The Stoptober 2014 Challenge - How much will you save?

padington

GlynD wrote: »

Absolutely right, but it's not going to kill you. It's the other carcinogens which do that. So using nicotine therapy which satisfies the craving but gets rid of the carcinogens is a good way forward for many people. That includes using an e-cig.

I agree, nicotine vaporisers (and marijuana vaporisers) are clearly more preferable way of sustaining your addiction.

What worries me is people are confusing the issue, it's not smoking that you are addicted to, its nicotine, it's easy to continue your addiction with a vaporiser, that in no way should be considered a celebrated achievement. That's like a heroin addict using a clean needle. It goes without saying it's a better thing to do but it's not overcoming your addiction. Often it's a way of continuing your addiction through the one period of time you could have actually freed yourself from the drug that's had you hooked all these years.

It's just using a new technology to remain addicted to the one drug that's caused all the anxiety, the stressed kids, the being mean to people who didn't deserve it, hampered the relationships at work and at home, every waking hour without a nicotine hit.

geminilady

padington wrote: »

I agree, nicotine vaporisers (and marijuana vaporisers) are clearly more preferable way of sustaining your addiction.

What worries me is people are confusing the issue, it's not smoking that you are addicted to, its nicotine, it's easy to continue your addiction with a vaporiser, that in no way should be considered a celebrated achievement. That's like a heroin addict using a clean needle. It goes without saying it's a better thing to do but it's not overcoming your addiction. Often it's a way of continuing your addiction through the one period of time you could have actually freed yourself from the drug that's had you hooked all these years.

It's just using a new technology to remain addicted to the one drug that's caused all the anxiety, the stressed kids, the being mean to people who didn't deserve it, hampered the relationships at work and at home, every waking hour without a nicotine hit.

I disagree,we know it is the nicotine we are addicted to although lots of other factors surround the addiction,routine,the hand to mouth action,smoking at certain times ect are all things that need to be broken,it is easy to say un think it(your reply to my post) but just how do you do that?I tried all the advise they usually dish out,change the way you do things you connect with smoking- does not work and just makes you more fed up,for example it said if you have coffee and a cig don't have coffee?so not only are you not getting your nicotine fix you get no coffee either!I like coffee! and one of the cigs I most enjoy is after meals so what do I do stop eating?

padington

geminilady wrote: »

I disagree,we know it is the nicotine we are addicted to although lots of other factors surround the addiction,routine,the hand to mouth action,smoking at certain times ect are all things that need to be broken,it is easy to say un think it(your reply to my post) but just how do you do that?I tried all the advise they usually dish out,change the way you do things you connect with smoking- does not work and just makes you more fed up,for example it said if you have coffee and a cig don't have coffee?so not only are you not getting your nicotine fix you get no coffee either!I like coffee! and one of the cigs I most enjoy is after meals so what do I do stop eating?

If you read the book, 'the easy way to give uo smoking by Alan Carr' you wouldn't have written that because the book destroys these arguements. You don't become addicted to playing with your hands, you only are addicted to the most addictive drug wieght for wieght in the world.

You may have triggers, understanding them can be helpful but ultimately you need to just stop feeding your body nicotine and the triggers will float away.

Drugs affect your rationality, they create arguements in your head which will keep the addiction alive. That's how they work, they are insidious but they are also a false illusion. You need to be open to reason which wasn't created by the drug inside you and break the illusion.

Giving up smoking is within the power of anyone, you just need to put the cig or ecig down for a few weeks and those arguements will start to subside. Read the book to speed up your new thoughts though.

Also you say you enjoy cigarettes after a meal. That's the big illusion, they don't give you enjoyment from nowhere, they simply make you feel pain increasingly so after one hour of last taking a hit until you take the next hit, which again sets the pain to kick in after an hour. The feeling you get is a big illusion, it's the reliefe of your kid naper letting you out of your painful chains for a brief spell. Oh boy it feels good but the reality is that's only because the nicoteen had you locked in a stressful box for so long. After dinner is when you usually have had the longest waking period without a hit and because the food maybe cleans the body of nicotine a bit quicker somehow, hence why it feels so good.

The sickest thing of all is you begin to love the very thing that has terrorised and tried to kill you all these years because that's how the illusion works.

Smokers tend to be the most bravest and free spirited people with bodies most adapt at quickly removing toxins, however the nicotine sadly traps these people quicker and for longer than anyone else. Read the book !

Triangle

Day 5 for me

Feels great although I'm actually poorly at the moment - but it feels great to not be feeling rough and still going outside 15 or so times a day and having a cigarette to fulfil a craving but actually made me feel worse!

I also went away for the weekend on day 2 and was drinking - I had planned to give up after the weekend but wanted to face it head on...and I did. Had a few strong cravings but I got through it

merzal

Well done everyone!

Kiwisaver_2

Congratulations everyone that has made it to two weeks. It's not easy but keep on doing what you're doing and another week will be gone before you even know it. :T

Flutterby83

Well, it's now Wednesday, I broke in the most spectacular style at the weekend and have no shame in admitting it because I didn't revert back to smoking! Yes, I ended up as a sobbing mess on the floor and yes I seriously thought about having a fag but I realised it wouldn't have made me feel better, only worse, and I would have beaten myself up even more for it. I used smoking as a way of 'dealing with' the stress of having a disabled child - it was my 5 minutes break from reality to go and have a ciggie on my own with nothing to bother me and it could be used everywhere (at home, when he went into hospital, clinics etc) and I lost that literally overnight. I felt like my comfort blanket had gone and I had no escape without my 'fag breaks', that's what got to me the most only I didn't tell anyone and my partner ended up dragging it out of me because I'd been so different and unhappy. It sounds so stupid now that the evil things meant so much to me and I feel a complete idiot for coming to depend on them so much, but I changed my habits to accommodate it at the beginning of October and since Monday I've felt a lot better about everything because I know I'm doing the right thing, for me and for him. Sorry, mini ramble over!! Hope everyone's having a good day x

Former_MSE_Megan

Flutterby83 wrote: »

Well, it's now Wednesday, I broke in the most spectacular style at the weekend and have no shame in admitting it because I didn't revert back to smoking! Yes, I ended up as a sobbing mess on the floor and yes I seriously thought about having a fag but I realised it wouldn't have made me feel better, only worse, and I would have beaten myself up even more for it. I used smoking as a way of 'dealing with' the stress of having a disabled child - it was my 5 minutes break from reality to go and have a ciggie on my own with nothing to bother me and it could be used everywhere (at home, when he went into hospital, clinics etc) and I lost that literally overnight. I felt like my comfort blanket had gone and I had no escape without my 'fag breaks', that's what got to me the most only I didn't tell anyone and my partner ended up dragging it out of me because I'd been so different and unhappy. It sounds so stupid now that the evil things meant so much to me and I feel a complete idiot for coming to depend on them so much, but I changed my habits to accommodate it at the beginning of October and since Monday I've felt a lot better about everything because I know I'm doing the right thing, for me and for him. Sorry, mini ramble over!! Hope everyone's having a good day x

Well done for admitting to it, I'm sure you'll find something else to fill that void, something that won't hurt your health or your pocket! You're not an idiot for depending on them at all, the companies make sure people depend on cigarettes by making them so addictive! I was thinking we hadn't seen a post on here from you in a while, I like reading your updates, they're always so positive

You're all over that half way point now so the worst is over! Stoptober say that you're five times more likely to quit forever if you complete the Stoptober challenge. If that's not motivation, then look at your savings pot getting bigger and bigger :j

Donnylover

Morning Peeps

Still having weird and wonderful dreams (not nasty mostly really boring! And I mean tediously boring!)

Went out for the day in London yesterday and was glad non-smoking hubby was with me coz I think i might have relapsed otherwise (didn't tell him that!)

Hubby is so immensely proud of me - firstly for sticking to it and secondly (and more importantly to him) I have not been ripping his head off like I have done on previous attempts (which have only lasted a day or two)

Hope everybody else is surviving and could I just ask if a mod could add me to the list of participants so I feel more like one of the gang

youth_leader

Another reminder to me today to keep going and never smoke again.

My ex heavy smoker husband has COPD and has caught a cold and is coughing very badly, he can hardly sleep and is having trouble breathing today.

He is off to see our daughter at uni on the train on saturday and I'm glad my son is going with him, I feel very worried.

Well done to everyone