Cigarettes & I

[Roadtrip]

Congrats on the no cig weekend!! I picked up the habit while at University and smoked for four years or so. It's been nearly fifeteen years and when encountering someone smoking now I just get repulsed by the smell and the gag reflex kicks in.

Sooooo glad I did it and very proud of you!!!
Shannon

[Brandi]

Is it weird that this feels a bit like confessional? Not that I've ever actually been in a confessional - but I've seen the films
"Forgive me fellow TE'ers for my dirty habits, it has been Seven days since my last cigarette"



I have never ridden as often or for as long as I did this weekend
I've realised that boredom has been a massive driver of smoking, and in order to be not bored.. I got on my bike

Made it through the entire weekend smoke free! Two evenings of dinners/drinking and a BBQ.
It was NOT easy, but I'm ridiculously proud of myself

And if anyone out there is thinking about quiting, I definitely think I did it the right way around
Quiting during the week - meant that my hands and brain were busy at work while coming down off the chemical dependancy, now I have the habit to break, but only dealing with the habit when I came in contact with people who knew me as a smoker, the occaisional drink etc. and that all worked out alright, I don't think if I had of tried to quit on the weekend that I would still be a non-smoker



Have been a knitter and spinner for years now! Although I can't do either at the moment as much as I'd like to - have restricted fine motor skills in my left hand due to a pinched nerve which is still recovering

Meditate!

[Tri Girl]

I'm ridiculously proud of you, too!!

Way to go! It's got to get easier from here on out, right?

[RadicalEdward]

A really quick check in to say that I still haven't had a cigarette


thanks guys for all of your support - couldn't have gotten this far without you

[malkin]

Good on you RadEd!

I have a friend who twiddled a cut off drinking straw in his fingers for about a month while he was quitting.

[marni]

think about putting the money you save towards a lovely new bike, plus pay yourself a set fee per day of not smoking.

congratualtions on stopping and have faith that you can do it. We all know you can.

[runningteach]

Good for you! I'm a former smoker, 15 years now and it is the hardest habit to break. Toughest thing I ever did. Lots of gum and exercise got me through the rough patches. I still have a gum habit. My Dh smoked for years after I quit, but did eventually quit. Good luck to you. Sounds like things are going well.

[bouncybouncy]

I just wanted to say 'Thank You' for making my world a little more smoke-free!!! Keep up the good work!!!

[Owlie]

Good for you, RE! (And I like your avatar! ) Sucks that you can't knit, though.

[Dr.Doo]

Go you RadicalEdward...you're doing brilliantly at a week away from your last cig.

It's been 14months for me and I am the example of what happens when you don't give up in time. A 30 some yr smoker I've ended up at 47yrs old with 50% lung function. You don't want to end up there...really you don't.

Have you done it cold turkey or have you taken advantage of the many sorts of nicotine replacement therapies out there?

Malkin...oddly I did the drinking straw thing until my friend bought me one of those plastic inhalator thingies. It was quite adequate for the twiddle factor.

Keep the no-smoking faith RE and don't give up giving up.

[Aggie_Ama]

I am so impressed with you and all the former smokers out there! Good luck, you're an inspiration already.

[mariacycle]

((RadicalEdward)) We're proud of you! Keep it up!

[RadicalEdward]

It's been 14months for me and I am the example of what happens when you don't give up in time. A 30 some yr smoker I've ended up at 47yrs old with 50% lung function. You don't want to end up there...really you don't.

Woohoo!! I did a little dance for you that is awesome!! 14 months!!!
I've been told the first twelve months is when 90% of quitters pick them back up - after that there's an exponentially less chance you'll go back

Have you done it cold turkey or have you taken advantage of the many sorts of nicotine replacement therapies out there?

I haven't used any nicotine replacements, but I have used a couple of different techniques to get over the hand/mouth fixation
The best one while I'm at work has actually been brushing my teeth :P
~which was a suggestion from withm in this thread!!
It means I'm still walking away from my desk, going downstairs, spending about 5 minutes away from my work, and then coming back
I just smell minty-fresh

[withm]

The best one while I'm at work has actually been brushing my teeth :P
~which was a suggestion from withm in this thread!!
It means I'm still walking away from my desk, going downstairs, spending about 5 minutes away from my work, and then coming back
I just smell minty-fresh

Ha ha! I was reading this and thought - "hey, that's how I quit smoking!" Then I read the next line. You know, it cured me of drinking soft drinks too - a coke tastes awful right after toothpaste. To this day - almost 35 years later - I have not smoked, and if I drink more than 5 cokes a year I'd be surprised.

Good luck to you. I know it isn't easy. Keep up the good work!

[Dr.Doo]

Woohoo!! I did a little dance for you that is awesome!! 14 months!!!
I've been told the first twelve months is when 90% of quitters pick them back up - after that there's an exponentially less chance you'll go back

Ta ever so. I do a little dance every day because I'm a non-smoker for another day. I seem have become that ex-smokers that so many smokers hate; I'm a little evangelical about the benefits of giving up.

I haven't used any nicotine replacements, but I have used a couple of different techniques to get over the hand/mouth fixation
The best one while I'm at work has actually been brushing my teeth :P
~which was a suggestion from withm in this thread!!
It means I'm still walking away from my desk, going downstairs, spending about 5 minutes away from my work, and then coming back
I just smell minty-fresh

Wow! Go you x2 doing it without nicotine replacement. I took the pill Champix to give myself the best chance of giving up...I'm dreadfully weak-willed in such matters...hence I'm so impressed you're managing to do it without anything.

The brushing teeth idea is great.

I started a giving up smoking thread on another website and posted pretty much every day. Somehow putting it out there in 'public' made me even more determined not to fail.

Keep the no-smoking faith and don't give up giving up.