Question:
I want to quit... any ideas from ex-smokers???

I've smoked since age 13, off and on, with the exception of my pregnancies. I'm now 35, smoke 1/2 - 1 ppd, 4 months post op and down 76 pounds. My body is getting stronger and healthier, and I'm finding that I hate that I smoke. I am going to quit, but would love input from you ex-smokers on how to get through this!! I like clothes again, and don't want them to smell like smoke!!!!! Thanks bunches :).    — Michelle B. (posted on June 30, 2002)

June 29, 2002
I smoked for many, many years. The only thing that helped me was Nicoderm CQ. A strong desire to quit also will help tremendously. I did the Nicoderm CQ and didn't have to go from step one to step two to step 3. I was cigarette free in 3 weeks!! That was in 1996 and I haven't touched a cigarette since. My husband still smokes and other than the smoke itself bothering me, it doesn't bother me that he smokes in front of me. Every once in a while , for a nano-second, I think about a cigarette, but I have never acted upon it. Your strong desire to quit will help you out. And after you quit you will be able to smell other people who smoke and you will think to yourself " that smells disgusting, and I used to smell like that". So, get yourself some Nicoderm CQ and go for it! They make you itch a bit but nothing you can't handle . Good luck to you!
   — Kim B.

June 29, 2002
Hi, Michelle. You're not going to like this answer, but here goes. After smoking for years, I just...quit. Decided I didn't want to do it any more, and just quit. No drugs, no placebos, nothing. You can do it, too. Good luck to you.
   — linmazz

June 30, 2002
michelle, i quit after smoking 23 years. my dh asked me to help HIM quit, i didn't really want to, but i am a GOOD wife! i used the patch. kept a supply of beef jerky, celery, carrots, straws, toothpicks, etc. i also used a nerf ball to keep my hands busy(knitting or crochet works too). i am now 8 years clean! my dh didn't quit then, he continued for another 7 years, but now hasn't had a cigarette for 10 months. i think it was my stubborn attitude that kept me away from them when my dh continued, lol. it really ticked me off, i can tell you. i focused on the horrible smell, and i still focus on the horrible smell to this day. it is not easy to quit, but if you are truely motivated, YOU CAN DO IT. feel free to email me if you want support. best of luck to you.
   — deb_wls2001

June 30, 2002
Michelle, I used to smoke a lot (up to 2-3 ppd). I also stopped cold turkey (when I quit for the last time, patches hadn't been invented yet!). I would say to myself, "can you get through the next 5 minutes without a cig?" and I would do something else and get distracted and forget all about it. I'd look up an hour later and say to myself "can you get..." and go through the process all over again. Eventually, I got to a point where I would carry around an unopened pack of cigarettes and say to myself, "if you really, REALLY have to have a cigarette, you can, but you have to open this brand-new pack." I carried around that pack of cigarettes until the cigarettes started to disintegrate and were messing up the inside of my pocketbook! I threw out the unopened pack, and never opened another. I threw out the lighter, too. Just as a PS, the winter after I quit, I took a supposedly clean winter coat out of its plastic bag from the cleaner, and it still smelled like cigarette smoke, and I had to have it cleaned a second time. And to think my hair smelled like that, too! You CAN do this, and you've got my support! Good luck on a very tough assignment! Margie B
   — Marjorie B.

June 30, 2002
Michelle, I smoked off and on for years, (30+), each time I quit I quit cold turkey. I smoked my last cigarette in October of 2000. I quit again cold turkey, but the reason this was the last time is I had a heart attack in January 2001. Being a RN I knew that smoking was the #1 cause of heart disease but as we all think, I thought that will NEVER HAPPEN TO ME. Well it did and it can happen to each one of us! Knowing that I almost died I believe is the final straw for my smoking. I have a couple of really good friends that also smoked for years and they used Zyban with excellent results. Whatever method you chose my prayers will be with you. This is such an important step to take. Good for you.
   — garnet156

June 30, 2002
I had smoked for about 22 yrs and when my surgeon told me he wouldn't do the surgery until I had quit I thought well looks like I won't be having it...he put me on Zyban and with in 3 days i had completely quit!!!! Give it a try and you have to want to quit even with help before you will...GOOD LUCK
   — Kathy C.

July 1, 2002
After smoking for 8 years I also just quit cold turkey like 2 weeks ago. Chew lots of sugar free gum if you are allowed...it helps!
   — fropunka

July 8, 2002
Michelle, I don't know when your Q was posted, but I pray that you've had success! I quit one week (and 9 hours - LOL) ago. I'm using the patch, and can tell you it's much easier with it than without! I quit once before -- when I had to for my WLS surgery. I stayed off ciggs for 6 months after, until I relocated to CA from OH, and was laid off four days after my transfer!). I'd kept smoking this year and a half (and three lay-offs) since -- until last week. Now, I am determined to remain smoke free. I am having abdominaplasty in three weeks and know that I will not heal as well if I smoke. More importantly, I had the pleasure of visiting my mom last month. She was a 40 year smoker... until she had emphazema and congestive heart failure related to smoking. I realized that I resented her oxygen tank, and her lowered quality of life that prevented my selfish self from enjoying her, now that I am so fit. I don't want to live like her -- robbed of freedom; bound to the tank 24/7. Yes, the smell is motivational... but the sight of mom with the tubes up her nose as she struggled through the mall, Oxygen tank in toe... that was the cincher. I know how strong nicotine addiction is. I continued to smoke for 15 years after I watched my dad whither from cancer. You have my total unconditional love and support on this one! In HIS grip ~ Lisa
   — lisadiehl