Congrats on joining the quit club!! You can do this if you arm yourself with a few strategies. The nicotine spray is fantastic. Ive been using it and found it really helpful. Mint lollies also worked for me. Read lots about quitting including posts on this forum. Keep busy at the beginning and try to avoid your triggers. If that is being around other smokers try to avoid. If its after meals set up another routine for that time like sipping a hot drink. Walks when intense cravings hit is a good one. Remember cravings come and go so if you distract yourself during them and use your spray you can overcome. Good luck and keep in touch.
2 months since l quit smoking! It feels so good to be a non smoker. When l see smokers l feel sorry for them. Freedom from addiction feels good. I still get occassional cravings....they come out of nowhere. My doc said it takes 3 months for the physical cravings to stop. I dont know how true that is. Mine feel more psychological. I wont feel truly free until l stop getting cravings completely. In the mean time lm happy with the work lve put in and how far lve come. Feels awesome
Oh yehhhh....thats why l picked up smoking. I thought l looked sooo cool 18yrs old driving around in my cheap holden with a fag hanging out of my mouth. Young and dumb is what l was. When l see people smoking now l get a sad sense.....like they are missing something. It looks kind of pathetic (not that l dont get why they do it) but that lm sure they would rather not. And when l see the youngins doing it, it reminds me of myself back in the day and l just think l really wish you wouldnt. Everything in life comes full circle doesnt it.
Oh wow 10 months is so fantastic. Your quit journey has passed so quickly for me (prob not for you) and mine seems to drag. Congratulations Stella....youve done the valleys and the peaks of it and now yoire oit the other side. Month 9 sounds like it was hectic for you. I can relate to that feeling of craving something external to fix things. At this point l still get it quite strongly sometimes. I hate that feeling of longing for something outside of yourself. It must have been a surprise for you to experience this so far into your quit but thankfully yoire grounded enough now to handle it and see it for what it is. Well done on defeating the devil!
You have a great incentive to quit. Your children will be so happy for you. Youre doing a great job at cutting down. I was too weak for that. I can relate to the feeling of losing a best friend because smoking is always with you through thick and thin. However time does make that feeling go away and it doesnt take as long as you expect it might. Good luck and keep us posted.
Of course you can cut it back if you want to but why do you want to short cut it? It may not have the same potential for a successful quit. People do all sorts of things with NRTs but they say the prescribed method is best. Good luck on your journey. Keep us posted!
Good for you! Quitting will help against your COPD and a range of other health benefits. Youve got the right mind set because it is like doing battle against the enemy but it can also surprise you and not be as awfully difficult as you expect. Ive used nicotine spray which helped me enormously with cravings. Are you considering using NRTs?
Im checking in to say lve reached a new milestone. In this last week (week 9-10) my cravings have subsided another level. Before when l would think of smoking ld feel like "oh l would just love to have one". Through this last week it feels different. I feel like smoking would feel choking and unpleasant. When l see smokers l no longer feel envious. I havent dropped my guard though. When l feel down or lonely l still miss it as an activity to keep me company. I think that the wrong set of circumstances could still bring me undone. So now l have to let time pass me by until l reach the stage where l know that l would never under any circumstances smoke again. Ive just got to hope that time changes my mentality. To anyone in early stages or thinking of quitting l tell you truly the fact that l have come this far means anyone can. I had too many failed attempts to count and had lost hope. As long as you keep trying there is hope.
Tim l never saw this post before. This is great and very thorough. At week 10 there is still lots of advice in here for me. Im going to add some things that helped me in this quit. Some things may overlap....
Choose a time when things are as stress free and quiet as possible. I chose to stay home as much as possible because going out triggered me.
Read lots about quitting and others experiences (this forum is great to read)
Keep a little quit journal. Begin by making lists....why youre quitting, what you will gain from quitting, what you hate about smoking and importantly a list of coping strategies and things to do to take your mind off smoking. Also write on this forum about your struggles and successes.
Consider NRTs if you think cold turkey is too difficult
Something to suck on. The strongest mints l could find worked for me as it was something to do with my mouth and the intense mint takes your mind off wanting a cigarette.
When a craving hits do something on your 'things to do list' and it may have passed by the time youre done
When faced with stress take slow deep breaths
Eat! I ate like a horse in the beginning. Its better than smoking and it does subside
Cry if you need to. We used smoking to supress our emotions. Let it all out
Exercise or just walk off a craving. Your mind will thank you for the feel good endorphins.
Remember that every time you resist a craving you are exercising the quit muscle and getting stronger the more you do it
Reward yourself with gifts or things you like to do. For me its paying for a massage....super....much better than smoking
Remember that time heals everything. Largely quitting is about letting time pass you by. The longer you go without smoking the stronger you get. So kill time doing whatever keeps you busy
Enjoy the fact that your body is healing from as early as day 1
Dont give up quitting. I failed too many times to count. It was demoralizing and l thought l wasnt cut out to quit. Then one day the stars align and it just works
Good for you!!! You have almost flushed the nicotine out of your system....it takes 3-4 days. Cranky? Haha l can relate. Youre entitled at this stage of your quit. So great that you have your husband to lean on for support and a wondeful thing to be striving for together. Better to be walking and improving health than destroying it by smoking. Keep at it
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