I've smoked daily since 1977 (I'm 57). I've never tried to give up before now. When I was at [unspeakable times] boarding school in 1972-5 I first started smoking, but only occasionally. Had very few when I mercifully changed to going to the local high school in the rural area where I lived then. My mum dropped me at the Hall of Residence where I lived when I was at Uni in Adelaide in March 1977 (I was still a week away from turning 17, having skipped Grade One in Primary School, because my sister had already taught me to read and write, etc). As soon as she left, I went to Madam P's (the local deli - long story) and bought a packet of smokes. Escort reds - 67c for twenty, and you're a Member, as the ads said at the time.

Now, cigarettes cost $20 for a pack of twenty - ie, a dollar EACH. I have smoked rollies (tobacco) almost all the time, though, which is less expensive, but a 50g pouch of tobacco is over $60, and lasts me less than a week, so it is still expensive!

I have previously not even THOUGHT of stopping smoking. I don't want to use the phrase "giving up" because I am trying to make this all positive, not about losing something that costs me heaps and is undoubtedly killing me (or worse) slowly.

When I was in Europe in September/October last year, I got a cold which essentially did not go away the whole month I was over there. By the time I flew home, my ribs were killing me when I incessantly coughed. I had to literally hug myself tightly to make the pain bearable, which is extremely embarrassing in public. It was worse than post-operative pain I had in 2006 when I had my crumbling aortic arch replaced with a plastic one.

My doc here put me on dog-biscuit sized antibiotics and steroids to fight the secondary infection I had - X-rays showed an opacity on one of my lungs. I reckon that was my first scare - I have long ago recovered, but the coughing lingers to some extent, especially in the mornings when I first get up.

I remember my father coughing like that (well, much worse than I do now) every morning when I was a little kid (he stopped smoking when he was about my age) and I had no intention of ever, ever smoking back then.

So anyway, I started on a course of a stop-smoking aid - Champix (varenicline) almost two weeks ago. Tuesday, January 23 is the last day I smoke, if my plans work.

I don't know HOW it will go. Part of me is terrified, but part of me is also exhilarated at the prospect of winning the battle to free myself from the Nicotine Prison.

Please, anyone here who has stopped smoking successfully, or knows someone who has (or not - I want truth, not just feelgood), can you tell me anything about your experience?

Good luck. That $h!t's disgusting. My brother and best friend were both smokers, they each quit in the last 2 years, which relieved me greatly. Whenever money was tight for them, they could turn into a*hole when they were jonesing. You can do it!

Maulbert wrote:Good luck. That $h!t's disgusting. My brother and best friend were both smokers, they each quit in the last 2 years, which relieved me greatly. Whenever money was tight for them, they could turn into a*hole when they were jonesing. You can do it!

Thanks, Maulbert. Did they have serious health issues, or just decide (as I have - I look at my from-a-cold recent secondary infection as a warning) to give up suddenly?

Before the post-cold illness, I'd never THOUGHT of giving up, but all the coughing is really tapping me hard on the shoulder, and telling me to act while I (presumably) still have time. I mean, who knows? I could have a sub-clinical self-inflicted pathology already. But of course quitting can only help, no matter how late.

I'm very frightened as to how it is all going to be, but determined to fight it, too. I am also having to vastly cut back my wine consumption too (or stop it totally) because smoking and grog go hand in hand.

And then there's that weird thing called exercise (shudder) I MUST start doing, to lose the disgusting gut I've developed over the past twenty years or so. Like the Paul Simon song, I don't know much about that. But, I do have a treadmill, almost never used, which gives me hints on my trips to the fridge for another drink.

Talk is cheap, and I've done lots of that here tonight. I have to listen to myself and back it up with total action, otherwise it is all useless.

If you really want to quit you can do it. In my experience it's been about deciding it was time and just making the decision to stop. I quit back in 2012 and once I got through the first couple months (with the aid of the overpriced, disgusting, disposable e-cigs) I ended up with virtually zero cravings. It's hard to even remember why I smoked in the first place.

If you've decided that it's time to put it down I have no doubt that you have the power and ability to make it happen for yourself. Good luck!

Zebulon Dak wrote:If you really want to quit you can do it. In my experience it's been about deciding it was time and just making the decision to stop. I quit back in 2012 and once I got through the first couple months (with the aid of the overpriced, disgusting, disposable e-cigs) I ended up with virtually zero cravings. It's hard to even remember why I smoked in the first place.

If you've decided that it's time to put it down I have no doubt that you have the power and ability to make it happen for yourself. Good luck!

PLEASE, tell me about the e-cigs? My wife (who is also quitting) despises them, although she's never tried them (nor have I). Why were they disgusting? I've been semi-tempted to try them, but for their bad press as a... well, an EXCUSE, I guess.

BUT, from above, they must've helped you?

And.. I'm awed at what you said... "It's hard to even remember why I smoked in the first place."

I hope I can feel that way soon. My sincerest congrats at your awesome achievement, and I just HOPE I have the guts to do it too.

We are the same age (within a few months). I started when I was 14, stopped 23 years later (so, 20 years ago). When I stopped for the last time, I did some research first. Nicotine latches on to your brain's endorphin receptors (I think that's the one) so your body stops making it on its own. Your brain craves these receptors being filled, so you need to get your body making it again instead of settling for nicotine. But first, you need to break the habit of smoking.

You have certain parts of the day and certain actions which you associate with smoking - rolling out of bed, with coffee, with beer, during breaks at work, after meals, and such. I worked on this part first. I couldn't afford nicotine patches or gum or anything, and besides those are too easy. Instead I got the nicotine fix from chewing tobacco which I find to be vile and disgusting (I chose this on purpose). I then spent 2-3 weeks just not reaching for a cig when I normally would, to unlearn the habit part. When I felt like I was ready, I then stopped chewing the tobacco, which was made easier by the fact that it's so effing nasty.

To restart the endorphin machine, I was exercising HARD every night. The body's natural reaction to hard exercise, pain, etc is to make endorphins. Lots of water throughout the day also helped.

Good luck, you can do this! My wife finally quit in November, after being diagnosed with lung cancer. This turned out to actually be 'encapsulated pneumonia' instead of stage 2 cancer (which she learned 2 days before the scheduled surgery to remove at least half of her left lung!), but the scare was enough that she stayed a non-smoker.

My dad quit about 39 years ago. He started chewing toothpicks so that became the habit instead of a cigarette. Mom quit several years later. They are having a few issues now that they are in their late 70s.

A friend of mine started doing the e-cigs a year ago or more and has not looked back. I am told they can be better or worse as far as nicotine consumption. I do not know. He has not touched a cigarette since.

Most of all, it is in your head that you need to be strong. Good luck.


I call it choosing a different path to enhance your future.

I quit in 2005 after around 18 years, I started to notice there was times when I liked smoking and there was times where I felt kinda crappy and could only take one drag or two and put it out until later.

One time I felt crappy and decided I was done. I chewed regular gum for a week or so and that was it. I've been around smokers since and have even held someone's cigarette but I've never been tempted.

One thing I didn't know was going to happen was my sense of smell got better after a couple of weeks. Also most smokers really reek of smoke and have no clue. Everything in their houses turn sticky yellow. And that's just their walls, imagine what their lungs must look like.

Cigarettes are expensive too, imagine all the cool stuff you could buy with that money instead. Items with actual value you aren't just throwing away. It's a smart investment.

My wife and I both quit smoking 12 years ago, the big thing for me was changing habits, morning smoke, smoking at the bar and breaks at work. I was having the morning cough you referenced and knew it was time to quit. Not sure why but the only thing I ever miss is bumming a cigarette. It sounds to me like you are ready to quit, good luck.

Just give up cigarettes and start smoking weed.

Hawk-Lock wrote:Just give up cigarettes and start smoking weed.

I do smoke weed, but only a very small amount, as I find it utterly dysphoric if I have any more than what to most people would be trivial. I will at least at first stop smoking that, too, and stop or cut back drastically my alcohol consumption, because as GeekHawk writes above, they are both obvious smoking triggers.

Thank you to everyone here for all your replies!

I'm one of those old farts who smoked for 40+years and quit almost 16 years ago. I decided I wanted to watch my grand children grow up, so I quit. Once I told myself, "That's it, no more...," it wasn't that difficult. Ya know how as you grow older you realize there are some things you'll never be able to do again. Think of this the same way....no more. No gradually stopping, no self masterb***, NO MAS!!

Now having said that, I'm now 74yo and was diagnosed with CPOD almost 5 years ago. Let me tell you, brother, when you can't breathe your world changes dramatically...and not for the better. No long walks, no dancing, no......

Had I not stopped when I did, I seriously doubt I'd be here to write this.

GeekHawk - I'm so relieved your wife "only" had encapsulated pneumonia, and not lung cancer.

I've never chewed tobacco, or even known anyone who does - I think it is pretty much unheard-of in Oz.

There's a complicated "reward" system located in the ventral tegmental area of the brain (primarily dopamine-driven) which also involves endogenous opiates indirectly, when nicotine binds to nicotinic receptors. Opiates, either exogenous (codeine, morphine, heroin, etc) or endogenous (endorphins and enkephalins) bind to µ (mu) opioid receptors primarily.

Any way you look at it, no wonder it is SO addictive. Why this biochemical slavery to some plant products evolved, is a mystery to me.

I've always looked at smoking as my friend, I guess - "stopping the world" for ten minutes. I'm a depressive (but hey, I'm lucky, I'm well medicated by fluoxetine 40mg a day, and it also ditched the awful obsessive-compulsive torture I used to have).

I must look on smoking as my ENEMY, and KNOW my enemy. Let me have the strength to now shut up, and walk the walk for real, and chuck out my tobacco and associated paraphenalia, and wake up NOT to smoke on Wednesday morning.

Hopefully the damned Deflatriots are out of the playoffs by then. GO JACKSONVILLE!! Minnesota-Philly, I can only be neutral, and enjoy the game.

LymonHawk wrote:I'm one of those old farts who smoked for 40+years and quit almost 16 years ago. I decided I wanted to watch my grand children grow up, so I quit. Once I told myself, "That's it, no more...," it wasn't that difficult. Ya know how as you grow older you realize there are some things you'll never be able to do again. Think of this the same way....no more. No gradually stopping, no self masterb***, NO MAS!!

Now having said that, I'm now 74yo and was diagnosed with CPOD almost 5 years ago. Let me tell you, brother, when you can't breathe your world changes dramatically...and not for the better. No long walks, no dancing, no......
Had I not stopped when I did, I seriously doubt I'd be here to write this.

Lymon! Where you been, man? I've asked after you here, and got no reply, same as after Okie. I hope you are both doing OK. And, please... what is "NO MAS"?

Please... I must ask - and I've blithely "assumed" I'm not already self-induced SICK... you quit 16 years ago, right? But you were diagnosed with CPOD only 5 years ago. If I have this right... you got sick from smoking... 11 years AFTER YOU QUIT?

$%#@... and only myself to blame, anyway.

Having spent some time among those recovering from addiction, I can say that smoking is one of the hardest habits to kick. The one key element in any recovery is simple, really.

Ask yourself: Do you really want to quit? If the answer is really and sincerely "Yes!" you have a great shot. If not, you'll never make it. You sound like you really want to do that, and reaching out for help and advice is a great start. I quit about 40 years ago and never regretted it at all. I quit cold turkey, without a lot of support, but I had only smoked about 10 years and I wasn't that hooked.

Best of luck! Seek out people that support you, and avoid people who don't like the plague. People who joke about it and tease you on this subject and give you the "nudge, nudge, wink, wink, you can have just one" are not your friends.

I'm not Lymon, but "No mas" means "No more" in Spanish. Or almost-Spanish (I don't personally speak the language but I know a lot of people that do). And yes, you can get COPD after quitting. You do damage to your lungs from smoking, and *most* of it self-heals with time. But not all of it, and the longer you smoked the more there is that needs to heal.

The wifey and I were both quite relieved that it turned out to be an encapsulated pneumonia infection and not a 1.6cm malignant tumor. Also surprised to learn that the dye they use for a PET scan is apparently only taken up by malignant tumors and encapsulated pneumonia. Since almost nobody has the latter, and since she smoked from age 18 until 2 months ago, the automatic assumption is worst-case when it shows on the scan.

I am allergic to smoking. As really need to have those that used to smoke or are allergic. To try to help you. Remember it is no cakewalk. From what I hear from my parents. Both ex-smokers. Say that they quit for the sake of us kids at the time. Just be in thought with you my friend. That is the only advice I can give you.

Aussie Seahawk wrote:

Zebulon Dak wrote:If you really want to quit you can do it. In my experience it's been about deciding it was time and just making the decision to stop. I quit back in 2012 and once I got through the first couple months (with the aid of the overpriced, disgusting, disposable e-cigs) I ended up with virtually zero cravings. It's hard to even remember why I smoked in the first place.

If you've decided that it's time to put it down I have no doubt that you have the power and ability to make it happen for yourself. Good luck!

PLEASE, tell me about the e-cigs? My wife (who is also quitting) despises them, although she's never tried them (nor have I). Why were they disgusting? I've been semi-tempted to try them, but for their bad press as a... well, an EXCUSE, I guess.

BUT, from above, they must've helped you?

I walked into 7 Eleven and bought the NJoy disposable e-cig, the one with less nicotine (there's a few options of that brand and a ton of options of other brands), the one that looked more like a real cigarette and less like a vape device. $7.99 or something like that. I used those for 2-3 months but since they were less enjoyable and fulfilling than an actual cigarette and kind of felt like a waste of money it was fairly easy to wean myself off of them. I don't know if that's typical or not but it worked surprisingly well for me. I know other people that have quit smoking and turned to vaping as a long term hobby/habit but that was never my intention.

Zebulon Dak wrote: I used those for 2-3 months but since they were less enjoyable and fulfilling than an actual cigarette and kind of felt like a waste of money it was fairly easy to wean myself off of them..

Sort of like what I did with the chewing tobacco. Except that chewing is so disgusting that it was 2 weeks, not 2-3 months.

Aussie Seahawk wrote:

LymonHawk wrote:I'm one of those old farts who smoked for 40+years and quit almost 16 years ago. I decided I wanted to watch my grand children grow up, so I quit. Once I told myself, "That's it, no more...," it wasn't that difficult. Ya know how as you grow older you realize there are some things you'll never be able to do again. Think of this the same way....no more. No gradually stopping, no self masterb***, NO MAS!!

Now having said that, I'm now 74yo and was diagnosed with CPOD almost 5 years ago. Let me tell you, brother, when you can't breathe your world changes dramatically...and not for the better. No long walks, no dancing, no......
Had I not stopped when I did, I seriously doubt I'd be here to write this.

Lymon! Where you been, man? I've asked after you here, and got no reply, same as after Okie. I hope you are both doing OK. And, please... what is "NO MAS"?

Please... I must ask - and I've blithely "assumed" I'm not already self-induced SICK... you quit 16 years ago, right? But you were diagnosed with CPOD only 5 years ago. If I have this right... you got sick from smoking... 11 years AFTER YOU QUIT?

$%#@... and only myself to blame, anyway.

Hey, Aussie! I rarely post here anymore, but when I saw you looking for help I felt I should chip in with my own experience. Patrick is correct, No Mas=No More. And like you, I have no one to blame but myself.

Good luck with stopping.....YOU CAN DO IT!!

GeekHawk wrote:

Zebulon Dak wrote: I used those for 2-3 months but since they were less enjoyable and fulfilling than an actual cigarette and kind of felt like a waste of money it was fairly easy to wean myself off of them..

Sort of like what I did with the chewing tobacco. Except that chewing is so disgusting that it was 2 weeks, not 2-3 months.

Whatever works, right?

I quit smoking back in 2012 and moved over to vaping, there was quite literally about half a day where I really wanted a cigarette, after that, couldn't have been easier. I have absolutely zero desire to ever have one again. Vaping is better in every way. It's considerably cheaper, you don't stink and it actually tastes nice as opposed to the vile taste of cigarettes.

It's a case of getting a good one, though. The ones you find in 7-11's etc will be rubbish in comparison. Get yourself to a vape shop (guarantee you'll have one near you!) You don't need to spend a fortune, either.

Some people struggle more to adapt than others but at worst, it'll take a week for your lungs to get used to vaping as opposed to Cigarettes. It took me a mere few hours but it took my wife a bit longer, around a week. Perseverance is key as is having the right kit. Honestly, expect to be disappointed with the budget kits you get in gas stations etc.

I personally use 12mg e liquid whereas my wife got down to 0mg so it's merely habit for her, no addiction whatsoever.

Honesty, give vaping a try. It could very possibly make one of the hardest things you'll ever do in your life one of the easiest.

I think that vaping is healthier than smoking, particularly if you are able to lower your nicotine intake in doing so. But I also think that not vaping or smoking is the best option. So while I support a switch from smoking to vaping, I also support going into vaping with the expectation of not doing that long term either. We don't have a lot of data, and I know that smoking cigs is worse, but the fewer vices the better is true in basically every scenario. When you quit smoking and don't turn to vaping long term you will feel a real sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. I can tell you that first hand. But of course if you want to vape, vape. It's not gonna kill you, as far as we know.

Ever since I started working at a law firm that helps asbestosis victims, I've been quite keen on anyone who opts to quit smoking. The effects of asbestos exposure are quite different, of course, but many of the results are the same. I'm rooting for you, Aussie.

I used to smoke. I'm thinking of starting up again so I can look cool.

fenderbender123 wrote:I used to smoke. I'm thinking of starting up again so I can look cool.

You'll probably smell better too!

GeekHawk wrote:

fenderbender123 wrote:I used to smoke. I'm thinking of starting up again so I can look cool.

You'll probably smell better too!

It does a good job of hiding the marijuana and alcohol smell my boss is always gettin' on me about.

Damn bosses!

Get a subscription to welbutran.. Happy pills.
They make your brain forget your a smoker.

It was the only way I could quit.

Basically, you take one a day, perhaps 2 for about a week.
You will light up a cig and it will taste funny..
At that point, get rid of all your cigs that day and the next morning, don't have any evidence around that you smoked.

Strangely for some reason, you won't have any feelings of having the smoking habit, the hand to mouth with a cig thing.
It's at this point, the next day, you will start to feel the nicotine addiction kick in. If you are strong enough, just with stand it.. it will feel weird cause, it's not the habit thats compelling you to smoke but rather the nicotine so all you have to do is wait it out several days as your body cleanses itself of the nicotine. Once that is done, your pretty much home free. If your not strong enough to do that, have some nicotine patches on board to tie you over as you wein yourself off of the nicotine. good luck, it's a bastard of a habit.

As a former smoker, you do realize that it stinks so bad when you are done. I still have a bunch of friends that smoke and I notice that the friends who smoke the scented cigars don’t reek like the ones who smoke regular cigarettes. I swear it is from the papers they are wrapped in. For example: At our local watering hole, I always know who just smoked a Marlboro and who smoked a Cheyenne. The Marlboro smoker just reeks bad and the little cigar smoker hardly smells at all.
The hardest thing to do when you quit is drinking alcohol. Smoking and drinking go hand in hand.
I tell you what though, I have smoked an occasional vanilla flavored little cigar on occasion when I am buzzed. Very, very few occasions.

Thank you everyone for your replies and experiences, and all your best wishes - very much appreciated. This is my first day of no smoking. I haven't been on the forum since the weekend, because it was not until yesterday I finally got to finish watching the Championship games, and I didn't want to know any scores.

One day at a time!!! Go Aussie!!

Bobblehead wrote:Get a subscription to welbutran.. Happy pills.
They make your brain forget your a smoker.

good luck, it's a bastard of a habit.

Thank you, but I don't want to take that as I already take 40mg a day of fluoxetine (Prozac) for depression, so Zyban (as it's called here) would be contraindicated. I also have a friend who tried quitting using it a few years back, and he said it made him "stark, raving mad" (although, but by his own admittance, he's rather unstable anyway. Sadly, this friend, who is about 50 or so, had a stroke in October and has permanently lost the sight in his right eye.

Funny aside, why do all of the side effects of stop smoking drugs sound a lot like the very withdrawal symptoms of quitting smoking anyway?

Seahwkgal wrote:As a former smoker, you do realize that it stinks so bad when you are done. I still have a bunch of friends that smoke and I notice that the friends who smoke the scented cigars don’t reek like the ones who smoke regular cigarettes. I swear it is from the papers they are wrapped in. For example: At our local watering hole, I always know who just smoked a Marlboro and who smoked a Cheyenne. The Marlboro smoker just reeks bad and the little cigar smoker hardly smells at all.
The hardest thing to do when you quit is drinking alcohol. Smoking and drinking go hand in hand.
I tell you what though, I have smoked an occasional vanilla flavored little cigar on occasion when I am buzzed. Very, very few occasions.

Sounds like a blunt...

I quit about 7 years ago using ecigs, however i still enjoy using mine so i do with even nicotine, I can say my sense of smell came back, spicy food is spicy again, i can run again, i am not out of breath going up the stairs. I was born with pneumonia so I have always been very prone to getting it, knock on wood not a thing since i quit. Many people think ecigs are the devil however they are much safer than alot of the pills people get prescriptions for. Best of luck to you and it is the best choice you could ever make.

sutz wrote:Funny aside, why do all of the side effects of stop smoking drugs sound a lot like the very withdrawal symptoms of quitting smoking anyway?

Why do they have Interstate freeways in Hawaii?

Seriously, it must be SO hard to disentangle all the possible factors in doing clinical studies on smoking withdrawal symptoms and, indeed, side effects of the stop-smoking drugs themselves. You raise a good point, and I guess they may test the stop-smoking drugs on non-smoking, paid subjects, maybe? It would be interesting to know the effects of taking these drugs when you have never smoked. I'll ask my doc when I go back for my next varenicline/Champix script in early February.

On my second day of not smoking, and all going well so far. I have the urge to smoke to some extent (something is, just, well... missing), but it is manageable, and telling myself simply NO has so far worked well. My wife and I have no cigarettes or tobacco in the house, but our son, who is temporarily living with us, smokes still, but he goes out the front of the house, so our old smoking-place (the back verandah) is smoke-free.

Two (positively) surprising things about potentially huge smoking triggers, so far... having a coffee (2 cups each day) is really no problem. In fact, the coffee almost feels like a tobacco "substitute" (a faint buzz), yet when I smoked I noticed nothing after a coffee. However, a few years ago when I accidentally bought decaf, I certainly noticed something was "wrong" after a couple of days.

The other thing is a small amount of alcohol seems to be totally manageable. I emphasise SMALL. Telling myself NO, very firmly, and simply sipping my drink (a homebrew beer or a red wine), is simply... enjoyable.

Anyway, I'm going to shut up until a week of no smoking is up, and by NO means take anything for granted. I've been ME-ME-ME enough here, and thank you again, everyone, for your support! I swear it helps. Gotta walk the WALK... oh, literally, too.

m0ng0 wrote:I quit about 7 years ago using ecigs, however i still enjoy using mine so i do with even nicotine, I can say my sense of smell came back, spicy food is spicy again, i can run again, i am not out of breath going up the stairs. I was born with pneumonia so I have always been very prone to getting it, knock on wood not a thing since i quit. Many people think ecigs are the devil however they are much safer than alot of the pills people get prescriptions for. Best of luck to you and it is the best choice you could ever make.

I've never tried ecigs, but heck, you are doing WELL! I am sure they are, at the very least, much less harmful than smoking, but I simply want to get out of the whole damn nicotine prison completely, because I fear I would then have life revolving around my next ecig! But if it works for you... FANTASTIC! Thanks for your wishes. OH, I made Mongolian beef last night, and that dose of spicy did cause rather a flare up in the craving, per se. Fortunately, again, I was able to tell myself to suck it up, because I AIN'T giving up spicy food!!!

sutz wrote:Best of luck! Seek out people that support you, and avoid people who don't like the plague. People who joke about it and tease you on this subject and give you the "nudge, nudge, wink, wink, you can have just one" are not your friends.

I HEAR you, and thank you! I don't know anyone who would say that, and it is DEFINITELY not what I need. I would be RIGHT BACK chained to the wheel, if I had just ONE smoke. I am under NO illusions there.

Msfann wrote:I quit in 2005 after around 18 years, I started to notice there was times when I liked smoking and there was times where I felt kinda crappy and could only take one drag or two and put it out until later.

Cigarettes are expensive too, imagine all the cool stuff you could buy with that money instead. Items with actual value you aren't just throwing away. It's a smart investment.

Wow, I have NEVER put a smoke out until later! I've always smoked them down to the quick.

BUT... expense, here in Australia (and it is escalating brutally, with government tax hikes every six months)...
Myself, smoking rollies, tally up $70 a week, approx. My wife, smoking tailors, tally up (she admits)... $200 a week!
Soooo - $270 a week in total = $14,040 a year (about US$10,950) - mere pocket change...

m0ng0 wrote:I quit about 7 years ago using ecigs, however i still enjoy using mine so i do with even nicotine, I can say my sense of smell came back, spicy food is spicy again, i can run again, i am not out of breath going up the stairs. I was born with pneumonia so I have always been very prone to getting it, knock on wood not a thing since i quit. Many people think ecigs are the devil however they are much safer than alot of the pills people get prescriptions for. Best of luck to you and it is the best choice you could ever make.

Pretty much exactly the same as me. I bloody love using mine!

I run at least 2/3 times a week as well. Couldn't do that as a smoker.

IndyHawk wrote:

Seahwkgal wrote:As a former smoker, you do realize that it stinks so bad when you are done. I still have a bunch of friends that smoke and I notice that the friends who smoke the scented cigars don’t reek like the ones who smoke regular cigarettes. I swear it is from the papers they are wrapped in. For example: At our local watering hole, I always know who just smoked a Marlboro and who smoked a Cheyenne. The Marlboro smoker just reeks bad and the little cigar smoker hardly smells at all.
The hardest thing to do when you quit is drinking alcohol. Smoking and drinking go hand in hand.
I tell you what though, I have smoked an occasional vanilla flavored little cigar on occasion when I am buzzed. Very, very few occasions.

Sounds like a blunt...

HaHa...kinda, cept for the pot.

Completed a week of not smoking yesterday. Doing OK despite bad domestic circumstances (ice/meth-addled son living with us after he was released from prison 3 weeks ago). Somehow staying OFF the smokes totally, despite all the damn stress.

Keep it up, man.

Aussie Seahawk wrote:Completed a week of not smoking yesterday. Doing OK despite bad domestic circumstances (ice/meth-addled son living with us after he was released from prison 3 weeks ago). Somehow staying OFF the smokes totally, despite all the damn stress.

You can only be responsible for your own actions.....keep up the good fight....it's worth it!!

Thank you GeekHawk and Lymon - your replies are incredibly valuable to me! It has been very tough with "company" in the house - also our 11-yo grandson Tyler has been living with us since early December, as Chris (our son) and Tyler's mother are so dysfuctional. We'd "selfishly" become used to having the house to ourselves for the past 18 months or so, but everything has now changed SO much.

THANKFULLY he still has a job after piking off work today (slept half of today after ice bender), as his foreman has apparently previously gone through the same wringer... BUT, he can't shelter him from senior management forever. I'll be making sure he's out of the house at 5:30AM tomorrow!

Stress, for some reason, makes me tired, tired, tired. No idea why that happens, but I think people who can NOT sleep when stressed would surely envy me. But last night (especially my poor wife, who is a light sleeper) were kept awake by his raving antics. It sounded like Linda Blair was in the spare room, replaying "The Exorcist" (///shudder///).

Yeah, Day 8 of no smoking - I don't feel TOO bad, but still ONE DAY at a TIME. Not takin' nothin' for granted, because at times the damned cravings sneak up and SLAP me, at incredibly ramdom times.

The Price of Liberty is indeed Eternal Vigilance.

Unfortunate that you have to suffer such additional stress this early in your quest to quit. I went through it with alcohol, so I am a bit of a kindred spirit. One note of caution, though. Try your best not to own your "guest's" problems. Swearing to get him off to work on time could be problematic. It always seems that when we try to make changes of that sort, everybody in our immediate circle starts coming up with their own disasters. The urge to focus on them and ignore our own problems can be over powering.

Stay strong, yes, but don't go all macho about it. Sometimes you just have to try to relax and let things flow. People like to laugh at the Serenity Prayer, but it can be a useful mantra, especially when everything seems out of control and the natural impulse is to try to force the universe to submit to your will.

One day at a time.

Put the damn cigarette down and quit smoking any more. THAT is the answer.

STOP doing it.

Seahawkville wrote:Put the damn cigarette down and quit smoking any more. THAT is the answer.

STOP doing it.

It's that simple! A wonder nobody ever thought of that before.

sutz wrote:Unfortunate that you have to suffer such additional stress this early in your quest to quit. I went through it with alcohol, so I am a bit of a kindred spirit. One note of caution, though. Try your best not to own your "guest's" problems. Swearing to get him off to work on time could be problematic. It always seems that when we try to make changes of that sort, everybody in our immediate circle starts coming up with their own disasters. The urge to focus on them and ignore our own problems can be over powering.

Stay strong, yes, but don't go all macho about it. Sometimes you just have to try to relax and let things flow. People like to laugh at the Serenity Prayer, but it can be a useful mantra, especially when everything seems out of control and the natural impulse is to try to force the universe to submit to your will.

One day at a time.

Sutz, are you of paranormal powers? Because what you write is indeed laser-guided Truth.

And I remember the first time I saw the Serenity Prayer... I think it was in the dedication pages of Kurt Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse Five" - a novel I read in a Lit elective in Year 11 (penultimate high school year here).

One day at at time, absolutely. I'll never go macho about ANYTHING - I have no build, psych or strength to go down that road.

I've found watching documentaries I've had sitting here for ages on various media very therapeutic... just never got around to watching them.

I was always popping outside for a quick smoke (which added up to around four hours a day) - I kept up with READING, but that was all I did when I smoked, except for a few times when I'd fire up my laptop outside. BTW, we did NOT smoke inside since around 2000 or so.