Going cold turkey

[shadow2010]

Hi! My names Tim and I decided yesterday to quit smoking cold turkey. I've tried to quit multiple times in the past with some moderate success at first, and then a relapse after a few weeks. As of right now I've gone all of about 20 mins without a cigarette, I smoked half of my last one and threw the rest away.

I've tried several things in the past ranging from nicotine gum to chantix and I've had no luck with any "help" from nicotine replacements/medications. In the past I've not been able to maintain the self control required to quit smoking but from here on out I'm not going to smoke anymore. I was not really ready to quit before I dont think, where is now I am. It's starting to affect me too much and my dentist refuses to do any major dental work that I need done unless I quit smoking as he does not want me to waste my money on the dental work. I live in a house that has two other smokers outside of me in it, and I'm not sure how to go about quitting with other smokers. Any ideas?

I keep wanting to smoke even now, and I've been keeping myself busy, reading here was one of the things I was doing to take my mind off of the cigarettes, the other is fixing the computer that I have here. I've already chewed a half a pack of Eclipse sugar free gum, should I find something different such as mints that will last a little bit longer? What do you use to solve the oral addiction part of smoking?

[onvacation]

I have been chewing a lot of gum and drinking tons of water.  Also had some left over candy canes to suck on while I'm on the computer.

Good luck today and keep the quit!

Kim

[danifly]

The last time that I quit cold turkey and I was still working I found that blowing bubbles was really helpful.  I would go outside just for a few minutes like I did when I was a smoker, and would blow bubbles using the same motions and breath rhythm that I used when I smoked.  It really helped and no weight gain.  You have to find something else to do while driving though.

[moby]

Day three with no cigars!    I feel great!

Ken

[kate8]

Hello Shadow2010. I'm kate and I'm 53 days quit I think. Lol, I'm right there somewhere. Anyway, I can tell you what helped me, but everyone is different. You just have to find what works for you. The first 3 days, 72 hours are the worst, at least for me. It takes that long for your body to get rid of all the nicotine. I used lots of water, apple and orange juice, grape juice, hard candies and sugarless gum. I still today do reach for my sugarless gum and or hard candy. Just not as often as in the beginning.

One thing I have found to be true for me is that if I over eat, or eat to often, I have more withdrawals. I guess that is because I'm used to smoking after I eat, so I try very hard to control my eating. YOu can do test. If I can, anybody can, thats no joke. Good Luck to you. Just stay positive. Love quitting, and love yourself........................

[kate8]

Sorry, I forgot the straws. You can cut up straws to the right length and use them.

[nssk06]

right now i'm on day 3 🙂 so far, i've been well stocked & using pencils, gum (ALOT) & a camelbak (or spillproof waterbottle). even if i'm not drinking the water, i'm chewing on the the silicone mouth piece lol. the straws only lasted about 2 minutes & definately didn't help me. if gum is helping you, keep chewing! switch out the piece when you lose flavor. personally, i've gone through 2.5 packs so far 😄

every night so far, i have gone for a walk (it's good for you & gives you a chance to work off all that frustration you've built up all day) & i've been cleaning every time i want to go out. if i feel like a "break" i go to a different chore... but i have 2 young & messy kids & a messy husband who has a 96 for new year's. my house never stays clean for long!

as far as living with smokers, my husband still smokes but he agreed to keep it outside & never smoke in our car. as long as i distract myself when he goes out to smoke, i'm okay.

keep it up & just keep reminding yourself why you're doing this. you CAN quit!

[red15]

Hi,

My name is Red and I just quit January 1st, 2010. I have been smoking for 35 years and ready to quit. The smokes don't enough taste the same anymore they either go out or they blow up in your face. Smoking to me became a pain reliefer controlled my temper and relax me in the bath. I am trying to maintain self control with my 8 year old but sometimes it's hard.

I had 2 smokes today (this morning) and now it is 7p.m. Iowa time and I could use one but I'm fighting the feeling. Thanks for the comments on how your body changes the minute you quit smoking.   

[smokefreelenny]

Red, I quit two years ago and I still have the urge, but at the same time smelling it makes we want to yak sometimes.  Keep the faith.  After 25 years I found that cold turkey was the best way.

[shadow2010]

Well I've gone almost a full 24 hours without a cigarette and it's driving me nuts. I woke up this morning and it took every amount of self control that I could muster to avoid running to the store to get a pack of cigarettes. I've run out of the eclipse gum and have moved onto lifesaver wint-o-green mints which judging from the past hour, a bag will last me at most 2 days. I've finally gotton the other two smokers to agree to go outside to smoke, well right now due to the weather they were going into the garage to smoke.

I live with family and my little brother drives me absolutely crazy, but he finally agreed to tone it down when my dad yelled at him for aggravating me. I know he just likes to aggravate because he's a little brother, but sometimes I wish I could just tape him up and throw him on his bed lol. I went on a cleaning spree yesterday, needless to say that with the exception of the bedrooms, my house is literally spotless. My room got a very good cleaning and everytime I stopped I got the urge to smoke so I found something else to do. Today it's painting day I think, my rooms warm enough to paint in or at least I think it is. We're going to find out either way!.

Keeping the positive attitude is hard, fighting the urges is even harder but in the end it's strictly for myself that I'm quitting. My college classes just started back up today and while that is a wonderful distraction, it's also stressful knowing that my finals are coming up in 2 weeks so that adds a little bit of a twist to my desire to quit smoking.

I've got bottles of water, a few straws, and my candy everywhere I go, keeping my fingers crossed that I can do this. No wait, I know I can do this.