Published Nov 20, 2008
life_aknew
143 Posts
i know that there are so many other things that we, as pre nursing students, have to worry about than this subject but i need to know. oh dear-i hope i don't get ripped a new one for this...
i have the unhealthy and unsavory habit of smoking and these past few months i really think that i've started smoking more! i'm trying my very best to stop smoking-really i am. i think i went 3 days once without doing it and then i broke. i have a sort of love/hate relationship with nicotine, and yes i know the affects it can have on one's body, but the more i think about stopping the more i puff away. i hate the smell on my clothes and fingers, i hate the ache in my chest and the craving in my body...
being that i plan on going on to nursing school i really wanted to kick this habit because i know that i will use the stress and anxiety that comes with nsg school to keep smoking. i see nsg students outside during their breaks smoking, so i know i won't be a total outcast but at the same time if i'm to become a nurse i would hate for my habit to look hypocritical-kwim?
i don't know-just wondering if anyone else is concerned about this. i'm figuring if i don't stop now, i won't be stopping for awhile even after nursing school. i want to be a dependable co-worker as well. i've read a few threads on how annoying it can be to others when their peers smoke-not just the blasted smell but the inconvience of breaking every hour to feed the need, you know?
anyway, tell me your thoughts
Smartferret
137 Posts
I am in my last two weeks of my first semester of NS. I quit smoking last July before I started school in August. Used Chantix, worked great. I have found that not having to worry about when and where I can take a smoke break has been one less thing to stress over. As far as quitting, No it is not easy and nothing (even drugs) will make it easy, but it is doable.
mama_d, BSN, RN
1,187 Posts
I regularly take smoke breaks with the respiratory therapists...go figure.
None of my coworkers mind, I limit the amount of breaks that I take and offer to cover their patients so they can go take a walk or visit staff on other floors if they want.
giggy2
75 Posts
I loved being a smoker and I smoked for 25 years. If it wasn't bad for me I'd still be a smoker:banghead:... I've been smoke free for almost two years. One day, it was a Sunday, I sat down with a pack of smokes and a book called The Easy Way to Stop Smoking, by Alan Carr and smoked the whole pack while I read it. I forced myself to read until I finished the book, because you know as well as I do that once you put it down you'll never pick it up again, and at the end of the book I smoked my last cigarette and never touched them again. No weight gain, side effects, nervousness, irritablility, nothing nada zip zero ziltch. It really was easy and I use to smoke a pack a day. The book wasn't a best seller in my eyes, but it certainly got the point across and in my head, I coudn't justify smoking anymore.
According to my Silkquit meter (free tracker): I have not smoked for 1Y, 11M, 2W, and 2D That's 17,945 cigarettes I haven't smoked and $4710.60 I've saved (well should've saved, cause I don't know where it went). I love that meter thing. I can't believe I smoked that much in 1 year and 11 months. WOW!
See if your library stocks the book, or stop in at the book store. It was the best $15.00 I've ever spent!
Good luck! You're gonna be so proud of yourself
thanks so much for your responses and advice. it helps to know that i'm not alone.
i'm very curious about the chantix, as i've tried the patch and the gum very very unsuccessfully. actually i think i'm allergic to the patch, but anyway i'm not going to give up on giving up
perhaps i can throw that tidbit in my new year's resolution bag along with losing 10 more pounds:d