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  1. #1
    Suspended Smokey's Avatar
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    Angry Cigarettes are worst form of addiction.

    My family insisted to give up cigarettes (pack a day), and promised them I will. So two day ago went on cold turkey. I tell you, that must have been two worst day of my life. At home, I can not watch TV, listen to music or be on the computer without it. And at work, thinking about it all time. Just freaking miserable

    So this morning went and bought a pack. Just can not do without it.

    From now on, I admire those who have quit smoking and stayed off of it. It takes alot of guts

  2. #2
    Forum Regular paul_pci's Avatar
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    It's not guts, but moral courage not to participate in something so evil from top to bottom.

  3. #3
    Suspended Smokey's Avatar
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    May be If I take a vacation and go somewhere, so daily routine is not reapeated it will be easier to quit. Or maybe not. But you are right about moral courage

  4. #4
    Super Moderator Site Moderator JohnMichael's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Smokey
    May be If I take a vacation and go somewhere, so daily routine is not reapeated it will be easier to quit. Or maybe not. But you are right about moral courage
    It is very tough to quit when the tobacco companies have been adding additives to make them more addicting. I have seen the nicotine patches help many people. It is a tough fight but the long term health benefits are worth it. Good luck we are rooting for you.
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  5. #5
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    Hey Smoke, you can do it buddy. I don't know how old you are but it is just plain hard to quit whether you are 20 or 50. There have been stories of people hooked on heroin and they have said that smoking is waaaaaaay harder to kick. If you try and fail, just don't give up. Try again in a week or 2 or 3 days even. Again if you fail, pick another day. You have to keep thinking that you have to do it and that you really want to do it.

    I come from a family of smokers. Both my Mom and Dad and 2 older sisters all smoked so when I was 11 I thought I would give it a try. You heard me right, 11. I don't know when it exactly happened that I was a full out addicted but I would have to say for sure by age 12. At 13 I was aloud to smoke in the house. So at that age there was no stopping me. I didn't know how harmfull it was, I just knew I needed another smoke. At this point I was just as addicted to smoking as somebody who has been smoking for 10 years.

    I had turned 16 and something just told me, hey buddy, this isn't you, you got to quit. I had been smoking for 5 years, a pack if not 2 packs a day. I tried atleast 10 times to quit but it was hard, my family smoking and also most of my friends, I was surrounded. Each time I tried I timed my pack of smokes to last until my final one was smoked just before bed time. I would wake up with no smokes in the house but I would eventually go to the store and pick up another pack. Each time I quit I lasted a little bit longer before I succumbed to the urge and would buy another pack.

    I needed help so I thought to myself, I got to not only keep busy but I got to keep my mouth busy. I went to the corner store and spent about $10 dollars in gum, it was alot of gum back in 1987. I bought all that cheap sour gum and I just stuffed my mouth with gum. Not 1 or 2 pieces but 2 or 3 packs at a time. I chewed gum like a pig for every waking minute of 5 days. IT WORKED! The hardest part is the first couple of days and then after that it is a matter of will power to stay as a non smoker. If I can do it at age 16 when everybody in my life smoked, you can do it too. Try the gum. The trick is, chew so much gum that you just couldn't even get a smoke in your mouth to take a drag.

    I hope this works out for you. If you manage to kick this addiction, you have got to change your name from Smokey to Non-Smokey.

  6. #6
    Forum Regular FLZapped's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Smokey
    My family insisted to give up cigarettes (pack a day), and promised them I will. So two day ago went on cold turkey. I tell you, that must have been two worst day of my life. At home, I can not watch TV, listen to music or be on the computer without it. And at work, thinking about it all time. Just freaking miserable

    So this morning went and bought a pack. Just can not do without it.

    From now on, I admire those who have quit smoking and stayed off of it. It takes alot of guts

    Well, think about this. They killed my music teacher (cancer). They killed my mother (Doctor said her internal organs were 20 years older than they should have been after an operation she had.) On the last day of 2004, I put my best friend in the ground. He died the day after Chritmas...Emphysema.

    Good Luck

    -Bruce

  7. #7
    Can a crooner get a gig? dean_martin's Avatar
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    I started smoking when I was 15. About 7 years ago I decided I needed to quit because I constantly felt run down. I cut back from a pack a day to half a pack a day by planning out my day very carefully. I also added exercise to my routine - nothing too strenuous, just some home exercises in the morning. It was working, but I needed a little extra help to completely quit. A friend of mine gave me a couple packs of nicorette gum. That helped. Then I screwed up big time and thought smokeless tobacco would help me quit cigarettes. Well, I did quit smoking but I continue to use smokeless tobacco. I know now that it was stupid but I feel like this stuff is more addictive than cigs. I've got to get in the right frame of mind to quit all over again.

    Good luck, Smokey.

  8. #8
    Loving This kexodusc's Avatar
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    I'm a bit lucky that my lungs find carcinogens and in particular tobacco violently toxic. I tried smoking in Grade 8. Didn't really like it, but I did like the girl at the time who was trying to get me started. About 10 minutes after recess my lungs reacted violently, started coughing up blood. Allergic reaction. A ride in an ambulance and an I.V. later and I was under control - until my mother came in.
    I'll never forget her words "Oh, son, are you okay?" followed by "Good, you're grounded for 3 weeks"....I was dumb enough to try it again a year later, with the same results.

    I've had a lot of friends and family quit over the years. One thing I've observed is that cold turkey rarely works. The closest thing I can compare to is my caffeine (coffee) addiction. I use to get headaches ever 3 hours or so if I didn't have my coffee (my doctor insisted it was psychological too because there wasn't enough evidence that coffee was addictive?). Over a few months I forced myself down from about 8 cups of coffee a day down to the 1 or 2 I have now. I failed miserably at cold turkey. I don't have the greatest willpower.

    Maybe, Smokey, you might try something similar? Limit yourself to 4 or 5 cigarrettes per day, and then take one away every week or something?

    My Dad has great success getting his young troops to quit smoking. He calls it the AJ system (his first two initials). Basically he gets the young soldier to give him $50. Then he tells them "if you quit smoking, I'll give you double your money back, if I see you smoking, I'll kick you hard in the nuts". Dammit if it doesn't work without failure.

    Or maybe you can quit reading this fool's ideas and talk to a professional who can give you some real advice. Dunno if you have grandkids, or need any motivation like that, but I hope you find whatever works for you real soon, I'm rootin' for ya.

    If you beat it, let us know how.

  9. #9
    Class of the clown GMichael's Avatar
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    Keep up the good work Smokey

    I quit 3 times. Never ever think that you can have just one. That's BS! Once you have one, you have to quit all over again.
    I was up to two packs a day. My last one was March 1992. Never again.
    It's more than the one habbit like you have pointed out. every time you go through a normal routine you have to remember again. It fades with time. The first few weeks are the hardest. But please, once you have it licked, don't think you can have just one. You can't.
    WARNING! - The Surgeon General has determined that, time spent listening to music is not deducted from one's lifespan.

  10. #10
    Suspended Smokey's Avatar
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    Thanks guys for all the support and help.

    Some of you started way earlier than I did. Started smoking after high school and it has been more than twenty years. Just think of all that money spend make me depressed

    Will try different approach. Cutting down slowly, combined with patches and chewing gums sound like a good approach. Going cold turkey seem to be too fast and too shocking. May be need to get out and exercise more also

  11. #11
    Forum Regular royphil345's Avatar
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    I've tried the gradual approach. Just makes the torture last longer and makes you more likely to give up. Most people who've quit successfully agree "cold turkey" is the way to go. Many people aren't successful on their first try. Understanding what you're up against and going through all that agony for nothing may help you on your next attempt. Don't give up!!!

  12. #12
    Suspended topspeed's Avatar
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    The good news is that you clearly have a lot of support. My suggestion is to take up some sports. I quit smoking after I started playing tennis again. Clutching the bottom of your shorts and coughing up your left lung definitely motivates you ! Cold turkey isn't easy, but it's worlds better than the absolute hell your ego endures while getting schooled because your opponent isn't wheezing like a 98 year old codger. Your mindset is what it's really all about. Your iron-clad will must be stronger than your desires, physical or otherwise.

    Consider: You know smoking is bad for you. You know smoking will kill you. You know smoking is bad for the loved-ones around you. You know smoking can kill the loved-ones around you. You know all of the facts.

    And

    yet

    you

    still

    smoke.

    What does this say about your mental toughness? Ask yourself, "Do I control my life, or does my life control me?"

    Smoking is a routine (which is why they call it "a habit"). Change your routine and utilize the support around you. We all firmly believe you can do it.

    Do you?

  13. #13
    BooBs are elitist jerks shokhead's Avatar
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    Hang in there. You can do it and it will be the best thing you'll do. Cigs are a drug and when you can get that crap out of you,it will smooth out.
    Look & Listen

  14. #14
    Class of the clown GMichael's Avatar
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    Speedy is on the right track for sure. There are many ways to quit. Not everyone is the same. But one thing that they all share is motivation. You have to really WANT to quit. Or is it REALLY want?
    I quit cold turkey. (couldn't keep the feathers lit) I picked a day that would be it. I would never have another puff after that date. I gave myself a little time. I think the date was about a month into the then future. I then proceeded to smoke my ars off knowing that I would never have another one after my drop dead date (pun intended). When midnight hit, I put out the one I had lit & crushed the rest of that pack. Never look back no matter how much you want to. It sucks at first but it's worth it. I feel so much better now and don't miss them at all.
    Pick you own method that works for you. Try making a list. A list of all the reasons you want to quit. It helped me. I ended up with a full page of reasons in a few minutes and added another page with ideas that I got over the next few days. I'll start the list for you now. Maybe others will add more that they think of.

    1) They make your breath stink.
    2) They make your cloths stink.
    3) They make your car stink.
    4) They lower the resale value of your car.
    5) They make your house stink.
    6) They lower the resale value of your house.
    7) You can never go anywhere without checking to see if you have enough to make it there and back.
    8 a&b) You have to carry them & a lighter with you all the time.
    9) They cost way too much! ($5 a pack times 2 packs a day times 365 days = $3650 per year)
    10) You can't go to the movies without having to jones for them half way through.
    11) Ditto for a plane ride.
    12) Can't smoke at work.
    13) You gotta go outside to smoke no matter what the weather is.

    Who's got more? Let's keep this going and give Smokie as many reasons as we can to quit.
    WARNING! - The Surgeon General has determined that, time spent listening to music is not deducted from one's lifespan.

  15. #15
    Suspended topspeed's Avatar
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    You love your life
    You love your family
    You respect yourself
    You respect others
    You want to see your kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids play in your yard.
    Smoking has a negative image, both self and public, and you're better than that.
    You have control over your life, not big tobacco.
    Food tastes better
    Your teeth stay white
    People don't make that funny face after you give them a kiss.
    You realize that poisoning yourself isn't the brightest thing to do
    $3650 will buy you all kinds of cool a/v toys

    Most importantly, because you know you can do it.

  16. #16
    Loving This kexodusc's Avatar
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    Hey I like TS and GM's last few posts, Smokey.

    Every day you don't smoke, put $5 or whoever many dollars in un-smoked packs into a jar. At the end of the year, buy yourself a nice new HDTV, Integrated amp, or whatever...$1700-$3500 is a ton of spare cash...Damn, I wanna quit smoking now.

  17. #17
    Class of the clown GMichael's Avatar
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    Nothing like cold hard cash to motivate a person.
    WARNING! - The Surgeon General has determined that, time spent listening to music is not deducted from one's lifespan.

  18. #18
    Linear Guy
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    reward yourself

    I stoped smoking 5 years ago after smoking for nearly 25 years. I think the best way is cold turkey. The physical withdrawl will not kill you and after about a week you can begin to realize that cigarettes are in fact mildly addicting. You can also appreciate how difficult it might be for real drug addicts to withdrw. Sounds a bit cold and insensitive but thats how you have to treat quitting. You have to kick its ass in retribution for kicking yours all these years. You will socialize differently, you will fill in the time spent smoking rather nicely and you will feel better. Change is good. embrace it. Don't do the patch or the gum. Its nonsense. These are drugs made by drug companies to replace the drug you are quitting. Throw all the drugs away. Immediately after you quit, reward yourself with some good audio gear and think of the purchase as the equivalent of a years smoking. Try quitting again and good luck dk

  19. #19
    Suspended Smokey's Avatar
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    Good all round suggestion guys. Thanks.

    I was watching a program on quit smoking, and a doctor said best way might be to put an unopened pack on a shelf somewhere and anytime you have an erg, to look at it and say to yourself that I will go another hour without opening it. And keep repeating this until day is over.
    Then start all over again next day with the same routine. This way one doesn’t have to think about it much since it is within our reach.

    But some of you guys are right about the money spend. $2000 a year for 20 years, that is freaking $40,000. Dam it!
    Last edited by Smokey; 10-24-2005 at 03:14 PM.

  20. #20
    Class of the clown GMichael's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Smokey
    Good all round suggestion guys. Thanks.

    I was watching a program on quit smoking, and a doctor said best way might be to put an unopened pack on a shelf somewhere and anytime you have an erg, to look at it and say to yourself that I will go another hour without opening. And keep repeating this until day is over.
    Then start all over again next day with the same routine. This way one doesn’t have think about it much since it is within out reach.

    But some of you guys are right about the money spend. $2000 a year for 20 years, that is freaking $40,000. Dam it!
    With $40k you could put one heck of an HT room together!
    WARNING! - The Surgeon General has determined that, time spent listening to music is not deducted from one's lifespan.

  21. #21
    nerd ericl's Avatar
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    Good Luck Smokey, you can do it!

    Cold turkey might be a tough way to do it, but keep trying! If not for yourself, then your family!

    Maybe you should change your name to Smokeless!

  22. #22
    Suspended markw's Avatar
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    Been there.. .done that. I musta quit smolking a dozen times...

    ...before it finally took. It can be done, but it's something YOU have to WANT do for YOURSELF.

    It's nice that you want to give it up for your people but until you want to do it for yourself bad enough to do it, it won't work. I tried several ways. Cold turkey, Nicorettes, gradual withdrawl but ultimately I fell for that BS that "just one won't hurt". Trust me, it will.

    Actually, it's more of a habit than an addiction. An addiction is when you wake up in the middle of the night craving a cigarette. That's not the same thing as waking up and having one as long as you're up. That's a habit. It takes willpower and some behaviour modification to beat a habit.

    What finally did work, although it took three tries over a year, was hypnosis. It was done inexpensively in groups at a local school. It put some imagry into my head that in concert with behaviour modification, gave me that little extra help in fighting that urge to light up.

    It didn't have a drastic effect. ...just a subtle extra strength
    ,
    ...but you've got to want to do it badly for it to work. None of this "Well, I'll give it a try" or "They want ne to do it so I'll try"stuff. That's asking to fail. You have to want to do it for yourself.

    I smoked from '66 up to '92 when I finally beat it. And trust me, you still get the urge to light up a heckuva lot longer after you stop than you want to think. Every so often I still think about it...

    ...good luck...

  23. #23
    Color me gone... Resident Loser's Avatar
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    Well Smoke...

    ...the first thing you may wanna' think about is a moniker change...;-)

    When you really think about it, it's one of those "what was I thinking" situations...My first smoke(at age 14) made me feel like el cr@pola and yet for some unknown reason I did it again...and again...and again...until I could tolerate it readily. For some reason the bells just don't go off for those of us who are foolish enough to buy into the whole enchilada. Soooo sophisticated...soooo adult...sooo stupid!

    For me , cold turkey was the way, why exchange one habit for another? The first time was for nine months...came to an end at, of all places, a funeral...go figure. Second time, thirty years...still smoke free.

    You CAN do it, as unpleasant as the first few days can be...I've read it takes three days to clear the nicotine from your system, so after that it's simply willpower to avoid the habitual ritual.

    I'm sure there are circumstances that always included whippin' out the ol' Zippo and lighting up...get used to doing them sans smoke...do ANYTHING else at those times when you would mindlessly light-up...get rid of your ashtrays and other related paraphernalia...DON"T keep a pack around as a security blanket, bad idea...trust me! Have your clothes cleaned to rid them of the related odors...you may not think it, but you stink! It helped me...Brush your teeth... A LOT...and don't forget your tongue, particularly the first week or so, obviously YMMV...Although food will probably taste better, avoid using it as a substitute for the hand/oral fixation that is a big part of smoking...I didn't...finally took me two years of diet/exercise and a serious lifestyle rethink to undo that.

    And as markw said, don't be surprised how often you may think about it, even years down the road...every so often, maybe with a good cuppa' or after a hearty meal the urge still presents itself, I remember, or at least some tiny part of me does...your goal is to try to make those moments as infrequent and brief as possible...right now, they may seem to be interminable, but as time goes by they'll become flleeting blips on your radar.

    Is it the worst thing you can try to kick? I dunno'. My vote goes for overeating...I used to smoke like a chimney, drink like a fish and eat like a P-I-G hog...

    With the first, after the initial cleansing of the nicotine, it's really an exercise in willpower IMHO. With drink, some of us must simply stop...completely...Let's just say me and JD were real close friends. So those two can just be removed entirely for our behavior patterrns, but no matter what, you still have to eat. Eating to the point of overindulgence is a bit more difficult to control, at least it was for me given my addictive personality...especially in light of givin' up the smokes...can you say "substitute"...

    All I can say is good luck and keep up the good fight...and don't kid yerself, that's what it is.

    jimHJJ(...oh, and avoid listening to Commander Cody and the Lost Planet Airmen...)
    Hello, I'm a misanthrope...don't ask me why, just take a good look around.

    "Men would rather believe than know" -Sociobiology: The New Synthesis by Edward O. Wilson

    "The great masses of the people...will more easily fall victims to a great lie than to a small one" -Adolph Hitler

    "We are never deceived, we deceive ourselves" -Goethe

    If you repeat a lie often enough, some will believe it to be the truth...

  24. #24
    BooBs are elitist jerks shokhead's Avatar
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    My Grandpa smoked for 50 years and stopped cold turkey. His wife left a pack on top of the refrig for him anytime he wanted to start again because he stopped and started so many times she had had it with him.When my dad and i would go back to Mis to visit,we would get his empty O2 tanks and get them refilled because he could'nt get out of bed without gasping for breath.
    Look & Listen

  25. #25
    Can a crooner get a gig? dean_martin's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Smokey
    May be need to get out and exercise more also
    Hey Smokeless, I was thinking about some of the things that were working for me when I quit smoking and before I made the boneheaded decision to try smokeless tobacco to hold off that nicotine craving. I remember drinking lots of water. I started drinking bottled water and always had a bottle with me when I left the house - bottled water and a box of Junior Mints.

    One other thing you might try in addition to the exercise and increased water intake is to weasel your way into a gym or health club (through a friend or trial membership) that has a suana or steam room. Try it for the first 3 to 5 days. You'll break a sweat, break your routine, treat yourself and at the very least you can't smoke while you're in there.

    (Whether it's medically true or not you can convince yourself that you are flushing and sweating out those impurities by drinking more water and sweating - a serious, determined belief system is what you'll need.)

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