I Quit Smoking!...Need a bit of encougragement (I'm jonesing!!!)

[Rogerson785]

Try running or cycling to help repair your lungs, it will hurt like hell for a while, but eventually your difficulty of going up two flights of stairs and stamina will increase.

[Arizona Scot]

Good luck and keep the faith it really is a up hill battle at first. My last cigarette was Feb. 20,2000 at 12:30pm, I will always know that date and time. Smoked for over twenty years finally took my wife developing emphasema from second hand smoke for me to quit.

[Fox]

Drink water when you get the urge, it helped take off the initial edge for me. Then try watching your breath. I mean really watch it enter your nostrils, expand your belly, and leave your nostrils. Try it three times, ten times, or a whole hour. If you find yourself thinking about the past and/or the future, gentely bring yourself back to the present moment and start over, counting every exhalation. It is very basic meditation but potentially powerful mojo. I am four years happily clean from all inhaled vices.

[ardchoille]

I've never smoked, but I have been to medical school and I must say quitting is a challenge but it can be done. Congratulations, you should feel extremely proud of yourself. Your body, attitude and personality will all benefit immensely from this.

Just remember.. one day at a time.

[Kilted_Campbell]

Hang in there it is the best thing you will ever do. I am 15 years now Not Smoking. My daughter is now stopping ( yea ). Use a patch, gum, or what ever you need to get over the initial withdrawal. I used the patch, with out it I became sick when I tried and just couldn't handle it.

Good Luck !!!

[Howard Clark]

I had to quit drinking coffee at the same time to make it work. And quit going to the pub. And I chewed a lot of gum, nicotine and other. Good luck, and hang in there.

[Cat]

Thanks for all the encouragement!

It's been nearly two full days without a cigarette, and today was definitely easier than yesterday as far as cravings go. The patch has REALLY helped, although I had some extremely strange and vivid dreams last night (a side-effect of the patch, which I was already aware of.) My cravings haven't been as strong or as long-lasting as they were yesterday, so today was a little more relaxed. I have two friends that are quitting, and they invited me over for a "smoke-free" dinner tonight (home made schnitzel, which was awesome) and we had some oysters as snacks. Even though it's only been a day or two, I was amazed at how much better the oysters tasted (I've never eaten one as a non-smoker before!)

I've had a few beers tonight and last night, but that hasn't caused any problems (we haven't been able to smoke in bars here for a couple years, so I'm used to not smoking when I drink.) The worst has been sitting at my computer for hours, because I'm used to chain-smoking while I'm sitting here. I'm chewing a lot of gum and eating a lot of hard candy, and I think I'm going to get some cinnamon toothpicks (or maybe some of that licorice root if I can find it) tomorrow. I got bored last night, so I decided to see how many pieces of gum I could fit in my mouth...I got 15 sticks in there before it was uncomfortable to chew! Completely pointless, I know, but I was trying to keep occupied and it worked!

I know I'm not technically supposed to use more than one kind of nicotine replacement, but I've found that if I get a really bad craving, even with the patch, if I suck on a nicotine lozenge, it really helps (although I spit it out far before it's completely dissolved, so I don't start getting sick from too much nicotine.)

Anyway, thanks a lot for all the support! It's been a big help, and will continue to be as I work through all this!

[7 miles]

[QUOTE=Cat;534579]Thanks for all the encouragement!

It's been nearly two full days without a cigarette, and today was definitely easier than yesterday as far as cravings go. The patch has REALLY helped, although I had some extremely strange and vivid dreams last night (a side-effect of the patch, which I was already aware of.)

So did you wear the kilt in your dreams?

[Bugbear]

That's good! Keep hanging in there.

[cessna152towser]

Well I never got hooked on smoking, could count on my fingers the total number of ciggies I ever smoked and have not smoked one for more than thirty years. Though I did get too found of alcohol. Don't beat yourself up about previous lack of success in remaining quitted - a common pattern of withdrawal from an addiction is to go without for increasingly longer periods - the longer you go without, the more people you will tell I don't smoke or I don't drink and then if you did have the occsional one you will feel increasingly bad about it and you will know you no longer do this or even want to. I have not had booze for nearly four years and could never see myself going back to it now. I feel so much healthier and fitter. My whole outlook on life has changed including a much prolonged life expectancy so that I feel and act twenty years younger than my real age. The day you quit an addiction is the first day of a new and better life. You may not feel the difference in your health for a few months, but in a year or two you will be very glad you decided to quit. Best of luck for your new life!