my stop smoking journal

That is exactly why I ordered mine yesterday, good for you musicplr, and might I say, good luck to you also.

Two of the main points in the book are nicotine and thinking like a non-smoker. Nicotine is what makes cigarettes addictive. It's what you crave when you want one. Patches, gum, vaporizers, inhalers all have nicotine. You might be able to quit smoking cigarettes but you'll still be an addicted to the nicotine. I have a friend who gave his wife a hard time about smoking but he chewed tobacco. It's the same addiction. Just one is more likely to give you lung cancer and the other mouth cancer.

Thinking like someone who's never been a smoker helps too. When I smoked, I thought I needed cigarettes when I was stressed or when I was drinking. Well, people who don't smoke get stressed and drink and they never needed a cigarette. Smoking doesn't ease stress, your body gets stressed from nicotine withdrawl and the cigarette only temporary calms that stress until you start to withdraw again. That's another reason why cutting back doesn't help if you really want to quit. After 8+ months, I still avoid any kind of smoking. I went to a middle eastern restaurant the other day and my friends got a hookah with some flavored tobacco. I kindly declined.

Sorry if I'm blowing up the thread but quitting smoking is one of my greatest accomplishments and I will always help anybody who wants to quit. (Notice I didn't say push smokers to quit) My dad still smokes and some of my friends do too. If they want to quit, I'll help but nothing is worse than the pushy ex-smoker. I never thought I'd be able to do it especially since I enjoy drinking and hanging out in bars and pubs. I'm proud to say that even though I still have the rare urge, I will never smoke again.

Davey, please by all means post as much as you would like, any and all moral support is much appreciated.

I'm not going to wish you luck because that's not what's going to make you stop. The only thing that counts is willing. I know it's kind of a cliché to say that and that it's easier said than done but that's just true.

I've never smoked but my parents did. My mother stopped when she was expecting me but I've seen my dad trying a few times until he did it for good. He didn't get any help like gums or drugs (that are generally just an excuse to say "hey look I'm trying" ). He just reduced, then went to a few cigars and then stopped.

Also, don't think that you will stop because of a book (even if it's really good), but because of you. The book is something that helps but without your will, it won't do much on its own.

Some friends tried quitting with an electronic cigarette too but it seems that very often they get back to cigarettes because of the habit (social event, missing the feeling of the real thing).

Thinking like a non-smoker could be a good idea indeed. For instance, when I get stressed, I don't smoke, but I just go out and kill somebody at random (with a baguette). No big deal, no cancer

And as yoga says : "Do or don't, there is no try" !

Quote:

Originally posted by vdg1959

As it turns out, the only predictor of success in quitting smoking is the number of times you quit. The research is quite conclusive about this. All the gums and patches and other aids out there might help for some things, but it still comes down to quitting. The more times you resolve to quit, the more likely you will succeed. Even if you pick one up again, don't get mad at yourself for it. Just move on, and resolve to quit again. And again. And again. And then be sure to start exercising soon. You need to replace the habit with something, so do it with something you need to do anyway. It will speed the quitting process, and help you feel better in a month.

Either way, you'll get there!! ;-)

He's right. On average, a person has to attempt to quit - and I mean serious attempts - at least 7 times. This includes the "casual smokers who never inhaled" however, so if you take those out of the pool it can take many dozen different legitimate attempts to stop for good.

Each time you make a step forward, is a step forward. You'll find that if you ignore the rubbish idea that a slip is a failure, and embrace the idea that you just made progress and didn't smoke the X number of cigarettes you would have were you not trying to stop, you'll find that it strengthens you for next time.

"Hey, I used to smoke 2.5 packs a day. Now I only smoke two packs a day. I didn't quit, but I'm doing better."

Better is better my friend.

I used to smoke. I smoked between two and three packs daily, and I most certainly did inhale. I now smoke 2.5 per day.

2.5 cigarettes per day. Not packs.

It took me 2 years to get here, and a lot of it was hard, but I stopped treating myself like a failure every time I lit one up. I'm now at the point where my smoking is essentially negligible, and even the doctor sort of squints at me funny when I tell him I consider myself a smoker - at a whoppin' two and a half smokes per day.

A slip is not a failure. It's a slip - and it's a sign of progress. You held off on smoking for however long you managed to go before your slip. That's not moving backwards. That's moving forward. Take it in stride, and when you're up to it, try again. You'll be amazed how much stronger you become over the course of time if you don't beat yourself up about not being where you want to be, and instead focus on the progress you made.

Quote:

Originally posted by hydrahead

Someone was at their doctor and asked him "I really want to quit. Do you have any suggestions?"

The doctor said " Don't put them in your mouth."

The person said " Very funny, but really do you have any suggestions on how I could quit?"

The doctor said " Don't put them in your mouth"

That doctor obviously never smoked. If it was that damned easy, no one would smoke. Trivializing one of the top four addictions (cocaine, alcohol, heroine, and cigarettes) doesn't make the addiction trivial. It makes you unprepared to deal with fighting a serious addiction.

Most experts on addiction actually place cigarettes as the most addictive substance, and depending on your frame of reference, it's the most lethal.

It's not trivial. It's not easy. It is worth being thoughtful and considerate in order to fight such a powerful addiction. It's also worth treating it like a big boy addiction - because it is.



Heroine will kill you if you overdose. Cigarettes will kill you at any dose.

Quote:

Originally posted by DEMO

I have tried the electronic cigarettes, yeah, that didn't work so well...

And yes, I've quit many times, and I am, I believe, more dedicated to it this time than I have been in the past, it's something I truly want to do, so hopefully along with the book Davey linked earlier in this thread, I will become a non-smoker after I get my book tomorrow.

There are a lot of different E-cigs out there. Some are better than others. Some are better for person X than for person Y. Would you elaborate on why the E-cig didn't work for you, Demo?

It's pretty simple Tarquin, the electronic cig didn't work because it was a fake, something that kinda looked like the real thing, but didn't taste like or smell like the real thing, and it irritated me, which made me want the real thing even more.

And omuh, in my book, when it comes to my 36 year addiction, there is a try, it comes down to like several people have said, if you fail you can't beat yourself up over it. If you beat yourself up over it you lose the will to try, and I don't want to lose the will to want to quit

So anyway, the past 2 days I've been smoking as normal, all the time trying to think like a non-smoker.

Quote:

Originally posted by DEMO

It's pretty simple Tarquin, the electronic cig didn't work because it was a fake, something that kinda looked like the real thing, but didn't taste like or smell like the real thing, and it irritated me, which made me want the real thing even more.

That happens sometimes. I've used them, and after I got used to some of them I found that the flavor that I used to crave from a real cigarette was actually pretty nasty, and the flavors of the vapor cigarettes was actually quite good.

No, it's not like a combustion cigarette. It's "similar" but... Not quite the same thing. It's the combustion that makes a cigarette so powerful by the way - and so dangerous - and so addictive. It's the fact that it's on fire. It changes the chemicals and the way it can enter a blood stream.

For some people the E-cigs can create more of a "trigger" to want to smoke than they can help fend off a withdrawal or a craving.

Those are two different things, by the way. A craving and a withdrawal. Totally different - and I can pick someone out who has never smoked and who has no clue by how they use the two words.

Sorry for the tangent. In any case, I have an E-cig, and it has mostly been an asset to me. That won't be the case for everyone though, and I applaud you for having tried something, evaluated it carefully, and made the choice that best enabled you to move forward.

No worries Tarquin, I appreciate the input, feel free to post s you'dlike, different viewpoints do me good.

Quote:

Originally posted by Tarquin

...
That doctor obviously never smoked. If it was that damned easy, no one would smoke. Trivializing one of the top four addictions (cocaine, alcohol, heroine, and cigarettes) doesn't make the addiction trivial. It makes you unprepared to deal with fighting a serious addiction.

Most experts on addiction actually place cigarettes as the most addictive substance, and depending on your frame of reference, it's the most lethal.

It's not trivial. It's not easy. It is worth being thoughtful and considerate in order to fight such a powerful addiction. It's also worth treating it like a big boy addiction - because it is.

I was not trivializing anything. It was illustrative. What I did was take the action of quitting down to it's base.

No matter what method or support system you use to quit smoking, it will only work if you
don't put them in your mouth.

I wish Demo success in quitting smoking. I know it can be done because I did it.

Thanks Hydra.

You can do it brah.

You're right Hydra, I can

Quote:

Originally posted by hydrahead

...

I was not trivializing anything. It was illustrative.

Nor did I assert that you had. I believe I was speaking about the doctor in this case. It wasn't directed at you personally, Hydra.

We (as a culture) do in fact, tend to trivialize this addiction compared to others that are not as severe, as those that are less dangerous or both.

It's quite dangerous. It's quite serious. I often think that if we granted those battling this addiction (and others) the recognition that what they're facing is significant, that it would be more empowering as much as it is more honest.

I think that any time we diminish the power and severity of a challenge we're facing it life, it makes any perceived "failure" that much more difficult to bear, and subsequently to rise up and face again.

I also think that an important step in my own personal recovery - and those of others I've spoken with - is acknowledging that it is indeed an addiction. Not a habit. Not a choice. If that's all it was, none of us would smoke any more.

That's all I was trying to point out.

My wife has tried a lot of things to quit. She has been trying the cig counting method AGAIN . Something always happens to make her lose count. Stress at work is the main problem, she says. I think you have to quit by using the cold turkey method, Demo.. Use electronic cigs,, gum , patch etc. I don't think cig counting works for many. Just say--- I am in control and I am going to quit today! And do it

Agreed NC, I've done the counting cigarettesthing to try to cut down and quit, and I agree, at least for me it didn't work. I do believe cold turkey is gonna be what works for me. Just gonna read my book when I get it today, and learn to think as a non-smoker, and BAM, hopefully be rid of smoking for good.

While I don't want to say what they are I've dealt with both chemical/substance and habit addictions of different types as I find I tend to have an addictive personality; the two biggest things that helped me was 1) recognizing that I had lost control and was outright addicted, and 2) replacing the addiction with something entirely different but healthy. Not to say I never lapsed or stumbled, but at one point I quit one addiction I was struggling with 2-3 times a day entirely for over 3 years. I support ANYONE who wants to take charge of their lives and fight addictions of any sort. Be they chemical or habitual. The most casual thing can be harmful when it becomes addictive, and I don't think anyone's should be mocked. For me I tried to replace my addictions with things that has positive endorphin released as a "reward" and made the behaviour a habit. Ie: quitting a chemical addiction and replacing it with a glass of water every time I felt like k wanted it; or a habitual one with working out or a sport or running.

Either way, recognizing your will to change for your own sake and wanting to take control is a huge step. Don't let setbacks destroy you, fight back harder, never ever ever ever get complacent or make excuses, and more power to you Demo.

Thanks jenn, and I will never give up, as I said, even after 36 years I will beat this

I do think people need to get more serious about tobacco addictions. I think because it's more socially acceptable than say, heroin, people tend to not take it as serious. Shit, I have a friend who beat a heroin addiction but still smokes cigarettes. The physical withdrawl symptoms are nil though. Everything is mental. Any everyday smoker can at least go 7-8 hours (asleep) without needing a cigarette. Try making an everyday opiate user go 7-8 hours without a fix. They will start to get sick. Besides an occasional headache, there really aren't physical symptoms. If you convince your brain that you don't need nicotine anymore, you've won the battle. It's not easy and for the first couple of weeks, maybe even a month, I would find myself literally talking myself out of wanting to smoke.