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DB .... so sorry to hear how you are feeling my friend. I have no real words of wisdom only that what is working for me to quiet the stronger or predictable cravings. I had been giving the craving a big NOPE and doing my best to ignore it or fight it. But lately, I have been doing one mint which gives me the feeling that I have physically done something and the craving is gone. Hang in there, the long time quitter's here say it gets easier and I hope to experience that for myself.

@DenaliBlues So sorry for the loss of a loved one❤ Good job posting your feelings. I can so relate to everything your saying. You are not alone!! But I know you that smoking will not change any of the hard things that happen in life. I can tell you that is what caused me to throw away my year quit and nothing changed, except I was so angry at my self a the issues that were stressing me out were still there. Plus more!!! You can do this you are very strong and have made it so far. Don't give in to the beast!!! I can tell you its normal to feel the way you do I'm right there with you!!Use your tools and the great people here!! Hang in there, just don't smoke!!! !!

Nope!!! Happy New Year!!!

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Nope... No can do!!

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Today I feel frustrated again with my longing to smoke. I’ve made it nearly 11 months without nicotine – and the freedom is sweet. But I’ve hit a lot of triggers recently. Grief is a big one, there was another death in my family last week. Work is frustrating. Expensive and aggravating things keep going wrong with the house. While on vacation, I’m finding it hard to uncouple relaxing from smoking. My quit is intact. I’m proud of that, and determined to stay away from nicotine. But I still feel bedeviled by the desire for a cigarette. I find myself romancing the smoke… longing for the “ahhh” feeling that I imagine it would give me. Red flag. Time to remind myself that the gratification fantasy is a big lie. Smoking wouldn’t fix anything that’s broken, nor bring back anybody who I am mourning. It would just give me a headache, ratchet up my blood pressure, and roil up my stomach acid. That “ahhh” feeling is the biggest lie of all. After smoking as heavily as I did for as long as I did, I had screwed up most of the dopamine transporters in my brain. Smoking was making me feel worse, not better. There was no such thing as “enough” smoking for me. Just an endless pursuit of gratification ghosts that would always elude my grasp. Futile. Demoralizing. The only thing nicotine ever did for me was make me want more nicotine. It is NOT my friend. Yet even as I write this, I want a smoke. How stupid is that?! Addiction is so crazy. I need to think of these desires as dumb commercials trying to sell me junk I don’t want - tune them out. The urge to smoke is just a smelly trash truck rumbling by. Let it pass. Don’t give it the power of my attention. Time to go read "How to Prevent a Relapse" for the 100th time. If anyone wants to share other thoughts about how to stop romancing the smoke, I’m all ears - it helps to hear how other people think about this. Thanks to everyone for being here. Without the Quit Train I’d be much more vulnerable to the traps my addiction sets for me. I’m grateful to my fellow quitters, newbies and veterans alike. You all make my quit much stronger.

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Is 2023 your year to quit?

G’day Yes the vet usually sells it but due to supply chain problems none available. Lucky I found a low fat brand that was suitable( a US import) from local pet shop. I also poach chicken breast in the sous vide with rice carrots and beans and sweet potato. She’s also allowed canned salmon in spring water. I think she eats better than us. Love her dearly, would hate to lose her, so we do what’s good for her.

Hi Denali, I'm so sorry you suffered a death in your family. I hope the pain of loss is not overwhelming, your family and friends are close & supportive, and you can all comfort and strengthen each other as you move through this very sad chapter. Once you hit the year mark, you will have done all the daily and cyclical / seasonal things without nicotine for the first time in so many years (first Christmas, first birthday, etc). But other events that dont happen once a year can still trip you up, so be on guard for those. It sounds like you are steadfast in your quit but are just irritated by the urges. They will get fainter and fainter with time. It also helps to remember that urges come and go, events and occurrences are here today and already in the past tomorrow, but your lungs & breath are with you for the duration. You want to be toting around some good lungs, so that you have good breath, and that exquisite freedom, all of your days. May you persevere through this rough time, nicotine-free every day and each day a step closer to being 100% free from this terrible addiction's grasp. All the best for a brighter 2023.

@DenaliBlues I'm so sorry to hear you are struggling and for the loss of a family member. What got me past that lingering romance with smoke was to tackle the other addictions I had that were riding shotgun with the cigarettes. Junk food and coffee. Once I realized that I actually was addicted to those things as well and eliminated them my thought processes actually started changing. I still thought about smoking but it was in a different way and it was much easier to distract myself from it. And when the thought was gone, it was totally gone, which didn't normally happen for me. It was always simmering on the back burner, just waiting for the opportunity to ambush me. Then, I found a solution to my muscle cramping episodes. Turns out taking a healthy dose of sea salt a few times a day and no more cramps. Guess what else I didn't have anymore? That tightness in the back of my throat that was always there and gave me that panicky feeling in my stomach that I always would get when I was jonesing for a smoke but couldn't. Turns out ingesting more salt solved a lot of little minor problems I had like headaches, the late morning nausea I would get. All these things tied into the routine I had spent years building around smoking. Then trying to fix something totally unrelated and all these other things resolved and snap, craves don't even register. Funny how you can just stumble over things sometimes. Let me clarify, I still think about smoking from time to time. There are still triggers, but I don't get blindsided with those random gnawing craves to smoke. Anyway, none of this will stop the trials of life from happening. The roof will have leaks, the cars won't start at times and loved ones will leave us far to soon, but maybe not all of the grief and stress we feel is just in our heads. Maybe there is a physical component to it as well. Maybe we are driven to smoke or eat bad food because our body is deficient in something but we trained our brains to react to the deficiency in the wrong way and if we figure out what the body is really wanting the craves will lose their sting and we can better deal with the traumas of life. All I can do really though is offer my condolences and hope that you can find something of value in my experience.

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jillar Posted November 30 *A lifetime of freedom from nicotine. *Worldwide support from members in all phases of quitting and who know and can relate to what you may go through at any given time in your quit. *Tons of educational material about our addiction to nicotine. Be it by reading, watching videos or asking other members. We have it all So what do you have to lose by becoming a member? ACT NOW and you can go into the New Year COMPLETELY SMOKE FREE! You heard that right folks. No more burn holes everywhere No more stale smoke stink on you and all your stuff AND we already told you about all the extra CASH All this and there's STILL MORE! Yep, we've saved the best for last. Quit now and enjoy better health and less colds. Better circulation, pinker gums, the list goes on and on... So give yourself the ultimate gift this holiday season. You won't regret it Link to original post: https://www.quittrain.com/topic/14789-free-to-all-new-members-who-register/

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@Cbdave, that's what killed my Cookie Luckily your dog is young, Cookie was 15. Please be sure to keep him on a strick diet. They also make dog food specifically for that but the vet needs to prescribe it here in the US....

Happy New Year Quit train.

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Hey Linda, just want to remind you you can do this. Hope the sun is shining through the clouds for you today and you are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

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Sorry I am late Linda .......... just want to congratulate you for seeking help and hanging on to your quit.

Below is today,s prices for a packet of cigarettes... If your still smoking just 1 packet a day ..that's alot of your hard earned cash going up in smoke ... Wouldn't it be better spent somewhere else ... The minute you Quit ...you instantly become richer ,in all aspects of your life .

Sarge has been quit for 11+ years ... Mrs. Sarge for 8-ish years now. We financed all our climbing gear (approx $6,000) ... and an extra 2 to 4 week trip (Iceland and Wales this year) to exotic locations to climb mountains and glaciers world wide. Hasn't cost us a dime that smoking didn't cost. A much healthier habbit, too ... but quicker death if something goes wrong up there. EZPZ

yes, because tyranny knows no bounds and freedom comes with responsibility. most people won't do heroin just because it's legal and those that do heroin won't stop just because it's illegal. all it does is give those in positions of power a reason invade everyones privacy to make sure we are in compliance.

Smoking in public parks and beaches has been banned for a few years in California already but not because of monkey see, monkey do. It's banned here because of the risks of secondhand smoke and because of the pollution cigarette filters cause by people not throwing their butts away after putting them out. Since filters take a huge number of years to erode the contents that erode faster within them seep into the ground or are ingested by animals, fish etc.

all this will do is create a black market and set a precedence. there is already a movement to ban meat and push everyone to eating bugs. to smoke or not to smoke is an individual choice. where the problem comes in is when govt's attempt to spread the risk of individual choices over the entire population. it gives them the motivation to control certain aspects of your life which leads them to controlling every aspect of your life. they think you're a little to fat, they will cut your credit card off at the grocery store. they think you aren't getting enough sleep, they'll cut the power off to your house at 8 pm. think it can't happen? if we give them the power they will most certainly take it and guaranteed they will abuse it.

I am so conflicted about the government banning the right to buy something. Thinking... "Government" is just a few individuals at the top of the food chain. What if they decide to ban trans fats? High-fructose corn syrup? I've never held that smoking shouldn't be allowed in public parks because children might see smokers and, "monkey see, monkey do." (A push some folks are making in my city.) What about obese people eating doughnuts in a public park? With the worldwide obesity and diabetes "epidemic," should trans fats and high-fructose corn syrup be banned, too? Anytime the government wants to meddle with my rights and force me to do or not do something, I'd kind of like to step back and see what it might try to limit or force next.

Thank god I quit, I couldn’t afford £84 a week (20 a day ) also they banned menthol cigarettes, and that was all I used to smoke. Good thing I guess. What an utter waste of money smoking was….. quitting is like giving yourself the best pay rise ever

I just did some research myself and found this: Cigarette Prices by State 2022 The Price of a Pack The average cost of a pack of cigarettes in the United States is $8.00, with average prices ranging from $6.11 (Missouri) to $11.96 (New York). The median price for a pack of cigarettes is $7.93. With 20 cigarettes per pack, the average cigarette costs between $0.31 and $0.60. Both the median and the average cost of a cigarette in the United States is $0.40. Eleven states, along with the District of Columbia, have an average price above $10 per pack. Twenty-eight states have an average price that falls below the $8 national average. The states with the highest cigarette prices are: New York ($11.96) Rhode Island ($11.71)* Connecticut ($11.60) Massachusetts ($11.11) Minnesota ($10.49) Alaska ($10.46) Hawaii ($10.41) Maryland ($10.26) Illinois ($10.60) Washington ($10.14) *Were the District of Columbia included in this metric, it would have the nation’s second-most expensive pack price at $11.75. The states with the lowest cigarette prices are: Missouri Georgia North Dakota North Carolina Mississippi Idaho South Carolina Nebraska Alabama Wyoming Overall, the average price of cigarettes is on the rise in the United States, with an average increase of $1.50 per pack since 2018. Average Annual Costs According to The American Lung Association, The average daily smoker smokes 15 cigarettes a day. The price of this habit sits at a national average of $6 a day, or $2,190 per year. In New York, the average smoker would spend $8.97 per day, or $3,274.04 every year. In Missouri, the cheapest state for smokers, the average daily smoker would spend $4.58 a day, or $1672.61 per year. Geographical Trends Geographically, high cigarette prices tend to be concentrated in states along the northern coasts, such as New York and Washington D.C. in the Mid-Atlantic region, Rhode Island and Connecticut in the “New England” area, Illinois and Wisconsin along the Great Lakes in the upper Midwest, and Washington, Oregon, and California on the West Coast. The non-contiguous states, Hawaii and Alaska, are also home to some of the nation’s highest cigarette prices. The lowest prices are generally concentrated in the Southern and Great Plains regions, where all states have an average price below the national average. Taxation & Cigarettes Cigarettes are taxed on both the federal and state levels and, in some instances, are subject to local and state sales tax as well. The federal tax rate on cigarettes is $1.01 per pack of 20 cigarettes and has remained steady since 2009. There have, however, been recent calls to increase the federal tax on tobacco products. Each state also imposes a state tax on cigarettes, with an average of $1.91 per pack. Cigarette taxes range from $0.17 per pack in Missouri to $4.35 per pack in New York. Roughly half of states have increased the tax rate rate on cigarettes since 2012, with the greatest increases since 2018 occurring in Oregon, Maryland, and Colorado. Cigarettes may also be taxed locally, at the city and county levels. According to Tobacco Free Kids, Chicago, Illinois has the highest combined state-local tax rate at $7.16, with Evanston, Illinois coming in second at $6.48 per pack. Several states have also implemented minimum pricing laws. In Colorado, for example, the current minimum price per pack of cigarettes is $7, with that floor set to raise to $7.50 by 2024. Proponents of tax increases claim that higher taxes lead to a decrease in smoking rates and increased revenues. According to The American Lung Cancer Association, for every 10 percent increase in the price of cigarettes, consumption drops by four percent among adults and seven percent among youth. Additionally, states rely on the revenues from cigarettes to boost their general funds. According to Statista.com, total revenues from tobacco taxes in 2020 came to 12.35 billion dollars. At the federal level, this money goes to supporting health initiatives like The Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). At the state level, these funds are often used to support health initiatives, education, and smoking cessation programs.

So.... for that 20 pack of Malboro you would be up for £16.60 or US$18.86 or Can$25.88 ...for the 25 pack of B&H .... £30.44 or US$34.58 or Can$47.46. Most of that cost is taxes.... the Aussie government is trying to phase out smoking with a policy called prohibitive pricing so every September and March the tax goes up. It's a 12.5% increase each year.

I was just in Kauai and smokes we $13.50 a pack.

The cost of smoking has risen considerably in many countries, with some exceptions though. I remember I was in Turkey a few years ago it seemed like almost everybody smoked there. No wonder ..... $1.62 for a pack of 20 cigs. Even worse in Ghana ... $0.99/pack of 20 https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/country_price_rankings?itemId=17