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03 Oct 99 - 04:06 PM (#120270) Subject: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Melodeon It is now 72 hours since my last cigarette and I'm not climbing the wall yet because of my nicotine substitute but some advice from other ex smokers would be useful, encouraging. In fact anything to take my mind off cigarettes Melodeon |
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03 Oct 99 - 04:14 PM (#120273) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: McKnees Hi I used to smoke 60 a day and gave up 8 years ago. the only trick I can give you is that you consider in your mind that you are now a non smoker. The change in your head is what matters your body will tag along with that. I just said to myself "I don't smoke" and I believed it, so can you. |
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03 Oct 99 - 04:18 PM (#120275) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Mike Billo What helped me was to pick up and play wind instruments like the harmonica, tinwhistle and ocarina. The filling and expelling of air from my lungs seemed to satisfy the craving for deep inhalation. Because these small instruments are portable, you can do this anywhere. Also, I avoided doing things that I usually had a cigarette with, such as hanging out in bars, until the worst was over. Best of luck to you. |
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03 Oct 99 - 04:27 PM (#120278) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Banjer I quit 11 years ago, not for health reasons, but because the price of cigarettes had gone from around 45 cents a pack when I started to $1.30 per pack. I did the math and figured out how much a year I was sending up in smoke and compared that amount to the price of some HAM radio gear I wanted at the time and decided that quitting smoking was one way I could afford that equipment. My wife still smokes and at first that bothered me, now I don't even notice anymore...Figure out how much the habit costs, and then figure how much you would like to spend on a new instrument or something else you would like to have and the rest is just willpower...Good Luck...! |
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03 Oct 99 - 04:56 PM (#120286) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: sophocleese Good for you. My dad quit smoking years ago and is much healthier and happier for it. He didn't have any alcohol or caffeine while quitting and that seemed to help him, probably the associations. My oldest brother has now quit, again this was part of an entire move towards being healthy and he's cut out the drinking and the coffee as well, he also increased the time he was putting into doing yoga and that helped him a lot, he says. |
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03 Oct 99 - 05:03 PM (#120289) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: SeanM Here's something that worked for a good friend... Pick up something good and flavourful that you love to eat... concentrate on the flavour. You should be at the point where your senses of taste and smell return. As time goes on, you'll probably notice the difference. Welcome back! M |
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03 Oct 99 - 05:04 PM (#120290) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Little Neophyte Well, I've never been a big smoker, but..... I suggest you buy some candied ginger. Fresh ginger, soaked in sugar solution and then dried. You can find candied ginger in bulk food bins (sometimes) or in a natural food store. It will hopefully help calm the craving. Good Luck! |
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03 Oct 99 - 06:01 PM (#120298) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Rick Fielding OK, here's a suggestion. It didn't entirely work for me, but it helped me go from a pack a day to just a few. Utah Phillips used to chew on licorice root and passed the info on to everyone at his concerts. Good luck. Rick |
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03 Oct 99 - 06:05 PM (#120299) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: katlaughing Just watch the licorice if you have high blood pressure. Good luck, kat |
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03 Oct 99 - 06:14 PM (#120302) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Roger in Baltimore Melodeon, I'm not an ex-smoker, but my professional field is in helping people curb their addictions. Not a bad suggestion in the bunch! Try to find a number of people you know who are recovering smokers. You can talk to them if the desire to smoke gets strong. As several have already suggested, develop some alternative activities (licorice root, candied ginger, etc.) to take up some of the oral gratification that smoking has given you. Start to develop a lifestyle that doesn't include cigarettes. Look at what activities lent themselves to smoking and find some new activities to take their place. As Banjer and Mike Brillo suggested, there are activities and people you need to avoid early on you eventually will be able to tolerate. The nicotine substitute will give you a safety net to allow you time to develop the substitutes, the new people, and the new activities. And.... if you should stumble and light one up, stop as soon as you can and talk to one of those ex-smokers you know. The average person tries quitting seven times before they are successful at giving up smoking. Success simply means getting up one more time than you fall down. I should note that this does not constitute professional advice, I am just sharing my knowledge with you, a friend on the Mudcat. Good luck and best wishes. Roger in Baltimore |
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03 Oct 99 - 06:23 PM (#120303) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Tiger Melodeon..... McKnees has the right attitude. It's a binary decision - you are a smoker or you aren't! .....(stepping away from the lectern)... Yes, it's gonna be hard at times. What you really have to know is that we're all pulling for you, and EXPECT you to succeed. Never hesitate to pat yourself on the back for your decision. Confide in your Mudcat buddies if you ever need a booster shot. The hardest part is over.......Tiger |
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03 Oct 99 - 06:32 PM (#120307) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Magpie Good on you, Melodeon! Remember that smoking does ABSOLUTELY NOTHING for you! The only thing it does is relieving withdrawal symptoms. You never craved a cigarette before you started smoking, you never needed it to calm you down or to perk you up. The only reason you want one now is because you're addicted. Yes, it's an ugly word, but very true. Try to think of the withdrawal-pangs as the "Nicotine Monster" fighting it's last battle. The more you feel the pangs, the harder the "Monster" is fighting for it's life, and if yoy don't give in, you will win the battle, and the "Monster" will die. Please believe me when I say that the withdrawal pangs will more or less disappear after about five days. If you still crave, it's in your head. Don't give in, not even once! Because if you do, you'll get hooked again. Nicotine is the most addictive substance there is, and one cigarette, just one, will make you feel the withdrawal pangs again. If you want, there is also a book written by Allen Carr, called Allen Carr's easy way to stop smoking (or someting like that). I followed his advice, AND IT WORKS! Good luck! Magpie |
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03 Oct 99 - 07:14 PM (#120311) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: bseed(charleskratz) The most important thing is to stay away from smokers. I had been trying to stop for years, in the Air Force, in college, working on a newspaper, etc. When I started teaching I continued trying to quit, but it was hopeless--I was eating lunch in the faculty cafeteria where half the people smoked, and where there are other people willing to give you a smoke, eager, really, to see you fail. Finally, I stopped eating with the faculty and it was easy, given my new motivation (an infant son). After that I soon started noticing how bad smokers smelled, and that made it easy. I have a friend who went the nicotine patch then nicotine gum route. She hasn't smoked in about five years, but she can't break the Nicorets habit. --seed |
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03 Oct 99 - 07:15 PM (#120312) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: John Hindsill The only way to quit is to be ready to quit. I gave up smoking at least 100 times, but never for very long. When I finally had my last cigarette, about 20 years ago, I did not make a conscious decision to quit. I just didn't smoke each subsequent day. I still do not say I quit, only that I haven't smoked since 1978...and you know, every once in a while, I think I'd like a smoke.---John |
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03 Oct 99 - 07:47 PM (#120317) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: BK Think abt all the money tobacco companies are still getting rich with, while selling addictive poison, and all the years they claimed they didn't know it was addictive or harmful - while upping the nicotine content & marketing to kids - as they (American companies) are still doing overseas. Then think abt the truly massive burden on health care systems - as well as individual patients. Then realize that as long as you smoke THEY are in charge - not you. Good Luck, BK (who is a physician & sees the end result of smoking with depressing regularity) |
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03 Oct 99 - 10:18 PM (#120349) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Mudjack Melodian, You have conquered the first obsticle in the fact you want to quit and GOOD FOR YOU. I quit several times meaning I thought I had quit, picking up that next smoke is a NO NO. These folks have all chimed in with good advise. I confess than when I took the nasty desire for cigarettes to church and requested prayer for kicking the habit, it worked and I hav'nt had that nagging feeling of thinking I was going to die if I coulnd'nt get my hands on a smoke. Turning it over to a higher supreme power can't hurt. Another possibility is acupuncture. You can search that one out on the net. I hear the acupunture results are favorable. I still have Christian convictions but don't like to Bible thump or Holy Roll anyone into a frenzy. but it really did do the job and quickly. Hang in there and try what ever it takes to quit, it's worth it and never pick up that "just one won't hurt anything" When you've quit, really quit by promissing yourself...Never again. Good Luck Mudjack |
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03 Oct 99 - 10:39 PM (#120354) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: JedMarum Quit, Quit, Quit ... know that you can, determine that you want to, and believe that you will ... and it is done (I speak from my experience - it has been 15 years since I quit). And teach yourself harmonica! |
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03 Oct 99 - 10:43 PM (#120355) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Barry Finn Above it was said that smoking in the most addictive drug, believe it. It's close to being a best friend. It's always there when you need it, you've known it for years. It's sometimes the first thing you have when you wake & the last thing you have before sleep. You won't believe this. A couple of years ago I fell while working on a roof, I knew one leg was broken & was pretty sure the other one was too (it was), at the time I'd been only smoking on the porch & not inside the house. My thoughts were, I'm going to be in the hospital for awhile (can't smoke there) & when I do get home it's gonna be a while before it would be worth while to go back out on the porch to smoke so if thhis is gonna be the case I might as well take advantage of the situation & use this to quit, so with two broken legs I crawled over to where my smokes were & started smoking until the ambulance arrived. I started back up & quit just prior to my 2nd operation & with use of the patch (probably for the 3rd time) & It's been now close to 3 years. Good Luck. Barry |
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03 Oct 99 - 11:07 PM (#120363) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: WyoWoman I agree with BK as for my primary means of quitting. I just refuse to give the tobacco companies both my money AND my health. I also agree that you really only quit when you decide to quit -- now when you feel you should, or you really, really want to. I used hypnosis to quit at one point, and that was fairly successful. But the main thing is that I had just reached a point where I didn't want to be smelling and tasting bad all the time, and didn't want to make the tobacco companies any wealthier than they already are. Start exercising, and that will make a difference. People often wait to start exercising until they've quit, and the opposite actually works better. You start exercising, just a tiny bit at a time. slowly build, then you'll find as a natural consequence, smoking doesn't add anything to your life or energy, so it's contradictory with the healthy stuff you're doing. But don't WAIT to get healthy until you stop smoking. Start doing the healthy stuff while you're smoking. And resist the mistake of thinking because you smoked one cigarette you've fallen off the wagon and now have to go back to your former habit. It doesn't mean anything, just that you had a cigarette, and now you aren't going to have any more. I still smoke occasionally -- about a pack a year -- and every time I do, it reinforces why I decided THAT wasn't something I wanted to do. Yuck. WW |
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03 Oct 99 - 11:22 PM (#120371) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Joe Offer Well, I quit shortly after I got divorced. Somebody told me it would improve my love life. It's been 5-1/2 years since I quit smoking. Can anybody tell me when I can expect to start seeing results? -Joe Offer- |
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03 Oct 99 - 11:29 PM (#120375) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: DonMeixner Hi Mel, When I quit smoking, which was harder than learning to yodel, I found that flavor was a major issue with me. I started with substituting cinnamon chewing gum for Kool Menthols. I also hopped on the Schwinn and pedaled every night for 4 months. When things got hardest, I ate white seedless grapes which in my case killed the screaming crawlies. The other thing that helped in a very perverse way was I kept a new pack of Kools in the car. They were always there, still are in fact, 18 years and 4 cars later. That way I never had to bum them cause I just had to open the glove box. Knowing theywere there was enough for me. Having them meant I didn't need them. Last , Don't ever should upon your self. I should have quit before, I should never have started again. I shouldn't buy these now. Bad for the mental health in all things. Instead, if you grab a smoke and start again. Grab a grape and quit again when you can. Good luck my friend. Don |
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04 Oct 99 - 03:50 AM (#120409) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Sourdough There are a lot of good suggestions in this thread. I spent some time (while a smoker) designing a smoking cessation program for the American Cancer Society. I ended up being a non-smoker. My suggestion is to pick up a copy of a book called "21 Days to Stop Smoking". It is keyed to each day of the first three weeks of giving up smoking. It deals with the issues of the first days that are different than those of later in the first month. For instance, around the first four or five days, many former smokers start to cough. They find it discouraging, especially f they haven't been coughing before. After all, they were giving up smoking for health reasons and now they are couhin. The book explains that the coughing is actually a good sign and why. It also helps a new non-smoker to deal with backsliding, a cigarette smoked at a time when temptation was just too much. Good luck. It's tough but it's worth the effort for lots of reasons. Sourdough |
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04 Oct 99 - 04:23 AM (#120413) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: NSC Ash Wednesday, which is before Easter, in Ireland is a National No Smoking day when everyone tries to do without for one day. In 1990, I wanted to go to a festival in Wales which takes place annually at the end of April. I had no cash reserves and I decided that the only way I could get there was to quit smoking and save the cigarette money. So on Ash Wednesday 1990 I stopped smoking for the day and I opened a standing order to transfer the ciggy money to a deposit account. By the end of April I had saved £160.00 which was more than enough to enable my visit to the festival. I kept going one day at a time since then. Yet I only stopped for one day really and I still get the odd fancy for smoke. Health wise - it is great to be off them and keep it up. You can win. Incidentally i smoked 25 to 30 a day for about 25 years. Good luck George |
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04 Oct 99 - 07:33 AM (#120431) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: FionaN Good Luck!! You just have to believe you are not a smoker, I found if someone offerd me a cigarette and I said 'Oh, no thanks...' they (and my lack of will power) could usually persuade me in the end. If however I said 'I don't smoke' it reinforced the 'non smoker' part of me...and I didn't give in to the craving (as much). I have heard that it's not only the nicotine addiction but the 'actions' your body becomes used to that make it hard to stop, so I used to keep something in my hand to fiddle with - a bit like worry beads. One year now almost completely smoke free (I've slipped off the wagon a couple of times - but didn't make it an excuse to start again) and I feel *so much* better. It's so good to be able to get to the top of a hill without gasping for air!. |
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04 Oct 99 - 08:19 AM (#120441) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Neil Lowe I used to carry a pocket of hard candy around to substitute...also chewed gum for about a year after I quit, this after four unsuccessful attempts. Then I got tired of sucking on candy and chewing gum, and gave those up as well. It seems that first year is the hardest. I used to dream about cigarettes; after seven years I don't do that anymore. One motivating factor is that after five years (or so I've heard) your lungs regain that healthy pink color they once had before being polluted with tar and smoke. That used to be my goal - to make it to the five year point. I've done that and now take it one day at a time, as a "recovered nicotine addict." Some of the posts above reflect the power this drug has over peoples' lives. You will always be a nicotine addict - but be thankful what with all the other poisons out there to which you could've been addicted, nicotine didn't have the relatively immediate ruination and devastation on your life as other drugs. I try to remain humble, so when my parents come to visit I set out an ashtray for them, and I don't admonish them for not smoking outside. I figure I can tolerate it for the few short hours they are in my house. And I joke with all my smoking friends, telling them I quit some years ago and would they please blow all their smoke in my face while I inhale deeply. Sometimes they accomodate me. Good luck, Neil (reformed nicotine addict who is looking contemptuously at his third cup of coffee..... and wondering...hmmmm) |
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04 Oct 99 - 08:33 AM (#120444) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Andy Well I'm going to put my two penneth in ! Ex 60 a day - As has been shown above it only works if you want it to ! It IS a mental position. The nicotine is addictive and you can only beat it if you want to health financial reasons or other don't matter as long as it is what YOU want to do. I gave up 13 yrs ago when No1 daughter was born. She has never and will never see me smoke. Neither has No 2 or even some of my recent friends - I'm a nutter - I now SCUBA dive and Run marathons as well as 'Do' folk music (learning highland pipes at present). Best of Luck. I found the first three months easy then the pain set in ! I'd happily start again tomorrow but I don't want to. A XX |
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04 Oct 99 - 11:57 AM (#120505) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Roger the skiffler I've never smoked but I grew up with 2 heavy smoking parents, my father started when he was about 11 and my mother at about 14. When my father retired at 65 (my mother would have been 70) they both gave up -cold turkey. My mother died after a couple of strokes, heart and leg ulcer problems, all smoking-related, at nearly 85. My father is 83 now and pretty healthy, so take heart, you CAN give up! I don't know what 18 years of passive inhalation has done to me!
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04 Oct 99 - 12:54 PM (#120529) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: annamill Like so many have said, it's in the head. You can't be trying to give up smoking. It's a decision. You're just not going to smoke any more, period. I've been without for about 15 years now. One day, after I had my paycheck and paid some bills, I had $40 left. Back then cigs were ONLY $10 per carton and I was smoking 4 packs a day. A lot I know. That fateful day it was food for my family or cigs. I decided (very important word, decided) to give up smoking. I carried around a half pack with me for 5 weeks. They didn't have nicotine subs then, so I used carrots. I ate a lot of damn carrots. My jaws were sore from chewing carrots. I took them everywhere I went, even work. Especially work. I had dreams where I was sitting on my couch smoking a cigarette, then realize I wasn't suppose to be smoking. I'll be honest, in my own case, I still want a cigarette now and then. Sometimes, especially if I've had a couple of drinks, I'll have one, but I can go months, sometimes years, in between those times. It's tough, but once you decide and you see how much better your life becomes (you can taste food, run up stairs, take deep breaths) it gets easier. Good luck! If you're determined you will make it eventually so don't get discouraged if you fall off the wagon. Just get back on. Love, annap |
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04 Oct 99 - 02:27 PM (#120578) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Neil Lowe I am simply envious of people who quit smoking, but who can occasionally light up now and then. Their will power must be phenomenal. To me, that's the equivalent of a heroin junkie who can fire up once in a while without getting addicted all over again. Meself, I wouldn't be able to smoke, chew, ingest, dip, or otherwise partake of any tobacco product without falling helplessly into the clutches of my former loathesome and debilitating habit. Those who can keep it under control are far stronger humans beings than I, and I stand in utter amazement and awe of your inner fortitude. Humbly, Neil |
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04 Oct 99 - 02:31 PM (#120582) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Bert Good for you 'odeon, you'll do it just fine. |
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04 Oct 99 - 03:15 PM (#120599) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Melodeon Thankyou all for your good advice and good wishes. Four days now!! Without getting complacent I think I may just do it this time. It really does help to know that there are good people rooting for me. My motto now is "One day at a time" Melodeon |
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04 Oct 99 - 03:20 PM (#120600) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Jak I gave up smoking 14 years ago after smoking 60 fags a day for years. It isn't easy and anyone who tell you it is is lying. You are now over the worst and all the nicotine has now left your body. Unfortunately your brain doesn't want to let you do something that has given pleasure for years and rebels. Your subconscious will try and persuade you that it's ok to have just one fag and this can pray on your feelings until you give in. I coped with all this by constantly telling myself that I hadn't really given up. I just chose not to smoke at that time although I could have a smoke later if I really wanted to. After a while the craving does go away although it will be a battle for a while and it's best to avoid the pub or other places where you are viewing others smoking. Best of luck and I really hope that you succeed. All your friends at Mudcat will be rooting for you. Let us know how you're getting on Cheers, Jak |
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04 Oct 99 - 03:23 PM (#120601) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Jon Freeman I congratulate anybody that manages to quit smoking. I hav tried several times and failed. I have managed to battle against the craving on several occasions but I always seem to get withdrawal syptoms (terrible dizziness and a head that feels as if is about to explode). I have not tried for a few years but the last time I tried, I ended up on the sick for a week because of this. Jon |
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04 Oct 99 - 05:26 PM (#120675) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Magpie Four days as a non-smoker! CONGRATULATIONS!!! Keep in mind that when you're feeling restless, and you'd love a fag to calm you down, the nicotine won't do that, it'll only relieve the withdrawal pangs. Consider that maybe there's another reason for your restlessness. Go for a walk, take a shower, do the dishes,anything to get your mind onto another track. It is not wise, however, to stuff yourself with food or sweets. It'll only make you fat. Keep up the good work, and yes, let us know how you're doing. Magpie |
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04 Oct 99 - 06:05 PM (#120686) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Llanfair My name is Bron, and I'm a nicotine addict. I stopped smoking Jan 1st this year, with the help of a couple of weeks of patches. My husband smokes, and I love the smell!!! but I won't start again. The money I've saved is going towards my early retirement at the end of November. Stopping smoking is giving me a life!! Hwyl, Bron. |
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04 Oct 99 - 07:03 PM (#120710) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: 44Remington Good luck. The key is resolve. Either you really want to quit or you don't. The first 24 hours is tough, the next less so, and so on. I smoked two packs of Camels (yes, real Camels, not the filtered ones) which made it easier. Someone walking past with a Winston didn't bother me at all. One thing for sure, you'll be glad you did it.
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04 Oct 99 - 07:20 PM (#120722) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: _gargoyle I have heard this attributed to Fatty Arbuckle.
Tobacco is an awful weed.....I like it! |
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04 Oct 99 - 07:37 PM (#120727) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: _gargoyle If you lack motivation:
Use this picture of a diseased lung as a "screen saver" or wallpaper on your computer for a daily reminder.Smoker's Lung |
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04 Oct 99 - 09:23 PM (#120754) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Roger in Baltimore And Melodeon, just for you, from Merle Travis, famous American bluegrass star, SMOKE! SMOKE! SMOKE THAT CIGARETTE!. Big RiB |
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05 Oct 99 - 12:09 AM (#120825) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Lonesome EJ I quit as a New Year's Eve Resolution on Jan 1, 1980. I vowed never to again smoke a CIGARETTE - and for 2 or three years I allowed myself to smoke anything else I could get to burn: pipes, cigars, joints, grapevines, old tires. I didn't enjoy smoking anything but cigarettes (ok, occasionally I got a kick out of the joints), so it worked. I no longer crave a cig like I used to at "those magic times": after sex, after a good meal, with a beer, on a long drive, in the bathroom, when I'm depressed, when I'm feeling really good, under pressure, etc. Worst used to be when somebody would open a brand new, fresh, aromatic, toasty pack of Marlboros (my particular choice of poisons). Now I can be around smokers with more feelings of pity than envy, if I think about it at all. Good Luck! You CAN do it. LEJ |
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05 Oct 99 - 08:06 AM (#120885) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Allan C. I believe the key is in your attitude or resolve. The title of this thread seems to me to be an indicator. You must change your thinking to say: I am giving up smoking! Not just "trying". You CAN do it! Allan C. (smoker for more than twenty years - former smoker for much longer) |
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08 Oct 99 - 11:14 AM (#122081) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Steve Latimer Melodeon, How are you making out? I too packed it in about ten weeks ago with help of Zyban for a while. I have the odd difficult moment, but I keep reflecting on why I quit in the first place, which is that I want to see my young children graduate from University and be part of their adult life. I also want to be a positive role model for them and going around with a smoke hanging out of my mouth is not positive. |
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08 Oct 99 - 04:42 PM (#122155) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Melodeon I'm still hanging in there. I wasn't going to give an update until I had gone without for a significant length of time. It is now 8 days and I'm feeling OK so far. My sense of smell has returned and now my incentive is that I never want to smell like the smokers I live and work with. Thanks again for all the advice and good wishes, I will refresh this thread again in six months time when I will feel that I have achieved something worthwhile. Cheers, Melodeon |
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08 Oct 99 - 05:07 PM (#122162) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Magpie In the mean time, KEEP IT UP MELODEON!!!!! Remember that smoking does absolutely nothing for you! It only relieves withdrawal pangs. By now, your body will be more or less rid of nicotine, and if you feel the odd pang, it is all in your head. Don't EVER envy smokers when they light up. Pity them!They are the ones still trapped in that evil circle. YOU are the one to be envied!!!!!! I'm proud of you! Magpie |
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08 Oct 99 - 08:36 PM (#122203) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: annamill I read somewhere that if you do anything for 28 days straight, it becomes a habit, good or bad. Please tell up how you're doing in a month. Luck, annap |
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09 Oct 99 - 06:18 PM (#122338) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: kendall I smoked for 47 years. No one was ever more addicted than I. What worked for me was getting my depression under control, because that was the real reason I was smoking. People who say they "Enjoy smoking" are full of shit.. they smoke to avoid the discomfort of NOT smoking. Big difference!! I quit three years ago, and I now have to stay up wind of smokers because they STINK!! God, to think I used to smell like that....I still want to smoke sometimes, but, not enough to do it. |
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09 Oct 99 - 08:12 PM (#122353) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: katlaughing Kendall, thank you. That means there is still hope for Rog and I know he has some amount of depression going on, so...you've given me more to think about and possibly help him with, when he is ready. kat |
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09 Oct 99 - 11:52 PM (#122399) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Mark Clark I agree with McKnees; you must reinvent yourself as a non-smoker and then believe it. I did that twenty-seven years ago and it stuck. If you are a smoker trying to quit, you'll always be conflicted. You'll find yourself wondering each day whether you can make it without a smoke. You'll think of it as a slow process and allow yourself occasional infractions. If you decide you are a non-smoker there is no more conflict. Now the question is... are you self-defining or are you defined by others? Good luck, your life depends on this. - Mark |
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10 Oct 99 - 01:38 PM (#122489) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Mudjack We must keep in mind a price to pay for being an EX SMOKER. EX SMOKER'S are first class complainers about being around other smokers. Like Kendall says, you will be jocking around to be upwind from other smokers or catch yourself fanning with waving arms to break up clouds of smoke. The reward is when you go to a restruant and they ask, "Smoking or non-smoking", and you with pride say," NON-SMOKING Plleease...."The down side is after you've been seated, you find you are right next to where the smoking section starts and there you sit, sucking up someone elses nasty exhaled stinch. My gawd, I'm glad when I smoked, my old smoke never offended anyone.(HAR HAR) Mudjack |
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11 Oct 99 - 12:31 PM (#122695) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Hooked agin. |
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11 Oct 99 - 01:40 PM (#122710) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: kendall Excellent point about redefining yourself as a non smoker. I'm proud to say, my old "backward" state of Maine has banned ALL smoking in restaurants. Of course, this does not apply to pubs, bars, and other upholstered sewers. |
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14 Oct 99 - 02:46 PM (#123903) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Another Quitter I'm only at the 28 hour stage myself but this is the second time I've quit (I stopped for 3 years and have been smoking again for just over a year). Redefining yourself helps, using the money for something else helps and I find that phoning round your friends and screaming at each one for a short period of time means that your less likely to alienate any one friend. Good Luck and don't look back. |
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14 Oct 99 - 09:27 PM (#124040) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: gaffer Piss on the packet - they taste worse and are buggers to light! I wish you luck PS the only tobacconist's shop in our town closed a couple of years ago and it's now a town with more music shops than tobacconists. Central Government here has been quite supportive to non-smoking in the past - they beheaded Sir Walter Raleigh |
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14 Oct 99 - 11:24 PM (#124083) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: BobLusk Great responses from everyone. It's so nice to see so much support for someone trying to stop. I smoked for 30 years and spent the last 12 trying to quit. Now I run stop smoking groups as part of my job as a mental health counselor. Nicotine Anonymous is a great group - Worldwide fellowship - there are meetings in most areas. Go to http://nicotine-anonymous.org/ Good luck - you can do it. Just keep trying 1 day at a time. Bob Lusk |
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15 Oct 99 - 02:25 PM (#124315) Subject: Lyr Add: TOBACCO'S BUT AN INDIAN WEED From: gaffer Just to show that folkies have covered the topic in the past. It has been attributed to the same King James the 1st and 6th that shortened the aforementioned Raleigh - this I doubt but he did publish a "Counterblaste against Tobacco" so he may at least have wished he had been the author!
Tobacco's but an Indian weed,
The pipe that is so lily-white,
The pipe that is so foul within,
The ashes that are left behind,
The smoke that doth so high ascend, PS keep at it! |
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15 Oct 99 - 07:28 PM (#124426) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Roger in Baltimore Melodeon, Eight days it significant!! Everyday you lay your head down on the pillow at night smoke-free is significant. I hope you will find some ways to reward yourself for your early success more frequently than semi-annually. Keep your goals short term. Even a journey of a thousand miles begins with but a single step and every step is important. Roger in Baltimore |
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16 Oct 99 - 01:28 PM (#124623) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Melbert They do say that smoking is a nipple substitute. Try going back to the real thing! |
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17 Oct 99 - 12:40 PM (#124853) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Boston Bill There are diff. levels of addiction. You must adjust accordingly by having the desire to quit and by studying yourself. Interview 3 people whom you respect and have quit. Understand what they did and how it worked for them. G'luck. Boston Bill worked for me |
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18 Oct 99 - 11:50 AM (#125170) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: kendall Call on your higher power too, that also helps |
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28 Oct 99 - 05:18 PM (#129166) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Melodeon Annap said that if you do something for 28 days then it is a habit. Well I have not had a cigarette for 28 days now. I still feel that I want one but I really feel so good about not smoking that I will not start again. Thank you all for your support and encouragement.I will let you know in about 5 months time how I am feeling. Will probably have to start a new thread called Help am trying to lose weight. Viv |
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28 Oct 99 - 05:23 PM (#129171) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Tiger Viv.....You're the boss, now. |
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28 Oct 99 - 06:34 PM (#129183) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: jon a I have not smoked a cigarette for 9 months or so, but I still do not admit to myself that I have given up, I am just choosing not to smoke the next cigarette yet, it is a competition with myself to see how long I can wait, the longer I wait the more of a win for me.... And I HATE to lose!! Good Luck Jon |
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28 Oct 99 - 08:18 PM (#129214) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: Cricket In Canyon Lake, TX Melodean; I am a non-smoker, but I can tell you that giving up smoking was the best gift my mother ever gave us as a family. Although she died because she had emphasima (SP?) and that limited her to about 4% capcity in one lung and 10% in the other for a total of 14 out of 200, she did not smoke for the last fifteen years of her life. Please think about your family at the end of the big picture. It was the most stressful and depressing situation I have ever had to endure. Best wishes. Other care about you and are thinking of you. |
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28 Oct 99 - 08:34 PM (#129220) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: katlaughing Cricket is right, Melo. Be proud, be very proud and keep it up for yourself and those who love you. MY ex-brother in law died the same way and left a very angry young teen son behind as well as two sad daughters, one of whom has a son who will never know his granddad. It was very hard for all involved. I also have a friend back East whose mother died that way and whose father is now living with the disease, while on oxygen. Keep up the good work! kat |
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28 Oct 99 - 08:34 PM (#129221) Subject: RE: BS: HELP Am trying to give up smoking. From: McGrath of Harlow Keep away from paces where people are smoking? Couldn't do that, that's where the best music is. When I'm asked if I mind someone lighting up I tend to say, "OK by me, it's the only way I get to smoke". Mind you it makes your clothes stink when you get home after a night playing in a smoky pub. As Boston Bill said a couple of posts ago, there are different levels of addiction. You need to find people with the same level of addiction as yourself when it comes to getting advice. And that doesn't mean the same level of smoking necessarily. You can have a strong habit with quite low consumption, or a weak habit with quite high consumption. For me it just happened that after smoking on and off for 20 or so years I stopped doing it without any problem. Stopped it for Lent, and stayed off it, because I knew it was unhealthy, and my son had started to tell me off for it. ("Mum - Dad's smoking again - AND IT'S TOBACCO). If I ever feel like smoking on holiday at a festival say, I do it, and then stop when I've finished the packet. I never defined myself as a smoker, and I never define myself as a non-smoker. This DOESN'T mean I've got a strong will, it just means I was lucky enough to have a very low level of addiction. Now tea or coffee, that would be a problem. And as for beer... (And don't blame poor old Walter Raleigh - he did bring back potatoes as well. A shame he imported the wrong smoking mixture.)
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