The Giving Up Smoking Thread!! Part 2

louserendipity

hi everyone

i have also stopped the champix. on days 13 and 14 i only took one and today which is day 15 i forgot to take it so i have stopped now
i wasn't ill on it but my emotions were all over the place and i almost cancelled my wedding for no real reason !

the way i see it is that i don't smoke now end of story ! hoping that will get me through now as i have no intention of taking any more of them

need to work on the weight now but am saving the £25 a week that i used to set fire to as i'd love to take my 5 kids on a plane before my eldest leaves school next summer

all the best to you all,
lou

Sue-UU

Congratulations themammy 21 weeks is a fantastic achievement!!!!:T Well done on starting to walk 25 miles a week to get rid of the weight, make it as brisk as you can and you'll lose it faster, moving your arms in the same way as you would if you were running at the same time raises the heart rate and you lose it even faster!!!

Well done on that brilliant new life and what a great saving - so far!!!:j

Hi barrys-lass, good to see you here attempting to quit! As soon as you can get off cigs the better it will be for you, same with the patches. The sooner you get nicotine-free the better you'll feel! If your OH really sees you're serious and can do it you may just entice him to quit too which will be wonderful for you both, health wise and financial!

Hi emma_jane! It really sounds as though you're doing much better the 2nd time around, well done! I'm pleased you've worked the patches so you get a good night's sleep. We'll all quite understand about you not wishing to come to the board to talk about it, whatever's best for you is best to do.

All the very best with quitting totally, losing weight too. When you've quit it would be lovely to hear.

It sounds as though you did the right thing in stopping the champix HHH, far better to take note of what your body's telling you. The fact that you still feel rather low and strange could be due to the lack of nicotine or could be that you still having the champix in your system, drink plenty of water to help wash it through and try to look ahead to how good you'll be feeling at quitting without using anything! A brisk walk each day will help you start to feel happier as it releases the endorphins that 'lift us', do try to go each day.

All the very best and keep strong!

Hi lou, far better to stop taking it if it's messing with your emotions so much. You sound very, very positive now, so that along with the knowledge of your savings - and better health - are possibly all you'll need from here on! I do hope you'll soon be feeling much better and that the wedding will be back on!

Keep very strong everyone,you're all doing wonderfully and CAN win through!

Sue

Aeshna

Hi all, I'm still here!

I've been smober (I love that word!) for 6 days, 11 hours now! So I'm sincerely hoping that it starts to get easier soon, I am really feeling the strain! Still thinking about smoking a good part of the day, and still having those just-one thoughts, but I'm getting there (I hope!) I have to admit though, in restropect, that this week seems to have flown by, it's amazing to think that I've not smoked a cigarette in almost a week! :j

I have been a bit lax with the OJ and water, so I'm making myself drink more. I'll tell you though, as a real coffee-a-holic (I don't count how many a day, but it has to be way more than is sensible) I have barely had more than 3 cups of coffee - in fact, I'm regularly making coffee out of habit, then finding it next to me an hour later, stone cold and forgotten! Same in the evening when I usually switch my caffeine intake to diet pepsi! In fact, I'm not sure when I last had a pepsi. Wow, lol! I'm surprised I haven't fallen apart with the sudden denial of nicotine and caffeine combined! :rotfl:

Anyhow, must dash, those scarves won't knit themselves you know

Keep up the good work everyone!!

Aeshna x

Naomim

Lou & HHH, I've stopped the champix too. Not because they were sending me loopy but I just kept forgetting to take them Good job I'm not on the pill :rolleyes::rotfl:

I took them for about 3 weeks so the first 14 days I was smoking then carried on with the tablets for a week without smoking and have now done two more weeks of being smober (Love that word too Aeshna ). To be honest, I can't remember who said it earlier on this thread but the champix gives you a way to access your willpower, kickstart it. That's how I feel. I've had the odd craving but not enough to make me want a cigarette.

I was really pleased with myself yesterday, as I had just dropped DS off at his Nannys and was on my way to work when I saw DH's uncle slipping and sliding to walk to the train station so I stopped and offered him a lift. It felt SO good not to be embarrassed by the smelly car :j I can't say I ever had the ashtray thing as we didn't smoke indoors.

According to my silkquit meter, I havesn't spent £90 so far and although I don't have the money in my purse, my bank balance has definitely improved. My remaining direct debits can come out and not take me overdrawn :T

Aeshna, what colours are you knitting? My stop smoking buddy has taken up crocheting so maybe I could co-ordinate you guys?

Naomi x

Doomcow

man i remember quitting smoking, everyone was giving me whoops and cheers and crap.

i found the best way to quit, was to feel guilty about it, and do it for myself - not the money, not anything else, just because *i* wanted to. it is, after all, a very peronal thing.

if i have some advice its

• to start by not smoking indoors for a while
• dont count how much money you have saved also - this is a false economy and if you do smoke, then you find the money for it regardless. quitting is 100% about the health benefits and 0% a money issue. if it is about the money, when you come back into money or have some saved you gain comfort and ease and will go back to smoking which is what you do not want
• one of the best things i found to do is not count the hours since your last smoke, but simply keep in mind the last time you had one - savour it, but dont idolise it - view it as an image of your past and a new beginning (on a cold windy night with noone else about)
• then do some brain techniques (what i mean is start to believe in yourself, tell yourself i AM right and i WILL do x y z (like the dishes or take the dog for a walk) - and then actually do it, reaffirming your position as "boss" in the relationship of you and yourself.

and the biggie:

• break "the pattern"

I found that i used to always light up when i went down a certain street, or did a certain thing (like after a call on my mobile).

By breaking the pattern, i mean when you do these acts and dont have a smoke, dont praise yourself for being successful in not smoking, but simply go about your normal day as is. having done this and believing in yourself and that this IS THE RIGHT WAY to do things, you build willpower and are more likely in success.

IE, dont celebrate your non-smoking self, treat it as that is the norm and this is the way it will be.

the only you who will give up smoking is you.

This drug-free way to quit smoking was brought to you by Doomcow.

(hope it was of help, PM me if you wish)

Sue-UU

Aeshna a week (which it is NOW) is your first real goal and you should be feeling really chuffed at having got there all by yourself!!! I'm pleased to hear you're pushing yourself to drink more water and OJ. Funny you say about the coffee as when I quit it put me right off coffee and I'm sure that the lack of nicotine and caffeine was the result of me being so less stressed.

Instead of having so many times of "thinking about smoking a good part of the day" try and focus on thoughts of how great you've done on having NOT smoked for a week instead and how you look forward to achieving the next goal. If that doesn't work so well, get a beautiful memory (holiday etc) out and focus hard on all the best details you can recall. You're doing marvellously Aeshna, praise yourself and look ahead!

Well done on that £90 saved Naomi!!! The pride you felt in not having a stinking ashtray when giving your OH's uncle a lift is one of the bonuses that stays in our minds long after the event and pushes us ahead with feeling good about ourselves. You really are doing yourself proud now Naomi, keep it in mind as you take great breaths of that lovely fresh air into your lungs!

Some good advice there Doomcow, especially with breaking "the pattern", that's one we really try hard with, it succeeds too! How long ago did you quit?

Keep it up everyone, keep bearing in mind the new start to life you're now into!

Sue

Doomcow

Sue-UU thanks. i quit about 15months ago. had my last smoke at 9:47pm on 11th November at the back door of my dad's house, and i havent touched one since.

ok yeah i still want one, its hard when you are getting stressed with work, or when you go back to somewhere you havent been for a while and last time you were there you had a smoke.

but its the norm to not smoke now, which is how it will be when you will quit

Naomim

Doomcow wrote: »

• dont count how much money you have saved also - this is a false economy and if you do smoke, then you find the money for it regardless. quitting is 100% about the health benefits and 0% a money issue. if it is about the money, when you come back into money or have some saved you gain comfort and ease and will go back to smoking which is what you do not want

Hi Doomcow,

I do agree with the above partially but for me it IS also a money issue. That's why my sig says how much I haven't spent, not what I have saved. I know I didn't have the money but would find it from somewhere.. that's what overdrafts and debit cards are for right?;)

I need to clear my credit cards, I want to go on holiday, I need a new chest of drawers in my bedroom.. none of these things are possible without changing my life and smoking was a no brainer. How could I bang on at my DH about doing the right thing without showing I was doing it too? :rolleyes:

I think you have done amazingly well and the tips you have given here are brill.

Naomi x

maccababe

Naomim, many thanks for directing me to this thread. I have tried giving up smoking for years, I have tried most therapies, NRT, Zyban, cold turkey, hypnotherapy, you name it i have tried it. Am now thinking Champix but knowing myself its less the therapy and more my mind. I have a very strong emotional attachment to smoking, its one of my only vices that i have left post children and its like if i give up smoking im giving up the last remnants of my personality, not sure if that makes sense to anybody but I know what I mean. Anyways, along with all the health benefits, financial incentives and less hastle from the kids what do I have to lose? It's more what there is to gain. So, hopefully, along with the wonderful support there is from this thread I'm sure that I stand a good chance this time. I'm aiming for monday as my stop date to coincide with my weekly spending challenge.
You are all doing so wonderfully well and you should all be very proud of yourselves.

Naomim

Hi Maccababe,

So pleased you popped along to see us here. :j

I do understand where you are coming from. I have smoked for 20 years and it's as much a mental attachment as it is physical. I spent the majority of last year attempting to stop and when I didn't feeling like a complete failure:mad: For me Champix really felt like last chance saloon. It gave me a way into my willpower but not everything suits everyone. Have you tried the Allen Carr "Easyway" method at all? It didn't work for me but I have a close friend and it's been really successful for her.

Anyway I am rambling now

Keep posting

Naomi x