One year smoke-free; a few thoughts

[Samui Bodoh]

Hi All

 

Yes, I have reached the one year mark of being smoke-free, and yes, I am very proud of myself. Apologies for the self-praise, but while I have little use for the 'reformed' smokers who blather on in public, I can't help it today. Whoo Hoo! Okay, it is out of my system.

 

What's my story? I was a heavy smoker for around 35 years; I foolishly got hooked in my mid-teens and never kicked the habit. In all honesty, I never really tried to quit; I always said to myself that I should quit, but I never really believed that I could, so I didn't really try. And, that is the message that I hope to impart with this posting; people can quit, and given all we now know about smoking, people should quit. Period.

 

How did I do it? I went 'Cold-Turkey'. Perhaps there are those not familiar with the idiom, but going 'Cold Turkey' means just stopping; no drugs, no 'cutting down', no patches, no nothing. It means going to bed one night as a smoker, waking up the next as a non-smoker. I knew that this was the method that I had to use, but if one of the other methods works for you, then use it; there is no 'one way' to do this.

 

What tricks did I use? First, pick a date that is coming soon; I have always felt Mondays were the day to do new stuff, so I chose a Monday. Further, members might remember that a year ago, the government announced that they were raising taxes on smokes, so that was another 'push' for me; I chose the Monday when taxes were going up. The night before, throw out any and all smokes from your house/condo, clean all ashtrays and put them away on a shelf; have none of the usual paraphernalia about. I am a bit cheap, so I took a clear plastic jar and put it on my desk, and each day I put in the amount of money that I would have spent into the jar. The first day it didn't do much, but after 4-5 days, it was a GREAT visual stimuli for quitting (I highly recommend this trick to any and all).

 

What are the benefits of quitting? I am a cyclist and am out on the road cycling every morning at dawn. I was very much paying attention this morning and I can definitely take in more oxygen than I could a year ago; it isn't a huge difference, but it is noticeable. Further, I don't have the 'lung burn/chest burn' that I used to get; sorry, it is not a very scientific description, but smokers will know exactly what I mean. I have more... er... 'lead in my pencil'; that is my polite way to say that my sex life has improved. I don't stink of stale smoke. I don't need to plan my every move around the idea of whether or not I have enough cigarettes. I saved approximately 63,500 Baht (Bloody Hell!!!). I am not adding to my chances of getting cancer. I am not polluting the air and my surroundings with used butts. I could go on, but it is very straightforward; all in all, I simply feel better. Much better. Much, much better.

 

What are the benefits of smoking? There are none. Literally, none.

 

What are the downsides to quitting? I have gained weight, and it has been difficult to shed it. However, even if I ballooned to the size of the Good Year Blimp, it would still be healthier than smoking.

 

Am I a non-smoker now? I don't feel that I can say that yet; perhaps next year at this time. Instead, I would call myself a smoker who doesn't smoke (akin to a 'recovering' alcoholic). I do feel confident that I am not going to smoke again, but I also feel that if I were to have even one cigarette (ONE!), then I would likely be back on two packs a day very quickly. They are insidious as hell and I am going to have to keep my guard up for a long, long time.

 

Two final thoughts.

 

Posts in the 'Stop Smoking Forum' section of TVF tend to get about 1,000 views each (VERY rough estimate/average). If 10%-20% of you are smokers, and in Asia that is quite possible, then my message to you is quite simple. I won't bother to say that you must quit smoking; you already know that. I won't say that it is easy; it isn't and you already know that. My message is this: you do have the ability to quit. I smoked for 35 years or so and I quit; others on here smoked for longer and have quit. This is the key message in my opinion; I never really believed that I could quit, so I didn't really bother to try. Now, I know that I can quit. And, so can you.

 

Secondly, I want to say thanks to all who have participated in this Forum for the last year or so. Eagle-eyed members will have noticed that I started most of the threads in the last year, and I deeply appreciate everyone who added a comment, gave some encouragement, shared a story, or simply pressed 'like' or 'laugh'. Could I have quit without the assistance of this Forum? Yes. Was it easier with the help of this Forum? Yes. I think it is time for another person to 'take over' a bit, I am not going to be starting a new thread every month as I did before. Any new quitters want to take up the reins? It helped me, so I think it might help you as well.

 

Cheers all!

 

 

[lopburi3]

Was a heavy smoker for about 20 years (quite several times and one cig was indeed all it took to start back) and quite cold some 34 years ago (in Conakry, Guinea where a pack would have cost about 30 times more locally as added motivation - just did not order any and too cheap to pay that much extra locally - it worked).  

 

Suspect am feeling negative effects of that smoking even new - stage 2 bladder cancer two years ago could well have been a result of such smoking.  

[Andrew Dwyer]

First of all:

Well done OP !! you should be proud of yourself, it is certainly an achievement worthy of praise.

I, like many others, started smoking at an early age ( 13 or 14 ) , peer pressure I guess is the official title but realistically it was just wanting to be “ one of the lads” !!
After this juvenile phase had passed was the time to realise it was a stupid idea and quit but the damage was done and I was hooked.

Along came a girlfriend who became a wife and then along came children which in turn led to a more responsible lifestyle for the sake of the family and I quit smoking.
Like the OP I quit without any aids using only my willpower and the feeling that I was helping myself and my family meant that quitting smoking became easy and literally a no brainer !!

But then came the fall !
Ten whole years after I succumbed, working a traveling lifestyle with many hours to kill away from family and friends I found myself at the hotel bar in a small town in Taiwan and temptation reared it’s ugly head !
Drinking a beer with an American work associate who was in a similar situation ( far too many nights away from home in foreign lands ) it seemed that he was gaining a lot of pleasure from chain smoking his favourite brand of menthol cigarettes.
In a moment of weakness, assisted by alcohol, I foolishly “ tried “ a menthol !!
It was amazing !!, no coughing or spluttering, a deep minty taste seemed to go well with the local beer.
I spent a pleasant evening chatting with this new found friend, lamenting about our lonely traveling lifestyles, drinking copious amounts of the local brew and smoking half a pack of his newly found “ amazing “ menthol cigarettes !!
Next day after work I called in at the local convenience store to reimburse my new buddy with a pack of his favourite “ cancer sticks “. Spotting them on the shelf i motioned to the shopkeeper that this is what I wanted, raising one finger I indicated I wanted one pack but an inner unknown force somehow managed to raise an adjoining finger and before I knew it I had purchased two packs and my fate was sealed, I was back on the baccy !!
Naturally I weaned myself back onto normal smokes, Marlboro lights being my poison of choice using the excuse that “ lights “ somehow made it okay to smoke !!

A few years passed and while having a coughing fit one morning I realised that I had arose and was craving a cigarette before anything else, before coffee, before breakfast and at that moment I knew I was creating my own path to an early grave !!

I stopped that same day, probably 18 years ago, and have never put a cigarette near my lips since then, and never will.

Smoking is a foolish pastime that everyone knows is for losers .
Redemption is only achieved by quitting .

Some need a little encouragement to stop and I think the money on a jar on your desk is a good incentive. Or maybe work out how many days it takes to save xxx amount of baht and on that day buy yourself a treat ( new helmet, DVD player, new sneakers, whatever !! ) with the money accumulated.

Or just man up and go cold turkey !!
It’s really not that hard, just need to realise that you will eliminate a lot of future health issues if you do it now !!
So do it !!

( sorry about the long winded post just wanted to put forward my opinion that it’s not hard to stop but keeping stopped is the real battle !! )

[Samui Bodoh]

  On 9/16/2018 at 2:34 AM, Andrew Dwyer said:

First of all:

Well done OP !! you should be proud of yourself, it is certainly an achievement worthy of praise.

I, like many others, started smoking at an early age ( 13 or 14 ) , peer pressure I guess is the official title but realistically it was just wanting to be “ one of the lads” !!
After this juvenile phase had passed was the time to realise it was a stupid idea and quit but the damage was done and I was hooked.

Along came a girlfriend who became a wife and then along came children which in turn led to a more responsible lifestyle for the sake of the family and I quit smoking.
Like the OP I quit without any aids using only my willpower and the feeling that I was helping myself and my family meant that quitting smoking became easy and literally a no brainer !!

But then came the fall !
Ten whole years after I succumbed, working a traveling lifestyle with many hours to kill away from family and friends I found myself at the hotel bar in a small town in Taiwan and temptation reared it’s ugly head !
Drinking a beer with an American work associate who was in a similar situation ( far too many nights away from home in foreign lands ) it seemed that he was gaining a lot of pleasure from chain smoking his favourite brand of menthol cigarettes.
In a moment of weakness, assisted by alcohol, I foolishly “ tried “ a menthol !!
It was amazing !!, no coughing or spluttering, a deep minty taste seemed to go well with the local beer.
I spent a pleasant evening chatting with this new found friend, lamenting about our lonely traveling lifestyles, drinking copious amounts of the local brew and smoking half a pack of his newly found “ amazing “ menthol cigarettes !!
Next day after work I called in at the local convenience store to reimburse my new buddy with a pack of his favourite “ cancer sticks “. Spotting them on the shelf i motioned to the shopkeeper that this is what I wanted, raising one finger I indicated I wanted one pack but an inner unknown force somehow managed to raise an adjoining finger and before I knew it I had purchased two packs and my fate was sealed, I was back on the baccy !!
Naturally I weaned myself back onto normal smokes, Marlboro lights being my poison of choice using the excuse that “ lights “ somehow made it okay to smoke !!

A few years passed and while having a coughing fit one morning I realised that I had arose and was craving a cigarette before anything else, before coffee, before breakfast and at that moment I knew I was creating my own path to an early grave !!

I stopped that same day, probably 18 years ago, and have never put a cigarette near my lips since then, and never will.

Smoking is a foolish pastime that everyone knows is for losers .
Redemption is only achieved by quitting .

Some need a little encouragement to stop and I think the money on a jar on your desk is a good incentive. Or maybe work out how many days it takes to save xxx amount of baht and on that day buy yourself a treat ( new helmet, DVD player, new sneakers, whatever !! ) with the money accumulated.

Or just man up and go cold turkey !!
It’s really not that hard, just need to realise that you will eliminate a lot of future health issues if you do it now !!
So do it !!

( sorry about the long winded post just wanted to put forward my opinion that it’s not hard to stop but keeping stopped is the real battle !! )

Expand  

Excellent post.

 

You have described the scenario that frightens the hell out of me. I don't really drink anymore, but that insidious thought of 'go on, one little smoke won't hurt...' is terrifying; I have visions of the imaginary devil on my shoulder that we sometimes see in bad movies.

 

As I noted in my post, I am confident in my ability to keep not smoking, but let me ask a question to you or to anyone else out there;

 

When does the thinking about smoking end?

 

There is one habit that, no matter what, I still haven't been able to lose. Every time I leave the house (it seems), I find myself unconsciously patting my upper shirt pocket to see if my smokes are there. Obviously they aren't there, but I notice the gesture quite frequently, and assume that I am still doing it even when I don't actively notice it.

 

Any thoughts? We are all different, but I would be curious if anyone would provide an answer...

 

Cheers

 

[Andrew Dwyer]

  On 9/16/2018 at 4:41 AM, Samui Bodoh said:

Excellent post.
 
You have described the scenario that frightens the hell out of me. I don't really drink anymore, but that insidious thought of 'go on, one little smoke won't hurt...' is terrifying; I have visions of the imaginary devil on my shoulder that we sometimes see in bad movies.
 
As I noted in my post, I am confident in my ability to keep not smoking, but let me ask a question to you or to anyone else out there;
 
When does the thinking about smoking end?
 
There is one habit that, no matter what, I still haven't been able to lose. Every time I leave the house (it seems), I find myself unconsciously patting my upper shirt pocket to see if my smokes are there. Obviously they aren't there, but I notice the gesture quite frequently, and assume that I am still doing it even when I don't actively notice it.
 
Any thoughts? We are all different, but I would be curious if anyone would provide an answer...
 
Cheers
 

Sometimes smoking is more of a habit than an urge .

When I was 17 I passed my driving test and borrowed my mother’s car every evening to visit the gf ( until leaving home at 20 ).
I would depress the cigarette lighter and by the time I had reversed the car out of the drive and pointed it in the right direction it had popped up ready to light the cigarette already in my mouth.
Whether I felt the urge to smoke or not I don’t remember it was just automatic !!
These habits need to be replaced with something else, I guess I could have had chewing gum in the car to replace the lighting up, would have probably worked.

So, find a replacement for your habit or urges is the answer I suppose.
Difficult when you want to smoke while drinking I know, maybe take up darts ? [emoji51].

If you still have urges after 1 year then you should think about some replacement.


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[Dexlowe]

It's probably just muscle memory, so I wouldn't worry about patting your top pocket until suddenly, one day, you find .... lol. Just joking. 

 

The bad news is that you'll never stop thinking about smoking. It's not possible simply because of the influences that are around you pretty much all of the time - that might be seeing someone sneak outside for a fag, or giving yourself a little self-praise for having achieved a goal aided by clear lungs. The urge for a smoke will also arise from time to time, but I think you already know that. There is no magic formula to stopping it, so I find that the best way to control the urge is simply to carry on with my business as usual and let it pass naturally. I quit both smoking and drinking at the same time, and like you, I fear the black dog in the corner should I get back on the turps again (I can drink if I want to, I just decided not to).

 

PS: Another urge to overcome is the desire to lecture smokers or bitch about their habit. I find this counter-productive and just simply let things flow. They all know, anyway.

[Andrew Dwyer]

I don’t find I have the urge anymore, in fact I find it repulsive and wonder what on earth I ever saw in the habit.

When I stopped I guess there was a period when I struggled against the urge especially when I was drinking.
Not sure how I overcame that it was a long time ago but I certainly don’t have any desire to smoke now.
I don’t drink now but that’s only changed in the last 3 years so didn’t affect my stopping smoking.

I have to agree with Dexlowes last statement. It doesn’t work trying to preach to smokers to stop and I wouldn’t do that in person, only a little bit on TVF [emoji51].
It wouldn’t do any good anyway and I wouldn’t have appreciated it in my smoking period. If smokers just respect the “ clean air” of others then they are free to do as they please IMO.


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[Cereal]

I'm in my late 50's and thus come from a generation and time when everyone smoked. Teachers used to smoke in class. The Flintstones hawked cigarettes on TV. Doctors preferred Camels. My mom and dad smoked. My sister smoked. Every single one of my friends smoked. But not me. I never did. I never tried. There was no desire to ever try, I always hated it. I had absolutely no peer pressure at all.

 

I remember as a young kid sitting on my grandfather's lap while dad drove the car, no seatbelts of course, and them both puffing away. I always wound the window down regardless of weather and closed the ashtray as soon as they were done. I remember granddad saying to my dad, "This one'll never smoke!"

 

I can't tell you how many times I have vocalized my happiness for never having started. I've never met a smoker who says they're glad they started.

 

Good for you OP. Well done and keep it up. haha......

[thaiguzzi]

  On 9/16/2018 at 12:45 AM, Samui Bodoh said:

It means going to bed one night as a smoker, waking up the next as a non-smoker.

Expand  

Or, as in my case, leaving one airport (BKK) as a smoker and arriving at the other airport (AMST) as a non smoker....

[Andrew Dwyer]

  On 9/16/2018 at 5:42 AM, Cereal said:

I'm in my late 50's and thus come from a generation and time when everyone smoked. Teachers used to smoke in class. The Flintstones hawked cigarettes on TV. Doctors preferred Camels. My mom and dad smoked. My sister smoked. Every single one of my friends smoked. But not me. I never did. I never tried. There was no desire to ever try, I always hated it. I had absolutely no peer pressure at all.
 
I remember as a young kid sitting on my grandfather's lap while dad drove the car, no seatbelts of course, and them both puffing away. I always wound the window down regardless of weather and closed the ashtray as soon as they were done. I remember granddad saying to my dad, "This one'll never smoke!"
 
I can't tell you how many times I have vocalized my happiness for never having started. I've never met a smoker who says they're glad they started.
 
Good for you OP. Well done and keep it up. haha......

Good for you man, certainly wish I had never smoked !!

I once found a carton of Kent cigarettes at the back of one of the kitchen cabinets, they must have been my fathers who had smoked briefly while in College, must have been there at least 20 years.

Yup, I smoked the lot !! [emoji20]


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[Kerryd]

Congratulations ! 

It gets easier (to stay away from cigarettes) as time goes by. I've been "clean" for almost 6 1/2 years now. 

These days all it takes is a whiff of someone's smoke to make me cringe (inside) and remind me of all the reasons I quit and don't want to ever start again. I have to control myself if I am close to someone that just had a cigarette as the urge to make a face and shy away (while waving my hand to try and fan away the smell) is strong.

 

I don't (generally) nag on people that do smoke as I've been there and know how hard it is to quit but I will tell them why I quit and offer suggestions if they want to quit as well. My dad smoked for (about) 62 of his 77 years, including his final 2 years after he'd been diagnosed with lung cancer. In his words, it was the only vice he had left.
Even after watching him waste away and finally pass on, I still wasn't motivated to quit myself.

 

Until I noticed my own health starting to suffer. About 1 1/2 years after dad passed on I noticed that I was getting the hacking cough with every puff and the "wheezing" breathing to go along with the lungs that always seemed to be congested. When I was younger I'd only get the hack if I lit up right after doing some heavy physical exertion. Then it started happening with the first puff of each cigarette. Then it started happening with each puff of each cigarette.
I was so used to that happening with dad that I'd actually became conditioned to pausing in the middle of sentence to let him finish hacking up a lung, then I'd carry on with the rest of the sentence. It finally dawned on me that I might not even live as long as dad did if I kept going the way I was.

 

I feel so much better since I quit. No more hacking cough, wheezing breath, congested lungs. No more stinking breath, clothes and house. No more cravings to have a cigarette, especially at times when you simply can't.

 

I like being able to sit on an airplane for 10-12 hours and not care that I can't smoke. I like being able to sit somewhere and know that I don't reek like a smelly ashtray. I like yawning or taking a deep breath without breaking into a fit of coughing and horking up lung oysters.

I forget what the supposed timeline is for how long it takes to get back to being on about the same level (health-wise) as someone who never smoked, but I like to think that if I hadn't quit, I might not even be here today !
I did put on some weight after I quit but I'm working on getting rid of that now. It'll take some effort but it will be worth it. 

Of course now, with the benefit of hindsight, I wish I'd never started smoking or, at the very least, could have quit when I was still in my teens or early 20s, but that was a different era and a different attitude towards smoking back then.

 

[helloagain]

Many come here to smoke and drink yourself to early death, good luck to you

[AlQaholic]

Congratulations OP! well done. I quit many years ago as well. For those who are still smoking, maybe telling my method of quitting might help someone. I started by not smoking for the whole morning before lunch. then after some time, I stopped smoking the whole day, only smoking in the evening. (There was a whole lot of smoking in the evenings:)). The point of this exercise was to psychologically prove to myself that I can go for a whole day without smoking so that I am mentally prepared for the next step, which was to quit altogether. And it worked, never had the slightest urge after quitting.

[transam]

  On 9/17/2018 at 1:52 AM, helloagain said:

Many come here to smoke and drink yourself to early death, good luck to you

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I think in the far off future that a lifetime of modern day eating habits will send more folk to an early death...

[Cadbury]

Congratulations! One year down, the rest of your life to go. At this stage you are only a reformed smoker. It will get easier as time progresses. Trust me.

[kwak250]

I used to smoke daily then cut down to only smoking if i have a beer which was weekends.

Problem was that didn't work as i found myself buying beer in the week just to have a smoke.

Now 13 years i have quit since my son was born.

I haven't stopped having the urge whenever i see someone light up.

I dont go to bars now so its much much easier .

But all my friends from the uk are still on 2 packs a day so i am 100% sure being away from smokers is a very good advantage to quitting.

Well done for stopping for a year .

 

[MrBanks]

I used to smoke 2 packs a day, Marlborough Lights. I stopped 20 years ago, like you I put the money in a jar every day for the first year and was amazed how much I had at the end of the year. Unlike you I did not go strictly cold turkey, in those days you could buy little containers of nicotine that fit into a thing that looked like a cigarette holder. when you got the urge you took 1 or 2 hits on that and the urge would go away, however, pure nicotine is something that your body does not like, so eventually you start to use the inhaler thing less and less till eventually you stop.

You still get the urges but over time they become less and less frequent, but sometimes can be really strong. I had to find another way to deal with them.

My method was to make a list of "hooks", reasons to never start again, mine was:

1. The relief I felt at being able to fly long distance without having a constant urge for a cig. (I once nearly got arrested in Los Angeles airport, on a business trip, because I was so desperate I lit up as I walked off the plane and was smoking in non smoking areas.)

2. The money I was saving.

3. Being able to wake up in the morning after a night in the pub and my clothes from the night before not stinking.

4. Reminding myself that the urges were becoming less and less frequent. I was winning!!

5. The threat to myself that if I ever gave in and started again, I would NEVER give up again. I wasn't going to go through that first year ever again.

The urges do become less frequent and although sometime they are intense, if you take time to remind yourself of your personal hooks, by the time you have finished the urge has gone, you have won again.

It is now 20 years for me, my wife smokes like a chimney and it does not bother me at all. I still fly all over the world and relish the fact that I do not desire a cig. the minute the plane door closes. I smile to myself when I am back in the UK having a pint and my smoking friends have to put their coats on every 15 minutes to go out into the freezing night to have a fag.

My advice to you is simple, you have won the major battle, now you have a few skirmishes to overcome, don't let a few seconds urge destroy the good work that you have done.
 

[BigT73]

Im a reformed smoker and into weightlifting / fitness, kinda contradictory I know but it was aceptable back in the day play footy and smoke a dart after, infact it was very cool.   Well done to everyone who has quit!  For me it was oneday just doing the cold turky thing and not looking back.  The key to OP success to is he had bike riding,  as creatures of habit giving up one habit its easy to fall into another, sugar is usually the culprit as it can give you that quick high as smoking did or the alcohol route were I felt I needed to take the edge off.  Get into a hobby or fitness activity it will give you the natural high and help get your metabolism back to normal.

Anyone wanting to quit its never too late and dont be afraid to reach out you will get the support!

[hobobo]

I was going to say Well done, but then I thought... Back in the early 1990s I quit for the longest stretch ever - 7 years! At some point in 2001 I had a cigarette, I don't know why, no traumatic event, no broken heart, no nothing. I just walked into a store and bought a pack. Fast forward almost 15 years: I'm now smoking 60 a day most days, and it shows, I'm a skinny coughing stick. Then comes February 2015, and like the OP says, I went to bed a smoker and the next day I didn't smoke, and I still don't. In the last 3 and a half years I never yearned for a cigarette, I don't have a problem if people near me smoke, but equally I'll never say that I'm never ever smoke again. It's a bit like alcoholics who kicked the bottle - once a smoker, always a smoker (though I pray to God I'll stay off the damned cancer sticks for good this time!)

 

Well done, OP!

 

(I, too, am saving over 75,000 baht a year. It pays for 90% of my Bupa, oops, Aetna cover)

[Farangwithaplan]

Congrats to the OP. it is a feat to change a habit of a lifetime. I had smoked from a young age and used your trick of continuing to to save the money I would have spent. After 12 months I bought myself a sound system as a reward to myself that I would never have previously considered buying.

 

Besides the obvious health benefits that continue for a few years after  quitting, the biggest things for me was to no longer be changed to a small box and lighter that I just had to carry around with me everywhere.

I used hypnosis and the strategy the psychologist and I came up with was to use that issue of carrying smokes and lighters with me as a lever. The idea of being burdened by them almost instantly became more important than the cravings and I simply stopped smoking.

 

I still miss having a big hogie / cigar from time to time, but the moment soon passes and life is much better without stinking of smoke and having lunges full of mucus.

[AsiaHand]

Great for you sir.You have just lowered the potential health problems such as lung and liver disease,a major stroke, heart attack and many other problems.I quit in 1967 after being shot in the right lung and I hope that you make it to my age and in good health. Again CONGRATULATIONS.

[connda]

  On 9/16/2018 at 12:45 AM, Samui Bodoh said:

Yes, I have reached the one year mark of being smoke-free, and yes, I am very proud of myself. Apologies for the self-praise

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Congratulations.  It's no easy task.  For all the proselytizing that the governments do about 'drugs' like marijuana, kratom, and mushroom (you'll become addicted and your brain will rot, blah blah blah)  in reality nicotine is highly, highly, highly addictive, and using their own arguments regarding the evils of drugs, tobacco should be at the top of the banned and illegal substances list.  But instead?  World-wide it's a protected commodity with immensely strong government lobbies to influence any government legislation and in some cases the industry is allowed a legal monopoly status.  What's not to like from a stockholder or industry owner point of view: highly addictive, very lucrative even though it causes countless death and health issues while being protected by the government.

So kicking the habit is no easy task.  I did it over 40 years ago and quit cold turkey.  It's insidious stuff.  Over 40 years later and I still have urges to smoke, but the urges are so weak as to have no effect.  So Op, that's where you'll be for the rest of your life.  If an urge comes up, you now have the power to ignore it.  But you'll never be completely out of the woods, but the addiction should have no power over you anymore.  Congratulations again!

[connda]

  On 9/16/2018 at 4:41 AM, Samui Bodoh said:

When does the thinking about smoking end?

Expand  

Never.  It never ends.  Ever.

 

But the urges get less powerful over time.  But you have to be aware of the sinister nature of 'the urge.'  If you were a heavy smoker, then virtually everything you did during your waking hours was paired with the positive stimulus of smoking a highly addictive substance.  So years and years after you quit, the stimulus's that made you smoke are still there, however in a very weakened state.  When I have an urge, I note it "Hummm, how odd" and then beat it down "...yes, odd but I do not need to respond to that, it has no power over me"  and then it disappears.  But if you dwell on it "Hummmm, how odd, I wonder.............." then you will be screwed.  Read this entire thread and see how many people quit for years only to start again. 

 

So the thinking never ends.  But if the urge arrives, note it, then move on.  Do not fantasize about it, do not feed it because if you do - it will eat you.

[DineshR]

Congratulations to the Op ! Well done ! Like you, I smoked for 38 years and quit cold turkey one day 9 years ago. Never really had a plan. Just decided to stop one day and that was it. I would say the first month was the hardest. Now, 9 years later, I don't even think about it. And as the Op says - anyone can stop - you just have to make the decision and do it.

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[ToddinChonburi]

Job well done.  about 35 years for me.  can't stand the smell but still sometimes have the urge.

[oldrunner]

Congratulations. Stay away from smokers. Most Sports Bars and other bars are smoke free so that helps. I quit cold, as you have done, roughly 22 years ago and my lungs and heart thank me for it, as does my heart doctor. Keep to it, your body will thank you.

[Scouse123]

Well done on 1 year. Great achievement!!

 

I wonder how long it takes for the body to recover, especially the lungs from heavy smoking.

 

I quit fourteen years ago with the cigarettes. I know I will never smoke again. It is easier now as so many places make it a taboo, such as bars, restaurants, hotels, etc

 

My problem now is stopping drinking beer. I get to about six months beer free, then bang, a glass of red wine or so, even though I know it will lead to more, and out the window, it goes.

 

I suppose one step at a time.

 

Weight is my reason for stopping drinking as it went up considerably after stopping smoking but is in ' check ' at the moment.

[Rimmer]

Off topic troll post removed

[honu]

Good job!  I quit smoking some years back (13 now), and can pass on some of the time-line I experienced.  I'd only been smoking for around 4 years then, so not as long-term as in lots of these stories, but that's plenty of time to be quite addicted.  It was enough to try to quit a couple of times and fail.

 

The initial worst of the cravings took a month or so to pass.  I was far from over cravings at that point but by then the initial strong urge to smoke was replaced by urges brought on by different triggers (stress, or a connection to when I had smoked before, which was related to lots of daily activities).  At around 6 months it seemed the desire to smoke had leveled off quite a bit but would never really pass.  At around a year it mostly had; some things could still remind me of it but an experience of an urge to smoke became quite infrequent.  It probably helped I wasn't drinking all that much then, which would make urges harder to resist.  After a couple years I never felt any urge at all to smoke, even under stress.

 

I'm not sure I'd actually recommend it but I'll pass on something I tried at the beginning of not smoking.  A US brand, American Spirit, made an herb blend with a little tobacco in it, and I smoked that for a few weeks initially.  It tasted horrible, like mint and whatever else, and it had some tobacco in it but probably not enough to do all that much for the nicotine craving.  It seemed to sort of work as a placebo.  Really resolve seemed to be the key.  After I decided to quit I never smoked another cigarette, and it became clear enough I wasn't sticking with those nasty herb versions for long either.

[xtrnuno41]

Happy birthday !! Afterall you were reborn.

Im still smoking and yeah i wish i could do with out. its so damned easy to grab that cigarette with everything or nothing.

Its amazing to see some quitte just like that. Also the effects sometimes. I saw a man quitting and really growing in weight

until he starts again and his weight goes down again, it was amazing to witness. A very skinny woman i knew stopped and grew, but it suited her right !  A college had stopped for many years and he said "i will always be a smoker. If something stressful will happen, i will sure be back on the cigarette" Happily for him then there wasnt anything to bring him back to it, at that time.

My brother just recently, tried to stop in several ways, but has not succeeded. Can i then?

My son quit smoking, damn i was proud on him !! I gave him once (when starting) the advice not to do it. But after some years he quit by himself, damn i was proud on him !!

Damn i think , why cant I ? I know it is just all in your head and habits, of course addiction from nicotine plays a part as well. In your head it runs around, coffee +cig, cig after food, alcohol +cig, yeahhhh. But most of the cigs i take out of stupid habit, not even to like it. And as i grew older and older, the amount of cigs grew.  I should stop, its now 43 years. i know, its mind over the stupid addictions you have with the cigarette. It's  love/hate situation, i should hate it more.