Fellow nutcase needs help......

[Rod Martin]

Back in 79 after smoking 4 packs a day for years, I got out of the service & i though it was time. Went to a hynotist, twice threw my smokes away never looked back. later tried the same person for weight, didnt work at all , still eat, just dont smoke. Good luck on quiting!

[Tom(fishfafun)]

from you dude!

Simply, mind over addiction!

I was in the same place as you quite a few years back, smoking a pack to a pack and a half per day thinking I really need to quit...was working a high stress production management swingshift job and thinking it just wouldn't be possible. I told myself I will quit when I turn thirty (I was 29 then) and had been smoking for about 14 years. Then it struck me, why wait? I had a half pack in my top pocket, a full pack in my jacket and two cartons in the freezer at home. I just refused to light up, figured if I could make it for the rest of the shift I could make it for the rest of the night. If I could make it for the night I could make it through the next day, and so on. Hour by hour. That was tough, but it gets nothing but worse.

Like you, everything I did in my day revolved around smoking, way too much time on my hands and nothing to do with my hands. I felt like s*** all day long for quite awhile. Believe it! I even had dreams where I was smoking and had never had a dream like that while I was smoking, that's how strong the habit is. Hell, 23 years later and I still have a dream once in a while where I'm smoking (I call it a nightmare,har!)

How did I do it?

Find ways to keep busy, and don't let up. There's a physical addiction for sure but a lot of it is mental and lifestyle. You gotta change the way you think and live enough to kick the addiction.

I REFUSED to let "it" beat me! Ain't no way I'm going to surrender to those little controlling suckers. Simple "mind over addiction" mentality. I JUST REFUSED TO GIVE IN! That's the only way for it to work (at least where you're not trading one addiction for another). Bottom line, it has to come from inside of you.

This is for sure though: You will NEVER do anything tougher in your life! I know how hard it is, and I can appreciate the fact that many try different things, some succeed and others fail. Easy habit to start but one nasty so and so to get rid of.

If your still not smoking when you read this, then you're that much closer to feeling better. It'll take some time to get the worst of it out your system, but eventually you loose "most" of the crave. I think you never totally lose it, you just remember how HARD it was to quit and decide to never be "there" again.

I wish I could be more help but you asked for "any" help and this is all I got for you. Reading this won't make you feel better but it may make you decide to not let it beat you!

Good luck...

Tom

[aNNieNsaLTIE]

Well Nutcase,

i use to smoke for about 13 years.

first it was cool, then it was stress,and afterwards it was due to "wanting to go fishing but not sleeping the day before". making those long drives, trying to figure out why i can't get a bite, or whatever.

i would suggest you sleep more, rest, slow you life down a little. pack a better lunch for those fishing trips ( more sandwiches, gatorade, redbulls, chips, whatever. even some kvd cookies j/k), get the picture.

this all worked for me. no all nighter no more, healthier lunches, more coffee. i strongly beleive that ciggerattes fullfill some inbalance.

o yeah each pack of ciggerattes you do not buy get a pack of senkos!

good luck, saLTIE-

[gabuelhaj]

goto Costco and get a couple of boxes of that nicotine gum. Get the EXTRA STRENGTH ones! And just chew the chit out of it. Don't read those instructions, I chewed several pieces at a time! And, I also mixed in real chewing gum in between.

After awhile, your jaw will be too sore to even thinking about taking a drag. It's that nicotine monkey that you have on your back and you can do it!

Good luck!

[Calistar]

CJ,
First off, congrats on attempting to improve the quality of your life...and longevity. Although I was fortunate enough to never start smoking, my wife smoked for the first 18 years of our marriage. I hated it and finally I was able to help her kick the habit. She relied mainly on the patch and lots of support from me. As the other posters said (and you already know) its not easy to quit.

I would recommend that you contact Nicotine Anonymous. The folks there deal with this situation 24/7. They will be able to give you advice, support, and direction.

the website address is: http://nica-norcal.org/

Good Luck, my friend.

[Ken C.]

CJ, Glad you have made the tough decision. I quit cold turkey maybe 20 years ago or so. I was at the point where I "had" to smoke, but in the hot summer months it would give me a headache. I had to smoke therefore I had to tolerate headaches! My thing was I finally looked at that little "sh*t stick" and asked myself if I was going to let some little peice of crap control and rule my life as it had been. My answer was NO! I was better than that and stronger. I just knew it. But when the 'sticks' disagreed with my decision, I made a committment to myself that if I ever smoked one I would smoke an entire pack in an effort to make my body reject the craving. I did it once. Got sick to my stomach after about 6 or 7 cigs in a row. Not just the usual "puff", but taking a full deep down hit off of those things. Got the spins, the heaves, the headache and overall sh*ty feeling that lasted for several hours. For me that was it.

I sincerely hope you can do it. As others have said it has to come from you. Tell yourself that you are better and stronger than those things and that you will no longer allow them to control your life. I do know that if you can put off that first cig in the morning you are well on your way! Try staying away from doing the things that you always had a smoke going when you did them. That might be tough, but think of it a a temporary inconvenience.

You have my support and my prayers for the betterment of your life and your health. Good Luck!

[miklanderson]

I quit cold turkey in January this year. I went through many of the the same things you're describing. It isnt easy but it is doable. Keep yourself busy and try to keep your mind on other things. I used the patch for the first week to take the edge off of the nicotine cravings. It didnt help much but every little bit counts. After the first week or 2 it gets a lot easier. The cravings come fewer and farther between. If at all possible, try to distance yourself from people taht do smoke until it gets easier.

BTW...No need to give up fishing. Just make sure you dont have any smokes on the boat and you'll be fine.

If you need more help or advice, feel free to send me a PM.

[rexford]

CJ,

That is awesome! I quit 2 years ago myself. You will feel better
every day. The first 3 days are the worst but then you get some
momentum and every day gets better. It takes around 2 weeks
to get over the physical withdrawls. I too was real cranky. It was
terrible. However it goes away and you know what is causing
your moods and it is that little death nail. Think how good your
doing. 4 days you can't stop now. I bet you already notice your
morning cough is going away. If I could offer any advice to help
with the withdrawls it would be to exercise your butt off. I hiked
or ran to where I could go no further. It gave me positive reinforcement
and exahusted all my nervous energy.

You still have some work ahead of you but the hard part is history.
Keep it up!

Mike

[Bill K]

Hey Guy, it is not easy and it will take time, but you can do it. Just stay very positive and stubborn. I went cold turkey back in 1980, no patch's or such and just stuck with it. Every day gets easier, but it will be hard some days just stick with it. In the long run you will find life much better and it sure is better for your health. Bill K

[Riplip]

Hey Bones...Hang in there buddy! Do whatever it takes to get through the first two or three weeks, then things will lighten up. Call me on the cell before you light up so I can talk you out of it! I work in Angiography...get to deal with the end results of smoking on a daliy basis. Any time you need momentum, come see me at work It ain't pretty! Hard to run the trollin' motor with no legs...People tend to think only of lung cancer, not vascular disease. Anyway, got to have a "smokeless" Snagproof partner, RIGHT! Best of luck man! Hang in there, we are all with you!

[lippy]

SUPPORT SUPPORT SUPPORT SUPPORT then sunflower seeds sunflower seeds sunflower seeds.

I dont smoke but i chew my wife used to smoke andkicked the habit 4 years ago and i own stock in them there seed companys lol.

My best advise for you is alot of support from family and friends and dont give up on fishing and dont give in on the burdon of smoking. BEST OF LUCK AND KEEP GOING

[Hardshell]

I quit a four pack a day, 25 year habit, Thanksgiving Day 1988. I also had a can-a-day Copenhagen habit that I finally stopped the following Thanksgiving. The cigarette habit was tough and I was effected with withdrawal symptoms for at least a month. The Cope habit was the real hell for me, I loved that stuff, even fell asleep with it in mouth! To this day if I have someone in the back of my boat that is "USING" and I get a wiff my mouth waters! I had quit smoking several times prior to my sucessfull attempt and failed. When I finally did quit I told myself, UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES CAN I EVER (and I mean EVER) HAVE ANOTHER CIGARETTE. Once you come to that point of mental toughness it becomes easier and easier. However, if you are ever tempted to have just one drag think back to what you are going through right now and this experience should help you with that.

Good Luck
Hardshell-Jailer

P.S. My wife of 40 years still has the addiction and I have done my best to get her to stop as she's been at it for at least 42 years! Tough, tough, tough!

[FATGUY]

cj... i never smoked but watched my wife go through this and you are right she was a raging maniac for a few days . its hard but try to remember whats causing this before jumping on wife or family. i don't know if its available to you but my wife went through a program at kaiser. and the one thing i remember them telling her was that it is easier to kick cocaine or herion than cigarettes.. but they showed her what happens to your body when you light up .. the body says oh oh send all help to cigarettes,,, the hell with the brain heart and circulation.. thats a really powerful addition but she j,ust laid them done one day and 20 years later still doen't smoke. its the only way that works .. good luck and have faith she tells me that alltho it never completely goes away that it gets easier and easier as time goes by ..bob g

[Hipster]

Bones,

I quit cold turkey on feb 11th of this year, had no choice my blood pressure was 194/149 and the doc said if I continued on at this pace it would be zippo asta real soon.

The ibbie jibbies can be brutal,, first beer, first stop of the day at the lake etc. etc. etc.

Just think of how many more Fish there are left to catch and it will help!!!!!!

I smoked for 30 years, I am 43 and started when I was 13. The one thing I do that is cheating is I put a Black and mild / mild cigar in my mouth if it gets real bad, I do not smoke them, I will chew on one of these filtered cigar tips to help the crave. I have not lit up at all and am dang PROUD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Ken C.]

Hipster - I'll bet those fried turkeys are tastin' a whole lot better now that you quit, huh?

[Riplip]

When you kick it I need you to inspire my team partner to quit the chew habit. He has promised to quit when we win an event, but the only effect this has produced is now I outfish him like a maniac Hah!

[MIKE TREMONT]

Well here's where a code name on this web page might come in a little handy, but ...
I'll keep it real simple, I gave up all the recreational mind altering substanses and the booze. That was tough and I needed a lot of support.
That was nothing compared to when I quit smoking. That was by far the toughest thing I have givin up. I broke two windows slamming my car door.
Mind of matter? Yes and no, but not for me.
If you drink coffee, cut it down to 1 cup, caffine won't help.
It's a physical addiction. Your body is going to want the nicotine. Just know deep in your soul that the cravings will pass and get less intense with each passing day after time. Focus on the reasons you are stopping, and don't let your cravings twist it around so that you can justify a smoke. There is NO REASON for a smoke.
If you believe in prayer do lots of it.
Pick and choose from all these posts and you should have enough ammo to beat this thing. Good Luck and easy on the car doors.

[Rob D]

Bass Bones, I quit a 2 pack a day habit about 13 years ago, just quit cold turkey. What helped me was I started going to the gym at the same time, helped burn some of the nervous energy plus improving your helthy feeling. I still see someone smoking once in a while over coffee or in the morning at a tournament and remember how great it tasted, but the craving isn't there anymore. The first couple of weeks is the toughest, if you don't give in after that it just gets easier and easier. Good luck!

Rob

[rexford]

Look at all these ex smokers. I have yet to make
my 2 year anniversary and still have nightmares
that I will fail. Good to see all these folks in addition
to the long time success. To this day I still have the
urge on long road trips. I am sure we all have that
certain time of day or activity that brings it on. Now
days a bag of pretzils and I can shrug it off pretty
easy but there was a time it was tough.

CJ buy yourself something every day with the money
you save until you feel better

[basstamer]

I too chewed Copenhagen for 20+ years and like bassbones says I associated EVERYTHING with chewing! I drove truck at the time and when I stopped I could barely function-that was the way I did everything diesel fuel,copenhagen and hank jr-it was hard to change but it can be done. I actually quit after my wife asked me to for years-our kids were getting to those years where they were realizing things and noticed dad was doing something nobody else was doing-my son was about 3 and we were at a bbq with the WHOLE family and he bent over and spit right after I did-went over like a fart in church. Next my wife asked if I enjoyed kissing her and of course so I started undressing cuz I thought she was sending an invite-I said hell yeah and she said I had bettered savor the last one she gave me cuz till I quit chewing that was the last one I was getting! So yeah I had shall we say "inspiration" to quit and my wife was a trooper she stood there with my s####y moods and everything else but I did it! I stopped cold turkey and felt better within days,just whatever you do dont fall back into it! I did one Thanksgiving my brother was there and we were Pheasant hunting and like Steve said I got a whiff of Copenhagen so I bummed a chew-never been sicker in my life! Anyways long story and to those that have never had the addiction/crave/etc it probably means nothing! Congrats-you can do it and we're all here for ya!
Scott

[Mike]

I tried to stop masterbaiting once Couln't do it! You are stronger than me! Keep it up, It is such a nasty habit.

Good Luck, Mike

[Morgan]

I smoked for 35 years. I tried hypnosis and that didn't work, then two years later I used a combination of Wellbutin and the patch, and used both for more than the recommended time. It worked for me. That was in 2000.

I now buy the giant pretzels bags of mini pretzels from Costco, break them out into gallon size zip lock bags, and keep a bag where ever I go. I just take small bites when I drive, sit at my computer, any place that I get a craving.

It was worth it. Ya, still get cravings, but they don't last long.

You started, that's the best part, It will get better, I promise.

Morgan

[Farres]

Smoked a pack plus a day for 22 years, and I quit Nov. 25, 2005. It will be six months tomorrow. My wife bought me a new bass boat for a reward.

I'll be honest, I still get cravings today. But, they pass quickly and they happen less and less.

When I decided to quit, I realized that there were certain times each day that equated with smoking. For the first week or so, I avoided those times: morning coffee with buddies, mid-morning smoke break with co-workers, sit in my truck at lunch listening to the radio, etc. All of those ment cigarettes, so I stopped doing them.

If you have gone two days, go one more and your physical addiction will be over. After that, it's all mental.

Since you've made it this far, don't go get the patch or gum--both of those will reintroduce nicotine to your system. If you do, it's okay, but you'll have to start all over at some time and go 36 hours without nicotine to break the physical addiction. You're almost there! Go to bed tonight, sleep, get up and you've done it!

Good luck!

[survivor]

Suck it in and you'll be heka way better off. Here's how I quit after over 30 years of smoking from 1 pack of Marboros to 3 packs a day.
I GOT CANCER TWICE. ONCE IN MY SALIVA GLANDS, AND ONCE IN MY THROAT AREA.
The doctors told my wife to get our stuff in order because I wasn't going to make it!!! Someway the Good Lord saved my butt, still don't know why, maybe just to tell you my experiences. That's why there's Survivor in my name. I'm 63 now and everyday is a gift,I feel from not smoking, just my 2 cents. So please stop, it's gets easier day by day!
Paul aka Survivor

[Bill kizer]

I quit in 89 cold turkey after a pack and a half for over 20 years. For me it was easy since I woke up in a non-smoking ICU hospital bed. I admit the morphine helped with the cravings.
The tough times after I stopped was at three, six months and a year.
I still dream about smoking at times, but as the years progress they aren't as bad.
After my scare I wanted to stop which really helped me quit for good.
Good luck,
Bill