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G’day NOPE .....Not One Puff Ever.... (replace Ever with Min,Hour, Day as required)

NOPE

i played a lot of golf. did a lot of walking. in between i broke a few things and then put them back together. spent a lot of time here playing games and typing out messages to no one that never got submitted and chronicled my quit so i could go back and see where i started from. not sure how i made it this far sometimes but here i am.

I stayed on this board. I remember being in the fetal position under my covers crying, believing that I was losing my mind, but I had my phone with me and I was reading everything on this site. Later, it was cold water and deep breathing on top of this board that kept me grounded. Today, it’s deep breathing and this board. I have no problem saying that I owe my quit to QUITTRAIN and all of the wonderful people here.

I played a lot of "Chicks or Sticks" here on the board in the early days of my quit. Felt like I traded one addiction for another. Late night speed-runs with Duck. Me and Sonic irritating Doreen. Bakon doing some creative accounting...Good times!

I found it helpful to keep juice or hard candy available...quitting plays havoc with blood sugar!

Hi, @FunkyMonkey. Welcome to the train! You have found the right crowd of folks to support you in your forever quit. I, too, once lit up a cigarette on the way out of a cardiologist's office... and smoked the whole time I was on a holter heart recorder... and through dozens of sinus infections and bouts of bronchitis.... It's a miracle my junkie brain didn't explode from all the cognitive dissonance. I am 51/2 months into my quit and I used NRT to get here. The patch, supplemented by occasional lozenges or gum. I chose the patch because I had to quit in a hurry without time to gear up, because I was a very heavy smoker and needed to uncouple the physical/psychological dependencies, and because my stomach cannot handle a ton of oral nicotine. As others have said, NRT does indeed prolong the pain of withdrawal. I ultimately accelerated my step-down to be rid of the misery sooner. But in the beginning, the NRT got me over a hump that I hadn't been able to get over before, so I'm grateful. There are a lot of ways to quit, pick whatever method works for you. The general guidance is to start with the higher doses of NRT if you smoke your first cigarette right away when you wake up in the morning. For the first few days I used a 4 mg mini-lozenge or gum early in the day but then used a lower dosage in the afternoon or evening if I needed support again. If you are having cardiac stuff it is a good idea to check in with a doctor about your NRT plan. But still be prepared to listen to your own body and adjust - use less if you feel funky, either by shortening the duration or the dosage. Also, definitely have a plan for other things to do besides NRT to get you through the cravings. The urges will be intense, and NRT alone is not enough ammunition. I needed many different tasks, physical exercises, things to do with my hands, new rituals, etc. I love your new watchband and nail polish approach - get creative! I needed a list of at least 50 things I could do instead of sticking something in my mouth and setting it on fire.... because when the cravings hit I lost my ability to think for a while. But the misery passed. It got easier. You can do this, and there are lots of people here who are ready to help!

NOPE!

NOPE

Thought we could post our tips and hints ,to what helped you quit ..... I had a few .... My punching pillow ....I used a Marker to draw a face ..( never mind who ). When I got a crave I would punch that pillow so hard it went flying through the air ....a few times of doing that ....my crave had past .... I'll be back later with more ... What did you do ?????

My old trusty I Pod .... I would put my ear plugs in and blast that music as loud as can be ... I sang and danced through my craves ....Queen full blast ....Yaaaa.....worked for me ...

NOPE!

FM.... Many roads lead to Rome ....Just get your your arse there any way you can ... Fill your tool box with all the tools you can find ... Chew regular gum too....it keeps your mouth busy .... Buckle up ...there will be some bends ahead ..but if you hold on tight ...you will Reach your destination. FREEDOM !!!!!!

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nope

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Yippee @intoxicated yoda, you're one month away from that lido deck! Congratulations on eleven months today, don't forget to treat yourself

Reading posts and playing games on the Train. The number one reason I kept my sanity. Wall push-ups. Hundreds. And hundreds. Sadly, this has not made me buff, but it did help me not light up! Mashing Silly Putty. Also good during idiotic work Zoom calls. Speed-weeding... dash outside, pull as many weeds as I can in 5 min, dash back inside. Mini-honey-do-list. Silly little 5-minute tasks that need doing around the house... stuff like "tighten the screws on the leg chairs" or "clorox wipe the mystery slime out of the bottom of the recycle bin." Shaking my arms and legs really, really hard. @Doreensfree, the next time I'll do it to Bohemian Rhapsody!

For the first few days I got up in the morning and ate immediately and often through the day to keep my blood sugar up.

NOPE…

Welcome @FunkyMonkey You have gotten a lot of good advice already. I can't give you any advice on NRT's as I was also a cold turkey quitter but I do know that a lot of people successfully quit with NRT's. The main goal, in the end, is that you put smoking and nicotine out of your life forever. It may sound daunting but it is worth it and the journey to a smoke free life can be a rewarding one. A smoke free life is definitely better than having your life revolve around cigarettes You are doing a great thing in quitting smoking. It is great to have you here.

if you really cared you would put up the monkey gif...

YODA! We still have your freshman photo.

I used my air cigarette. I just pretended I was holding an actual cigarette in my fingers and then went through the motions of "smoking" it. It worked great at tricking my brain into thinking it was getting the real thing.

NOPE

NOPE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

NOPE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

@intoxicated yoda Congratulations you!!!

Congratulations Yoda! 11 months smoke free is a huge accomplishment. Hope you celebrate big today. 1 month away from the lido deck.

You have the Lido Deck in sight! Congratulations on 11 months!

Wow !!!! Yoda....your nearly there ...The all important Lido Party ..... Your,,e already a massive part of the board ...and bring so much ... Congratulations.....

Attaway, @Linda!

I used NRT to quit. I was on the patch. I suffer from severe anxiety and knew that I would not survive a cold turkey quit. It was sheer torture though. Every time the the nicotine was reduced I suffered and then I had to suffer the worst when it finally came time to cut all of the nicotine. It. Was. Ugly. I’ll never smoke again though. I don’t have it in me to go through that again. I smoked 35+ years. 2 packs a day. I don’t advise NRT for anyone unless they suffer from some issue that calls for a weaning process. I hope that you find that you don’t need the NRT and just go ahead and kick Nicodemon and his many butts to the curb. Welcome aboard the train. I am so glad that you found us. I could not have quit without the support I received and still receive from everyone here. I’m looking forward to following your quit! See you around!

here ya go @FunkyMonkeythis was the mantra that got me through my first months here on the train. That and walking in the rain.

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NOPE…

I think I ate everything I could find in the kitchen, fridge, freezer, pantry.

Nope!

Congrats that is awesome!

I love that I don't have to pull over every hour or so when out on my motorcycle so I can smoke. I'm sure my riding buddies appreciate it as well.

Gus - like you, I can be plagued by anxiety and a big part of my past fails were anxiety/panic attacks. I cannot use the patch because of the irregular heart beats. I am a "hope for the best plan for the worst" girl so the gum is mental safety net for me to work through the habit/lifestyle part of the quit. I don't plan on using it for the full 12 weeks. I have no doubts it will prolong the withdrawal. Thank you for being so honest here and throughout the site with your quit.

Some days I just bite off more than I can chew

G’day NOPE .....Not One Puff Ever.... (replace Ever with Min,Hour, Day as required)

Nope... no way!!!

There's no such thing as failure unless you give up trying!

Love the "Any is too Many!!" Do not feel alone....when my brother was in the hospital dying from smoking...I had to feed my addiction and sneak out and smoke. I was terrified that I could not quit. I used Chantix. Use whatever path allows you to get started....

NOPE

You know the drill Linda. Glad to see you back on the Quit Train.

Sorry - cold turkey here as well, but I did have some NRT lozenges that made me feel better early on. As it ended up, once I knew what to expect by reading/watching videos here on the train. The encouragement and support of all the other passengers, I never ended up using them at all ...... wifee took them back and got me cake! All the best in your quit, if I can do it anyone can do it.