Quitting smoking

[MisterCreosote]

My electronic cigarette has arrived, and I will start using it once that ****er gets charged up. They're pretty cool, actually. And the nicotine cartridges come in all different flavors. I went with vanilla and coffee for now. Figure I'll use the e-cig for a few weeks or months, then try to get completely off nicotine once I'm used to not actually smoking tobacco anymore. And, hopefully the ladies like a Creosote who smells like vanilla better than a Creosote who smells like cigarettes.

I'm only starting this thread because I want someplace to ***** if this quitting attempt gets miserable, which I'm sure it will. And, I won't turn down any words of encouragement.

 

[Ace]

Vanilla and coffee? Why don't you just get a hookah?

 

[Ace]

Good luck with the quitting and the ladies and all, though.

 

[imjustagirl]

I had an e-cigarette once. But the lighter melted it.

So I'm back to the old standard.

 

[Azrael]

Add Chantix or Wellbutrin to your quitting strategy when you're ready to kick it for good. Both work.

 

[Herbert Anchovy]

I wouldn't mess with Chantix. The depression and anxiety side effects are pretty overpowering.

My sister-in-law gave me hers when she got pregnant. I used it for about four days before discarding it. Never felt that sort of gloom.

 

[Azrael]

I wouldn't mess with Chantix. The depression and anxiety side effects are pretty overpowering.

My sister-in-law gave me hers when she got pregnant. I used it for about four days before discarding it. Never felt that sort of gloom.

I used it without any problem. Like most drugs, side effects can be pretty specific to body or brain chemistry. I'd at least go through the options with my doctor.

Quitting's hard, and usually takes more than one try. It's worth arming yourself with whatever works.

 

[Herbert Anchovy]

One of the things you realize after you go without for a while is that you are f-ing stronger and better than this, and probably were all along. You were deceived into thinking this is your friend, and that you are inseparable. The smokes were always a great charmer.

When I made it through my youngest sister's wedding without a smoke, and everyone and their grandma was smoking outside that reception hall, I knew I was in the clear.

You will notice immediate changes. Your body begins to regenerate itself, practically at the cellular level. Check out your skin in week two and check it out again in week 12. Everything tastes better. Beer tastes like a million bucks. You might sneeze a lot. That means your lungs and sinuses are reasserting their natural powers.

 

[copperpot]

MC, godspeed. Having lost two people close to me to lung cancer within a month of each other, one being my mom, I'm always heartened to hear of people giving up smoking. You can do it!

 

[Frank_Ridgeway]

Went cold turkey from 2 1/2 packs a day 18 years ago. Nothing noble about it -- usually smoked right through bronchitis but simply could not get the smoke down that time. After a few days, I figured the most difficult part was done, and it was. Still get odd cravings out of the blue; they pass. Watching my dad die from smoking-caused emphysema years later was not very pleasant, either.

 

[BDC99]

Used the patch and quit the nicotine for almost 4 years. First few days (and even weeks) were very, very tough, but the patches helped. Once I got past that I could be around friends/family without a worry. Then I dated a girl who smoked, and sitting out chatting with her over some beers when she would come by, I picked it up again. Stupidest decision I've made in a long time. Hope to be quitting again real soon. Good luck, MC! It definitely could take a few tries, but once you commit, you can do it.

 

[Versatile]

Used the patch and quit the nicotine for almost 4 years. First few days (and even weeks) were very, very tough, but the patches helped. Once I got past that I could be around friends/family without a worry. Then I dated a girl who smoked, and sitting out chatting with her over some beers when she would come by, I picked it up again. Stupidest decision I've made in a long time. Hope to be quitting again real soon. Good luck, MC! It definitely could take a few tries, but once you commit, you can do it.

This brings up an important point: If you successfully quit, I think you effectively rule out dating a smoker unless you're willing to start again. I can't imagine any former addict being able to date a smoker and not start back up again. It's the smell in her hair. It's having to stand out in the cold and keep her company while she smokes. It's sitting in the smoking section of a restaurant (if you still live in a place that has those).

I've been an infrequent, never more than a pack a week type since I was a senior in high school. I go through long stretches without smoking. I go through long stretches where I smoke that pack a week. I mostly will smoke occasionally when someone has the brand I prefer. (At this point, Camel Turkish Royal is basically all I'll smoke, cigars excluded.) It's entirely based on the company I keep. When I've dated someone at the time who smokes, I smoke. (Admittedly, I've only dated one smoker.) I never smoke around a girlfriend who doesn't smoke, though, even if I smoke occasionally with friends when she's not around.

 

[Rhody31]

Creole, I gave up dip for New Year's. First three days were a *****, but now the nicotine's out of my system and it's all mental. I bought some natural chew (all natural, made with mint and completely tobacco free) to hold me over when I get a craving.
I joined a quit website called killthecan.org; there are a couple people on there who went to stop smoking. Might be worth checking out. It's pretty intense.

 

[playthrough]

I had an e-cigarette once. But the lighter melted it.

So I'm back to the old standard.

Reminds me of the old Roger Maltbie line on why he gave up nicotine patches: "I couldn't keep them lit."

 

[Herbert Anchovy]

Creosote, you're making the right call. I loved doing it. Ninety-nine percent of the best times of my adult life were with a cigarette in my hand. No shame in admitting it. Made a few friends smoking outside all those years. But at some point you also begin to understand they served their purpose. If you ever want to talk about the severe cravings, and what to do, let me know. I brush my teeth. You sure as hell aren't going to want to smoke anytime after you brush your teeth.

 

[Versatile]

Creosote, you're making the right call. I loved doing it. Ninety-nine percent of the best times of my adult life were with a cigarette in my hand. No shame in admitting it. Made a few friends smoking outside all those years. But at some point you also begin to understand they served their purpose. If you ever want to talk about the severe cravings, and what to do, let me know. I brush my teeth. You sure as hell aren't going to want to smoke anytime after you brush your teeth.

Menthol!

 

[Herbert Anchovy]

When I was a kid, and I'm talking about the kind of punk ****head who takes up smoking at 16 to get closer to a circle of girls, I was led to believe menthol smokes contained fiberglass. Which, of course, was pure high school fiction.

http://www.snopes.com/business/alliance/menthol.asp

Didn't matter, though, was scared off for good and never went near menthol.

 

[imjustagirl]

I don't go near menthol because it tastes like ****.

I smoke Marlboro Silvers, or what used to be called Ultra Lights.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=marlboro%20ultra%20lights

My dad bummed one last time I was home and said "it's like smoking air. This doesn't even count as smoking."

And yet, it does.

 

[NickMordo]

Menthol is the best, unless they are Newports. That is too much menthol. I feel like I could quit at any time but I guess I just don't want to right now. E-Cigs don't do jack for me, I would rather smoke hookah as somebody else mentioned. E-Cigs taste like Parliaments as far as I'm concerned -- smoking air.

 

[FileNotFound]

Best thing you'll ever do for yourself, Mr.C. I'm rooting for you.