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2012-11-05, 06:33 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2012
Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
Well playgrounders,
Once again I'm trying to quit thatwonderfulhorrible obsession that is smoking.
In the past I've had differing amounts of success with it, ranging from a few weeks up to 18 months, but unfortunately something has always driven me back to it.
So, here I am, had my last cigarette last night about 30 minutes before I went to bed, and 13 hours later, I'm starting to get that twitch... You know the one...
So all you ex-smokers, lets hear about how you gave up the cigs and what problems you had.
I will also kind of be logging my progress here, so please forgive me in advance for some of the rants I may give.
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2012-11-05, 06:43 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2007
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
Congratulations on taking this step. And here's hoping you'll keep up with it. As motivation, I'll give you this link which tells you the good you're doing to your body.
Edit: I think it also comes with some tips to quit smoking.Last edited by bluewind95; 2012-11-05 at 06:43 PM.
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2012-11-05, 07:07 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2007
- Location
- The Steamboat
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
I've never smoked. My dad smoked for a really long time, though, and he quit by going cold turkey.
He smoked a little too much one night and felt pretty badly the following day. So he decided he wasn't gonna have any more. It's been like 25 years.
I always thought he was amazing because of this.
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2012-11-05, 07:21 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2011
- Location
- Albuquerque
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
I'm a lucky bastard that can quit pretty much anything cold turkey. I've stopped smoking and started smoking numerous times, but every time I've quit I've never felt the a want or need to buy another pack. Every time I've started again, it's usually because I think "you know what would be good with the night of socializing and drinking I have planned? Lucky Strike!" and go grab one.
From trying to help others who have more difficulty quitting, I've found the best thing to do is find out the primary reason why you smoke. There might be more than one, and it's most important to identify them.
For some, it's the literal physical dependency on nicotine. I know people that have managed to slowly come down off nicotine with NRT products, and managed to stay off after the withdrawal cycle is completed. I know people that have quit while severely ill, slept through the worst withdrawals, and come out of the illness feeling well and having broken nicotine dependency as a bonus. My mom, for example, quit over ten years ago when she came down with severe bronchitis. She stayed heavily drugged on cough and sleeping medicine for close to three weeks, and she never touched a cigarette after.
For some, it seems like the ritual is the biggest thing. The act of physically putting it into your mouth and smoking it. I know a couple of people who bought coffee stirrers to chew for a couple of weeks and quit that way, of all the strange things. Currently, my uncle is having luck by weening himself off nicotine with an electronic cigarette and by replacing many of his rituals. He has said the toughest is not having a cigarette after a meal, so he's started finding things to do immediately after finishing eating. Instead of smoking he strikes up a conversation with the other people in the dining party, or he immediately turns on a movie, or a video game, or opens the gun safe and starts cleaning a pistol.
Now, I'm not telling you to do any of those things, obviously. I would just advise starting off by quitting cold turkey and keeping a notepad with you. After logging the times and events around your heaviest cravings, maybe you'll see a pattern.
And most of all, good luck. As everyone says, you can't quit for anyone but you. Once you're ready to quit, you'll find a way.
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2012-11-05, 07:51 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2010
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
The price of a carton of cigarettes has to be some motivation. Six bucks, no thank you!
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2012-11-05, 08:53 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2006
- Location
- Albany, NY
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
I found that two things, in combonation, work pretty well.
1. Hypnosis.
2. A signifigant other who will murder you if you restart smoking.
I'm actually serious (about both) but the first one I found to be quite helpful and anyone can do without all the other relatinshippy work involved.
Two other observations:
Any sort of fake cigarettes are probably a false start, they just reinforce the habit.
Avoid buying another packat all costs. There will be times when you will be extremely tempted to have a cigarette because of one thing or another (drinking with friends, stress, etc.). Giving in those moments is not the end of the world, but having a pack around may give you the "well, I might as well finish the pack" excuse that turns into the whole dependency all over again. Slipping and bumming one or two of friends should be an isolated thing, don't turn it into buying a pack and restarting all of the habits developed up over the (in my case) years of smoking. Those habits are what trigger the cravings as much as the physical dependency itself.[CENTER]So You Wanna Be A DM? A Potentially Helpful Guide
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2012-11-05, 09:38 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2012
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
Hell, six bucks would be a god send. Here in NZ, for the brand I smoked, Pall Mall Baseline Red (one of the cheaper but still decient brands), a pack of 30 costs $20.70. The cheapest (JPS 30's but feel like sandpaper in the lungs) cost $18.60.
Thank you all for the support and advice, it is much appreciated.
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2012-11-05, 09:39 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2010
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2012-11-05, 09:49 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Sep 2008
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
As Mark Twain said, "Quitting smoking is easy; I've done it hundreds of times."
Best of luck to you on your attempt.
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2012-11-05, 09:57 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2012
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
Well, my food bill is half what it was when I didn't smoke. They haven't always been that expensive. When I started a pack of B&H Classic (which I used to smoke years ago) were $7.20, and they had just gone up.
The NZ government keeps raising the price every 6 months, they've been doing this for about 6 years now. If you look at a cigarette here in NZ, the shop and tabacco company get the filter worth of that $20.70, the rest goes to the government.
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2012-11-05, 11:30 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2011
- Location
- Western Maryland
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
Good luck! I'd like to give up smoking once and for all as well, but I've had little success in the last 2 years any time I try. I always run back the moment I have a majorly stressful moment, it's my coping mechanism. That and fishing. I just can't go out fishing without smoking cigarettes.
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2012-11-06, 06:21 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2009
- Location
- Lustria
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
Last edited by Killer Angel; 2012-11-06 at 06:25 AM.
Do I contradict myself?
Very well then I contradict myself. I am large, I contain multitudes. (W.Whitman)
Things that increase my self esteem:
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2012-11-06, 06:27 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2011
- Location
- Below sea level
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
Good luck! Last time I tried to stop it went well for about 3 months. then I got to smoking again becuase there were friends who smoke and noone actually to stay behind and not smoke with me. that kind of support is actually a great boost. also be aware that drinking and smoking go hand in hand so try to avoid that as well...
Warlock Poetry?
Or ways to use me in game?
Better grab a drink...
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2012-11-06, 07:10 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2012
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
Well, second day now and I'm craving bad, and my hands are really quite shaky... Mind you, I did have one slip up and stole a smoke off my father last night after dinner, it tasted really bad though so I think that's a good sign.
As for my friends, most of them are non-smokers or casual smokers (only smoke while drinking) so no worries about them smoking around me.
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2012-11-06, 07:13 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2010
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2012-11-06, 07:22 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2012
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2012-11-07, 12:20 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2010
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2012-11-07, 12:24 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Dec 2005
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
if your $ minded, money jar.
how much do you spend on cigarettes? put that much in a jar every day.
my uncle bought a small boat in a few years.
also, if part of it is an oral fixation, chew gum or cinnamon sticks.
tell your family.
quitting is tough, don't be afraid to get some help. they love you (it's kind of obligatory), and im sure at least a few of them wouldnt mind kicking your butt into line.Last edited by thubby; 2012-11-07 at 12:30 AM.
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2012-11-07, 12:44 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Oct 2009
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
Where the crap do you live that you can get a carton for 6 bucks?! Do you mean a pack of 20 cigarettes? That'd be a lot easier to swallow.
A carton (200 cigs) costs just under $30 US pretty much anywhere in the US, at bare minimum, last I heard. As I understand it, a carton of the cheapest cigs you can get costs around $45 in New York. I know even the cheapos cost $28 here in Alabama.
This is why I insisted my wife start rolling her own. Dramatically cheaper at around $8 a carton.
Good luck OP. I hope you can pull it off. If nothing else, decreased demand might bring the prices down if enough people quit. (I don't think my wife ever will.)Last edited by Kelb_Panthera; 2012-11-07 at 12:47 AM.
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2012-11-07, 01:19 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2012
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
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2012-11-07, 03:27 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2009
- Location
- Lustria
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
Do I contradict myself?
Very well then I contradict myself. I am large, I contain multitudes. (W.Whitman)
Things that increase my self esteem:
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2012-11-07, 07:43 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Dec 2006
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
Wow, this thread actually gave me a nic fit.
Guess i'm no quitter.
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2012-11-07, 05:36 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2010
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2012-11-07, 05:59 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2008
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
Good luck. As for advice, I never have smoked, but I do know people who successfully got out of alcoholism, and might know someone who successfully got out of heroin*. There are two main things, according to them: Get all of the stuff you are addicted to away from you, so you at the very least have to go buy some more before you can smoke it/chew it/whatever, and make sure that you have things to do. Empty periods alone are profoundly unhelpful.
*He also might have relapsed. I'm really hoping for the former, and I suspect it is the case, but heroin is a horrible nasty drug which is hard to quit.I would really like to see a game made by Obryn, Kurald Galain, and Knaight from these forums.
I'm not joking one bit. I would buy the hell out of that. -- ChubbyRain
Current Design Project: Legacy, a game of masters and apprentices for two players and a GM.
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2012-11-07, 06:10 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Oct 2012
- Location
- Seattle, Washington
- Gender
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2012-11-07, 09:17 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2012
- Location
- In the Final Frontier
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
I used my local quitline. They sent me A whole bunch of stuff to help quit. I went through the patches, and the gum and it just didn't work. Then I moved on to that pill, I forget the name, that blocks the nicotine receptors. It worked pretty well, although taking it made me feel nauseous for an hour or two.
But I was abe to quit smoking after a week, and now I've been smoke-free for almost two years.
Co-Founder of LUTAS.
For all you lesser superheroes out there.
Custom STO avatar by Durkoala.
A novella about a wizard and a rock star, cross-dimensional travel, and healing wounds neither knew were there.
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2012-11-07, 09:50 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2012
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
I've tried gum and patches before and they didn't work, infact my skin broke out real bad when I was on the patches.
There is a pill here, Champix, that does what you described, but it has been reported to cause or exasberate mental health problems, which coupled with my depression and anxiety wouldn't be good.
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2012-11-08, 01:09 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2012
- Location
- In the Final Frontier
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
I also have been diagnosed with depression and anxiety, as well as a couple of other mental challenges, but I suffered no ill effects from the pill besides the nausea I mentioned.
It really comes down to the person. If you are able to get them on a program that offers it for free like I was able to, its worth a shot. You can always stop taking the pill if it makes things worse.
But I am not a doctor and will not endorse those statements. Always consult a doctor before doing anything.
Co-Founder of LUTAS.
For all you lesser superheroes out there.
Custom STO avatar by Durkoala.
A novella about a wizard and a rock star, cross-dimensional travel, and healing wounds neither knew were there.
Spoiler: Online stuffsLentrax has a Deviantart now, check it out!
Streaming Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 11CST on Twitch.
Follow me on Twitter!
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2012-11-09, 07:20 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2011
- Location
- searching for where to go
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
I have quit by using smokeless cigarettes (i.e. electronic ones)
Granted this isn't like really quitting as you are still getting nicotine, but it is cheaper and you are not getting all the tar and other junk as in a traditional cigarette. I also find I use them less than I would smoke normally. Anyway, it has worked for me and I find I breathe better. Good luck to you.
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2012-11-09, 09:11 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2007
- Gender
Re: Giving up smoking... Let's hope it sticks this time.
You can also use those and slowly cut back on the nicotine. Could indeed be an idea.