How do you stop smoking?

[robbie]

start doing something else that you enjoy more.

 

[db_ggmm]

Chantix gave me insane dreams. And it made diet coke taste like mint. "Dysgeusia".

 

[05charley]

2 - 3 packs a day. Quit cold turkey. Only way that worked for me. Also quit caffeine at the same time. Had horrible cravings for 2 years!! Was working 2 full time high pressure jobs at the time. It was so difficult that I knew I never wanted to have to do it again. I used to drive home with my head out the window to stay awake.

 

[Mr. Macaque]

Wellbutrin/Zyban/Chantix is the credited method of quitting. With high enough doses, you don't even have to try.

 

[Mr Herbert]

1. dont buy any
2. avoid drinking where cigarettes are available. actually just give up drinking for a couple of months.
3. become a self righteous ex smoker so you will be a massive hypocrite if you relapse.

 

[oDD_LotS]

I've tried a few different things in the past, with varying success rates, but I've been smoke-free for one week, two days, and sixteen hours this time and I've never had it this easy. The cravings are present, sure, but they're not unmanageable. I'm using (per some advice from the Mayo Clinic anti-smoking site) the patch as well as the occasional gum or lozenge when a really bad craving hits.

The biggest things that are helping me are the true desire to quit (mostly because smoking just wasn't as pleasurable...and an acquaintance is going through her SECOND nasty battle with cancer) and having broken most of my "triggers." That is, I no longer smoke in the car, I don't smoke in the house, and my schedule for the last few months has been irregular enough to not have as many routine smokes as I used to have (though I still crave the occasional post-meal cigarette).

Basically, I'd recommend working to identify and break those "triggers" and use nicotine replacement if you have to. And do not, under any circumstance, rationalize having a cigarette. I made it nearly a year in the past, until I decided to "try a new flavor" or have one "just while I'm on vacation" and started right back.

 

[frackk00]

My dad used nicotine patches and gum before but it wasn't really effective. For a while, we thought it was but then again my dad's so hard headed so he's back to his bad habit.

 

[why]

Originally Posted by db_ggmm

Chantix gave me insane dreams. And it made diet coke taste like mint. "Dysgeusia".

A friend said the same about her dreams. She was already crazy to begin with though, so I guess her dormitory mind was just mimicking its waking cognisance.

She drank Mountain Dew and smoked menthols, so I don't think she could've tasted a minty flavor in her soda much different from the norm.

 

[bullethead]

I used to dip two cans of copenhagen per day. quit a few times, then always went back 'just this weekend'. On a visit to the dentist, he swabbed my mouth and told me it was full of precancerous cells.
So, I had to quit cold turkey. no 'one last mega dip'

Bought some nicorette though it just made me want to dip more.

One thing that helped me quit in the past was moving to a new place. I know it's extreme, but in a new environment i had could fight the urge much better. In fact, when i wasn't dipping and went to certain old haunts, my mouth would water like a dog eyeballing a t-bone.

 

[downwithianbrown]

I quit once, cold turkey, after a intense bout with upper resp infection and I didnt smoke for 4-5 years. Then I lost a ton of weight, got a new, more stressfull job, and started smoking. I have never smoked more than 8 cigs a day on the regular, and for the most part I've always been 5 cigs. I hear some guys say 2 1/2 packs a day +, and it blows my mind. i really couldn't smoke more than ten if I consciously tried to. anyways, for the past few months I've had a 2-3 cig a dayhabit and I inadvertanty semi-quit 6 days ago cus my allergies were crazy and I got a sinus infection.

think I'm gunna keep it going at least until I lose some weight. I think I'll quit for real when I'm 30. turning 28 now, and I don't smoke that much. I just really enjoy them from time to time.

so, i am not ready to quit.

 

[MoriahToniOwens]

1. Make an honest list of all the things you like about smoking. Draw a line down the center of a piece of paper and write them on one side; on the other side make a list of all the things you dislike, such as how it can interfere with your health, work, family, etc., suggests Daniel Z. Lieberman, M.D., director of the Clinical Psychiatric Research Center at George Washington University Medical Center in Washington, D.C. Think about the list over time, and make changes. If you are brave enough, get feedback from family and friends about things they don't like about your use of cigarettes. When the negative side outweighs the positive side, you are ready to quit.

2. Then make another list of why quitting won't be easy. Be thorough, even if the list gets long and discouraging. Here's the important part: Next to each entry, list one or more options for overcoming that challenge. For instance, one item might be: "Nicotine is an addictive drug." Your option might be: "Try a nicotine replacement alternative." Another reason might be: "Smoking helps me deal with stress." Your option might be: "Take five-minute walks instead." The more you anticipate the challenges to quitting, and their solutions, the better your chance of success.

3. Set a quit date and write a "quit date contract" that includes your signature and that of a supportive witness.

4. Write all your reasons for quitting on an index card and keep it near you at all times. Here are some to get you started: "My daughter, my granddaughter, my husband, my wife..." You get the idea.

5. As you're getting ready to quit, stop buying cartons of cigarettes. Instead, only buy a pack at a time, and only carry two or three with you at a time (try putting them in an Altoids tin). Eventually you'll find that when you want a smoke, you won't have any immediately available. That will slowly wean you down to fewer cigarettes.

6. Keep a list of when you smoke, what you're doing at the time, and how bad the craving is for a week before quitting to see if specific times of the day or activities increase your cravings, suggests Gaylene Mooney, chair of the American Association for Respiratory Care's Subcommittee on Smoking and Tobacco-Related Issues. Then arrange fun, unique things to do during those times, like some of the ones we recommend here.

7. Prepare a list of things to do when a craving hits. Suggestions include: take a walk, drink a glass of water, kiss your partner or child, throw the ball for the dog, wash the car, clean out a cupboard or closet, ********, chew a piece of gum, wash your face, brush your teeth, take a nap, get a cup of coffee or tea, practice your deep breathing, light a candle. Make copies of the list and keep one with you at all times so when the craving hits, you can whip out the list and quickly do something from it.

 

[indesertum]

i think i started smoking because of an orgo prelim i was really stressed out on. somebody offered a cig and it stuck. lately it's been getting more intense. i used to smoke a pack every month and a half, but i finished my latest pack in maybe 2.5 weeks. i've quit on and off ever since i started.

this is going to sound really stupid, but i dont think people who dont smoke understand the feeling. the problem with trying to quit is in general you feel like quitting, but then there are these moments where you really really really really crave a cigarette. for me it's when im walking back at night alone or when i'm having a drink. at that moment you just dont want to quit and think *******.

quitting isn't as easy as it sounds. it's not as simple as just don't smoke. if you've ever seen an episode of celebrity rehab or addiction you probably think these stupid people, all you have to do is not do it. it's just not that easy

 

[sonick]

I am at 6 to 8 weeks smoke free after listening to the audiobook of Allen Carr's Easyway to Stop Smoking as per recommendation of this thread.

Quit cold turkey after listening to it through. Putting things into logical, clear sense really did it for me. I do feel a twinge of craving when drinking at times, but besides that I do not crave it at all.

 

[thekunk07]

chantix starts today. if this fails, *******.

 

[sonick]

Originally Posted by indesertum

this is going to sound really stupid, but i dont think people who dont smoke understand the feeling. the problem with trying to quit is in general you feel like quitting, but then there are these moments where you really really really really crave a cigarette. for me it's when im walking back at night alone or when i'm having a drink. at that moment you just dont want to quit and think *******.

Not stupid at all, exactly my experience.