so anxious

[pat29]

I've set my quit date, Feb. 1, 2014. I'm preparing myself with Wellbution,patch,lonzenes, and e-cigarette. I really like this site and following it, but doing alot of research also. Just read a report that cold turkey has more of an success rate. Too scary. Anyone have advise for leading up to my quit date?

[YoungAtHeart]

First of all, be careful using the patch AND the lozenges AND the e-cig.  You could easily OD on nicotine!  I think your fear is negating your common sense.  Isn't the Welbutrin supposed to reduce your urge to smoke?  I would start with just that!  

Your fear is probably from the unknown quality of quitting.   Educating yourself, preparing and planning for your quit will take a lot of the unknowns out of the picture.   The best thing you can do in preparation to quitting is to educate yourself on what nicotine does to the 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. Here is a link to a free PDF version of it:

http://media.wix.com/ugd/74fa87_2010cc5496521431188f905b7234a829.pdf

As well, read the sections on this site, do the tracking and separation exercises, and read the blogs, responses and pages of folks you think might be helpful. You might also want to visit quitsmokingonline.com, and whyquit.com.

After you have completed the readings, it will be time to make your quit plan, including what quit aid , if any, you will use, and the crave busters you think will work for you. Then you can approach your quit day with a plan in place.  

Stay close to us and ask for advice and support as you need it. We all here want to help you be successful!

Nancy

[Stac2]

Welcome!

Strongly suggest the following readings:

John Ryan’s www.quitsmokingonline.com.  You can read on your computer free, or for a $20 contribution they will download it to you via Adobe. Then you can print it. You'll also get a daily support email for three weeks.

Allen Carr’s “Easy Way to Quit Smoking.”  Here is a link to a free copy:

http://media.wix.com/ugd/74fa87_2010cc5496521431188f905b7234a829.pdf

Plan for what to do instead of smoke – check out this list:

https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/blogs/aztec-blog/2012/10/16/things-to-do-instead-of-smoke

Write a list of your reasons for quitting and post it on your page, and keep with you at all times.  Write a farewell letter to sickorettes telling them why you no longer want them in your life.  Both are great to refer back to as you continue your journey.

Stay on this site as much as possible and listen to these folks on here. They have your back. And if you need to, do the readings (Carr & Quitsmokingonline) again. Yes, again. I say this from EXperience! The more we read the readings and delve into the wisdom on this site, the less room nicodemon has. Reinforcement is good - retrain the brain.

The readings are essential. Getting the proper mindset is THE key. Go look at that list of things to do. I’ll say it again- stay close to this site.  

When you need or want to, blog: a) distracts nicodemon; b) helps you help yourself; c) introduces you to new friends on this site; d) gives you a wealth of support from folks on this site; e) by the time passes from you writing and you reading the replies, any craving you may have had will likely have – passed!

When you find someone on this site whose comments resonate with you... go to their page and read some of their old blogs and the comments to those blogs.  There, you will likely find affirmation.  There are many golden nuggets on this site.

I PROMISE you it does get better. Please trust us when we tell you that. We mean it.

It is WIT (Whatever It Takes) time. Knaw on that gum. Suck a lemon. Jumping jacks (exercise releases that dopamine that brain likes!). A bath. A nap. A tall glass of water......

You CAN and WILL do this.

Not smoking deprives you of nothing.  Smoking deprives you of everything.

Cigarettes are not worth the trouble, and you are worth the effort.

The Serenity Prayer

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

"Nicotine doesn’t relieve it, it causes it." Allen Carr

The task ahead of you is never as great as the power behind you.

[pat29]

Thanks so much, Nancy! Will do-----

[Stac2]

Only other advice for you - avoid the ecig.  The WORST thing I EVER tried when trying to quit was to purchase an expensive e cig. Why? They are full of plenty of nicotine and got me more hooked on that crap than ever.

Why? Because I could suck on that thing anywhere as there is no odor. I'd smoke in the house, the car, sneak it at restaurants, etc. It was awful.

Why? Because eventually the amount of nicotine in them was not what I wanted and I wanted the real McCoy again.

So, off I went back to smoking... MORE THAN EVER BEFORE!

Big tobacco owns e cig companies for a reason. They will make twice as much off of you when you buy the expensive contraption. Then, they will make more off of you when you return to their main stream product cuz now you will smoke more than you ever did before.

Total scam.

Lastly, no research on the ecigs and not regulated by the FDA?  SCARY!  Think - at one time cigs were thought to be non-hazardous to health!  YIKES! 

[pat29]

Thank you Stac

[caingurl1]

   Wow, that could be a lethal combination! You need to really talk to a doctor so that he can advise you the best. You can do a lot of research to find out as much as you can on your end to, plus I know that you are going to get a lot of good advise on this blog. You already have two before mine.

Believe in yourself that you can do this without any aid. I understand your being scared. I was scared so much that my mind started making up every reason why I couldn't/shouldn't quit i.e. what if I die, what if I will never be happy, etc. Stupid reasons because no one has ever died from nicotine withdrawals, and so many people before us that has given up nicotine is living happy lives. I can't just go into too much details, but the links that you are getting is going to put every thing into perspective for you. YOU CAN DO THIS!!!

[pat29]

I was going to use the e-cig that only uses flavors e-liquid. Mainly to have something for the cession of having something in my hand and mouth.

[wendyperez]

The anticipation is worse than the reality.

[Thomas3.20.2010]

Well, may I EXplain the problem with that idea?

A dozen or more  times a day we held a sickerette between our fingers and brought it to our lips and puffed the smoke. Using an e -cig does virtually the same, only it isn't smoke - it's vapor. When you continue that motion the receptors in your brain are stimulated and scream for Nicotine! To FREE ourselves from Addiction to Nicotine requires a clean break physically from this repetitive motion! I could go into other reasons for not using e cigs but if you're reading the blogs here almost daily you'll come across those. On every level e cigs don't work for smoking cessation!

[OldBones-Larry]

Pat

I went cold turkey myself. I really had no choice. I spent 6 hours on a surgical table. for at least 5 of those hours, my heart was stopped.

Fot the next 2 1/2 weeks, I got to spend maybe 2 1/2 days at home. The rest of the time was in the hospital. By the end of that time, the nicotine was gone from my system.

I only tell you this to enforce the dangers of nicotine. E-cig or otherwise, nicotine is no good. If the patches help you for a few weeks, great, I'm all for it.

We will all be behind you on your quit. All you have to do is ask for help when you need it.

One step, and then another, gets you to where you are going.

Hugs and love from us all.

Larry

[caingurl1]

  I understand that Pat. The hand to mouth motion was the one I had a problem with at first, but after constant reading, I knew that the best thing to do was to not use the e-cigs since that is one of the habits that I'm trying to break (the hand to mouth). It's been challenging, but doable. We just have to practice doing it different one sec., hour, day, moment at a time; however it works for us. You have to find out what works for you, but please be careful. I want you to be safe while you are being freed from this addiction. Just read, read, read, and ask questions if you need to understand something better, and I'm sure someone will come along and point you in the right direction.

[GreenThumb3]

I would use a inhaler over a e cig I used one for 4 months it caused me health problems and I still wanted to smoke it I had to go back to smoking to get off it it's realy addicting and all the flavorings are not tested to be heated to vape temps patch is probably the best bet I got a rash from one years ago so I used nic gum for a few days just a few pieces then stopped cause I wanted to get all nicotine out of my body and did not want to be hooked on the gum lots of people get addicted to the gum please read I was 2 packs a day basically for 20 plus years and quit cold/smart turkey after day 3 so its 33 days today and am ok you don't need all the NRT crap someone posted on here that a guy was eating so much gum it was like 5 packs of smokes in nicotine just be smart about how you go about it 

[JonesCarpeDiem]

cut a plastic straw into thirds Pat.

chew on it

[Danno_11-10-12]

And live by NOPE: not one puff ever. It takes the excuses out of smoking because this is your new Mantra.

[joyeuxencore]

Pat...Remember that the sheer terror is only temporary. I remember it well. EX is all about 're-learning' life without cigarettes and if you do the suggested reading...

Keep blogging to tell us about your prep experince (follow the home page suggestions for that) and get a 'quit kit' together my friend with a PLAN you will have it made and now you have us! xo

Check out this blog from my BFF Skygirl:

https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/blogs/SkyGirl-blog/2013/11/11/preparing-for-your-quit-two-lists-a...

[carpe_diem_2014]

Welcome Pat. I am using the cold turkey approach, but I read where it has the lowest success rate (3%). I think the support on this site is amazing and Allen Carrs book really puts the smoking trap into perspective. You have to want this no matter what method you use to become a non-smoker. We are addicts, so the more you learn about addiction and your inner junkie, the more successful you will be. Read, plan, read, plan, and reach out for help when you need it. I use a mini stylus to hold in my fingers when I am driving or standing outside to keep my hands busy and "trick" my mind. I drink a lot of water and most of all I stay busy. The more you occupy your mind and body, the more quickly the "hard" days will pass and you will feel better. Be good to your body and I wish you all the best. 

[freeneasy]

90% of quitting is becoming knowlegeable and having a positive attitude. So read,read,read stick close here. The Ecig is not meant to be a smoking cessation aid. It is not approved by the FDA for quitting.Here is a link to About.Com Smoking Cessation. It has a lot of good info   http://specials.about.com/service/newsletters/quitsmoking/3a52bd883c00012f02005332.htm

[JonesCarpeDiem]

the ecig is pretending to smoke.

same motion, inhale and result.