Gonna try again! Tips? Cold Turkey from smoking

[Gracie]

I will run out of cigs Sunday night. Cold turkey Monday morning. Got any tips for me? I know the nicotine will be out of my system within 3 days. The problem is the HABIT of when I get stressed...wanting that quick fix with a cig. So..to NOT do that...anyone here do cold turkey and do you have any tips to share?

I have the patch, but decided not to bother with them. If I'm gonna quit, then I'm gonna quit. No patch.
I also have Wellbutrin, but I don't like the side effects I read about. I don't want something to fuck with my brain when I already have a fucked up brain, lol. So again..I decided cold turkey...again. I usually fail. But mostly I failed because I LIKED smoking. I'm not liking it much any more, plus when we move, I don't want to have to walk off the property to smoke one, plus I don't want to spend the money any more to buy the damn things, plus I'm too frigging old to be puffing and smelling and hating myself cuz I have this nasty ass habit.

Any suggestions and tips will be much appreciated. I know I'm gonna get fat(ter), but what the hell. I already gained 10 lbs since this covid shit and the HEAT here is horrendous so all I can do is hang out inside this tiny apartment and....eat. Or rather snack. A lot. I rarely eat big meals. Its little here, little there, mostly fattening stuff. Sigh. And now..no smokes either. Ack!!!

 

[Michelle420]

Are you quitting because of the expense or because you want to?

 

[Andylusion]

I will run out of cigs Sunday night. Cold turkey Monday morning. Got any tips for me? I know the nicotine will be out of my system within 3 days. The problem is the HABIT of when I get stressed...wanting that quick fix with a cig. So..to NOT do that...anyone here do cold turkey and do you have any tips to share?

I have the patch, but decided not to bother with them. If I'm gonna quit, then I'm gonna quit. No patch.
I also have Wellbutrin, but I don't like the side effects I read about. I don't want something to fuck with my brain when I already have a fucked up brain, lol. So again..I decided cold turkey...again. I usually fail. But mostly I failed because I LIKED smoking. I'm not liking it much any more, plus when we move, I don't want to have to walk off the property to smoke one, plus I don't want to spend the money any more to buy the damn things, plus I'm too frigging old to be puffing and smelling and hating myself cuz I have this nasty ass habit.

Any suggestions and tips will be much appreciated. I know I'm gonna get fat(ter), but what the hell. I already gained 10 lbs since this covid shit and the HEAT here is horrendous so all I can do is hang out inside this tiny apartment and....eat. Or rather snack. A lot. I rarely eat big meals. Its little here, little there, mostly fattening stuff. Sigh. And now..no smokes either. Ack!!!

My mother did. She found it fairly easy to quit after leaving college, when she was no longer around friends that smoked.

My father quit cold, but it was because he became a Christian, and believed he had a moral duty to be wise with money, that didn't involve burning it in his mouth, while destroying his body.

Both of them are now in their late 70s, and are still fit. My father still lifts weights.

The only thing I can tell you about quitting smoking, is the same truth about quitting any habit.

Every single habit of any type, generally speaking you never just 'quit'. Normally for the vast majority of people, you never 'quit' a habit. Instead you replace a habit. Few people, very few, have the ability to just stop doing something, and that's it.

Most you replace one habit with another habit. This is typically why people who quit smoking end up fatter, because they replace smoking with snacking.

So my advice is typically, find something to replace smoking, that isn't eating. Sounds simple, but I know it's really hard.

I read the story decades ago, of an alcoholic, who replaced drinking, with... raising dogs. He started raising pure breds, and selling them. Ended up being fairly successful selling dogs during his spare time... and he stayed sober.

Find something productive to do. I have no idea what that would be, but if you can find something else, some other habit to get into that is productive, that would be the best way to quit smoking.

 

[EvilCat Breath]

Vape. I was a heavy smoker for life. I picked up an ecig one time and never had another cigarette.

 

[Alan Stallion]

If you're serious about quitting, you'll quit immediately and not wait until you run out of cigarettes. That gives some indication you're not serious enough. Throw out those last cigarettes and quit now! Throw them out with disgust and hate! Hate cigarettes, burn that bridge once and for all, don't give yourself any temptation or reason to fail.

 

[Persistence Of Memory]

I will run out of cigs Sunday night. Cold turkey Monday morning. Got any tips for me? I know the nicotine will be out of my system within 3 days. The problem is the HABIT of when I get stressed...wanting that quick fix with a cig. So..to NOT do that...anyone here do cold turkey and do you have any tips to share?

I have the patch, but decided not to bother with them. If I'm gonna quit, then I'm gonna quit. No patch.
I also have Wellbutrin, but I don't like the side effects I read about. I don't want something to fuck with my brain when I already have a fucked up brain, lol. So again..I decided cold turkey...again. I usually fail. But mostly I failed because I LIKED smoking. I'm not liking it much any more, plus when we move, I don't want to have to walk off the property to smoke one, plus I don't want to spend the money any more to buy the damn things, plus I'm too frigging old to be puffing and smelling and hating myself cuz I have this nasty ass habit.

Any suggestions and tips will be much appreciated. I know I'm gonna get fat(ter), but what the hell. I already gained 10 lbs since this covid shit and the HEAT here is horrendous so all I can do is hang out inside this tiny apartment and....eat. Or rather snack. A lot. I rarely eat big meals. Its little here, little there, mostly fattening stuff. Sigh. And now..no smokes either. Ack!!!

My dad had a unique way of quitting, he died. He actually died peacefully minutes after his last puff. He refused to waste that last cig.

That was the tip I got from him and quit.

 

[Persistence Of Memory]

If you're serious about quitting, you'll quit immediately and not wait until you run out of cigarettes. That gives some indication you're not serious enough. Throw out those last cigarettes and quit now! Throw them out with disgust and hate! Hate cigarettes, burn that bridge once and for all, don't give yourself any temptation or reason to fail.

I allowed myself a 2 week quit date and it helped. My last day I had 2 in my mouth, 2 in my ears, and 2 in my nostrils. But that 2 weeks gives me time. Hard to throw it down immediately.

 

[Persistence Of Memory]

Random tip.

Try to lose 20 lbs before you quit. Most will gain weight. Don't try and diet while quitting. Torture. That way you can gain it back without being depressed about gaining it.

 

[TroglocratsRdumb]

I will run out of cigs Sunday night. Cold turkey Monday morning. Got any tips for me? I know the nicotine will be out of my system within 3 days. The problem is the HABIT of when I get stressed...wanting that quick fix with a cig. So..to NOT do that...anyone here do cold turkey and do you have any tips to share?

I have the patch, but decided not to bother with them. If I'm gonna quit, then I'm gonna quit. No patch.
I also have Wellbutrin, but I don't like the side effects I read about. I don't want something to fuck with my brain when I already have a fucked up brain, lol. So again..I decided cold turkey...again. I usually fail. But mostly I failed because I LIKED smoking. I'm not liking it much any more, plus when we move, I don't want to have to walk off the property to smoke one, plus I don't want to spend the money any more to buy the damn things, plus I'm too frigging old to be puffing and smelling and hating myself cuz I have this nasty ass habit.

Any suggestions and tips will be much appreciated. I know I'm gonna get fat(ter), but what the hell. I already gained 10 lbs since this covid shit and the HEAT here is horrendous so all I can do is hang out inside this tiny apartment and....eat. Or rather snack. A lot. I rarely eat big meals. Its little here, little there, mostly fattening stuff. Sigh. And now..no smokes either. Ack!!!

Reduce your daily smokes by one every two days until it is zero.
Use gum to replace the habit.

 

[ABikerSailor]

I quit smoking back in the mid 90's when I became a PRT coordinator (LT said I had to or give up the job). So, with the help of some Nicorette gum, some regular gum, and some Hershey's Kisses (either chocolate or white/dark chocolate mix), I was able to quit smoking, and gave up the Nicorette (but not the Hershey's Kisses) about 2 weeks later.

Chocolate is fairly helpful if you have a craving to smoke a cigarette. Not only does it have various chemicals that calm down your brain, but it also gives you something to think about and do other than smoking. So, my recommendation is gum, and Hershey's Kisses. Worked pretty well for me, and after I had quit altogether, I noticed that I was able to slow down on the chocolate as well.

 

[NewsVine_Mariyam]

I quit smoking back in the mid 90's when I became a PRT coordinator (LT said I had to or give up the job). So, with the help of some Nicorette gum, some regular gum, and some Hershey's Kisses (either chocolate or white/dark chocolate mix), I was able to quit smoking, and gave up the Nicorette (but not the Hershey's Kisses) about 2 weeks later.

Chocolate is fairly helpful if you have a craving to smoke a cigarette. Not only does it have various chemicals that calm down your brain, but it also gives you something to think about and do other than smoking. So, my recommendation is gum, and Hershey's Kisses. Worked pretty well for me, and after I had quit altogether, I noticed that I was able to slow down on the chocolate as well.

The first time I quit, instead of grabbing a cig, I'd substitute a piece of candy instead. Apple flavored Now & Laters.

The second time I quit, decades later, I just stopped, can't explain it. Probably was tired of my money going up in smoke.

 

[ABikerSailor]

Chocolate has certain enzymes and chemicals that react with the brain and bring a sense of calm.

 

[ABikerSailor]

I quit smoking back in the mid 90's when I became a PRT coordinator (LT said I had to or give up the job). So, with the help of some Nicorette gum, some regular gum, and some Hershey's Kisses (either chocolate or white/dark chocolate mix), I was able to quit smoking, and gave up the Nicorette (but not the Hershey's Kisses) about 2 weeks later.

Chocolate is fairly helpful if you have a craving to smoke a cigarette. Not only does it have various chemicals that calm down your brain, but it also gives you something to think about and do other than smoking. So, my recommendation is gum, and Hershey's Kisses. Worked pretty well for me, and after I had quit altogether, I noticed that I was able to slow down on the chocolate as well.

The first time I quit, instead of grabbing a cig, I'd substitute a piece of candy instead. Apple flavored Now & Laters.

The second time I quit, decades later, I just stopped, can't explain it. Probably was tired of my money going up in smoke.

Kinda interesting, because I started smoking again about 3 years after I had quit to be a PRT coordinator. Why? My Grandmother had died, and I had to go back home on emergency leave, which is the reason I picked them back up.

Around 6 years later or so, I got tired of not being able to ride my bicycle as fast as I used to, so I decided to quit again, and just put them down, never to pick them back up again (so far). I guess knowing that I was able to quit the first time gave me the internal fortitude to quit cold turkey.

 

[NewsVine_Mariyam]

I guess knowing that I was able to quit the first time gave me the internal fortitude to quit cold turkey.

That could very well be it

 

[NewsVine_Mariyam]

Chocolate has certain enzymes and chemicals that react with the brain and bring a sense of calm.

No kidding, especially when you eat a whole package of it (Toffifay and Ferrero Rocher)

 

[Gracie]

Are you quitting because of the expense or because you want to?

Re read the second paragraph.

 

[Marion Morrison]

I quit smoking by buying a pack, and immediately taking 2 more each day out of the pack and throwing them away.
When you get down to 4 a day, you can quit..and then 3 days later it's not so bad.

 

[Polishprince]

I quit smoking by buying a pack, and immediately taking 2 more each day out of the pack and throwing them away.
When you get down to 4 a day, you can quit..and then 3 days later it's not so bad.

The problem with this suggestion is how costly cigarettes are nowadays. When I was smoking in the 1990's, a package of Chesterfields was maybe a buck and a half. Nowadays, I noticed the cigarette machines in the casino charges $15 and take a freaking credit card.

 

[Mr Natural]

You have to want to quit. If you enjoy it too much and don't really want to quit, it's not going to happen.

You have to get to the point where you find it not just repulsive, but just a stupid idea and thing to do.

 

[iamwhatiseem]

My last cigarette was when I was in the process of quitting, and it is a process, I hadn't smoked one for 2-3 days and I was desperate. I found myself scrounging under the seat of the car looking for any I could find; and found one. It was all brown and dirty. I lit it..took one puff and it tasted like absolute shit. It was at that moment I realized what was really happening here. I am not this person. This is exactly what people called "nicofiend". I was disgusted with myself and it gave me the boost I needed to finally never smoke again.
That was 31 years ago.
For advice... I chewed gum, ate hard candy and carried a pencil in my hand held like a cigarette. It was tough, but I did it.