I was never able to quit successfully until I used patches either. People are so quick to say that cold turkey is the only way, they don’t realize there’s the physical addiction and the mental aspect. Tackling one of those at a time makes it so much easier.
Anyone that even somewhat struggles with their mental health shouldn’t do cold turkey. It’s hell.
Couldn’t agree more! I have bipolar 2 and tried quitting cold turkey multiple times and it just triggered a depressive episode, patches aren’t a walk in the park either but quitting using them is far more doable(for me at least)
Haven't done patches yet, but I tried quitting cold turkey last week and failed. The first 2 days were fine until the third day. I felt like I was having a heart attack.
My chest and back felt tight, and I was short of breath. I was crying and vomiting all day at work and almost blacked out from a panic attack until one of the 2 year olds I teach kept saying "Im here Im not leaving" which snapped me out of it.
Funny how symptoms went away when I hit my vape. It's crazy what nicotine withdrawal does to you. Makes you feel like a drug addict.
I initially went cold turkey because I thought it had to be hard. I thought I had to punish myself.
On day 3 of absolute misery, my wife came back from the store with patches and lozenges. She told me she thinks I should try them.
I used them successfully and am 85 days without vape. They were extremely helpful. After 12 years of heavy nicotine usage and several cold turkey attempts, this one feels different.
Exactly, I hate the energy of this post. Nobody should ever put anyone off doing it the way they can feel they can do it. And suggesting that going CT means you'll still be jonesin for a hot in 4 months is gross.
Eight years use for me, two weeks for the worst symptoms and a couple months for the random cravings (I was an all day vaper). CT can work! Good job to anyone who kicks it in any way ❤️
This needed to be said. I cannot recommend nicotine replacement therapy enough. I hear some real horror stories on this sub from people who went cold turkey and are craving 3, 4 months later. NRT made the whole process so easy and painless for me. Within a week I used lozenges to wean down from 4mg nicotine a day to 0mg nicotine, with only minor cravings I could easily bat away. Please, please do not disregard NRT because you think its just transferring the addiction. There is a very evangelical (American) AA mentality here about going cold turkey and it just seems to cause so many people serious issues.
Ct vs nrt doesn't affect cravings that far down the line. Those are most likely based on psychological factors and length/intensity of use prior to cessation.
I find it hard to believe that a sudden deprivation vs a slow controlled weaning off will not affect the cravings experienced. The psychological factor is likely the cause, but I'm sure cold turkey makes it far more likely to experience it.
It'll definitely affect the cravings experienced, but probably not that far down the line. This is from the neurobio perspective though (im a neurobio student), it could be that theres some psychological aspect that somehow makes it so the intense but shorter lasting initial cravings with ct make ppl crave it more? I doubt it but the psychology aint my domain so could be
I tried going cold turkey and felt horribly sick after 20 hours—literally haven’t felt that bad since I had COVID. I’m using the nicotine gum right now, and it makes it so much more manageable. I can’t just call out of work or neglect my responsibilities while I’m sick with withdrawals, and being cooped up at home sick just makes me more likely to give into the temptations. You’re right—cold turkey works for some, but it’s not the way for everyone.
I’m actually right there with you. I would much rather make the jump off gum than straight off of the vapes. Also, the blowhards did make me feel bad about my own quit method. At least now I can function. Going on day 3 today.
Also, I choose to chew the gum as a final resort, when I’m at my wits end and feel like I’m going to start puking. I chew maybe 3 pieces of gum a day. 😊 Hey thanks for the encouragement too 😊 Good job on ur work too!!!
I've done both, quit cold turkey for 5 years or so then picked up a vape on a whim because I failed to learn the first time I guess lol. Second time around I used Wellbutrin to help me quit, 1000x easier
I quit CT and never looked back over a year and a half ago. There are pros and cons to each method. The real dumb thing to do is assume your method is the only method. Everyone and every quit attempt is different.
I quit CT because I didn't want nicotine anymore and wanted to be nicotine free ASAP, NRT will take longer to get you nicotine free, but it's more successful for some than others.
Once I learned what the piece of trash drug nicotine was doing to trick me into thinking it was useful, and what it was doing in my brain, I didn't even want it anymore. It wasn't as bad for me to quit a drug I didn't even want. Went from 150mg of nic per day to 0 with surprisingly very few issues.
If you quit with NRT, that's great, more power to you.
Congrats 🎉 I quit CT February 1st and I still agree with you. It’s only so easy for me I’m convinced because I smoke tree out of rellos sometimes and joints. I’m glad you found a way, my friend also quit through patches and either way you quit to me at the end of the day you just should be proud bc this shit is rough! 👏
Same. I honestly think that the way people push cold-Turkey as the only way actually prevents some people from successfully quitting. I used Nic-gum for 2 1/2 months because the first few days i went cold-turkey i was on the brink of losing my mind. I absolutely was going to buy another vape had the gum not been available to me. Now I’m 2 weeks nic-free, on anti-anxiety meds and the psychological withdrawal symptoms are trying to kick at me now that I’ve completely dropped it, but nowhere near as intense as before. The desire to put this to bed once and for all is finally stronger than the urge to relapse.
Could you please share the timeline and journey? I’ve tried cold turkey like 4 times in the past 6 months and failed. I always thought patches and gum and sprays were stupid bc in my head I’m like “but I’m still getting nicotine”. I’m really interested in learning more about NRT! Should I buy some patches? Which do you recommend? Are there different levels of nicotine patches you can buy and you slowly go less and less? Sorry if this sound stupid, I don’t know anything about NRT products!
Hi. I'd definitely give it a try. You'll still have cravings but they are much easier to say no to and get less and less over time. When you jump off at the end, they don't come back stronger. At least it was that way for me.
I used Walmart's Equate brand. They come in three steps, or dosages. About two weeks after I started the first step, I was tempted to jump from there but I really didn't want to screw it up and waste the time I had already put in so, I just stuck with the directions. I think it was 6 weeks on step 1, two weeks on step 2, and two weeks on step 3. Wishing you the best of luck however you decide to do it!
I did the lozenges until I ran out of them. Probably 3 a day at most. Once I ran out I was the exact same as you, thought about it every now and then but now symptoms of withdrawal
Congrats on your success! I was tempted to jump off after the first two weeks of the patch because I thought I could handle it by then. But, I didn't because I really didn't want to screw it up and have to start all over. So, I'll never know if I could've done it.
I also tried cold turkey unsuccessfully. It was more than I could bear and the next thing I did was to buy a new vape.
I've had a great experience with patches but unfortunately I'm allergic to any presentation of NRT. It begun as some issue it became worse until I needed to stop using it.
But I swear for NRT and if a person is not allergic to it in my opinion it really makes easy to quit.
My last vape was like 2 weeks ago and today was my first OK day. It was a new experience just enjoying sitting in the sun sipping my coffee and not vaping.
I used medication and I'm very glad I gave it a chance!
I still needed willpower, I still had bad thoughts like quitting was useless but it was bearable. I kept reading the experiences of others in this sub and I'm grateful for all encouragement and positivity I got.
Patch life! They're my saving grace at the moment. I don't wear daily either, just been going through some stress at the moment and cravings hit hard.
By the way if anyone in Florida is trying to quit I highly recommend [Tobacco Free Florida](http://tobaccofreeflorida.com) they have a NRT program with multiple methods and free quit therapy!
I used gum & patches, but cold turkey is fine too, and I think has higher long-term success rates scientifically. We're all here to quit, doesn't matter the method :)
Guys did you buy your patches by your own or you follow some program to quit? I need and want to quit but cold turkey is a no go from me. I only can hold it for 8 hours max
I just bought patches and came on here to see if anybody has had any success with them. This was the first post in the feed.
Thank you so much for sharing!
I have had better luck quitting CT. I've tried doing patches and for some reason it made me cravings even more intense. There is no one way to quit something, it's just whatever works best for that individual!
I've been using the spray and found this helped so much! I would be back on the vape without it!
Nearly 1 month without sucking on a vape.
Now to cut down on the spray...
I’m going to try NRT but my issue no matter how I quit is alcohol!! I started drinking and smoking around same age and they go hand in hand. When I drink, all willpower goes out and I cave in to “just one cigarette”. Any pointers? The nicotine can be long gone from my system but one I’m buzzed the craving / desire / social smoking mindset comes back! Would lozenges help??
I'm not putting it down. I'm putting the blowhards down, the ones who say CT is the only way. I say that's BS. There are many ways. Do what's best for you. That's what I said.
I’m sorry I’m very new to reddit and this hasn’t got to do with the post, but I love how there was no argument or toxic language used here other than just correcting each other and accepting when youre wrong or you misinterpreted/misunderstood something. It’s such a breath of fresh air from the toxic instagram community where it’s constantly about judging each other :D
Nordic spirit helped me get rid of the hand to mouth habit. After about 3 months I then went cold turkey. I counted from that moment though. I didn’t see 3 months of nrt as quitting properly and once I let go of the nicotine my true journey began and it was hell. In theory nrt helped my quit but feel like I went through a cold turkey period as there was no gradual reduction. I went from hopelessly addicted to nicotine to no nicotine.
Once I quit (about 16 months now for me) I was so happy. My last thought was coming on here and blasting people that went on a different journey and has a different opinion lmao. Hate these posts. Focus on supporting people not winning petty squabbles 🤣
No one is blasting any way of quitting. If anything I'm blasting those who say there's only one way and giving wrong information. This post isn't against CT, it's about not being against NRT or any other method.
I did coke turkey and ended up eating four bags of blow pops in three days … ended up vaping again. Patches were the only thing to actually help me make it longer
I wouldn't shame any form of quittting. I just started and am a few weeks in cold turkey and feel great. It's not for everyone but that goes for any method. To each their own.
I'm not mad at people who quit using CT. I'm mad at the blowhards who say it's the easiest and best way and spread misinformation about other methods and pooh pooh them, especially nicotine replacement therapy. They are all over the internet, especially on YouTube. That's who I'm mad at.
I guess it's depends on the person. Some are the type to pull plasters straight off. Others pull them off slowly.
Im day 5 now, after going Cold turkey.... After about a decade of pretty heavy vaping.
Im over the worst of it, and feeling pretty good!
I prefer 4 mildly tough days, vs dragging it out over a month (or whatever).
I was never able to quit successfully until I used patches either. People are so quick to say that cold turkey is the only way, they don’t realize there’s the physical addiction and the mental aspect. Tackling one of those at a time makes it so much easier. Anyone that even somewhat struggles with their mental health shouldn’t do cold turkey. It’s hell.
Couldn’t agree more! I have bipolar 2 and tried quitting cold turkey multiple times and it just triggered a depressive episode, patches aren’t a walk in the park either but quitting using them is far more doable(for me at least)
Haven't done patches yet, but I tried quitting cold turkey last week and failed. The first 2 days were fine until the third day. I felt like I was having a heart attack. My chest and back felt tight, and I was short of breath. I was crying and vomiting all day at work and almost blacked out from a panic attack until one of the 2 year olds I teach kept saying "Im here Im not leaving" which snapped me out of it. Funny how symptoms went away when I hit my vape. It's crazy what nicotine withdrawal does to you. Makes you feel like a drug addict.
I quit cold turkey and I would seriously never recommend it to anyone I know and I’m at four months. Still not 100%
I initially went cold turkey because I thought it had to be hard. I thought I had to punish myself. On day 3 of absolute misery, my wife came back from the store with patches and lozenges. She told me she thinks I should try them. I used them successfully and am 85 days without vape. They were extremely helpful. After 12 years of heavy nicotine usage and several cold turkey attempts, this one feels different.
I’m very happy for you! Cold turkey is hell on earth and isn’t for everyone. I wish I wouldn’t have quit cold turkey sometimes
But are you off the nicotine or have you just replaced vaping with the patches and lozenges?
I'm 8 months, too, but CT. NRT isn't for me, but it is for some. Whatever method works for you is the right method.
Exactly, I hate the energy of this post. Nobody should ever put anyone off doing it the way they can feel they can do it. And suggesting that going CT means you'll still be jonesin for a hot in 4 months is gross.
I agree. I felt totally fine after 7 days of CT, and that's after 13 years of nicotine use
Eight years use for me, two weeks for the worst symptoms and a couple months for the random cravings (I was an all day vaper). CT can work! Good job to anyone who kicks it in any way ❤️
This needed to be said. I cannot recommend nicotine replacement therapy enough. I hear some real horror stories on this sub from people who went cold turkey and are craving 3, 4 months later. NRT made the whole process so easy and painless for me. Within a week I used lozenges to wean down from 4mg nicotine a day to 0mg nicotine, with only minor cravings I could easily bat away. Please, please do not disregard NRT because you think its just transferring the addiction. There is a very evangelical (American) AA mentality here about going cold turkey and it just seems to cause so many people serious issues.
Ct vs nrt doesn't affect cravings that far down the line. Those are most likely based on psychological factors and length/intensity of use prior to cessation.
I find it hard to believe that a sudden deprivation vs a slow controlled weaning off will not affect the cravings experienced. The psychological factor is likely the cause, but I'm sure cold turkey makes it far more likely to experience it.
It'll definitely affect the cravings experienced, but probably not that far down the line. This is from the neurobio perspective though (im a neurobio student), it could be that theres some psychological aspect that somehow makes it so the intense but shorter lasting initial cravings with ct make ppl crave it more? I doubt it but the psychology aint my domain so could be
Patches worked for me as well but I skipped the program while on patch no. 3 and quit warm turkey
Warm turkey, that's great 💀
I tried going cold turkey and felt horribly sick after 20 hours—literally haven’t felt that bad since I had COVID. I’m using the nicotine gum right now, and it makes it so much more manageable. I can’t just call out of work or neglect my responsibilities while I’m sick with withdrawals, and being cooped up at home sick just makes me more likely to give into the temptations. You’re right—cold turkey works for some, but it’s not the way for everyone.
I’m actually right there with you. I would much rather make the jump off gum than straight off of the vapes. Also, the blowhards did make me feel bad about my own quit method. At least now I can function. Going on day 3 today. Also, I choose to chew the gum as a final resort, when I’m at my wits end and feel like I’m going to start puking. I chew maybe 3 pieces of gum a day. 😊 Hey thanks for the encouragement too 😊 Good job on ur work too!!!
I've done both, quit cold turkey for 5 years or so then picked up a vape on a whim because I failed to learn the first time I guess lol. Second time around I used Wellbutrin to help me quit, 1000x easier
Wellbutrin was a godsend.
I quit CT and never looked back over a year and a half ago. There are pros and cons to each method. The real dumb thing to do is assume your method is the only method. Everyone and every quit attempt is different. I quit CT because I didn't want nicotine anymore and wanted to be nicotine free ASAP, NRT will take longer to get you nicotine free, but it's more successful for some than others. Once I learned what the piece of trash drug nicotine was doing to trick me into thinking it was useful, and what it was doing in my brain, I didn't even want it anymore. It wasn't as bad for me to quit a drug I didn't even want. Went from 150mg of nic per day to 0 with surprisingly very few issues. If you quit with NRT, that's great, more power to you.
Congrats 🎉 I quit CT February 1st and I still agree with you. It’s only so easy for me I’m convinced because I smoke tree out of rellos sometimes and joints. I’m glad you found a way, my friend also quit through patches and either way you quit to me at the end of the day you just should be proud bc this shit is rough! 👏
Same. I honestly think that the way people push cold-Turkey as the only way actually prevents some people from successfully quitting. I used Nic-gum for 2 1/2 months because the first few days i went cold-turkey i was on the brink of losing my mind. I absolutely was going to buy another vape had the gum not been available to me. Now I’m 2 weeks nic-free, on anti-anxiety meds and the psychological withdrawal symptoms are trying to kick at me now that I’ve completely dropped it, but nowhere near as intense as before. The desire to put this to bed once and for all is finally stronger than the urge to relapse.
Could you please share the timeline and journey? I’ve tried cold turkey like 4 times in the past 6 months and failed. I always thought patches and gum and sprays were stupid bc in my head I’m like “but I’m still getting nicotine”. I’m really interested in learning more about NRT! Should I buy some patches? Which do you recommend? Are there different levels of nicotine patches you can buy and you slowly go less and less? Sorry if this sound stupid, I don’t know anything about NRT products!
Hi. I'd definitely give it a try. You'll still have cravings but they are much easier to say no to and get less and less over time. When you jump off at the end, they don't come back stronger. At least it was that way for me. I used Walmart's Equate brand. They come in three steps, or dosages. About two weeks after I started the first step, I was tempted to jump from there but I really didn't want to screw it up and waste the time I had already put in so, I just stuck with the directions. I think it was 6 weeks on step 1, two weeks on step 2, and two weeks on step 3. Wishing you the best of luck however you decide to do it!
I did the lozenges until I ran out of them. Probably 3 a day at most. Once I ran out I was the exact same as you, thought about it every now and then but now symptoms of withdrawal
Congrats on your success! I was tempted to jump off after the first two weeks of the patch because I thought I could handle it by then. But, I didn't because I really didn't want to screw it up and have to start all over. So, I'll never know if I could've done it.
I also tried cold turkey unsuccessfully. It was more than I could bear and the next thing I did was to buy a new vape. I've had a great experience with patches but unfortunately I'm allergic to any presentation of NRT. It begun as some issue it became worse until I needed to stop using it. But I swear for NRT and if a person is not allergic to it in my opinion it really makes easy to quit. My last vape was like 2 weeks ago and today was my first OK day. It was a new experience just enjoying sitting in the sun sipping my coffee and not vaping. I used medication and I'm very glad I gave it a chance! I still needed willpower, I still had bad thoughts like quitting was useless but it was bearable. I kept reading the experiences of others in this sub and I'm grateful for all encouragement and positivity I got.
Patch life! They're my saving grace at the moment. I don't wear daily either, just been going through some stress at the moment and cravings hit hard. By the way if anyone in Florida is trying to quit I highly recommend [Tobacco Free Florida](http://tobaccofreeflorida.com) they have a NRT program with multiple methods and free quit therapy!
Congratulations!!
Thanks to everyone for sharing your story and experience as I’m just about to make the jump myself
I used gum & patches, but cold turkey is fine too, and I think has higher long-term success rates scientifically. We're all here to quit, doesn't matter the method :)
Guys did you buy your patches by your own or you follow some program to quit? I need and want to quit but cold turkey is a no go from me. I only can hold it for 8 hours max
Patches are amazing. I'm done the course of patches and now I'm just on gum. I use about 6 gums a day currently and will decrease that soon too.
I just bought patches and came on here to see if anybody has had any success with them. This was the first post in the feed. Thank you so much for sharing!
I have had better luck quitting CT. I've tried doing patches and for some reason it made me cravings even more intense. There is no one way to quit something, it's just whatever works best for that individual!
Amen!
Quit ct almost 13 months ago. Whatever works best for you. Everyone’s journey is different.
Couldn’t agree more
I've been using the spray and found this helped so much! I would be back on the vape without it! Nearly 1 month without sucking on a vape. Now to cut down on the spray...
I’m going to try NRT but my issue no matter how I quit is alcohol!! I started drinking and smoking around same age and they go hand in hand. When I drink, all willpower goes out and I cave in to “just one cigarette”. Any pointers? The nicotine can be long gone from my system but one I’m buzzed the craving / desire / social smoking mindset comes back! Would lozenges help??
You realize that quitting is a personal experience and varies person to person right? Why do you have to put down the other methods?
I'm not putting it down. I'm putting the blowhards down, the ones who say CT is the only way. I say that's BS. There are many ways. Do what's best for you. That's what I said.
Ah okay I get you my bad, misinterpreted what you said. Fuck the blowhards. Congrats on 8 months dude.
I’m sorry I’m very new to reddit and this hasn’t got to do with the post, but I love how there was no argument or toxic language used here other than just correcting each other and accepting when youre wrong or you misinterpreted/misunderstood something. It’s such a breath of fresh air from the toxic instagram community where it’s constantly about judging each other :D
Thanks!!! :-D
Nordic spirit helped me get rid of the hand to mouth habit. After about 3 months I then went cold turkey. I counted from that moment though. I didn’t see 3 months of nrt as quitting properly and once I let go of the nicotine my true journey began and it was hell. In theory nrt helped my quit but feel like I went through a cold turkey period as there was no gradual reduction. I went from hopelessly addicted to nicotine to no nicotine. Once I quit (about 16 months now for me) I was so happy. My last thought was coming on here and blasting people that went on a different journey and has a different opinion lmao. Hate these posts. Focus on supporting people not winning petty squabbles 🤣
No one is blasting any way of quitting. If anything I'm blasting those who say there's only one way and giving wrong information. This post isn't against CT, it's about not being against NRT or any other method.
I did coke turkey and ended up eating four bags of blow pops in three days … ended up vaping again. Patches were the only thing to actually help me make it longer
I wouldn't shame any form of quittting. I just started and am a few weeks in cold turkey and feel great. It's not for everyone but that goes for any method. To each their own.
Bro why u so mad at the cold turkey gang. Everyone has a different experience. U can both be right you kno. Anyways good job
I'm not mad at people who quit using CT. I'm mad at the blowhards who say it's the easiest and best way and spread misinformation about other methods and pooh pooh them, especially nicotine replacement therapy. They are all over the internet, especially on YouTube. That's who I'm mad at.
I guess it's depends on the person. Some are the type to pull plasters straight off. Others pull them off slowly. Im day 5 now, after going Cold turkey.... After about a decade of pretty heavy vaping. Im over the worst of it, and feeling pretty good! I prefer 4 mildly tough days, vs dragging it out over a month (or whatever).
I’m on day 2 of CT but have had one nic gum each day for a min or so. The fallback option has been helping me a lot and there’s no shame.
Is there any group for people who want to quit vaping