Blue_Skies wrote:
I tend to relapse when I drink with my friends (even though they don't smoke), and I was thinking about still putting a patch on if I ever go out once I stop using daily patches.
Two points I'd like to address here, Blue_Skies
1. When you go out drinking with friends, always have a PLAN in place, before you start drinking, of what you will do if/when a crave arrives after you start drinking. Get up, move around, pop in a hard candy, something simple but effective to do instead of smoking. A plan that won't be forgotten if you get fuzzy-brained. Alcohol is pretty much the #1 quit-killer that I've seen, so extreme moderation, along with a PLAN, your first times out is a good idea. Enlisting a non-smoking friend's help is also not a bad thing.
2. Once you have stopped the nicotine patches, there is absolutely no benefit to putting one on again. You've gone past the physical addiction, which is all that patches treat. Any urges ("craves") you might feel while drinking or doing other things are part of the more long-term whatever you want to call it, behavioral/psychological/mental part of smoking & quitting, which really takes longer to get beyond. Those behaviors are what you should be working on while using patches... doing something different instead of smoking. No rush on quitting the patches, but once you do stop them, don't go back, is what I'm saying.
Do not reintroduce nicotine once you've stopped using NRT. The Law of Addiction could come into play.
from Whyquit.com: Administration of a drug to an addict will cause re-establishment
of chemical dependence upon the addictive substance.
Best to you!
One step at a time. One step up at a time!!! Bravo!!!
