i quit smoking.. how to...

so i went and got a vaping kit, nicotine gum and nicotine lozenges. i am dyslexic so if my spelling and punctuation is bad try to ignore that but i figured i would share how i was able to quit smoking...

vaping replaced the smokes with very little withdrawal type symptoms.. i guess you always have a bit of withdraw when switching from cigs to replacements. but i wanted it more and more and the gummy bear vaping juice tasted very good, vaping got me off the cigs but it was also very addicting for me i was always wanting more and its not clear how good for you it actually is in the long run so i decided to try something else..

next were the mini nicotine lozenges and they did the trick.. but i kept craving them as well and probably had more of them than i actually needed to be having, i probably used these for about a year.... i just liked the things for some reason and kept having them. but it got me off the cigs so i stuck with it. i started with 4mg and after a few months i started breaking them in half. i think its the same dose but just does not last as long or maybe it was only half the dose but i am not sure.... after a few more months i stepped down to the 2mg lozenges and i did not notice any difference so i was ok with the lower dose.. eventually i started breaking those in half but i kept craving them craving them for some reason, even when i did not want the nicotine i wanted a lozenge.. so i decided im gonna try the 2mg nicotine gum..

and that gum worked just fine for me at this poing... i noticed i was not craving the gum the way i was with the lozenges and i only had one when i was craving nicotine. i found that having 3 or 4 pieces of the nicotine gum a day was all i needed.. after 2 weeks of switching to the gum i started to cut down to 2 pieces a day.. what i would do with the CVS pharmacy brand gum i picked up ( nicorrete brand would get hard and this did not work ) but i would use it for 10 or 15 minutes and than take it out and save it for later. a hour or two later i would use the same piece of gum again for a short period and save it for later and i wold do this till there was no nicotine left in that piece of gum. after a week or two i went down to 1 piece a day using the same method and i noticed i was not really having any cravings so I figured i would try to stop using the gum..

well i stopped using the gum and i was just fine.. i don't know how many times i tried to quit cold turkey and failed but finally i was able to but i think if you really try the nicotine replacement may work for you.. you just got to find the type of nicotine replacement that works for you.. i think the only thing i did not try was the patch but i think the gum was the right one for me..

its been well over a year since i had a cigarette. it took me a long time to get off of the nicotine replacements but i finally did.. just figured i would share.. i had to try several tings before i found what worked for me.. so don't give up if your trying to quit and try different types of nicotine replacement if you need too.

a reply to: dannylightning

Great job gaining hold of your will power... I hope you stay off them for good!

I don't really know what it is to suffer from addictions... if I choose something, there's nothing in my being that can change or influence my mind. I get those inner voices that attempt to sway the logic as I change habits, but they never get passed security. The thoughts of addiction must first be processed before acted upon... the thoughts have zero relevance to the actions I decide to move on.

Finding the coping strategy that matches the style of addiction is the key to making it easier to manage and deal with. If one prefers the relaxed escape to cope (which nicotine usually is), then coping methods such as gardening and meditation are wise to act on. If people enjoy the rush of things and their vise of release is a stimulant, then such coping strategies are found in healthier forms like sky diving or athletics.

Find the coping strategy output that takes the place of the times past spent in the addictive act, and replace it with a healthier addiction... it's pretty simple.

Best wishes to the freedoms of controlled will power!!!

Congratulations. And good luck. I quit six years ago new years day.
You'll feel better very quickly.

a reply to: dannylightning

i also quit, third attempt smoke free 3 years now.

my method was to schedule my smokes, to the hour, 1 when i wake up, 1 before and after lunch, 1 at work break, 1 after work, 1 before bed, no exceptions!

then after that schedule became comfortable, about a week or two, i cut one out, so then im having 1 less smoke each day,

once that becomes comfortable cut one more out.

really it was pretty easy until i was down to 2 a day, which for me was 1 in the morning and one after dinner.
thats when i brought in a substitute. joints worked great for that purpose, then the cigs went in the trash.

thanks everyone, i doubt ill start again.. waist of money and makes you smell bad, feel bad too..

my problem would be once i bought a pack of smokes i could not resist smoking them.. no matter how hard i tried not to chain smoke i was not able to ration my smokes out and if i tried to quit cold turkey i would get insomnia and really bad anxiety so i tried to move to the replacements and finally found the gum was the one i could easily ration out and quit with.

hopefully anyone who is working on quitting will be able to quit some time soon, you really do start to feel better quickly. i can smell allot better now too. they say your food will taste better too but that never changed for me. food tasted good than and still does lol

a reply to: dannylightning

Congrats. I successfully quit 9 years ago after trying to quit for a solid year and having smoked for 12 or so years.

I tried nicotine replacement (patches) for most of that year, but finally said # it and got Chantix. I didn't have any of the crazy side effects some experienced and, even though I still smoked for the 2.5 months I was on that, the week my 3 month prescription was to run out I happen to run out of cigarettes one night, and simply...didn't buy another pack. And that was that.

The hardest part was habit: wake up, cig with coffee. Get in the car, light a cig. Cocktails, cigs, etc.

my problem would be once i bought a pack of smokes i could not resist smoking them..

Since I have quit, I have maybe smoked one cig every year or two, which I bummed. Even if I want one, I know that if I buy a pack I will smoke that pack, and then have to buy another pack. So I don't. Plus, now that I'm quit, I can't even smoke a whole one.

Tapering is the "painless" way off ANY addiction ... I speak from experience of a variety of chemical dependencies.

Cigs were my last vestige of earthly pleasure, heh, but I am a month in on my own quitting. I, too, am popping lozenges like candy and have a significant amount of skin covered by patches, but am slowly decreasing the nicotine and expect it to end up gone like all the other chemicals I once depended on.

Oh, and those who say "cigs are as hard to quit ( or worse) as opiates" are entirely wrong. It's a strong addiction, no doubt, but ... not comparable.

Oh, vit B3 helped me, too.

Someone dared me to quit smoking and I haven’t smoked since. It’s all in your mind.

Don’t be weak.

Don't buy tobacco again.
Avoid hanging around smokers so you don't become that annoying person that is always bumming smokes.
I've quit smoking many times.

a reply to: dannylightning

You sound like me,I quit for 2 weeks ,all I noticed was the anxiety from boredom,which started the habit,other then ex smokers comments on smell,hasn't really effected me,and seeing how things are going in this world doubt I would want hit 100's like my dads only sister

a reply to: dannylightning

Congratulations! It is quite a milestone!

I quit on Jan.02 this year as a birthday present for myself after 7 years of increasing tobacco use up till sometimes 35 a day.

My method is every time I become aware of the urge, I look at the circumstances. And usually it is a situation in which I would egotrip. Recognizing how I identified with ego to satisfy want, makes the question in my mind very relevant: And what are you now going to proof, huh? And almost instantly, the want dies.

Have not looked at a cigarette in 3 weeks now and feel great, more energy, hahaha and hungry! Next week I will start my training program and I hope to find a good Tai Chi master in my area. So, I hope to keep up this level of letting go.

Personally I feel amazed when someone wins over their bad habits or times. Dannylightning, you and everyone here who tackled this bad habit of smoking are a perfect example of sheer will and determination.

Today whenever we meet a regular smoker, he’ll say “don’t know why I can’t let this cigarette off me.” How do I tell them they need to work much harder than what they can imagine to get rid of this habit.

A study shows that about 80 – 90% of lung cancers are directly linked to cigarettes in the United States as posted by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention People should know that although the stats are about the U.S. but the problem is common for the whole world.

This is a serious problem to worry about and cannot be taken lightly. Because at first it feels like it’s just coughing and minor chest pain but later on it turns out to be a tumor that grows within the airways of lungs which brings a lot of problems with it. The way you guys did good for yourself. I wish everyone could do so. Would suggest the methods used by you all to whoever I meet with smoking issues.

I quit 3 years ago.

It feels like I haven't had a cigarette in 3 years.

a reply to: dannylightning

The best way to quite smoking is to find the right motivation reason to do so: your kid, your health, your tomorrow, your beauty