheating if you have to early on but you have to try really hard to do it......

It worked for me......

quit for 7 years... :....started again for almost 3 years.....tried the same method and it worked again real quick.............

I think the looking forward to it gives you the extra motivation to get through the day.... and you're not "quitting" ....


I think it would only work with cigarettes though because of the nastiness that comes with it after a long day........ so stay away from the vaping......if you want to kick the nicotine.....

I was also pretty surprised later in life how a totally raw diet of fruits and veggies for a couple of weeks  broke all my cravings for sodas and sweets  and it stuck for good......... I wonder how a cleanse might benefit this nicotine stuff too...... I did some bentonite clay/psyllium husk (sp?) stuff into that diet as well as some other herbs...... I actually did it for almost two months because it was pretty easy after a bit....pretty hard in the beginning week though..... changed my eating habits for sure..... I can fast all day sometimes and it's no sweat really.....

I've known three people personally that were never successful going cold turkey, but all three were successful with vaping.  Each person is different however.  Vaping lets you dose nicotine very precisely which means you can taper it off in a manner that works for you.

But in the end, you may have to try a few things! Good luck!

Ive cut way back on sugars in the last few years too, I dont even like that sugar rush feeling anymore .
A buddy of mine swears by fasting , he says its more like how we existed for many thousands of years as hunter gatherers.
I also use the 80% rule at the table , and try never eat until Im bloated and discomforted .
I cant find it now but recently I searched for the secrets of the longest lived societies , it was quite interesting in the fact that many peoples basically came to the same conclusions ,despite being on totally different parts of the planet .
I think its time for action against soft drinks manufacturers , if smoking which comes some way down the list compared to diet, is required to have ugly pictures on the packaging , why shouldnt sugary drinks carry photos of naked dead fat people or diabetics whose appendages have withered . Its kind of incongruous,  someone with an eating disorder who's trying to starve themselves to death is prevented from doing so , yet theres a sense of entitlement to be able to eat yourself to death now.

Thanks for the 'not quiting' tip Scott , Im definately not getting into Nicovapes , I seen a few people very very badly strung out from those things , not sure how safe  vapourised nichrome is in the lungs either .

I did hear of a few who did manage to quit by gradually reducing the dose , by adding extra propylene glycol and glycerine to vape mixes they got in the store . Now the Chinese thrift stores are starting to stock vape liquids , about a quarter of the price of more well known local brands .

Vaping is supposed to be useful in strategy to taper off, and exposes you to less carcinogens in the process. I've buried too many close relative smokers, Including two siblings, with cancer, to be casual about this. Both quit before the end game, but apparently didn't quit soon enough to change their trajectory.

You need to quit years ago...  Since you can't do that quit today, if you can't do that quit tomorrow. 

Good luck...

JR

Keep your eyes on the prize.
Mike

I failed quitting. And I tried hard for a long time.

Than I had a major oral surgery - and not starting again worked for me, and it wasn't even too hard.

I've known three people personally that were never successful going cold turkey, but all three were successful with vaping.

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+1

It takes some getting used to, but it satisfies the oral fixation, the lung-feel somewhat, and of course you get the nico delivery with ability to reduce it down to nothing.

As was already said tho, you do have to keep your eyes on the prize, or you'll only be trading bad habits.

I agree also about looking forward to being free of the monkey, you have to really want to quit to quit.  You gotta convert the desire into daily action with an N+1 to it all.

sodderboy said:

Keep your eyes on the prize.
Mike

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boji said:

As was already said tho, you do have to keep your eyes on the prize, or you'll only be trading bad habits.

I agree also about looking forward to being free of the monkey, you have to really want to quit to quit.

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All true, I failed 20 times but succeeded the 21st time, after 20 years of heavy nicotine abuse, now since ca. ten years...  One of the things I´m proud of. So my tip is don´t stop stopping, if you failed smoke like hell a couple days then stop again. And the motivation must be from within. It´s unhealthy, expensive, etc: not enough motivation for an addict 
Now I could be closed in in a prison cell with a pack of and wouldn´t even think of smoking it. The craving is just gone, but I think if I would consume the substance, I´d fall again soon ("addiction is forever", it´s a fact, another one is "best time for quitting is always NOW", if you can´t do it now, you won´t do it tomorrow!

I wish you success. Also I´m with the thoughts on industrial food, I try to avoid it and it doesn´t hurt to have a day without eating...

I gave up before vaping was invented. I found the hardest part was  losing the familiar feel of a cigarette between my fingers, especially after meals. I don't know where I got it but I found a plastic cigarette that you could suck and which had a menthol flavour. I had a few drags on that every time I felt the need. I have not smoked since 1997.

Stick with it. The benefits are enormous.

Cheers

Ian

Thank you all for your encouragement ,

I havent really got any withdrawl type effects yet , I did notice I seem to sleep more lightly and once I do wake  I seem to be able to bounce out of bed with more energy than before . Another thing Ive noticed is being able to breathe deeper and easier ,
early days yet , but its all going well for now .

Good luck! 

I wish you good luck in your endeavor.  It's a tough one for sure.  There is a lot to curbing this and it will not happen over night.  going 4 days with out a smoke and then having a relapse of one ciggy while not ideal is not so bad.  If you want to quit you will. This is just part of the whole struggle with it all. I know you got this. So crack on and get back on that horse.

Advice against vaping.

An 18 year old where I worked was complaining of terrible headaches so he went to his doctor.  He found out his blood pressure was sky high so put him on meds for that and sent him for scans at the local hospital.  He came in to speak to me and the CEO about it and we started to ask questions.  Turns out he was quitting smoking and had been vaping, so every time he felt rough he vaped!

A quick search on google revealed that the main effect of nicotine is high blood pressure!  So he felt safe vaping to excess cos its not cigarettes and so brought on this new problem.  He stopped the vaping and the problem went away.

There are lessons for smokers and Doctors there!

Good Luck Mate

DaveP

Yeah I've been curious about the history of tobacco and nicotine. I remember reading a quit smoking book that had mentioned the "nightshade" plant family.....Actually deadly in some forms...... Maybe one day I'll read up on it.....it would be crazy if the Natives were like "here, take this stuff".......That'll teach you......

scott2000 said:

Yeah I've been curious about the history of tobacco and nicotine. I remember reading a quit smoking book that had mentioned the "nightshade" plant family.....Actually deadly in some forms...... Maybe one day I'll read up on it.....it would be crazy if the Natives were like "here, take this stuff".......That'll teach you......

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I think I've read two different books on the subject decades ago.. I am not a smoker but interested.

If it wasn't for carcinogens associated with the delivery system nicotine might be a miracle drug... I call it the "worker bee" drug because it helps people do repetitive boring tasks without being distracted by almost anything else surely to be more interesting.

I believe it is also a mood leveler so help manage emotional swings (mostly used to mitigate lows).  Is an appetite suppressant so helps people manage impulse eating (by impulse smoking no doubt).

I don't want this to sound like I am saying good things about nicotine, but vaping promises to be less unhealthy than smoking. Of course anything in excess can be abused, and all psycho-active chemicals need to be understood and respected. 

If you don't vape don't start, but if trying to quit smoking , it may be a useful tool to help taper off.

JR

I quit smoking after thirty years of heavy nicotine abuse - cold turkey method. After two weeks I had overcome the physical addiction, than the real fight started. It is a good idea to avoid situations and people which make you want to smoke for the first 6 to 12 months. Alcohol and Rock n Roll lifestyle are dangerous in this period. Sports is now your new friend and helps a lot to compensate the holes in your life.

Being afraid (medical reasons) is not enough motivation to stop smoking forever, its ok for the first weeks but it will not last forever. You have to change your mind. You have to switch from negative reasons to stop smoking to positve advantages not to smoke again - thats the trick! Think about the new freedom you will win, you are not a slave of your addiction anymore. You will save money and time and your physical condition will be on a total new level. You and your flat (car, boat, clothing...) will not stink like hell anymore and you nose will start to work again and you will beginn to smell the world around you.

I was "clean" after two years, the trigger moments were almost gone and I was stable enough to live my live without any restrictions.

Today after 8 years without smoking, its really hard for me to believe that I had smoked for such a long time! It is so far away I feel like I have never been a smoker.

Be strong and free yourself from that addiction. There will be a day you will laugh about your smoking habits.

My dad smoked 30 years and one day quit, out of the blue, cold turkey.

As a kid it was hell for me - both parents smoked. I’ll never forget riding in the car with one of them smoking, with the windows rolled UP! And they wouldn’t let me roll them down!

Now it sounds like child abuse, but suffice it to say it put me off ever wanting to smoke. Blessing in disguise.

My Grandad smoked all his life until he got Emphysema.  He went into the Doctors & they said if he gave up immediately he might have 3 years left to live.    He came out of the Doctors and never smoked again.  Roughly 10 years later when he eventually died my father found the half finished packet of cigarettes that he walked out of the Doctors with in a drawer.   

In my view giving up is probably one of the hardest things to do for some people, but also one of the most rewarding in terms of how much better you feel when it's out of your system properly.  Keep at it, the benefits of giving up outweigh the cons 100% because there is not one single benefit to keep smoking, there are only detriments.

Based on what you just wrote - Dont drink until you've settled into it!

Gustav