Help and support wanted please.
I hate everything about smoking especially the smell.
I've done an awful lot of talking about quitting for the last 6 months but I've not gone longer than 48 hours without smoking in that time.
I smoke on average 4 on a weekend and 7 on a weekday.
I give in every time I say I'm going to quit and tell myself oh I can quit when I really want to but I just don't want to today..... But I do want to, every time I finish a cigarette.... I just don't /can't.
Humph
Xx
Yes, sadly you and I are Nicotine Addicts! Read Read Read! Knowledge is Power! Once you understand what is going on then you are more prepared to launch your Quit Journey! It isn't easy but it is doable! WELCOME!
You can do it you must make a commitment and a plan and follow the advice above ! I did it after smoking 25 cigs a day for 52 years so I know you can do it too !
Welcome to our community!
I think once you understand what this addiction does, you will be better able to prepare to break free from it. I'm glad you're here - we can help with that!
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. Here is a link to a free PDF version of it:
http://media.wix.com/ugd/74fa87_2010cc5496521431188f905b7234a829.pdf
You should also read the posts here and perhaps go the 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
After you have completed the recommended reading, it will be time to make an informed choice of the quit aid, if any, you will use. If you go that route, I personally recommend the aids that don't let the addict control the dose such as the available prescription drugs or the patch. If used properly, gum, lozenges and inhalers are fine, but they need to be used only as a last resort. I have seen folks become addicted to them if they substitute them for every cigarette they used to smoke - just trading one addiction for another. I do not recommend the e-cigarette for three reasons: 1) the vapor has been compared to the polluted air in Bejing on a bad day, 2) they just provide another nicotine delivery system while continuing the hand to mouth smoking motion, and 3) the batteries can spontaneously catch on fire. . But – any method that you think will work well for you will be best for you.
The idea is to change up your routines so the smoking associations are reduced. Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand. 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. 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:
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
You have made it 48 hours a few times now you just need to get past that trouble point. Quit knowledge is power. Do the reading. suggested above and click on my quit plan in the upper right corner here and read and read. Here is some more helpful info.
Welcome to EX, you are NOW, for the FIRST time, trying everything to quit. Please do the reading and educate yourself on this addiction, please prepare yourself with a quit kit...track when you smoke and what your triggers are...THEN make a plan for what to do instead of smoking! Come here every single day...first thing in the morning and last thing at night, read the blogs other people have posted, look at how some of our successful quitters are making it.
I smoked for 47 years, I have not had a cigarette in over three years, I am very active on this site, I tried to quit COUNTLESS times in the past, like you, I HATED it. This site and the amazing people on it and all that I have learned by reading have saved me from this addiction. It is one day at a time...it is NOT an event, it is a journey...one day at a time, one step at a time, my favorite acronym was NOPE, Not One Puff Ever and there were SO many other things that I was told. Please go to jonescarp.aka.dale.Jan_2007's page and look at "What to expect the first 140 days." I read it and reread it during the beginning of my quit. I will NOT tell you it is easy, for me, it was NOT easy, it was very challenging and I was obsessed with thoughts of smoking...until I WASN'T any more. No crave every killed anyone...you CAN get through craves without smoking!
Best to you and, again, WELCOME to EX. You have come to the right place.
Ellen
Welcome, you've got the best advice above me please read the links and 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.......
I'm new here , so I don't have good advise. I just wanted to say I know how you feel. I'm in the same boat , but with the E Cigs.
Im going to give this my best shot , so hang in with this sight . It looks like a good one.
maybe we can be one of those people who say "I haven't smoked in over a year" one day.
Welcome to our community!
The blog you responded on is over a year old. The best way to interact with the community is to go to "Home" under the Ex Banner and then "Latest Updates" or "Post To My Blog" if you are ready to introduce yourself to the community. You will get the hang of the site if you just keep looking around. I'm glad you are here!!!
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 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
After you have completed the recommended reading, it will be time to make an informed choice of the quit aid, if any, you will use. If you go that route, I personally recommend the aids that don't let the addict control the dose such as the available prescription drugs or the patch. If used properly, gum, lozenges and inhalers are fine, but they need to be used only as a last resort. I have seen folks become addicted to them if they substitute them for every cigarette they used to smoke - just trading one addiction for another. I do not recommend the e-cigarette for three reasons: 1) the vapor has been compared to the polluted air in Bejing on a bad day and it has been proven to cause harm 2) they just provide another nicotine delivery system while continuing the hand to mouth smoking motion, and 3) the batteries can spontaneously catch on fire. . But – any method that you think will work well for you will be best for you.
The idea is to change up your routines so the smoking associations are reduced. Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand. 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. 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:
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
Start first, by educating yourself about nicotine addiction.
Remember: Education is the key to a successful quit.
Read: Freedom from Nicotine My Journey Home and Nicotine Addiction 101
Here are the links: http://whyquit.com/whyquit/LinksAAddiction.html and http://whyquit.com/ffn/
I also encourage you to read. Allen Carr’s book, “Easy Easier Way to Quit Smoking
There's been alot of old posts popping up lately this one is 10 months old to bad there's not a way to sort them, anyway how are you doing Lizam191? We are here if you need any help with quitting Smoking if you haven't quit yet, let us know how you are doing.
And that's why it's called an addiction and not just a bad habit! WELCOME! I know just how you feel. We all do. There's this dual nature regarding smoking. We don't want to, but we do want to. The more you hang out here, the more you'll learn about why we respond as we do. It's not really that we want to smoke so much as we want to stop the next craving. The nicotine makes us feel good, tickles our dopamine receptors, and then the effects wear off and so we want it again and when we don't have it we feel like we're being deprived of something. EX offers a good plan to help with it all. And as you will see by the responses you receive here, there's a wealth of support to be had from people in all stages of the journey. READ. LEARN. Practice. Persevere! Glad you've joined us!