Giving up tobacco habit

The final straw for me was when I realized I was spending over A THOUSAND dollars a year smoking. I quit with the help of the patch (way longer then the recommended length) lots of David sunflower seeds to keep my hands busy and a super sweet girl - I did gain 20 pounds tho.

Thats just how my luck runs too.

Know what you mean about $$. I got to figuring and between the two of us we'd save $3500 a year if we quit. Now there's motivation....

After chewing Skoal for 25 years, my dentist threatend me with a biopsy. 5 months later, I realized my appointment was near, and I would either need to quit Skoal or the dentist.
I had quit cigarettes many years ago, and had a pretty good idea what to expect. My philosophy was that if I could avoid the first pinch, I wouldn't have to deal with the second, and that I would not even listen to the little devil on my shoulder telling me I could handle a pinch, or a cigarette, every now and then.
So, just before Labour day this year, on a Tuesday morning, I took my last pinch. No pills, no patch, no gum, no support group, no 12 step program. By mid afternoon that day, I felt a stroke was immenent and rage was my constant companion. I never did listen to the little devil, and 3 months later I still haven't had the first pinch. I feel better, but that little devil is still telling me one pinch won't hurt. I don't discuss it with him. He is wrong.
You need to be mentally prepared for the stress, don't listen to the little shoulder devil, and don't have the first one. Everything else will be ok.

Thioctic acid (comes in little pills) helps your body to detox, even the brain, which is where the addiction center is.

Besides wanting to quit, you need to reidentify yourself as a nonsmoker. If others are smoking you are not tempted because--- you are a nonsmoker. When you get up in the morning and feel the craving, you pop a vitamin C and eat breakfast. You do not wish you had a cigarette because--- you are a nonsmoker. Isn't it wonderful to be--- a nonsmoker!

excellent book, THE MOOD CURE by julia ross, i believe, has an excellent list of supplements. don't have time for a few days to write it down, but try finding the book.

part of what you crave is all the sugar in the smokes. and then, how you use it is addressed. it helps with the aminos, etc. to keep you balanced and help you not crave the sugar, etc., and helps you to quit.

The only thing that worked for me was quitting "cold turkey".
I tried the gum and the patches... didn't phase me.
After I decided I WANTED TO QUIT.....I wanted to quit for myself, nobody else, THEN I did great. I quit cold turkey after 20 years of 2 packs a day.

The first week was the hardest, I felt groggy, sleepy. Sleep was my friend. I didn't have to deal with people or cravings.
After that, the first year your body is still adjusting. You will need to change some habits. I loved a smoke with coffee, after a meal, with a cold beer. I had to make some temporary changes until I could handle the urges.
I feel so much better now.
I won't lie to you and say it was easy. Sometimes I think a cigarette would be great. They still smell great at times and it's been 8 years!!

Hang in there, hope you make it!

My husband chewed on licorisch (sp) roots during his "detox" faz, he hasn't wanted a cig since.

I quit cold turky 3 times (third time was the charm) with each pregnancy since I am strongly opposed to tobacco use and preg/nursing (which has helped keep me off the stuff my youngest is still nursing).

For me it is more a mental addiction than a physical addiction so it's a constant battle when I'm stressed.

OH and I agree with cowgirl about sleep. If I could have slept through that first week, it would have been easy to cope with.

I have helped many people quit, you have to want it for yourself not the spouse, kids or friends. To get the toxins out of your system, it is in every cell of your body, drink lots & lots of water. If you are a big water drinker...drink more. Add lemon or lime to it as citrus, as mentioned, detoxes naturally. Carry orange segments around in a baggie with you all the time and if a craving hits pop a segment, you get the vit C and the glucose hit, is simulates nicotine in the body and satisfies the craving. Using real citrus is best because you get the trace elements and the natural reactions from them rather than a pill.
Most of all you have to find your own method of quitting, no 1 method is great for all but the more you hear from other success stories the better you can taylor your own.
Take the time through out the day to picture yourself doing all of your usual activities tomorrow, next week, next month, next year ...tobacco free. Project your mind into the future seeing yourself health, breathing strong and having lots of energy. Try imagining breathing in your favourite colour healing and strengthening every cell of your body and breathing out and away a dirty dark colour clearing your body from the toxins.
I once found on the web the cigarette standards and how they check every 8th cigarette (I think) and if they find more than six pieces of rat droppings they pull & destroy the batch, less than that is ok. The leaves are not washed so all the pesticides, bird droppings, bat droppings (kilns are apparently a common place for bats to rest), bugs caught in webs and rat excrement from them liking to nest in the bins where the leaves are stored, all are in every cigarette.
Wonderful visual is it not?

Holy Crap you certainly got a lot of responses on this one. I quit by drinking lots of water. First of all I threw my smokes out. Not just in the garbage but out in the dumpster so I wouldn't break down and take them out (mmm...cigerettes with ketchup on them... don't that sound delightful). Whenever I got a craving I would drink water...buckets of the stuff. I think it helped flush the crap out of my system. And I am a firm believer in this one so much that the next time I quit I'll do it again.

"I once found on the web the cigarette standards and how they check every 8th cigarette (I think) and if they find more than six pieces of rat droppings they pull & destroy the batch, less than that is ok. The leaves are not washed so all the pesticides, bird droppings, bat droppings (kilns are apparently a common place for bats to rest), bugs caught in webs and rat excrement from them liking to nest in the bins where the leaves are stored, all are in every cigarette.
Wonderful visual is it not?"

You've GOT to be kidding! We need a pukey face!

I never realized there was so much to "detox".
Heather

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Hospitality consists of a little fire, a little food, and an immense quiet. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Jake I quit after 21 years of dippin Skoal and chewin Red Man. I decided it was time. It took about a week for the "crazies" to go away, everytime i wanted a dip, I chewed gum, cinamon worked the best!

2 weeks and a day so far.

started with Zyban then decided I didn't need it. One second,minute, hour, day at a time. whatever it takes. Savings so far is around $120.

Try packing your jaw full of raisens but have a little tobacco on hand for after meals and place a tiny tiny peice on your tongue, also get a bottle of Lobelia extract from the health food store, this willl ease some of the withdrawal symptoms.
The reason its so hard to quit is because nicotine increases dopamine in the brain and is even being studied for treatment of Parkinstons disease.
Maybe, there is a good side to spit tobacco, people who chew have less Altzheimers and Parkinstons but I think the bad outweighs the good. When you quit, you'll sleep better, feel better and look better and have a few more coins in your pocket.
For a little motivation, think about all those tobacco executives sitting in there plush offices (non users) tallying up the proceeds from the poor suckers who buy their legal drugs, get mad, these guys are not your friend, tobacco is not your friend, it is a deceptive enemy, destroy it.

one thing I'd mention. Don't expect much restful sleep for the first week. That was the roughest part for me.

September 14 will be 10 years for me. I can honestly say that quitting smoking was the hardest thing I've ever done (and I have some STUFF to compare it to). What worked for me:

Sneaking up on it. I quit smoking in my house. Then a couple of weeks later, I quit smoking in my car. I held that pattern for a couple of months or so til it was becoming very inconvenient to smoke. Then I was ready to move on.

I had a support network in place. My husband, my kids and my friends in my prayer group. They all agreed to risk life, limb, getting their heads bit off, and the wrath of Khan to keep me accountible. At least one of them and usually more would confront me every day with the question "Did you smoke today?" "How are you doing today?" Since I knew they were all literally praying for me everyday, I didn't want to lie to them and I certainly didn't want to say "yes!" :waa:

I smoked 1/2 of my last cig on the way to work and the other 1/2 on my lunch break. After that I just refused to either buy or beg for anymore. I had to change some of my patterns for awhile to support that notion. I kept very sour candies available, they seemed to help the most.

The first several days were hell on earth. I drank tons of water. I slept. I spent hours in bed crying because I wanted to smoke so bad. I whined, I cried, I threw fits, I slammed cupboard doors, then I had to eat crow and go apologize to everyone for being such a snot. That wasn't easy either but it actually helped curb further nasty behavior!

Eventually it let go of me and I let go of it. I had a major crisis at the 6 month point (to the day actually) but I paced, cried and prayed around the parking lot at my job til the craving passed. I have slipped about 6 times in the last 10 years but it was always intentional and I always felt like crap afterwards. The last time was about 2 or 3 years ago and it tasted and smelt so bad that I haven't slipped again since.

Basically, just be prepared for the fight and don't give in. As soon as you give in, you have to do it all again. Pray hard, have support. Hope this helps!

H'bird

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God wants spiritual fruit - NOT religious nuts!

I highly agree with the above. I brushed four or five times a day: get up, after meals, just before bed. I used a stinging highly flavored toothpaste, and brushed every tooth, inside of my cheeks, and my tongue. Used mouthwash and mints. I did not smoke at all for one hour after the finish of a meal, one hour after getting up, or one hour before bedtime. Each week, I changed cigarette brands, going lower in tar, etc. each time. Starting a week before the program begins, set a "Q" day for approximately 3 weeks after the start of the program. Think and meditate on that "Q" day. With all this fooling around and setting timers and planning the brands to use, and scrubbing your gums raw, I finally gave it up about 3-4 days early. It was almost a relief to quit! (I spent the first three days curled up in the fetal position.) Only once since then was I tempted. I bought a pack, smoked two, decided they tasted like a gorilla's armpit, and poured water into the rest of the pack and never smoked another. I also prayed a lot---a lot!!

It took about a year for all thoughts of smoking to go away. From time to time, I'd "borrow" second hand smoke when near a smoker. It helped that my husband quit at the same time. The hand motion of lifting something to my face has never gone away. I have never been conscious of it, however. I always carry around a glass or cup of something to drink. I can, however, go without, if nec.

It has now been over 30 years and I've never looked back. I never craved another. Today I hate being around the smoke, smoker's breath absolutely turns my stomach.

I would encourage every smoker to give it up. It's not easy, but it sure is worth it. You might consider having a large jar, into which you put the cost of the weeds into the jar. In a year or two, you would have a down payment!

Good luck and best wishes.

Sandi

Make a tea of Skullcap, cammoile, and catnip and drink some everytime you feel the need to smoke.

Jennifer

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Use it up
Wear it out
Make do,
or do without

I have four friends that quit by eating on Fireballs (the hot candy that looks like a gumball. I met someone the other day that didn't know what they were so thought I would explain). Of course now they are habitual Fireball eaters but I guess it is better than smoking.
Best of luck to everyone that is trying to quit. Personally, when I finally cough myself to death the kids can just plant me in the back yard with a pack of Camels and a thermos of Folgers :haha: . I enjoy my cigs too much to bother trying.