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| TnDizNut |
Some of you may remember a post about my Dad just recently diagnosed with brain tumors (5)...he underwent brain surgery to try and remove the only one that was reachable for a biopsy and it came back adenocarcinoma ( late stage matastsized (sp) from the lung which was also just discovered in the past 2 weeks). He wants me to quit smoking and I have to admit I'm more then a little scared by all this and know I should but..I don't know if I can. I've been smoking 23 yrs and up to 2-3 packs a day. My Dad is 69 and I'm 46...I don't want to go thru what he is but God help me I like smoking and it's a blatant addiction I know. Anybody out there been a SERIOUS smoker and successfully quit?...how did you do it...what works? I have tried patches many yrs ago when they came out to no avail...I still smoked wearing one and that is very dangerous so I just quit using them...tried the gum too...no dice. I know alot of it is just getting the mindset to do it but that's easier said then done :(
Open to any suggestions.
[Edited by TnDizNut] |
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| phamton |
Have you tried Zyban (Wellbutrin)? I have heard of a lot of people that have had success with it. From what I understand, it gives you the same "hit" you get from smoking so you don't need that cigarette. And if you do smoke while using it, then you feel absolutely no effect from the cigarette. Smoking doesn't give you that "high" or "calming feeling." Since you get no pleasure from the cigarette, you lose the desire to smoke. If you smoke on Zyban, you feel like you are just sucking air through a straw.
It does have some side effects such as insomnia and nervousness, possible dry mouth. It is an anti-depressant first called Wellbutrin. But they found those who were taking the drug for depression were also giving up cigarettes while on it. So they now have renamed it to Zyban when it is used for nicotine withdrawal and Wellbutrin when it is used for depression (but the same drug.)
Bev |
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| Tink *~*~* |
I'm in your boat, XxxxXxxx.
Seriously, my father just died of lung cancer on August 5th. I myself had breast cancer 10 years ago. And still I smoke. This is such a highly addictive substance. I have quit more times than I can tell you, once going almost a year with no smoking (the chemo year). The need never leaves you. It is like being an alcoholic, I guess. I have done the patch, the gum, hypnosis and Wellbutrin. Nothing worked in the long term.
Next Wednesday, I'm going to have a complete physical (the price of being over 40) and I'm going to ask for a prescription for the nicotine inhaler. I'm also going to augment that with acupuncture.
[removed the dreaded tuna reference - Tink *~*~*]
[Edited by Tink *~*~*] |
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| TnDizNut |
My dad used to joke that he didn't know what was so hard about quitting he does it every week...meaning he would quit every week or try to only to go back after a few days.
I have a brother hooked on drugs and I get so angry at him because he won't stop and I stop and think about how hard the tobacco thing is to quit and how I can't seem to do it so I can only imagine what drugs must be like...the same or worse I guess. :(
PS...tries to edit tunababe from tinks post...dern it!
See what you've started! :) |
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| TrpltJanie |
I hope you and others will have the strength to quit smoking so you'll have extra time to enjoy your families. :) |
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| Peggo |
My Mom and Dad Looooong time smokers quit using the Green Seminars you see advertised in Newsday ...well they used to advertise anyway. It's hypnosis, and they gave it two tries and they quit for good. And if my stubborn Mom could quit, anyone could! |
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| Tink *~*~* |
quote:
Peggo wrote:
My Mom and Dad Looooong time smokers quit using the Green Seminars you see advertised in Newsday ...well they used to advertise anyway. It's hypnosis, and they gave it two tries and they quit for good. And if my stubborn Mom could quit, anyone could!
I did the Green Seminar, but it did not work for me. I think because I am a student of psychology, I was much too fascinated in the process and my mind didn't participate as much as it should have! |
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| LindaR |
I quit smoking 9 years ago. Just went cold turkey. FOR ME, (can't speak for anyone else) the cold hard truth that I kept making my daughter sick was what motivated me. I may not have quit for me. My daughter went to the doctor every 3 or 4 weeks with an ear infection, sinus infection, etc. Her doctor was very gentle and cautious but told me that I was causing her illnesses. When I quit, my daughter got well. I have NEVER had any desire to smoke again. Yep, I gained about 10 pounds, doesn't bother me. Smoking affects too many innocent people.
I truly think that it is a state of mind. Any of it. Smoking, drinking, overeating, etc.
I will pray for strength for you........ |
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| Francine |
I quite smoking 16 years ago, when I was trying to get pregnant. I never did achieve the pregnancy.....Mari is adopted. I did stop smoking, though. It is a good thing, too, because I have asthma, which was starting to show itself in the couple of years before I quit.
When I quit there was no patch, or anything, I had to use willpower. I started by leaving my cigarettes out in the car. So, if I wanted a cigarette, I had to go outside to get one....yes, I sure did get a lot of fresh air at first!
There were certain things I did that I always had a smoke while doing them.....talking on the phone, driving in the car, using the bathroom, always after a meal. I stopped smoking when I did these things, one at a time.
After a few months, I started disliking the smell of the ashtray.....yuck!
It took about six months to completely stop, but I did it. Tim smoked for several years after me, and I hated it. He was forced into the basement, and then out onto the patio. I couldn't stand the smell of his clothes, or his breath...poor guy, he took some flack.
When he quit, he bought drink stirers, and when he wanted a cigarette, he would stick one of the stirers in his mouth, and chew on it. It ook him longer then me to quit, but he did do it.
I hope you can quit. You will feel so much better about yourself, if you do. I will keep you in my prayers.
Fracnine |
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| FIZZIE |
My husband smoked from the time he was 16 until quitting just last year at 50. Throughout our marriage we lost between us two grandparents, a mother, and three uncles to lung cancer caused by smoking. After each death and every birth of a child, I would beg him to stop. To be fair, he did the patch thing several times, tried hynosis. tried wellbrutrin....you name it he tried it. Then last year (almost a year ago) when we were counting down the last two months to a Disney trip, he had to undergo an emergency double bypass. The one thing every single doctor he spoke with told him to do was to quit smoking. Surprise! He quit cold turkey and hasn't picked up a cigarette yet. He does tell me that he still gets cravings, but they are fewer and farther between and only last a few minutes. Many years ago, my grandmother put out a cigarette she was smoking and announced she'd quit. She never picked up another one. Honestly, the only success stories I have heard have been through going cold turkey. When my grandfather found out he was dying of lung cancer, he said that his only regret in life was that he had smoked. You can do it!!! Put them down and don't look back. It will be the best thing you will ever do for yourself. |
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| Francine |
I happened to get a booklet in the mail today, from my health insurance, with health tips. There was a section on quitting smoking.
Here is their list:
Review the reasons you want to quit smoking, and focus on them.
Set a stop date, and prepare yourself, and your family for it.
Ask a family member, or friend, to be a support person.
Discard all cigarettes, ashtrays and lighters from your home, purse, car, office, and anywhere else you might go.
Deodarize your home, car, office, to get rid of the tobacco smell.
Do something with your hands and mouth---hold a straw, doodle on paper, eat carrots or celery sticks, chew gum.
Drink lots of water throughout the day.
Don't go to the smokers break room at work...take a walk instead.
Spend time with non-smoking friends and coworkers.
Go to nonsmoking places---lunch room, restauants, stores. |
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| MidNite |
Does a pack a day count as serious?
If so, I quit by getting pregnant. :o/
I still smoke every once in a while, but it is very rare (because I don't want my kids to see me smoking).
I guess once the partying stopped the smoking stopped too in my case. I guess you could say I was socially addicted.
[Edited by MidNite] |
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| TnDizNut |
I guess I need to keep reading all these posts over and over all the while telling myself you can do it...I just have to get my mind made up. |
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| tallguy07 |
quote:
TnDizNut wrote:
I guess I need to keep reading all these posts over and over all the while telling myself you can do it...I just have to get my mind made up.
Started the quit 3 weeks ago, and haven't looked back. All you have to do is get through the first week, after that it gets easier. My advice, jellybeans, lotsa jellybeans.
Lots of luck!! |
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| DWDreams |
I did it this year and if I can do this anyone can... I was one seriously addicted smoker. Quit some years ago cold-turkey when pregnant, but then started back up again and continued to ever since. You have to really want to quit and I finally really, really wanted to this year. Divine intervention doesn't hurt, either, lol -- I was on my last cig in the last minute of the Patriots vs. Raiders playoff game in January when a crucial call was being debated. I made a bargain with God that if that call went the Pats way, I would keep that promise to make it my last cig and be done with it. Well, the rest is history and I didn't dare not keep my end of the bargain after that...so smoke-free for 8 months now lol. |
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| mickeybar |
LOL DWDreams!
Started smoking 1 to 1 1/2 packs a day during my divorce in 1993. My doctor could have killed me, since I have a history of asthma. It definitely wasn't the smartest thing I've ever done. (The asthma got worse after I quit, but it's being managed very well my my dr.)
I finally quit after the second time I got pneumonia that put me in the hospital. I went five days without a cigarette while in the hospital, then I wondered if I could go six, seven, eight.
My main goal was that I didn't want my DD to see me smoking, and I was tired of always getting sick! Cancer has an affinity for our family, too, so I figured maybe I could quit while I was ahead...
It wasn't easy, and I definitely got my share of prayers into the act, but I've been "clean" for over 6 years. Now if I could just conquer my sugar addiction, I'd be doing great! ;)
You can do it, TnDizNut!! Just don't give up trying. |
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