Hi wannaquit,
Looly and HotSiO2 have great advice here. Please use their tips, as they know what they are talking about.
I'm not sure what type of withdrawals you have experienced before, or whether you have ever completely detoxed (3 days of no nicotine) and felt what it is like on the "other side." I can tell you this. My withdrawals from nicotine were pretty intense. I even had some symptoms that I've never heard of here or anywhere else.
Nonetheless, I can look back and say a few things: 1) Overall, it wasn't any worse than the flu. Might have even been a little easier than the flu, since I've had some wicked cases of that in the past. 2) I was grateful for some of the sensory and time distortions I experienced, as they kept me amused and distracted from being edgy or angry. 3) When I was finally detoxed, it gave me such an incredible sense of relief that I can't always fully describe it. It was, in short, like being released from shackles after have been enslaved for 25 years. My whole body relaxed and I literally said, "Aaaaaah" when I hit that detox point. And the next day was like waking up to a beautiful day after going through a bad dream. ...In other words, it is so worth those 3 days of discomfort to get the nicotine out of your system.
That all being said, if the idea of going through all that is too scary for you right now, you might want to use some nicotine replacement products (patches, gum, lozenges) while you are learning to live without the behavior of smoking. I also did that, since the idea of a cold turkey quit was too scary for me. My detox days were at the end, after I had spent months working out some of the anxiety in my mind.