JB 883

One does not gain weight when quitting smoking. Something else happens that we fail to remember - As we quit, our sense of smell and taste return. So what happens then is we switch fabric softeners cause we find one we like. This switch causes our jeans to shrink more than normal. So, let us go with that.

Shaming someone about an action or habit does little to nothing to help them stop. Even if it does, the result will also be resentment to the shamer. Shaming may have effect though on children but is still a very bad approach. For anyone over 12, it is just going to cause anger. Sometimes the backlash is really bad. The only thing someone said that really made me want to quit though was someone I know talking about ambien and saying, "I have GOT to have it!" I thought, "Am I also that much a slave to cigarettes? What if I could not have my tobacco and she could not have Ambien? THEN what?" I guess hearing someone else describe their addiction made me take a hard look at mine. With the friend, why doesn't she start an exercise regimen herself? I mean if she could stand to lose a few pounds... But then as soon as she accomplished ONE tiny milestone (like jogging 1/2 a block or losing one pound) she would brag about it the rest of her life. With the old lady in the car, people do tend to get real brave when they are behind the wheel. If she were on foot, she would have not said that or at least been much more polite about things, lest she got jack slapped. TLDR - Constructive criticism must be delivered carefully. Being rude or shaming does not help.

Some people have a harder time quitting than others. Each addict's case is different. What i am wondering then is what factors may have the most effect on a "quit". Here are some variables. 1) Delivery system (patch, smoke, chew, vape...) 2) External stress (dealing with kids, work, being around smokers or not...) 3) When one started (teens or late 20's like I did) 4) Motivation to quit (want to quit while still ahead or just got diagnosed with cancer) 5) method of quitting. (switching products, stepping down, meds, cold turkey.) MY personal variables look like this - 1) I smoked these really weak cigarettes made from pipe tobacco. They just did not have the same effect as real cigarettes. "Rollies" made with a machine 2) I live with a room mate, strictly platonic, we each do our own thing. I am not raising kids and my job is not mentally stressing. More physical than anything. 3) I started at age 27 and smoked 15 years. For 13 years it was actual cigarettes (Eve light 120's) but then for two years, those rollies. (WAY cheaper) 4) My motivation was mainly wanting to quit while my health was still intact PLUS got tired of the stinch and filth. That's it. No cancer, no one harping me. Just decided screw it. 5) I got sick, could not breathe, and for a few days HAD to cut way back, then decided Oct 6 would be it. Been quit since. Honestly, my quit was pretty easy. Few cravings, minor withdraws. I was one of the lucky ones. Some are NOT so lucky I know on quit boards there are a lot of discussions but not a whole lot of mention of how people made it through really bad cravings or managed to keep a quit. No offense here but sitting around "pledging NOPE" is not going to help some of our fellow quitters who are getting their asses beat for hours a day by the cravings. For them, pledging NOPE is like telling three year old it is time for bed. OH dear Bejeezus, if you have ever raised a kid, you KNOW what I mean. So then, what were your variables and MOST important, what could one do who is struggling really bad? Is there any solid advice for that other than sitting around making pledges or "just do not light up"?

Pinky, first of all - have not heard from you in a couple days. Yep, it is me, tired of it. About your fat friend you mentioned - Yeah, when we are in the throws of our nervous system shorting out like an electrical storm, the last thing we need is someone to be smart ass. Especially someone self-righteous like that. She doesn't understand what a REAL "quit" is. Someone who tried tobacco or drugs ONE time and doesn't go back has not "quit". One cannot "quit" until the ball of addiction is rolling. Funny how some smart ass always has something to say about a smoker's habit. But like for you, me, and probably everyone on this board, we know what a "quit" is, how hard it can be. Think of it like this about smoking and tobacco - the cigarettes did this to you. What might help is if you can direct that anger to be pissed off at the cigarettes. it sounds silly but that worked for me. The cancer sticks messed up our nerves. F*** those things. Going back to it would be like going back to some abusive ex lover. I am not exactly sure where you are in your quit program (I do remember your method though) but just try not to have any temptations around the house. I mean like no emergency smokes, get rid of (or at the very least hide) any smoking stuff so the routine is broken. Right now I am at day 40 and in my short quit time, the desire does become less. You also start to think about how much any smoking got in the way of other stuff. Then you also notice you have a little more money that was not there before. We do have to pay some dues in the way of withdraws though. AND, weird temptations come out of nowhere. Since it is on our minds a lot at first, any reference to smoking becomes louder somehow. It is the cigs wanting back into our lungs. And then you say to the crave... Well, pick your favorite and rudest most explicit way to say, "go away". I often "romance" smoking and want one but then I remember all the bad things. And, I got tired of it. I will not pretend to know your lifestyle aside knowing you have a couple little ones. What works for me when life feels empty - I try to find some new hobby. I get burnt out on them fast but even if that is your case as well, it could maybe take your mind off the cancer sticks during the worst of the withdraw days. When life gets boring is when negative or painful thoughts slip in. So drop me a line. Don't be a stranger, I enjoy our chats. I wasn't wanting to be a pest which is why I was quiet but know that my line is open to you anytime.

I just threw a chicken breast into some teriyaki marinade, niked a couple potatos, LOTS of butter, couple pepsis, and shortly after a couple grill cheese. yeah, after quitting smoking, the appetite returns. Well look at you, Mr Fancy pants with your high tech culinary gadgets like that egg cracker. But that is okay, one time i used a pair of channel lock pliers to remove a really tight bottle cap.

First and foremost, no, yesterday was NOT my birthday nor is today... I seldom put my actual birth date. Now then... Yesterday I got an email. yeah, SAME day I signed up for this forum. The email was a "happy birthday" message from some smoking forum I used to belong to. Just went there three years ago seeking advice about rolling my own cigs. I was skimming through it and came across some interesting topics on their "main smoking forum". Things like people asking about lung disease, about getting harassed, how to tell so and so... So it is like I hop on this forum and soon after get a message from the smoking forum, like the habit is trying to recruit me back. Tell me this is not as ironic as a clean-shaven hipster who hates vintage BS and listening to mainstream music on an Android phone. one particularly interesting thing that comes up though is people talking about wanting to quit. I mentioned there are quit smoking forums out there if people needed advice or online community. I did not mention any by name though as mods on most forums tend to get a stick up their butts if other forums are advertised. I find it interesting though that so many smokers WANT to quit. Eventually the habit just gets tiresome. I never thought I would want to quit. I used to make jokes about my habit. "yeah when I am 60 and already dead from lung disease..." or for smoke time - "I am going to go make my lungs a little sexier now with more tar". One time I joked to my sister that if someone has a hole in their throat, they could smoke two cigarettes at once. Yeah it was all a big joke. Then out of nowhere it was like, "I need to quit for real". I guess I just want to live. I am too good to be a smoker. Is it that ALL smokers are well aware that they are killing themselves? Maybe it is not until weird things like rattling breath happen that it becomes a little more real? Maybe the smokers and the quitters alike have or had an image of themselves rotting away in some hospital bed because they smoked too much? What about other images? Maybe some redneck, with a mullet, who you KNOW smokes even in his "classic" Camaro. Or what about that one really sexy man (shudder) who made a bunch of stop-smoking videos? Or like my nasty neighbor who sounds JUST LIKE the lady in the video below. Who wants to be those people? Or better yet, those who got throat cancer and have to use that fake voice thingy that sound like the song "Freak a zoid" by Midnight Star. Would it help smokers if they realized they are BETTER than burning their money, making their clothes and house stink, screwing up their health, risking some weird cancer, etc? I mean my GYOD if someone has ever been in trouble with credit debt, then we know the reality of "buy now pay later". Come time to pay it back, it SUCKS. It is even worse when your credit is maxed out and you cannot afford to make payments. That is about what it is probably like for people with cancer who THEN decide, "maybe I should quit". Well what the hell is the point THEN? Might as well quit when you are thinking about, "What if the anti-smoking people are right?" You have all these young people (the beginner smokers) who think they are hot stuff. Could THEY not be told they are too good, too pretty to smoke? Show them pics of Terri Hall or Debi Austin. You know those two probably didn't cram their FB accounts with selfies. They are both nasty thanks to smoking. Debi could have been beautiful if not for a hole in her throat. OK I need to shut up now. Sometimes i get a weird crave but then start thinking of the pure hatred I have about the fact that I was F'in killing myself for 15 years. About the level of hatred I have for cigarettes. Like some disgusting ex lover one now repulses at the thought. Am I becoming some kind of anti-smoking nazi? Here is Terri, who sounds like my neighbor.

Bev as you know by now, symptoms come and go. Sometimes a minor crave comes and goes all within a couple minutes. Maybe once or twice a day. however, even after a few weeks, sometimes we hit really bad days. Just remember that the longer you go without smoking, the less you will have to deal with all the B.S. that quitting smoking puts us through. Sucks but yeah we gotta pay some dues (fatique, depression, anger, etc) on the way back to good health. We cannot just walk away without getting an ass beating. But is is plenty worth it.

Oh Bejeezus! Men always think their farts smell like something out of a Massengill commercial. Is it weird I can hear sea gulls right now? I think most gas passings are more like Chernobyl after an acid rain fall. I do not know though cause that is one bodily function I just do not do.

I cannot guarantee it will definitely work BUT - even if you cannot just drop it, you won't be in any worse shape then now. The roll-your-own's I smoked for two years were weak as hell anyways so I am wondering if they even HAD nicotine to begin with.

hey, you know how Yoda mixes up words right? If he developed dyslexia, would he then say words in a normal order?

Now THIS is strength. Some folks like me had an easy quit with little temptation and little stressors. However... Working as a bartender and still able to quit. If i had that job, i would have to chew, dip, smoke, use a patch, and have an IV drip of nicotine and THC all at once. People are just disgusting. I think if anyone here is in a position to offer advice on how to keep a quit, it is you, reciprocity, because under the conditions you have to work, Oh my gyod... I could not do it. Could not work it and STILL find the strength to quit. Not sure many could. Plus the places that draw the drinking crowd - sheer assault to the sense of smell. How the hell do you do it? AND here is a joke I am sure you have heard 10,000 times already - Know what the difference between a bartender and a proctologist is? Proctologist only deals with ONE a-hole at a time.

Yeah Joe I have 38 days under my belt Haven;t had an overly strong crave. Seems simple enough - do not light up. I figured like this - If a couple of my family members can quit their jobs, one of my friends can quit crashing her cars, and my neighbors down the street at the crack house can quit getting arrested, than surely i can quit tobacco.

That clown from Poltergeist didn't help me sleep. I guess that was the closest to "horror movie" back then. I guess the REAL first was the 1976 movie "Bugs" but that was just, ummm, whatever. I cannot believe no one has mentioned one of the truest hardcore horror flicks of the 80's - the original Ghostbusters. I was horrified, even as a kid, at just how corny it was. After seeing that stupid marshmallow man walk down the street, I was embarrassed for weeks!

I slept like a rock. I was tired for like a week straight when I first quit. I didn't have any tantrums etc but just constant tired. So I guess that helped.

Every quit is different. Well some might be the same but anyways... check this out. Here is how I managed to quit. First i need to mention that I had an "easy" way out compared to others. I used to smoke about 30 cigarettes a day, the cheapo "roll your own" kind. those things are pretty weak anyways. Like drinking a lukewarm glass of water on a nasty hot summer day when all you REALLY want is a gallon of liquid nitrogen to drink. So... I was sick for the first week of October and could barely breathe. I couldn't smoke much so I thought "Tomorrow (Monday Oct 2nd) I quit!" HA! About four hours into Monday, there I was, lighting up. Basically though just a couple hits to curb the crave. then later when it hit, another few hits. So by the end of Monday i had only put away three cigarettes. THAT is when I knew I had a plan, oh yes... I figured if I could make it through a day on only three (down from about 30) then Friday I will quit quit. I would allow myself three a day on Tuesday, Wed, and Thursday. Friday was THE quit day. Since it would be the weekend, no stress at work. Didn't know how it would play out. Thursday night I took the last hits off the last stub of a cancer stick. Oh boy.... here we go... SO, now I was a "quitter". threw away the ash trays, started laundering everything, cleaning everything I could, cleaned the interior of my car, put away the cigarette machine, removed the "tobacco" section of my spending records, gave away my remaining smokes, told people I was quitting.... 38 days later, not so much as a puff. I "stepped down". people think that is a bad idea but G.D. it worked for me. 30 to 3 to none. Some might say, "You have to just drop it! No excuses! No reasons to light up!" OK so what if "just quit like that" isn't working for someone? I sure as hell did not have the willpower to do that. I believe this - Before you can run you must learn to walk. But before you can walk you must learn to stand. There needs to be a plan surrounding the "quit". How will you try to avoid temptation? Try to clean up any evidence of being a smoker. if you need to decrease before quit because going from a pack a day to NOTHING is too rough, then try to cut back first then drop the habit. though there may never be a "Good" day, try to plan a quit date where there will be the least stress for two or three days (those are the worst). Also, once quit, try not to allow substitutes in like dip, no smoking drugs, patches, gums etc. They may or may not help if you are trying the "decrease" method but the ultimate goal is to be tobacco and nicotine free. THEN you can pick up another bad habit like junk food

Reciprocity - must say, the avatar is rather cute. Reminds me of an avatar i saw on an audiophile forum, this pig was wearing shoes... ANYways... Long before the web, people had this great capability that enabled them to quit. It was called discipline. The "support" they may have had was their doctor telling them, "quit smoking or you will soon die". That is what they told my dad when he was in the hospital with oxygen tubes up his nose. 33 years later, he still hasn't touched one. While it can be fun and supportive to have other quitters to chat and exchange ideas with, to quit smoking is really a one-man game.

So hello and stuff. I quit smoking Oct 6th. There were a few reasons - Money was NOT a reason. You see, i am swimming around in cash and have no clue really how to spend it. OK in reality, it was only about $10 a week cause i rolled my own. Well, a machine crammed the tobacco into a tube, all I had to do was smoke them. Stupid tobacco was so weak though it probably wasn't even doing anything. I went from like 30 to 3 a day and just said, "ehh, might as well drop it this Friday". Plus I figured what if I someday had to quit on rough terms like being in the hospital (for whatever) or flat broke or whatever. So I dropped in here to offer my valuable wisdom. Who knows, i might even read the rules someday.