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Give and get support around quitting

gudwitch44
Member

How do I just go cold turkey ???

I want and need to quit smoking but I keep saying just one more and that’s it !! Never works that way. I’m afraid to not have that pack of cigarettes almost like a security blanket- any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

12 Replies
AnnetteMM
Member

How do you go cold turkey?  You stop buying cigarettes and stop smoking and you keep not buying and you keep not smoking.  Read all the blogs on this site and learn all you can about nicotine addiction, which is what that "security blanket" actually is.

Here's a trick I heard of - pick your nemesis political candidate and for every dollar you spend on Sickerettes you have to donate to that candidate! There is no way on this planet I will let XXXXX have even one centavo of my money! If you don't buy them and pledge not to beg, borrow , steal, or dig out of the trash you will go cold turkey, like it or not!

Or you can just go /blogs/SkyGirl-blog/2013/06/10/a-smart-turkey?sr=search&searchId=2214d10c-90a9-4b46-8fa1-91dd8eee685...‌.

MarilynH
Member

Welcome to the community please read everything you can about quitting smoking and remaining quit because there's a wealth of information here to strengthen your resolve to kick the nicotine poison to the curb and start living a life of Freedom pick your quit date and when your Day ONE arrives stay close to this site because we're all here to help you in any way we then at the end of the day you can look yourself in the mirror and smile and say yay for Day WON with many more to you can do this quit believe it......

Smedley995
Member

Something I plan on trying is something that a Dr had suggested to me. Get an empty cigarette pack and fill it with cigarette length straws. When you have the urge to smoke grab a straw out of the pack. Inhale and exhale just like you would smoking through the straw holding in between your fingers. That may not work for everyone but since she had suggested it, I am definitely going to try it.

JACKIE1-25-15
Member

You start by making a commitment that no matter what you are not going to smoke.  Get rid of all material connected to smoking.  Educate yourself about nicotine addiction.  Make a promise to your self that you will not touch them.  Be determined not one puff ever. https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/message/30828-quit-kit-aka-tool-box?sr=search&searchId=e6c4a780-f... 

YoungAtHeart
Member

Welcome to our community!

The most important thing you can do right now is to educate yourself on what nicotine does to your body and mind. To that end, I highly recommend Allen Carr's “The Easy Way to Stop Smoking.” This is an easy and entertaining read. You can search for it online or at your local library.

 You should also read the posts here and perhaps go to the pages of folks who you think might be helpful. You might visit whyquit.com, quitsmokingonline.com and livewell.com for the good information contained there. @https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/groups/best-of-ex has lots of blogs written by members of this site with their experiences and guidance. You should also do the tracking and separation exercises suggested in My Quit Plan http://www.becomeanex.org/my-quit-plan.php

A lot of folks here have successfully quit going Smart Turkey (cold turkey).  The nicotine is mostly out of your system in three days.  Then there is a period of time while your body adjusts to life without it.  Then you will just need to deal with the psychological addiction (associations and triggers).

The idea is to change up your routines so the smoking associations are reduced.  Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand in a place different from when you smoked. Maybe switch to tea for a bit.  If you always had that first smoke with your coffee, try putting your tennies on right out of bed, going for a quick walk, then taking your shower and THEN your coffee! Rearrange the furniture in the areas you used to smoke so the view is different. Buy your gas at a different station. Take a different route to work. Take a quick walk at break time where the smokers AREN'T.

You need to distract yourself through any craves.  You can take a bite out of a lemon (yup - rind and all), put your head in the freezer and take a deep breath of cold air, do a few jumping jacks, go for a brisk walk or march in place, play a computer game.  Keep a cold bottle of water with you from which to sip. Don't let that smoking thought rattle around in your brain unchallenged. Sometimes you need to quit a minute or an hour at a time.  You will need to be disciplined in the early days to distract yourself when a crave hits.    Get busy!  Here is a link to a list of things to do instead of smoke if you need some fresh ideas:

https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/blogs/Youngatheart.7.4.12-blog/2013/02/25/100-things-to-do-instea...

The conversation in your head in response to the "I want a cigarette" thought needs to be, "Well, since I have decided not to do that anymore, what shall I do instead for the three minutes this crave will last?"  Then DO it.  You will need to put some effort into this in the early days, but it gets easier and easier to do.

Stay close to us here and ask questions when you have them and for support when you need it. We will be with you every step of the way!

Nancy

elvan
Member

You have gotten some great advice...I tried over and over again to quit and I had literally countless failed quits...I DID come to this site and I did the quit plan, I tracked my cigarettes, I set my date and I failed TWICE in the months before this...my FOREVER quit.  What was the difference?  Why was I able to quit "Cold Turkey" this time...it was taken out of my hands.  I got really sick,  I did not know if I was going to make it and neither did my doctor.  I was struggling so hard to breathe and I was so weak that I could not even cough effectively.  I remembered this site and I remembered all I had learned here and I came back after I had not smoked for a week...I was too sick to come back earlier...I got some Sour Patch Kids to suck on as I sat at my computer and read everything I could possibly find on nicotine addiction and what was working for others.  This site is amazing, I got support and love and I learned more than I could possibly have ever anticipated.  I came here every morning and every evening and I read blogs, I commented, I asked for advice and I LISTENED when it was offered because I KNEW it was coming from people who had been EXACTLY where I was.  Quitting is not an event, it is a journey.  The more you know, the more smoothly the journey will go...EX provides you with a map.   My mantra when I quit was NOPE, Not One Puff Ever and my favorite saying came from OldBones-Larry‌ "One step and then another, will get you to where you want to be."  If you have not already read it, I strongly suggest reading a blog written by JonesCarpeDiem‌ that I read over and over again when I first came here.../blogs/jonescarp.aka.dale.Jan_2007-blog/2011/06/26/what-to-expect-in-the-first-four-months   Take deep breaths in, hold and then SLOWLY exhale...a GREAT way to do that is by blowing bubbles...my respiratory therapist suggested it and it is distracting AND helps me to remember to exhale SLOWLY and it helps me to be distracted.  Remember that no crave ever killed anyone...NO ONE can say that about smoking.  This is not easy but it is so well worth it.  I have not smoked in over 4 1/2 years after smoking for 47 years.  I have COPD and I am reminded every day with every breath how important my staying quit and taking care of myself is to my being ALIVE. You CAN do this and you do not have to do it alone...we are here.

Welcome to EX,

Ellen

Giulia
Member

"Just one more and that's it" is phrase all we cigarettes addicts have said in our smoking lives.  And of course we never just have that one more, because there is no such such as "just one more."   And we were all afraid of not having that pack of cigarettes.  But it's not because it helped us get through, or was an enjoyable taste after a meal, it's simply because smoking changed our brains.  It made us crave the very thing we hate now.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z16vhtjWKL0  

You're not alone in this struggle.  Read.  Education about this addiction and about this journey and about others who are going through it will help you.  We're all on the same team here.

Barb102
Member

I needed help. My doc knew it and so did I. I failed many times before. I accepted the NRT help. It sure was better than not quitting. Do what ever you have to so you stop smoking. 

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