I need your help.. smokers who have quit/ are quitting

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jessh

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Hi Everyone, i've been reading a lot of forum posts about a lot of you guys who have quit smoking.. what worked for you.. what didnt etc,

and I thought I'd sign up & post this thread.

My boyfriend has been smoking since he was about 15 or 16, he is now 24. I think he smokes about a pack a day.

I know he wants to quit, he talks about it every now and then, but I dont think he knows where to start, and I think its a bit overwhelming & one of those things that you go.. oh Ill do it next month or next year, right now is not the right time.

He also has a very very hectic job and works very hard and long hours. I think smoking is like a crutch for him, one of those things he enjoys and kinda helps him get through - which im sure it is for most people who smoke aswell.

I want to encourage him, and let him know that there are lots of people who have done it, and are doing it.

Please tell me your stories, about the e-cigarettes/ the zyban/ the patches, and I will show him all the posts.

I dont smoke, never have, him smoking doesnt bother me too much besides the smell sometimes.

I think.. from reading about what a lot of people have said ,... zyban is going to be a good option for him to consider once he feels ready to do this.

I have read about some people experiencing mood swings and insomnia, (although apparently this is counteracted if taken early in the morning and not at night?)

-I do think though, that is it not worth trying it? & IF you do experience the mood swings or insomnia, maybe its worth it? for 3 months? Surely that cant be worse than what smoking does to your body?

Anyway, please if you have any advice, encouragement.. please post,

thanks
 
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Personally, the biggest thing I'd recommend is to stop drinking if he does.

The only time I end up with a cigarette in my mouth these days is when I've been drinking. For someone seriously addicted to nicotine, all it takes is one...
 
Well having gone to hell and back on more than one occasion i can say without him actually wanting to stop there is pretty much nothing you can do. So don't force the issue, just ask him if he would consider it. Quitting is not the difficult part, the mood swings and change in attitude is the worst but as i say for some after 2 weeks they have no issues. Zyban is absolutely brilliant, after 3-4 days you start hating smokes. In general it is the long term mental issue you need conquer.

Bare in mind the mood swings and all the hell that comes with quitting varies from person to person, so he may be able to kick it after 1 week but for some people it can take 1-3 years to come right. If you do convince him to stop smoking and he is one of those that takes long to recover you best be ready for it :D.
 
There is only one way to quit smoking and that is to quit. Patches, hypnosis and all those other things sold to help you quit are bollocks. You have to want to quit badly enough to just quit, cold turkey.

15 years ago I quit by forcing myself to hate the act of smoking and to ridicule anyone who did smoke. To the point where if I was ever to smoke again I would never surviv the social backlash. The good thing is that this worked for me. Once you can quit for 2 weeks, you are over the physical addiction. The rest of it is all mental. Kill that by any means possible and you will be home and dry.
 
I love not smoking, best decision I have ever made after smoking from age 14 to 29. I'm 32 now and healthy and fit like a running shoe.
 
Agree with Pixual re cold turkey. I think that most people try to use helper products because they believe that without it they will not be able to quit, and that is exactly the problem. Not the addiction, but the belief in yourself. Or lack thereof.

I quit cold turkey after 21 years of smoking and, after a few weeks, could not believe how easy it actually was. Now 3 years later my wife still smokes and it does not bother me one bit. I must admit to having missed the social aspect of it initially, that was a bigger hurdle to overcome than the nicotine addiction. But you will overcome it, if you simply preservere.

Good luck to him! And like killadoob said, don't force him. He has to want to do it for it to work.
 
Pixual said:
There is only one way to quit smoking and that is to quit. Patches, hypnosis and all those other things sold to help you quit are bollocks. You have to want to quit badly enough to just quit, cold turkey.

15 years ago I quit by forcing myself to hate the act of smoking and to ridicule anyone who did smoke. To the point where if I was ever to smoke again I would never surviv the social backlash. The good thing is that this worked for me. Once you can quit for 2 weeks, you are over the physical addiction. The rest of it is all mental. Kill that by any means possible and you will be home and dry.
Click to expand...

+ 3

The only way to quit is to stop, all the others are a load BS, you have to say to yourself you are going to stop and just stop.

Dad did this after smoking for 30something years
Brother did this after smoking for 10 something years
I did this after smoking for 1 something years

Granted we are all different but you just need to decide in your head that you are going to stop and that stopping is only a good thing to do and just stick to it.

My dads friend stopped this weekend and we spent the weekend with him, the morning after quitting he woke up and had a fight with TOAST... He's really stuggling (and was over the weekend due to other smokers being around and drinking) but im sure he will be able to pull though!
 
"Cold Turkey"

"Cold Turkey"
Works the best. Worked for me, and still does. The website www.whyquit.com helped me trough a lot, and still does, also read http://ffn.yuku.com/

That's what helped me, educated smoking cessation. Also if you do succeed in quitting, just watch your weight.
 
He will stop when he is ready to stop. Nothing you or anybody else will make a difference until he decides it is time to stop.
 
It's about breaking bad habits more than anything else. While driving, after a meal, before bed, while drinking etc. - basically anything that usually triggers you to have a smoke. If he can make a conscious effort to ignore the triggers, combined with something like Zyban, then he should be fine.
 
I have a feeling I will never be able to quit. I think I inherited my mom's addictive personality. When she was in ICU for 3 months with her jaw wired shut we thought this would definitely force her to quit. What does she do as soon as she is wheeled out of hospital 3 months later? Thats right baby...she lights her ciggie!

I never stood a chance! lolz
 
copacetic said:
Personally, the biggest thing I'd recommend is to stop drinking if he does.

The only time I end up with a cigarette in my mouth these days is when I've been drinking. For someone seriously addicted to nicotine, all it takes is one...
Click to expand...
+100

I gave myself a cut of date. Always said I would stop before that date. It helped with the goal.

I stopped for about 14 months before I had my first drink again.

I can not say I have been an angel. But I have a smoke and stop for months.

Drinking and phobias makes me smoke like a ford escort. :o good luck. It's the singel best thing I have done for myself.
 
All you cold turkey people are way stronger than me!! :eek: I used Zyban. Bf too.
Even if it was just al in my head It helped. Placebo affect who cares.

28 days.to break a habit. But the one thing key to this. You have to want to do it for yourself.
 
Okay........ I am 61 been smoking since 14, was in hospital for 2 weeks, when the drips came off the craving started just like ocleroux mom. Then Dingler (a tobacco mafr in JHB) got bought out and the new sods stopped making MY roll-your-own. A friend who I occasionally saw recommended Nicorette . I used that with Herbex Stop Smoking lozenges.

They worked for me. Killed the craving.
The bottom line is HE must want to stop,
Nicorette if used as directed is expensive, They say 3 boxes strong 3 medium 3 light. A box lasts a week approx R114.
I used 1 strong 1 medium and 2 light. Plus the chewing gum and Herbex tablets
 
I have to agree with Pixual and Freaksta on this one - only one way and that is to stop smoking. It is important though to have to want to quit, I've tried about twice and failed because I said I'll give it a go. Then I decided to stop trying and actually do it because that's what I wanted to do. I've smoked for about 10 years and I stopped 11 years ago in October.
Unfortunately it's gonna be a decision he needs to make....
Good luck.
 
+1 to the drinking, and to a slightly lesser degree getting stoned.. if that applies :p

I quit almost flat out for about 2 months after 5 years, since then been on and off for the last 6 months or so. But still smoking probably a tenth of what I used to. I don't actually mind smoking if I can keep it in moderation, but it's a tricky thing to balance.
 
I smoked from 12 until 37. What a waste of time. Went on Allen Carr course and stopped after trying for years. Never did I ever think I would make 10 days and I am on 10 months. Reading the book didn't help me. Going on the course did. All I can say is the panic for cigarettes goes away. The feeling of your world falling apart goes away. Now I feel as "stable" as when I smoked but I don't have to manage it. Coffee did promote my addiction so I quit that too. Most importantly I did it for myself. I relapsed after a party 3 weeks in and thought I would just give up and start smoking again. The course helped me to see that it is actually all very stupid and makes no sense. So I just carried on as a non smoker. Be prepared to have a whole lot more time on your hands. Hope that helps.
 
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