Help me stop smoking!!!

GreeneyedGirl

Skeezie said:

I "stopped" smoking 26 years ago this month,
Notice I didn't say "quit"? I have never quit, I just havent' had a cigarette in 24 years. When I stopped having cigs I didn't tell a soul except my husband...and you know what? No one noticed I wasn't smoking. That way, if I relented and had a cigarette I wouldn't get flack from people and feel like a failure. I carried cigarette's with me for a couple of months and then on Easter I had an argument with my hubby and had 3 cigarette's in a row and spent the rest of the afternoon laying down cause I was sick. I quit carying them in my purse.

Back then, we still partied very hardy and had lots of cocktails and spent time in our favorite pubs etc and of course that's where I could smoke triple my normal amount so instead I started playing with bar straws, one in each hand and it worked. For me and many smokers it's the act of doing something in your hands that's a big part of the habit. I have read just recently that we get over the nicotine withdrawl in the first 10 days and then we are left with the habit of the whole ritual of pulling out the cigarette case, lighting up, watching the smoke etc. I chewed sugarless bubble gum and blew lots of bubbles, keeps your mouth busy. I did slip a couple of times but because I hadn't "quit" I didn't get all bent out of shape (like when you fall off your diet and say to heck with it until next Monday). We didn't have all the "helpers" back then so we had to be inventive and create our own "helpers". To this day I play with straws, it's fun.

You have to really want to stop smoking or else you will not be successful, so be honest with yourself. Do you really want to quit or do you just know you should quit. Two different animals. It took me five years to actually get in position to stop. It's funny, I didn't even have a "last" cigarette, I just said to myself "How long can you go without one?"

You can do this, this is a difficult time to try this while you're in treatment unless smoking makes you sick right now and then it's a great time. You'll be surprised how short of a time it will take for you to not be able to stand the smell of someone ele's cigarette. I live in Michigan and we are going smoke free May 1 and I can hardly wait!!!!!

Good luck and we are all here with hints and encouragement. As they say "Never stop stopping". You really will feel better both physically and mentally. And no one will be shooting you dirty looks when your in public either.

Hugs, Judy :-)

How are you doin' tat2granny??
Your post from about 6 weeks ago, hopefully has you progressing into being a non~smoker. One little tip I could share is when my father quit smoking he used black licorice to pop in his mouth when he craved a cigarette~the strong anise taste really did something to help him. It comes in small bite sized pieces.
Hope your doing good!!

susie09

Just want to wish you good
Just want to wish you good luck in stopping smoking. I know it is hard, but, you can do it!

blackroze1000

chenheart said:

And...when your lungs thank
And...when your lungs thank you by clearing up, and all of the cilia are free and moving, and your energy level surprises you, you can change your username to PinkRoze! LOL LOL I couldn't help it, sorry! :-)

Hugs,
Chen♥

PinkRoze
I like it! If you start seeing that name, you'll know I've finally done it!!! LOL

Elaine

blackroze1000

Skeezie said:

I "stopped" smoking 26 years ago this month,
Notice I didn't say "quit"? I have never quit, I just havent' had a cigarette in 24 years. When I stopped having cigs I didn't tell a soul except my husband...and you know what? No one noticed I wasn't smoking. That way, if I relented and had a cigarette I wouldn't get flack from people and feel like a failure. I carried cigarette's with me for a couple of months and then on Easter I had an argument with my hubby and had 3 cigarette's in a row and spent the rest of the afternoon laying down cause I was sick. I quit carying them in my purse.

Back then, we still partied very hardy and had lots of cocktails and spent time in our favorite pubs etc and of course that's where I could smoke triple my normal amount so instead I started playing with bar straws, one in each hand and it worked. For me and many smokers it's the act of doing something in your hands that's a big part of the habit. I have read just recently that we get over the nicotine withdrawl in the first 10 days and then we are left with the habit of the whole ritual of pulling out the cigarette case, lighting up, watching the smoke etc. I chewed sugarless bubble gum and blew lots of bubbles, keeps your mouth busy. I did slip a couple of times but because I hadn't "quit" I didn't get all bent out of shape (like when you fall off your diet and say to heck with it until next Monday). We didn't have all the "helpers" back then so we had to be inventive and create our own "helpers". To this day I play with straws, it's fun.

You have to really want to stop smoking or else you will not be successful, so be honest with yourself. Do you really want to quit or do you just know you should quit. Two different animals. It took me five years to actually get in position to stop. It's funny, I didn't even have a "last" cigarette, I just said to myself "How long can you go without one?"

You can do this, this is a difficult time to try this while you're in treatment unless smoking makes you sick right now and then it's a great time. You'll be surprised how short of a time it will take for you to not be able to stand the smell of someone ele's cigarette. I live in Michigan and we are going smoke free May 1 and I can hardly wait!!!!!

Good luck and we are all here with hints and encouragement. As they say "Never stop stopping". You really will feel better both physically and mentally. And no one will be shooting you dirty looks when your in public either.

Hugs, Judy :-)

Great story, Judy
The "do you really want to quit or do you just know you should quit" comment is pretty much where I am. I just know I should quit. And, yes, I think there is a huge difference, too. I think I'm going to read up on all the nasty things it does to your body to maybe get my mind in a place where I really want to quit. Can't hurt, might help!

Elaine

blackroze1000

How are you doing, tat2granny?
How are things? Good, bad, or indifferent -- I'd love to hear what's happening in your quest to stop smoking . . .

Elaine

Skeezie

blackroze1000 said:

How are you doing, tat2granny?
How are things? Good, bad, or indifferent -- I'd love to hear what's happening in your quest to stop smoking . . .

Elaine

Hi Elaine,
You are so right about reading up on the effects on your body...I almost forgot, during those 5 years it took me to get in position to quit I would lite up, take a drag and then say to myself "Is this the cigarette that will kill me?" "Is this the cigarette that will give my cancer?" "Is this the cigarette that will cause the doctor to say you have inoperable lung cancer?" After a few years of this I scared myself into not smoking. My chest would actually hurt when I lit up and I would put it out. A couple of people have said that was horrible, but you what? It worked (for me).

Now if I could just quit eating and start exercising....

Good luck you guys, you'll make it. Keep us up to date on your progress. And don't be ashamed, many of us were in your shoes once. It's not easy, but you are fighting the Beast and you are much stronger than you think, you can fight the tobacco Beast tool.

Hugs, Judy :-)

MyTurnNow

blackroze1000 said:

Great story, Judy
The "do you really want to quit or do you just know you should quit" comment is pretty much where I am. I just know I should quit. And, yes, I think there is a huge difference, too. I think I'm going to read up on all the nasty things it does to your body to maybe get my mind in a place where I really want to quit. Can't hurt, might help!

Elaine

My story...hope it helps!
I, too, was a lifelong smoker...30+ years. I stopped twice, when I was pregnant; however, once I stopped breast feeding, I would start with "just one cigarette" and before I knew it, I was a full-time smoker again. I even went so far as to be the caregiver for my mother who had COPD. She passed away 3-1/2 years ago as a result of smoking. Several of my aunts and uncles on her side of the family died before their 55th birthday's due to emphysema and/or COPD. Well, when I was diagnosed with breast cancer, 6/09, I came to the realization that I wanted to give my body every change I could to kick this beast in the arse. I decided that the one vice I had that was a possible cause of breast cancer was smoking and I needed to quit...once and for all!! I went so far as to "set the date". I picked the day after my 55th birthday, June 29th. For some reason, I felt like I needed a "special" day to do this. So, on June 28th, my birthday, I smoked all day knowing that this was it. When I got up on the 29th, I put on a nicotine patch. I really didn't want to wear the patch because I knew I was still having nicotine going into my body, but I also wanted to be successful, so I wore it. I had my lumpectomy scheduled for July 7th and was advised by my surgeon that I could not have the patch on during the surgery. So, that morning I went to the hospital without the patch. I have never put one on again. I am proud to say that I have been smoke-free for 7 months. Unfortunately, I do have a husband that quit WITH me but he only lasted 77 days and went back to smoking. He is very considerate though and doesn't smoke around me. He is now saying that he is tired of smoking and wants to try to quit again. He asks me how I did it so easily. I told him that it wasn't easy but when I had a doctor tell me I had cancer that made all the difference in the world for me. I know it's not a cure for everyone but wanted to share my story and reasons for quitting. I can validate what Chen said and say that I have noticed a BIG difference in my stamina while exercising now. I have done Jazzercise for years and for those of you not familiar with it, it is a mixture of aerobic, yoga, pilates, and strength training done for 60 minutes. It is an exercise that you do at your pace, either low impact or high impact. I used to do a lot of the routines low impact but since I quit smoking, I can now exercise high impact through the entire class. I'm not tooting my horn, just hopefully giving some HOPE and incentive to those trying to quit. It really is possible, just takes a lot of truly wanting to kick the habit. If we can beat this beast called breast cancer....we can beat the beast called smoking. Good luck to those of you out there trying to quit. You can do it!!!!!

Victoria63

I smoked for 16 years
I went on the Nicoderm step down patch and only needed step 1. I did allow myself to have my weak moments but after a while I just didn't even crave them and when I thought I did they didn't taste good so I told my self "I just don't do that anymore" I know it sounds silly but it worked for me.
You can do it. I never thought I could and it's been 9 weeks for me now.
Good Luck!

Angie2U

Victoria63 said:

I smoked for 16 years
I went on the Nicoderm step down patch and only needed step 1. I did allow myself to have my weak moments but after a while I just didn't even crave them and when I thought I did they didn't taste good so I told my self "I just don't do that anymore" I know it sounds silly but it worked for me.
You can do it. I never thought I could and it's been 9 weeks for me now.
Good Luck!

Glad that Nicoderm patch
Glad that Nicoderm patch worked for you Victoria! A success story!

Angie

blackroze1000

Skeezie said:

Hi Elaine,
You are so right about reading up on the effects on your body...I almost forgot, during those 5 years it took me to get in position to quit I would lite up, take a drag and then say to myself "Is this the cigarette that will kill me?" "Is this the cigarette that will give my cancer?" "Is this the cigarette that will cause the doctor to say you have inoperable lung cancer?" After a few years of this I scared myself into not smoking. My chest would actually hurt when I lit up and I would put it out. A couple of people have said that was horrible, but you what? It worked (for me).

Now if I could just quit eating and start exercising....

Good luck you guys, you'll make it. Keep us up to date on your progress. And don't be ashamed, many of us were in your shoes once. It's not easy, but you are fighting the Beast and you are much stronger than you think, you can fight the tobacco Beast tool.

Hugs, Judy :-)

Well that was uncomfortable!
When I had my last cigarette, I tried saying "Is this the cigarette that's going to give me cancer? Is this the one that's going to kill me?" Let me tell you, that was a really uncomfortable feeling. Scares the heck out of you. You really don't enjoy the cigarette as much as usual. I finally just stopped saying it, I was so uncomfortable. Stupid, I know, but as I said before, I'm still wrestling with the idea of quiting because I want to OR quitting because I need to -- two totally different animals. Pray for me, everybody, to do the right thing!

Elaine

stayingcalm

Victoria63 said:

I smoked for 16 years
I went on the Nicoderm step down patch and only needed step 1. I did allow myself to have my weak moments but after a while I just didn't even crave them and when I thought I did they didn't taste good so I told my self "I just don't do that anymore" I know it sounds silly but it worked for me.
You can do it. I never thought I could and it's been 9 weeks for me now.
Good Luck!

NicoDerm patch
Worked for me, too (I'm usually on the lung/brain cancer boards), after my third try, and I had to start at the highest level, think it's three. This was 7 or 8 years ago, before my whole brain radiation - lots of things I don't remember well But yeah. it took me three re-starts, so don't give up just because you started smoking again - just decide to quit again! And maybe I would have had an even easier time of it if I had been taking Xanax then, something to think about.

Luck and Perseverance to you, tat2granny

Deb

jnl

stayingcalm said:

NicoDerm patch
Worked for me, too (I'm usually on the lung/brain cancer boards), after my third try, and I had to start at the highest level, think it's three. This was 7 or 8 years ago, before my whole brain radiation - lots of things I don't remember well But yeah. it took me three re-starts, so don't give up just because you started smoking again - just decide to quit again! And maybe I would have had an even easier time of it if I had been taking Xanax then, something to think about.

Luck and Perseverance to you, tat2granny

Deb

Congrats to you Deb for
Congrats to you Deb for quitting! You can do it too tat2granny!

Hugs, Leeza

maryannrogers

jnl said:

Congrats to you Deb for
Congrats to you Deb for quitting! You can do it too tat2granny!

Hugs, Leeza

I, too, have been a smoker
I, too, have been a smoker for 40 years. Before the diagnosis of breast cancer I had quit for about 6 months. The day I was diagnosed I bought a pack of cigarettes and the rest is history. Told my doctor about that and he said it was understandable. I've been taking Chantix now and have been off for 6 weeks.

lisamnovak

smoker
Tat,
I am a smoker also. I finished my chemo on Dec 22nd. My Dr told me not to try to quit until I was done with treatment. So, on Jan 3rd I tried to quit. I have the chantix, and that REALLY does help with the urge to smoke. It is the habit cigs, the bored cigs that are REALLY hard. However, I will admit, that I started to smoke a few a day. On Jan 6th I was fired from my job for of 10 years. It was unjustified and I am so hurt. My husband has been out of work for 2 years and I was carrying the family with my income and insurance. I feel VERY guilty about smoking. I know I need to quit, for all the health reasons and the money reasons. I just need to get back to the...I CAN DO THIS mind set. I will keep you in my prayers....you can do it. HUGS!