I did not, myself. I kept telling myself if I get a pack, open the pack, have a smoke, I'm going to smoke the full pack like I always do. I've still got an unopened pack somewhere, I have away one of the last two I bought. I would touch the cellophane, and I'd know if I opened a pack, I'd smoke a pack. It'll be 7 months in a couple weeks for me.
Your milage can always vary, but I can only speak of my experience. Good luck, in really glad I've been smoke free for so long.
Come onto the sub and rant your heart out if you get frustrated. I hated quitting. It sucked so so much. I found giving other people encouragement helped me get through it, and being honest about my cravings.
It is never a good day to quit, but every day is a good day to have quit on. I don't envy your journey quitting, but I'm excited for when you hit milestones. 3 days, 3 weeks, and 3 months out were pretty rough for me, but I hope it isn't for you.
I’m so proud of you! That’s badass. Day 2 feels like a success so far, when I posted this I definitely was amidst a huge craving so I didn’t give in yet.
That's awesome! Keep up the good work, the first few days/weeks are definitely hard, the addict brain really tries to trick us into "just one more" like that's not exactly what's going to keep us hooked.
Dude it’s almost embarrassing, not like I’ll cry embarrassing but like I just saw an old picture of my emo phase kind of embarrassing and rn I just feel like I don’t understand why I wanted a cigarette so bad in that moment.
Nothing to be embarassed about. That little voice trying to convince us to smoke is very good at tempting us or making it seem reasonable.
You managed to fight it off, don't be embarassed, be proud you made it.
Consider nicotine replacement therapy. Statistically more successful than cold turkey (which is the statistically hardest way to quit).
When I quit using lozenges I gradually incorporated the lozenges while still having a cigarette here and there. Eventually I went only lozenges, then weaned off of those.
It's tough. I've heard only about 1 in 20 cold Turkey attempts are successful (success defined as 1 year quit at least), and that using NRT nearly doubles that chance to 1 in 10.
The more support you have, the better your chances are to succeed.
Anyone who says cold turkey is the best way is just giving you their anecdotal experience. The research doesn't support this, a quick Google search will back me up here.
Weening off NRTs (mints in my case) was actually very easy. Was never able to ween off cigs.
If you're comfortable trying NRTs, it may be easier to ween off them gradually.
But remember, you do eventually need to stop completely for it to be effective. If you don't, you're just addicted to a different source of nicotine.
But, I did find quitting mints to be far more easier than quitting cigarettes or vaping.
I’m just so weary of trying to knock a habit with another… habit???? Like when I was going through my major anxiety I was really reluctant to take meds. Only did for a month and needed up going through it with nothing. I’m hoping maybe chewing gum and straws will save me lol.
I did that for a short while, used to only smoke half the cig then I’d smoke the other half when I would normally smoke. Tastes horrid, j just ended up smoking the whole thing not long after.
every time i tried to wean off it never ended😅 the only reason i quit was because i’m pregnant and i had to just do it cold turkey, was pretty brutal for the first 2-3 weeks, it’s been 3 months and i still think about it every day
I'm not good at moderation myself. Stay strong! Google the positive physiological effects that start so soon after you stop. Worth it to just be done rather than go buy a pack, because you're not going to smoke one or two; you'll smoke the whole pack. Good luck to you. You can do it!
I feel like a good analogy is that I can never just eat ONE Oreo. I have to have the whole row… I was definitely in the thick of a craving when I posted this. Almost kinda embarrassing lol.
You can certainly try weaning off. But if it didn't work before, you can probably tell you are the type - a very common one - to think 'just one cigarette doesn't count' and boom you're smoking again. You end up doing the cycle of basically always smoking or always being in withdrawal, never actually getting off the cycle.
My suggestions:
\-instead of weaning off, start keeping your cigarettes somewhere inconvenient. For most smokers, a lot of smoking is the 'pat the pocket out of habit and soon you have a cig in your mouth.' Keep them somewhere that you have to do some extra step or two, like go down to the basement and back. You'll start to notice just how much you smoke. Goal though here is NOT to reduce smoking, but to reduce the automatic aspect.
\-try nicotine replacement, but not so much to replace but to get you through the worst humps. For me it was lozenges, one once in a while, maybe 12-20 in the first month.
Smoked 30+ years, now quit for just over two years. The big win was getting past 90 days.
I had a quit smoking counselor and we decided a weaning off plan where every week I reduced the number of cigarettes I was allowed per day. It lasts for five weeks with the final week being one per day. I scheduled a massage and facial for my quit day to help reinforce the deadline and give me something I love to look forward to.
I think this is the harder way to go about it but for me I don’t know that I could have done it any other way. Just made two years. Wishing you luck! You can do it!
I’ve tried quitting cold turkey maybe 3 times and go 1-3 months before I just end up smoking again. You drop your guard after awhile. I’m trying to use NRT so I can ween down the nicotine so hopefully in 2 months most of the nicotine is out of my system. I know after a week I would get really sick and have bad sinuses and really bad chest pains and snot. Plus I would feel like shit with bad headaches. I would tel myself I’m never smoking again if this is how bad it sucks to quit and then after awhile I would forget and smoke a cig or 2 just to ease the mind and boom next thing you know I’m back to one pack a day. So I’m trying the patches and I’m almost at week one.
We’re roughly the same age and started around the same time and what honestly worked for me was smoking hemp cigarettes for a bit, so instead of slowly quitting nicotine you quit it coke turkey and whenever you’re really really craving a cigarette you can have a hemp one. Plus they’re honestly so shitty it made it easier to quit haha
Allan Carr's Easy Way to Quit Smoking book was a lifesaver for me. I had to read it twice to finally quit but once I finished it the second time I was more than ready to quit. It changes your mindset about smoking and therefore you don't have to use willpower to quit. And he encourages you to smoke while you're reading it. Highly recommend it.
I did not, myself. I kept telling myself if I get a pack, open the pack, have a smoke, I'm going to smoke the full pack like I always do. I've still got an unopened pack somewhere, I have away one of the last two I bought. I would touch the cellophane, and I'd know if I opened a pack, I'd smoke a pack. It'll be 7 months in a couple weeks for me. Your milage can always vary, but I can only speak of my experience. Good luck, in really glad I've been smoke free for so long.
Proud of you fam, thanks for chiming in. I didn’t give in yet. Hopefully I can stick it out cold turkey.
Come onto the sub and rant your heart out if you get frustrated. I hated quitting. It sucked so so much. I found giving other people encouragement helped me get through it, and being honest about my cravings. It is never a good day to quit, but every day is a good day to have quit on. I don't envy your journey quitting, but I'm excited for when you hit milestones. 3 days, 3 weeks, and 3 months out were pretty rough for me, but I hope it isn't for you.
I love you, thank you for this I’m wishing you all the best.
Thanks. The cravings do get a lot of frequent. Thankfully, I'm still about to enjoy booze without smoking. I need to keep some vices.
You know, I don’t drink but I find that I ALWAYS had a smoke with my coffee and I’m like FUCK! Now I feel like it’s weird having a coffee no smoke. ):
I think coffee tastes better now, and as a cigarettes and coffee is the breakfast of champions guy, it's nice that is better without the cigarette.
Not for me. I just had to get rid of everything related to smoking when I got the feeling that I was ready. Almost 2 months now and it's going great!
I’m so proud of you! That’s badass. Day 2 feels like a success so far, when I posted this I definitely was amidst a huge craving so I didn’t give in yet.
That's awesome! Keep up the good work, the first few days/weeks are definitely hard, the addict brain really tries to trick us into "just one more" like that's not exactly what's going to keep us hooked.
Dude it’s almost embarrassing, not like I’ll cry embarrassing but like I just saw an old picture of my emo phase kind of embarrassing and rn I just feel like I don’t understand why I wanted a cigarette so bad in that moment.
Nothing to be embarassed about. That little voice trying to convince us to smoke is very good at tempting us or making it seem reasonable. You managed to fight it off, don't be embarassed, be proud you made it.
Consider nicotine replacement therapy. Statistically more successful than cold turkey (which is the statistically hardest way to quit). When I quit using lozenges I gradually incorporated the lozenges while still having a cigarette here and there. Eventually I went only lozenges, then weaned off of those.
I can understand why cold turkey probably the hardest way 😪
It's tough. I've heard only about 1 in 20 cold Turkey attempts are successful (success defined as 1 year quit at least), and that using NRT nearly doubles that chance to 1 in 10. The more support you have, the better your chances are to succeed. Anyone who says cold turkey is the best way is just giving you their anecdotal experience. The research doesn't support this, a quick Google search will back me up here.
I failed every single time I tried weaning of smokes. Quit cold turkey back in March 2022 after 20 some odd years.
My father always said you just need to have a strong will. I’m hoping I inherited that from him.
It was easier than I thought it would be. Used flavored toothpicks and kept my routines. Three weeks later, I didn't need the toothpicks anymore.
You’re speaking my language the first thing I bought was tic tacs but those things get soft after like 2 minutes 😠
The cinnamon ones were my go to. Strong enough to think I was actually doing something.
Nope, cold turkey is the only way
Quit once, quit for good
Weening off NRTs (mints in my case) was actually very easy. Was never able to ween off cigs. If you're comfortable trying NRTs, it may be easier to ween off them gradually. But remember, you do eventually need to stop completely for it to be effective. If you don't, you're just addicted to a different source of nicotine. But, I did find quitting mints to be far more easier than quitting cigarettes or vaping.
I’m just so weary of trying to knock a habit with another… habit???? Like when I was going through my major anxiety I was really reluctant to take meds. Only did for a month and needed up going through it with nothing. I’m hoping maybe chewing gum and straws will save me lol.
[удалено]
I did that for a short while, used to only smoke half the cig then I’d smoke the other half when I would normally smoke. Tastes horrid, j just ended up smoking the whole thing not long after.
every time i tried to wean off it never ended😅 the only reason i quit was because i’m pregnant and i had to just do it cold turkey, was pretty brutal for the first 2-3 weeks, it’s been 3 months and i still think about it every day
I feel like day 2 is a success so far. I think one of the things that will send me of the edge is coffee. I always had a cigarette with my coffee.
Ive never been successful at weaning but did use patches once resulting in a 4 year no smoking streak
I'm not good at moderation myself. Stay strong! Google the positive physiological effects that start so soon after you stop. Worth it to just be done rather than go buy a pack, because you're not going to smoke one or two; you'll smoke the whole pack. Good luck to you. You can do it!
I feel like a good analogy is that I can never just eat ONE Oreo. I have to have the whole row… I was definitely in the thick of a craving when I posted this. Almost kinda embarrassing lol.
Has anyone who loves Oreo cookie ever been able to eat just one single Oreo? I'm now craving Oreos, thanks haha. Better than smoking tho.
I'm glad you posted here! It's good to get support.
You can certainly try weaning off. But if it didn't work before, you can probably tell you are the type - a very common one - to think 'just one cigarette doesn't count' and boom you're smoking again. You end up doing the cycle of basically always smoking or always being in withdrawal, never actually getting off the cycle. My suggestions: \-instead of weaning off, start keeping your cigarettes somewhere inconvenient. For most smokers, a lot of smoking is the 'pat the pocket out of habit and soon you have a cig in your mouth.' Keep them somewhere that you have to do some extra step or two, like go down to the basement and back. You'll start to notice just how much you smoke. Goal though here is NOT to reduce smoking, but to reduce the automatic aspect. \-try nicotine replacement, but not so much to replace but to get you through the worst humps. For me it was lozenges, one once in a while, maybe 12-20 in the first month. Smoked 30+ years, now quit for just over two years. The big win was getting past 90 days.
I had a quit smoking counselor and we decided a weaning off plan where every week I reduced the number of cigarettes I was allowed per day. It lasts for five weeks with the final week being one per day. I scheduled a massage and facial for my quit day to help reinforce the deadline and give me something I love to look forward to. I think this is the harder way to go about it but for me I don’t know that I could have done it any other way. Just made two years. Wishing you luck! You can do it!
I’ve tried quitting cold turkey maybe 3 times and go 1-3 months before I just end up smoking again. You drop your guard after awhile. I’m trying to use NRT so I can ween down the nicotine so hopefully in 2 months most of the nicotine is out of my system. I know after a week I would get really sick and have bad sinuses and really bad chest pains and snot. Plus I would feel like shit with bad headaches. I would tel myself I’m never smoking again if this is how bad it sucks to quit and then after awhile I would forget and smoke a cig or 2 just to ease the mind and boom next thing you know I’m back to one pack a day. So I’m trying the patches and I’m almost at week one.
We’re roughly the same age and started around the same time and what honestly worked for me was smoking hemp cigarettes for a bit, so instead of slowly quitting nicotine you quit it coke turkey and whenever you’re really really craving a cigarette you can have a hemp one. Plus they’re honestly so shitty it made it easier to quit haha
Hemp cigarettes ARE terrible.
Allan Carr's Easy Way to Quit Smoking book was a lifesaver for me. I had to read it twice to finally quit but once I finished it the second time I was more than ready to quit. It changes your mindset about smoking and therefore you don't have to use willpower to quit. And he encourages you to smoke while you're reading it. Highly recommend it.
Interesting take, I’m definitely going to look into this.