another quiting smoking thread

[GunnedDownAtrocity]

i know there have been quite a few of these posted in the last five years, and i even posted one myself as i tried to quit 2 years back and failed 4 days into the attempt, but i did have a couple questions about quitting in the long term. plus its always great to read about other people who have done it.

i didnt want to waste anyone's time again, so this time around i waited a bit before making a thread like this. april 4th will make 6 months since i quit (5 without a single drag ... screwed up here and there during my first month). about 3 months into it i finally thought i had it beat completely. then out of no where there are cravings again. not intense nicotine carvings like when you first quit, but a fond remembrance of blissfully killing myself drag by drag. very fond. i even dreamed about smoking the past 3 nights. i also catch myself occasionally thinking, "meh ... its been so long now you could have a cigarette without becoming a full on smoker again." i know that's retarded, and that i eventually would be smoking on the regular again, but it doesn't stop me from thinking it sometimes. keep in mind i haven't had a beer or anything in 3 months either. plus i didn't quit drinking during the first 3 months i quit smoking and still managed.

so i was wondering ... is this normal .... just another phase of becoming a non smoker? the phase where you start to think you got it beat so well that you could be a casual smoker? if it is does it eventually go away?

it sucks .... i was finally at the point where i'd see someone smoking and i'd feel sorry for them instead of myself. now i'm looking at them with envy again. don't get me wrong .... i got a list about a mile long of reasons not to smoke ... but you only need one to quit quitting.

[Vash]

Understand this: all cigarrettes have been soaked in my urine for 6 months to one full year before they are allowed to be put on the market.

Food for thought.

[NeuroGrrrl]

i also catch myself occasionally thinking, "meh ... its been so long now you could have a cigarette without becoming a full on smoker again."

so i was wondering ... is this normal .... just another phase of becoming a non smoker? the phase where you start to think you got it beat so well that you could be a casual smoker? if it is does it eventually go away?

GDA: this is possibly the most classic example of "relapse behavior" there is. Thinking that due to a semi-lengthy period of abstinence from drug or alcohol, that "one won't hurt" and "I won't be back where I was before." It is absolutely normal to have these thoughts, most if not all addicts think along these lines early in their recovery. The trick, as you have figured out, is to NOT give in.

Hang in there!

[Becca]

It ain't stopped for me. I hate to say it, but I have actually stood out in the smoking area at work just to smell the smoke. Still break down and have one every once in a while, but the issue of having to wash all my cloths because they stink after even one cigarette keeps me from falling off the wagon completely.

I always enjoyed the taste of them. It was the smell they left afterward I never liked. Making myself wash everything uses to my lazier side to keep at it. I've heard that brushing your teath before smoking will make you dislike the taste, as well, when you doing consistantly over time. I am still working on this, but I don't usually have any toothpast with me when I cave.

[Jhapa]

been there done that. i do not have a problem quiting, i have in the past just quit cold turkey for 2 to 3 years and pick it back up not because i was craving a cigarette but i missed smoking. currently i smoke but i am getting to a point that i probably will quit because not tasting good anymore. once i quit, will i pick it up again, don't know, depends if i could find some Mild Seven's(my favorite cigs.)

what are your choice of cigarettes? of course mine is Mild Seven's, but currently smoke Marlboro Ultra Lights/Lights.

this thread is just wrong........i think i am going out for a cigarette!

[GunnedDownAtrocity]

thank you vash and neuro.

becca .. not quite what i wanted to hear, but thanks for being honest and sharing.

jhapa ... your a dirty ho.

[Jhapa]

thank you vash and neuro.

becca .. not quite what i wanted to hear, but thanks for being honest and sharing.

jhapa ... your a dirty ho.

no, just keep at it, you'll get to a point that you won't even crave it or even dream about it. worst critic of smokers are ex-smoker. i probably need to quit, i kind a get winded during training, of course i am not 21 anymore either.

[Ford Prefect]

GDA,

Those cravings will last your whole life. In September of 1999, I quit cold turkey from a pack/day habit. I haven't had a single drag since, but I still get cravings. It's strange being so far removed from it, but there are times where I'm like "I could really use a cigarette right now." I even dream about smoking still. In my dream I'll be smoking while thinking that I really shouldn't do it. I keep smoking anyway... I know that I could be a cigarette away from a full blown habit again, so I never give in to the temptation. Just stay strong.

[Reggie1]

I was a half pack/day smoker until I quit in December '98.

The first 10 months were the hardest for me. The same stuff happened to me about 6 months after quitting. That's when it was the hardest for me, because I struggled w/ the same stuff you are having. "One won't kill me, I won't become a full-blown smoker again." As dumb as it sounds, I also stuggled w/ being a nonsmoker. "Is this something I really want? It's not like I smoked that much, etc."

But I made it through. For me, the cravings became fewer and fewer, and easier to deal with every time they came. I would say it's only about once every 3 or 4 months I get any brief craving, and it's pretty easy to deal with. It's to the point now where I just kind of blow them off. To me they are more like a joke than something I have to stuggle with.

Stay strong, man. You can do it. And it does get easier.

[PangQuan]

You definately need to just hang in there.

Look at it like this. Compare it to your martial arts. You could stop practicing anytime you feel, and just sit around being a lazy fool. But you stick with it and sustain the speed. You COULD quit quitting and be a smoking fool. But you stick with it and sustain the speed.

I quit smoking several years ago, and It was **** hard. But now I am at the point that ciggarette smoke is discusting to me. It will get easier, but you must test yourself. Remember how bad they are for you. And remember this:

You better checkity check yourself, before you wreckity wreck yourself. One step at a time bro. You CAN do it.

[FatherDog]

Simple solution.

Tell your wife and daughter that every time they smell smoke on your clothes, they get a free shot at your nuts.

Problem: SOLVED.

[Jhapa]

Simple solution.

Tell your wife and daughter that every time they smell smoke on your clothes, they get a free shot at your nuts.

Problem: SOLVED.

free solution to vascetomy.

[GunnedDownAtrocity]

thanks everyone. it's good to see that a bunch of ya made it.

ford perfect ...
In my dream I'll be smoking while thinking that I really shouldn't do it. I keep smoking anyway

thats exactly what happens in my dreams.

reggie1 ....
As dumb as it sounds, I also stuggled w/ being a nonsmoker. "Is this something I really want? It's not like I smoked that much, etc."

that does sound awfully dumb, and i find myself doing the exact same thing. my reasoning is that if im just going to want one 5 years later anyway whats the point. on one level i know exactly what the point is ... but on another it sounds nice to ignore it sometimes.

[Reggie1]

my reasoning is that if im just going to want one 5 years later anyway whats the point.

That's exactly what I thought, too. But you can make it. Now, when I get cravings, it's more like nostaliga--remembering when I used to smoke--than any real threat to my quitting.

[PangQuan]

You want to know my secret on how i quit? Ill tell you.

I told myself that if I was so weak that I could not even give up a stupid cancer stick then I would never amount to anything with my MA. Getting that mentality through my skull helped alot, now when I think about smokers all I see are metally weak fools, with no will power.

This might not work for everyone, but ill tell you this. It is the truth.