How to stop smoking?

From Bolton, 773 posts

When you say you want to stop smoking this year??? do you actually mean next year, or are you giving up for only a few days, which will be fairly straightforward

Ive had a lot of friends give up over the last couple of years and the single thing that worked for ALL of them was nicotine patches (which are free from your doctor!!!) ...... Everyone that used them managed to give up without much trouble.................those that didnt found it really hard and soon started again

Why struggle when you dont have to?????

PS - Dont try hypnotherapy !!! I had a friend who tried it last year, but the hypnotherapy didnt take away the craving, she was just programmed to be really disappointed with herself if she did smoke.....after three days she ended up smoking and crying her eyes out whilst doing it because she felt such a let down

From West Wales, 2444 posts

chain your self so something solid so you can't reach the pack

812 posts

Clair, even though you have deleted the majority of my posts i will still try to help you achieve your goal to quit smoking. I will begin by telling you that i quit smoking in january this year after smoking around 20 cigs a day for around 10 years. I quit because i felt the time was right, I felt i could do it, I knew smoking was to be banned in public places, the price of cigs are always going up, and i thought of the benifit to my long term health. I wanted to stop smoking so basically thats what i done.
I didn't use patches or anything else so i couldn't tell you if they work or not, i think it depends on the individual but people i know have used them and they didn't work because they said it doesn't replace the actual putting a cigarette in your mouth and smoking. I know smokers are addicted to nicatine but they are also addicted to actualy lighting up a cig and smoking it. Its a cycle you have to break if you want to stop smoking. Its easy for me sitting here and saying just through your cigs away and don't buy anymore, but thats what you need to do Clair. I wouldn't recommend cutting down or saying i will finish when i finished this pack of 200 i brough back from Gran Canaria. If you find patches are helpful or chewing gum or any of the other methods help then i would say use them, I didn't because i knew deep down i can do it if i set my mind to it, and so can you, but have to want to more than you want to light up.
Everytime you put a cigarette out you have stopped smoking, everytime you light up you have started again. Its as simple as that. Its easy to put a cigarette out, but its much harder not lighting up again.
I found it hard when i was going out drinking and i was surrounded by smokers, atleast you won't have that but it will still be very hard to quit. I think the first month is most difficult and after that it becomes easier and easier. I still get the odd urge here and there but it quickly passes. These people who quit for 2 years and then start again are crazy, i don't understand that but it happens.
I hope you find my comments helpful if not hopefully someone else will. I was going to warn you of the mood swings and bad tempers you might suffer as a side effect of quitting but being a female you will probably just remain the same. You might also put a bit of weight on (I will tell you how to lose it next year when you start a thread called "how to lose weight")
Anyway Clair i hope you succeed in quitting and remember you can do anything if you put your mind to it and you want to.


P.S Try not to delete this post.

From Manchester, 516 posts

I used the Boots patches after smoking upto 40 a day for over 20 years.
Found these actually stayed on my arm.
A few times these felt itchy but thats the nicotine.
After 3 months stopped using the patches and have been smoke free for 6 months.
As other comments its just a craving and habit cycle, sugar free lollipops for the smoking urge and being in places I wasn't allowed to smoke.
For the habit I made sure no smoking materials were available and I rubbed the patch.
Good luck in stopping, the only one who can do it is you.

From So. California-USA, 3015 posts

yellowtimechris hit the nail on the head when he said, "the only one that can do it is you". As with breaking any habit, motovation is the key. That being said I can state two examples. My dad was 68 when he quit a three pack a day habit after smoking fifty-five years. At the time (15 years ago) the nicotine patch was only available by prescription from a medical doctor. This was what helped him in his effort to quit. Gloria1504 wasn't in favor of hypnotherapy, but that is what helped my wife's friend quit after smoking over twenty years. I think a lot depends on the hypnotherapist and it sounds like Gloria's friends had a bad one. Lee1977 had a lot of good advice too. The habit of smoking may be harder to quit than the nicotine addiction. Your body eventually gets over the nicotine addiction, but according to my dad you never get over the "habit" of smoking. When I asked him about it he said that to this day he still thinks he would have no problem lighting up in certain situations. This after being a nonsmoker for 15 years. It's up to you and the amount of motivation. Ultimately what works is anything. Losing weight is a good example of that. Why certain diets work for some people and not others and why almost any diet will work for individual people is personal motivation. Just like "cold turkey", patches or hypnotherapy work for some and not others in regards to stopping smoking. Which brings us back to, "the only one that can do it is you". If you feel truly motivated about stopping smoking then you are half way there. Without that personal motivation, nothing you do will accomplish stopping. When you consider the costs of smoking, both monitarily and health wise, it's certainly the right thing to do. We are all pulling for you here and when you need encouragement I hope you'll call on us again. Good luck Clair and keep us posted on your progress.

From NSW, Australia, 1249 posts

Its easy `Just give it up!!`

It`s called Basic Human Willpower

56 posts

In my experience, I would give you the advice to not say 'I will have my last at new years eve' and just quite this instant.
You have to be in control, and if you dont want to quit then you won't succeed.

From South West UK, 2002 posts

You really have got to WANT to give up smoking and yes, you can do it!! I'm STILL not smoking, it's now been nearly 3 months for me. This was the first time I really WANTED to stop.
If I can do it - anyone can!!! I had been smoking for 30 years!!!

2 posts

Its now January the 30th. Did you give up new year? I hope so Clair. If so how you getting on? I gave up 4 months ago using the stop smoking aid champix. I got these from my doctor, they are a tablet which you use while smoking for up to 14days, then you stop. these are the best aid I have used and the process has been remarkably pain free. They work by interfering with the nicotine receptors in the brain. Its really weird, during the first two weeks whilst still smoking I would light up and feel really odd about what I was doing as I got no pleasure from it. I lit up through habit and ended up throwing away 2/3rds of my tab all the time. by the end of the two weeks I was down from 20 cigs a day to 2-3 and it was easy to completly give up then. Even in the pub it was fine, I got no cravings, what a relief as it has been the pub that has led to my downfall in the past. The new no smoking rule n pubs/ restaurants has been a big help too. I hope you had a go at quitting clair. Let us know.
Karlito

From Mankato, MN, 4109 posts

A friend of mine had really good luck with this:

chantix