Quitting is Contagious

[postjack]

I quit two years ago, and you hear this all the time, but its one of the most wonderful things I've ever done.  It was two things that motivated me to quit:

1) The day to day physical and health issues.  In other words, not because I might one day get cancer, emphysema, etc: these were all issues that felt to distant and unreal.  Rather, it was the fact that my chest was burning every night before I went to bed, and that I could never start an exercise program because I couldn't breathe.  These day to day things were what I hated about smoking.

2) The money.  Quitting smoking is like getting a raise.

I got a prescription to Chantix and took a week's vacation off work.  Followed the Chantix instructions, took it for a week while smoking, then quit.  The first 2-3 days just sucked, I sat on the couch watching movies and sweating, but every hour that passed felt like a success.  After that the physical issues eased up.  The Chantix gave me bizarre dreams/nightmares, and after a couple weeks really strong nausea in the afternoons, so I only took it for 4 weeks.  The studies say it makes quitting 30% easier, and I concur with this. 

The really tricky part is staying quit after you get past the 30-60 day mark.  Even if you aren't craving, your brain still has those pleasure pathways wide open, and its so easy to completely forget every reason you quit and just pick up a smoke.  I had major desires to smoke at the 6, 9, and year marks.  It wasn't until about two years (just a couple months ago) that I really felt like I had it beat.

I tried the patch, gum, tablets, all of it, but I think what I needed to do was just get the nicotine out of my body so my brain could start to heal.  The Chantix helped me do that, and keeping a written list of reasons why I quit didn't hurt either.  I journaled leading up to quitting and in my early weeks after quitting, and reading my own words about how shitty I felt during that time helped keep things in perspective.

I know the thought of still wanting a cigarette for two years after you quit isn't appealing, but trust me, its better then the alternative of continuing to smoke and feel sick, and "wanting" is much much better the "craving".  The "wants" and more in the line of "I 'want' ice cream".  :-) Just remember that one of the only things more addictive then nicotine is injected crystal methamphetamine.  Nicotine does not screw around, and it will do anything to get back in your body.

[gah]

wow, postjack, thanks for that post man. seriously, i had three tonight, and everytime all i could think of was those pictures i posted earlier and still, smoked, and thought, man, wtf dude, you know that is what yourlungs look like?! and still had a tough time putting it down....i know this is going to be tough, but that is why i am giving myself a week to try and ween a bit, and prep myself for what i know is to come.

[postjack]

wow, postjack, thanks for that post man. seriously, i had three tonight, and everytime all i could think of was those pictures i posted earlier and still, smoked, and thought, man, wtf dude, you know that is what yourlungs look like?! and still had a tough time putting it down....i know this is going to be tough, but that is why i am giving myself a week to try and ween a bit, and prep myself for what i know is to come.

no problem man, quitting smoking is something I'm really passionate about.  the majority of my friends smoke, and of course I find myself at shows all the time where everybody is smoking, as I'm sure you do.

This thread is a great idea, it will give you something to read when thoughts of picking back up enter your mind.   

[gah]

wow, postjack, thanks for that post man. seriously, i had three tonight, and everytime all i could think of was those pictures i posted earlier and still, smoked, and thought, man, wtf dude, you know that is what yourlungs look like?! and still had a tough time putting it down....i know this is going to be tough, but that is why i am giving myself a week to try and ween a bit, and prep myself for what i know is to come.

no problem man, quitting smoking is something I'm really passionate about.  the majority of my friends smoke, and of course I find myself at shows all the time where everybody is smoking, as I'm sure you do.

This thread is a great idea, it will give you something to read when thoughts of picking back up enter your mind.   

That's what I am hoping. Honestly, I am really hoping some other folks on this thread might want to join me. I really know its going to suck, but this should be a great spot to find some support.

(as a side note: if any of you heard some dude singing BBFCFM in the lines while trying to get into Hampton...umm, yeah, that was me....listening to it right now, that's why i mentioned that)

[Superfreakie]

I quit about two years ago. The first thing, I would advise, is to stop saying how much it is going to suck. This is a mental game, and if you approach it with a defeatist attitude, don`t bother, you`ve lost the race before leaving the gate. Interestingly, my career for fifteen years was coaching elite athletes and I would sneak off guiltily to grab smokes, I was a walking hypocrite. Anyway, I`m thirty four and, two years ago, years of partying and poor diet finally caught up to me. However, I was pretty sure I was a lost cause. I weighed 150 pounds, skinny as a rake, could`nt walk up a flight of stairs without wheezing, my cholesterol was through the roof, weak as shit.

Anyway, I spoke to my athletes` physical trainer and told him my situation. He put me on a program of working out two hours a day, changed all my nutrition and I quit smoking cigarettes. No aids such as gum or a patch, I simply replaced smoking with healthy active alternatives and used up my OCD energy collecting music. The toughest part was going to the gym and looking around at all the ``good looking`` healthy people who had taken care of themselves. And man, I could hardly bench press 100 pounds, I felt really small. But everyday I woke up, went to the gym and would kill myself for two hours, with one day off a week. Well, to make a long story short, in the two years since I began, I have gained about 50 pounds of muscle, can now run or bike for hours, and have an unbelievable girlfriend who was far out of my league years ago. It`s funny, every now and again a new person will sign up at my gym coming from the same place as I. In them, not only am I able to see how far I have come, but I also get to offer encouragement and a helping hand to the ``new guy``. I have to say, it is amazing how the body can heal itself but don`t wait. I saw my doctor recently and he said I quit at the right age for my lungs to heal. He also said I should sign my life insurance as a non-smoker because, from some lung x-rays I had done, you could never tell I was a smoker.   

[gah]

Thanks for the post superfreakie. Definitely encouraging. I especially agree with the part about replacing smoking with a healthy alternative. I used to run a lot more, even did a couple 1/2 marathons (was still a smoker then, just no where near where I am now), and think I am going to start slowly but pick it up again. Maybe sign up for a couple 5k's for over the summer, and throw the VA Beach rock and roll 1/2 out there for the end of summer. Having that kind of a goal and running schedule to try and stick to should definitly help. Last week or so, whenever I've had a craving, I just throw on my ipod and go for a walk till the urge is gone. The tough part is when I'm out drinking. But if I start running in the mornings, that will keep me from going out in the nights.

Sounds like we hit the same point around the same time...the partying has definitely taken it's toll.  I'm 32 and you're exactly 2 years ahead of me on that timeline. That last part about the x-rays really makes me feel good. Very promising. Thanks.

[phil]

i decided to quit two days ago, for no particular reason. i'm only a sophomore in college and have been smoking since junior year of high school but already i'm pretty much tired of smelling like smoke all the time, not to mention my girlfriend has asthma. i've felt pretty good these past two days, i really haven't felt the urge even while standing next to my roommate as he smoked one. i think the biggest motivator was the fact that my parents, who smoke weed, would used to get so disappointed when they'd find packs of cigarettes in my stuff, but if they ever found my weed all they said was "hide your shit better" which was kind of a wake up

[mbw]

soooo.....did anyone else just get an email from gordon about determining a smokers chance of getting lung cancer!?!

[gah]

soooo.....did anyone else just get an email from gordon about determining a smokers chance of getting lung cancer!?!

NO. Can you post it on here? or send a link if there was one. Thanks.

[mbw]

it freaked me out at first
but with a clearer head this morning i see that it was probably just a friend, who wont get off my case, f*ckin with me   :lol:

and heres the link to the article:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/dailydose/04/21/lung.cancer.test/index.html?iref=werecommend

[gah]

Thanks for the info. That is pretty funny that your friend sent it from mikegordon@phish.com! Good for him for using trickery and getting on your case about it.

As a side note, I wasn't planning on quitting altogether until Sunday, but have been weening myself the last couple weeks, but yesterday, didn't have a single one, and only time I even craved was in the evening, but figured I'd made it all day so why screw it up. It felt really good waking up today knowing I resisted, even though it was only one day.

[rowjimmy]

You can do it, dude.

Soon, when the smoking ban goes into effect on Dec. 1 (ryf) in VA, you'll be hanging inside smelling fresh and hitting on the ladies while the smokers are outside freezing their nuts off and bitching about their lingering bronchitis.

[postjack]

You can do it, dude.

Soon, when the smoking ban goes into effect on Dec. 1 (ryf) in VA, you'll be hanging inside smelling fresh and hitting on the ladies while the smokers are outside freezing their nuts off and bitching about their lingering bronchitis.

awesome!  :lol:

just do it man.  if you already made it one day just go from here!  you can totally come into this thread and dog cuss us when/if you get all pissed off.

[GBL]

not sure if they have this where you live, but i recently signed up with quit plan here in minnesota..

basically they 'help' you quit by calling you on the phone and counseling you, sending you FREE products to quit (patches, gum, lozenges) and giving you all the information you need

my quit date is May 12th, im pretty excited..  I would contact your insurance provider to see what options are available to you, or search online because there may be free programs from your state government

[nab]

Late to the thread, but today is day 16 on the wagon for me.  I won't say I've been perfect, I've had 2 cigarettes and about a half a dozen cigars in the interim, but I have been pretty successful so far.  The real struggle has been between me and my wife, who is trying to quit also.  I tend to fair a little better at the willpower exercises than she does.  I was clean and mean for a good week or so before I found out that she was sneaking cigarettes when I wasn't around.  Since my nose started working again, it wasn't too hard to tell. 

I realize that we both have our own separate struggles, and that my quitting is only dependent on me, but I can't help feeling a little let down and frankly jealous that she is trying to step down as opposed to quitting altogether.  In the end, that's what we have to do anyway.


Thanks for reading my quit blog.