Quitting smoking..the second time around

[nickos]

Well, here I go again.

I started smoking, part time at first, at the ridiculously young age of twelve. When I was 24, I quit cold turkey; putting on almost 20 lbs in 2-3 months but not smoking again for two and a half years.

Before I started again, I went through a difficult divorce, lost my job (was doing private in-home care and the patient passed away after four years), and totaled my car. I didn't realize I was *deciding* to start smoking again..I thought I could just have one or a few and that would be it.

It's been a little over two years and I've been smoking between half a pack and a pack a day ever since.

Yesterday was to be my first day without a cigarette. I ALMOST made it; a friend came by and I snagged two puffs. I've also chewed 2 pieces of nicorette yesterday and 2 today.

I work as a psych tech in the ED and my coworkers have been awesomely supportive! I told them all I was quitting so that if my own willpower starts to fail me and I'm tempted to sneak a smoke on a break, they will be onto me in a second. They have all been sharing their tips and words of encouragement and scary stories of what happens when you DON'T quit with me for the last few weeks.

I'm feeling better, actually, than I thought I would; better than I did when I first quit almost five years ago. I'm just feeling mentally scattered and can't stop thinking about just ONE more. This is miserable!

Do any of you have any stories or anything for me to read and to keep me occupied through one more hour? I know this second day was the worst one last time...I just gotta make it through! Thanks in advance :)

[Jami RN, BSN, RN]

The one thought that helped me quit smoking, and prevents me from ever picking up another cigarette is this:

The first hour is the hardest. The first day is the hardest. The first week is the hardest. The first month is the hardest. Once you get through that first, you never have to do it again and it only gets easier. If you can go 10 hours without one, you'll never have to do it again if you don't start up or cheat.

When I finally quit successfully, I just went cold turkey. For me, nicotine gum, patches, etc. just let me keep focusing on smoking. The longer you go without, the less you think about it.

I do know that if I smoke one cigarette, I will be smoking a pack a day the next week. Cigarettes are/were incredibly addictive for me. I know I can't have just one ever. I haven't smoked for five years, but sometimes I still want to and I still have (very happy) dreams that I smoke. LOL

Good luck!

[nickos]

Thank you Jami! I keep thinking; "I remember how hard this is..and I don't want to have to do it again and RE-quit because I slip up and smoke again."

I am very close with my mother, and she recently begged me to quit again after finding out that a friend of hers was diagnosed with lung CA metastasized to the brain and is now in hospice. She was in tears; saying "I know that 40 or 50 or 60 or 70 years old might seem far away to you right now, but you might have a husband..children..a job you love...please try to quit before your birthday." My birthday is in November. We live many states apart, and I'm going to wait til I am smoke-free for one week and then I'm excited to call her and tell her I've done it. I know that the happiness in her voice will keep me in line and encourage me to "stay quit".

Thanks so much! :)

[Jami RN, BSN, RN]

Quitting really is the hardest thing I've ever done. I am very addicted to nicotine.

There are a lot of benefits to quitting:

-- Going to see a long movie and not getting restless at the 2 hour mark because I need a cigarette

-- Starting a new job or endeavor and not having to worry about who smokes, where to smoke, how often can I smoke, etc.

-- Having a lot more time to do things at home because I don't have to stop and have a cigarette

-- Not coughing in the mornings when I wake up

-- Not feeling worried/anxious that I may run out of cigarettes, and not having to stop to buy a pack on the way to....

-- Not having to worry about being the only smoker at a social event

Just don't pick up one more cigarette, ever! I know you can do it!

Jami

[Jules A, MSN]

I'd rather smoke than eat! The gum and patch were very helpful to get me through the physical cravings. The best advice I can give to "remain quit" is to prepare yourself ahead of time for the inevitable emergency, trauma, upset etc. that life will throw your way and do not use that as an excuse to start smoking. It will not help one thing and in fact it will add to your problems because then you will have to try and quit again. Hang in there!

[phlox]

I quit smoking Sept.1, 2009 I had my last cigarette that morning right before a mammography and an ultrasound. Thought that would be a good dividing line between the smoking and non-smoking times of my life. I have gone over a week now without one puff.

[egglady, LPN]

I have set my Quit date as Oct 1. I am so excited and afraid- I have told no one!! I am going to surprise them all- only if I can tell them after 1 week, and 1 month and1 year. I have smoked since I was 17- I enjoy it, but I just dont need to do this to my lungs anymore...

[Jami RN, BSN, RN]

Good luck to you! It is the hardest thing I've ever done, but it was well worth it. My life is so much easier and my health is much better since I quit.

I set my quit date a few weeks in advance and weaned myself down over that time period so it wasn't so much of a shock to actually quit.

There are so many benefits to quitting -- you can do it! :heartbeat

[egglady, LPN]

Thanks for the support! I truly am afraid of ending my love affair with cigs, but, also for the first time ever, I am quitting for me and only for me. I have quit so many times before- for everyone else. this time it is for me!! Very scary, yet challenging, and I am one stubborn gal!! I figure if I can survive everything else lately I can do this!

[psychonaut]

First quit was after 10 years of 1ppd. Lasted 4 years.

Second quit was 3/20/09. Still going strong.

First was using nic patches. Helped a great deal, completely off by 6 weeks.

Second was with bupoprion. Intense cravings on day one, less on day two, day three very manageable. Stopped bupropion 1 month after quitting, now at the 6-month point, virtually no cravings (rare occasional urge, easily suppressed). My wife still smokes, so I have ready access along with the the cues (that and I love "Mad Men" on AMC, lot's of smoking on that show).

Supposedly, Chantix works even better. I'm all about better living through chemistry.

I loved smoking, only quit because of long-term health risks and short-term exercise intolerance. Got fat (~20lbs), but I'm working on that.

Good luck to all of you!

[SolaireSolstice, BSN, RN]

Chantix has some rowdy side effects. I took it twice (not that it didn't work great, I just keep falling back into the habit). Really intense, vivid dreams, the kind that make you start questioning whether you are asleep or not. I also had bad nausea at the 2 mg level (pull the car over and puke like you are pregnant nausea).

But it works GREAT for people who can't get through that craving period. It's not just "taking the edge off", there is no edge. Perhaps that is why I backslid twice after being smokefree. Maybe going through that intense recovery period helps people stay off smoking.

I have an appointment with my doctor next month and I am planning on asking her for another prescription of Chantix. Hopefully now that I have learned there can never be "just one" for me without falling back into the habit, it will stick.

[Lacie, BSN, RN]

For me I swear by Chantix!! I didnt get all the side effects other people speak off except for nausea if I didnt eat when I took it. So far 1 year tobacco free since the Chantix. Before that I tried everything and always went back. After about a month on the chantix I couldnt stand the taste or smell of them. I had smoked since I was 16 and am now 52. Patches are what made me sick.