Whole new levels of pain and suffering.

[BarstoolProphet]

Right. So, things haven\'t been going great the last couple of weeks, and as some of you are aware, I\'ve stepped down from my lofty position of paint-off challenge referee, because of it.

So, I figured, I\'m pretty much an emotional basket-case, right now, so why don\'t I throw it all in there and quit smoking, too? Get all the misery out of the way at once, so to speak.

I\'m not quitting cold turkey. That\'s never worked for me. But I\'ve been cutting down very steadily, and presently am at the 5 cigarettes per day level, which is much less than I started at.

Withdrawal sucks. I constantly feel like I\'m coming down with a cold, the flu, or both. I\'m freezing cold on a beautiful 10C day, with my winter coat zipped up as tight as it goes. Lord only knows where my brain really is. When I started work today, I forgot almost everything I was supposed to take with me.

Anybody who\'s been through this... how long does it last? And how much more can I expect when I cut down to 3, or 1, or, dare I even imagine it? Actually quitting completely?

 

[mickc22]

about 6 weeks to clear right out of your system

 

[GreenOne]

I did quit cold-turkey, and lasted two months with little ill-effect... then started again stupidly in a case of work-unhapiness.
Second time is not going so well... and I think part of the problem is that I allow myself to just smoke a little then I always feel like smoking and it doesn\'t work.
I think the fact of reducing and putting yourself in the privation mood will only make matters worst. From what I know, cold turkey is the only way it can really work. Just dropping the burden of smoking and never allow it again.
Also to quit when things are not going so well doesn\'t seem like that good an idea, when I did the first time it was in a good time and when there was already mojor changes taking place in my lifestyle.

Anyway, best of luck with that, like I\'ve been told before it\'s probably the best thing you can do for yourself.

 

[supervike]

I quit smoking, about 75 pounds ago.

It can be done.

 

[Mr Scream]

Hey dude you just gotta do it and have the will power. It sounds cheesy but, JUST SAY NO . Other things will come along to take your mind off it and after a while you wont even miss it.

I have been completely sober now for a year and cant see what I ever saw in smoking, drinking or anything else I ever partook in.

Good luck anyways whatever you decide.

 

[Dragon Forge Design]

Ive never smoked.. my addiction is food..or better yet food that\'s not good for me. Ive always struggled with my weight since I was a kid.

Trying to cut back on eating is the hardest thing Ive ever found.. even harder than not buying minis..and we all know that\'s virtually impossible..

 

[CrookedEye]

Originally posted by Dragon Forge Design
Ive never smoked.. my addiction is food..or better yet food that\'s not good for me. Ive always struggled with my weight since I was a kid.

Trying to cut back on eating is the hardest thing Ive ever found.. even harder than not buying minis..and we all know that\'s virtually impossible..

I\'m with you on this one man. Food is my thing too. I did pretty well with it until I got married and had 2 kids- then I put on 40 pounds! I started a hard core (for me) change to my eating habits in January and started exercising 4 or 5 days a week. I\'ve lost 15 pounds so far. Hopefully I\'ll be dead sexy by GenCon. lol

Zach

 

[Dragonsreach]

Originally posted by BarstoolProphet
Anybody who\'s been through this... how long does it last?

Friend of mine has been a Non-Smoker now for 12 years, and she freely admits there are days she\'d suck an ashtray for a hit.
BUT she\'s stayed off them, simply by setting herself achivable targets.

BarstoolProphet: Set Yourself a target by putting the Cigarette cash to one side as a mini fund for something expensive. It\'s something to aim for and achievable.

 

[Masuuruhiito]

I am 30 years old now and I have been smoking systematically for about a year.Even though I strictly smoke when I go out for a drink at night and never during the day I seem to find myself lately that i cannot enjoy going out anymore without any cigarettes,so I kinda get how Prophet feels.

 

[Beelzebrush]

I\'ve recently quit smoking but I just did it by going cold turkey. The crap bit at the start lasted at it\'s worst for about 3 days but it was pretty bad for about a week really. This was about 5-6 weeks ago and I guarantee it gets a hell of a lot easier after the first week. Until I read this I hadn\'t thought of a \'smoke\' at all today.

Just as an addition - I don\'t think I\'d have managed to quit by doing it gradually or by using nicotine patches/gum etc as I thought it would be better to purge the nicotine as soon as possible.

 

[airhead]

I quit about 6 years ago. (after \'quitting\' several hundred times prior).

Get to the doctor and get some welbutrin.
Get to the phamacy and get some patches.
Get a friend that you will be honest with, have him call you every day and ask if you\'ve smoked.

Any one of those things gives about a 25% success rate. (about the same as cold turkey)
The odd part is that they combine: any 2 of them and you get about a 50% success rate. All three gives over 50% (but not 75%)
Also get some tootsi pops or sugar free hard candies - something that your hands and mouth can get involved with to feed the \"hand to mouth\" habit.

At five a day, you are just feeding the chemical dependancy.

Hang in there. It takes 40 days to make a new habit.

After all this time, I have no desire for a smoke, and I know if I have one, I\'ll be back to a pack a day in a week. But every now and then, I find my hand digging in my pocket where I used to keep the pack and lighter. I look at the hand like it has a mind of its own.... I\'m not sure what triggers it and I really don\'t want a smoke, but I find the hand looking for one.

 

[uberdark]

for me cold turkey was the bvest. i got hives and had to be admitted to the hospital for the patch. i had an allergic reaction to it. as for me, i thought i had emphysema at 29 and actually got down on my knees and prayed to god that it wasnt....i threw the cigarettes out the window at that moment and didnt look back. withdrawal lasts for around 5 days. after that its more habit than anything that makes you want to smoke. although i still vividly remembering saying to myself. \"gee when its been 6 months i should a celebratory cigarette.\" then realized that that would be pointless. its things like this that make you realize you truly are addicted.

and i still find myself sitting next to ppl smoking at restaurants just to ge tthe smell into my nostrils.

lol

and yes if i could i would suck another down right now!!