The problem with stopping smoking is that nicotine latches onto the endorphin receptors in your brain, so as you smoke you make less and less endorphins for yourself. When you stop, your brain is telling you that it has no endorphins and needs them badly... I smoked from age 14 to age 37, when I finally stopped. First, you need a good reason. Not the old "It's bad for me, everyone says so" type of reason, but something you can internalize. For me, I started kung-fu and realized that continuing to smoke was going to be more painful than stopping. Second, you need to realize that smoking has two components - the nicotine addiction, and the physical habit. You are intimately familiar with the addiction part, but the habit part is pretty powerful too. You know, a smoke when you wake up, a smoke at break time at work, a smoke after every meal, a smoke when having beer, a smoke when you're watching TV... I found it worked better to only stop one part at a time. First, I decided to stop the 'habit' part. I got some of those pouches of chewing tobacco to use as a nicotine delivery system, because I find the taste to be disgusting and also because I wasn't willing to spend the rediculous price of nicotine gum. I then would stick one of those things in my mouth in the morning for awhile, in the afternoon for awhile, and in the evening for awhile. Meantime, I concentrated on not habitually reaching for a smoke when I usually would (and found Iwas a lot more productive at work, since I was taking fewer breaks!). After a couple weeks of this, I spit out the last of those vile disgusting tobacco pouches and didn't smoke any more. Instead, I increased my workout level at kung-fu, since hard workouts and other painful stuff stimulates our natural endorphin production and I needed something to fill the receptors that no longer had nicotine in them. I also started drinking a LOT of water, like a 2-liter bottle after luch every day in addition to the normal amount the rest of the day. That was 16 years ago and I haven't smoked a bit since even though my wife still does, so it must have worked. Good luck on your journey! There is no try. There is only do, or do not. Or try not.