Let's quit smoking! - (screaming internally)

After two months I hope I'm not in necroposting territory, but for those of you who have had ANY experience in this area, I'd love some input. Has anyone tried group support such as Nicotine Anonymous (AA for smokers)?

The reason I ask is that, as anybody who looks at my post history will see, I've recently quit drinking with the help of AA after YEARS of zero success on my own. I'm wondering if this approach would also help with smoking. I generally smoke four cigarettes a day with my two cups of morning coffee and, insanely, my doctor says that this is not enough smoking to be worried about or to actually receive any help from her because France.

Also, if anybody has tried NicAnon and it really doesn't help with smoking the way it helps with alcohol, that would be nice to know, because I am currently working like a rented mule and it's already tough to fit a daily AA meeting into my schedule.

So I'm kind of on my own, and I do want to quit because (a) I'm terrified of what I've done to my body so far (I smoked a hell of a lot more back when I was drinking), and (b) although my sons turned out pretty straight-edge, I do still have teen daughters at home and I am setting a shitty example and want to change. Because I never want them to be slaves to this stupid and pointless addiction.
 
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I don't know how you guys can't convince yourselves to stop smoking. Just take a plain look at how it's affecting your body: makes you breathe harder, makes you stinky, makes your throat hurt. Once I regularly went to the gym I quit smoking with my buddies because it hampered my gains.

The withdrawals are kind of annoying but you deal with it for a few weeks. The alternative is you continue your habit for decades. 5 minutes of your life expectancy down the drain with each session.
 
While I've not quit smoking, I managed to cut my intake down from a pack a day to half a pack by staying mentally busy. If my mind is focused on something specific, creative, technical or social, I'll forget to smoke for several hours. The moment I take a break or finish whatever was at hand: "Shit, I haven't had a ciggie in hours." And then I smoke like 3-4 in a row.

Being extremely and unironically ADHD absolutely makes smoking worse. I'll smoke a ciggie and immediately forget I did it or how long ago it was and light up another. The process of pulling a ciggie out of the pack, placing it between my lips, flicking the light, the puff of flame, inhale and tapping the ashtray are such perfect things to do with my hands. Even as I sit here typing this I have a lit one in between my left index and middle, half-done, self-rolled, I take a puff and tap it out every couple of sentences. The drag and tap, looking at the rest of my room, especially when writing, also gives a nice, consistent loop to stop and think about my next few lines before continuing. I can do with for several hours and easily get 15-20 pages done at the cost of a give or take 12 ciggies.

Everyone always talks about the nicotine and the social element, but scarcely do people bring up the fidget-satisfying process to do with your hands and the aesthetic high you get from the lighter and standing on a balcony overlooking your fallen home city. The golden excuse to step away and collect your thoughts. Sure, you can do all these things without cigarettes, but you won't have the aesthetics. You won't have the in-built timer. That moment in time isn't the same because you're not actually stepping out to do anything but merely physically step-out.

In my line of work, that social element comes into play perfectly. It makes following someone out a door and hanging around them seem incidental. Lying about having forgotten my lighter sparks small talk. If I had to choose between my tazer and a pack of cigarettes, I'd take the pack.
 
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I want to quit vaping. I havent been vaping for too long but I got some sort of cold/flu thing and it was concentrated in my lungs, seems like. Never had anything like it. I dont know if it was correlated or not and Im 85% over it, seemed like a pretty run of the mill winter bug, just different than Ive experienced. Going to try to convince myself the vape is the reason my chest seemed infected more than anything else this time, even if theres a crazy outbreak of chest colds going around and mightve just been the strain of nasty I got. We will see.
 
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ATI Escapee said:
I want to quit vaping. I havent been vaping for too long but I got some sort of cold/flu thing and it was concentrated in my lungs, seems like. Never had anything like it. I dont know if it was correlated or not and Im 85% over it, seemed like a pretty run of the mill winter bug, just different than Ive experienced. Going to try to convince myself the vape is the reason my chest seemed infected more than anything else this time, even if theres a crazy outbreak of chest colds going around and mightve just been the strain of nasty I got. We will see.
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Look at this way: It's better to need a vape kit than a rape kit.
 
Nique la mere de Macron said:
Also, if anybody has tried NicAnon and it really doesn't help with smoking the way it helps with alcohol, that would be nice to know, because I am currently working like a rented mule and it's already tough to fit a daily AA meeting into my schedule.
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I was around a pack a day smoker (some days more, but some of that was people bumming off me). I was able to somehow bring it down to just nighttime socializing cigarettes, cuz of a job change. During the pandemic my IRL social life kinda stopped. I was taking way too many late night treks to the gas station. So i switched to a vape. It sucked. And i cracked a couple times and bought a pack. But i stuck with the vape and only used it at night. Gradually I smoked less and less,until the point where i lost a vape and thought it isn't worth grabbing another. Found it a year later in the bottom drawer of my desk in absolutely disgusting condition.

So yea. I would say try vapes. If and only if you hate them will they help you. Like if it feels like sucking a tit through a bra. That's how i felt and it weened me off. If you're not ready for the transition maybe switch to a brand you know sucks. And finish your coffee at 3 cigs instead of 4 and work off that. Deny yourself the good aspects of smoking cigarettes.
 
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I just downloaded our health system's app and hopefully today is Day 1. My sleep is shit and it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to quit the ENTIRE "coffee and cigs" thing. Just get rid of them both. The coffee in France sucks anyway.
 
Fun story. I ASKED the doctor for an Rx for the smoking-cessation patch or whatever is the standard nowadays. I was told that because I smoke "only" 5 cigarettes a day, I'm fine and don't need it. Vive la France.
 
Hoof said:
I was around a pack a day smoker (some days more, but some of that was people bumming off me). I was able to somehow bring it down to just nighttime socializing cigarettes, cuz of a job change. During the pandemic my IRL social life kinda stopped. I was taking way too many late night treks to the gas station. So i switched to a vape. It sucked. And i cracked a couple times and bought a pack. But i stuck with the vape and only used it at night. Gradually I smoked less and less,until the point where i lost a vape and thought it isn't worth grabbing another. Found it a year later in the bottom drawer of my desk in absolutely disgusting condition.

So yea. I would say try vapes. If and only if you hate them will they help you. Like if it feels like sucking a tit through a bra. That's how i felt and it weened me off. If you're not ready for the transition maybe switch to a brand you know sucks. And finish your coffee at 3 cigs instead of 4 and work off that. Deny yourself the good aspects of smoking cigarettes.
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This, I used to smoke about half a pack at work everyday which then turned into a full pack that I would also smoke while at home. I do care a lot about cleanliness and the cigarette smell made me feel filthy everyday so I switched to a vape which coincided with me changing jobs to a fully remote one, this was a disaster. I found some configuration of vape and e-liquids that gave me the exact hit to the throat that cigs gave me while being able to smoke inside and not have my house, clothes and body smell like shit. The funny thing is these vapes have a drag counter, one week I decided to track it because I was coughing when doing sports, something that never happened before, only to find out in about 5 days I took about 1200 drags. The solution to this problem had to come quick as I suddenly got very worried about my health when seeing the big number on the screen.

What I found best worked was changing back to the most horrible cigs I could get my hands on and "losing" my vape so I wouldn't even be able to feel temptation. I lasted about 2 packs before I gave up, the lack of close friends that smoke also really helped. Yes, withdrawals are shit and cravings are the worse but I think anyone can get through it with the right mindset.
 
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I quit about 5 years ago. At my peak I was smoking 3 packs a day. That was for less than 6 months. I averaged at about a pack to a pack and a half a day. It was awful quitting. I was crabby as fuck. It took me 3 or 4 different attempts over a year before I was successful.

Patches were helpful for nicotine cravings, but I love the feeling of harsh smoke on my throat (hence the 3 packs a day at one point). Hemp/CBD was really helpful for that specific craving. There are these "hempettes" that look like cigarettes that I ended up using a lot early on.

Another thing that helped me be successful was keeping myself busy. Whenever I'd get bored my cravings got worse. I ended up cleaning or doing art stuff a lot.

After a few months I didn't have that desperate "I need a cigarette now" feeling, but I still missed the taste. I bummed one from my neighbor, I couldn't resist. It was way worse than I remembered. I'm not sure how to describe it, almost like I was like sucking on campfire fumes. It tasted like ashes. I got through less than a quarter before I had to tap out. Honestly it helped me shake that nostalgic feeling that drove me to want to try smoking again. It wouldn't have worked if my sense of taste and smell wasn't as recovered as it was.

Don't feel bad if you have to try several times. It's arguably one of the hardest substances to kick. Unfortunately there's a lot of trial and error. There's not a once size fits all approach. Luckily when I tried that cigarette it made me grossed out instead of hooking me again. I feel fortunate that was able to stick with over the counter patches and gums. Some people might have to see their doctor before they're successful. It's never too late to quit. Many of the negative effects of smoking can be reversed in just a year. Pretty sure things like sense of taste and smell start coming back within weeks/months.
 
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I was never addicted to smoking but picked it up here and there, sorta like how just because someone drinks doesn't mean they are an alcohol. I know I shouldn't smoke at all but shieet, idk. I'm cocky, cancer doesn't run in the family despite my family being generationally ill with bad habits. They all died young due to heart disease. No one lives past 60 usually. But they are all morbidly obese, I am not. I am quite frankly the healthiest (adult) family member as far as I know, at least on my mom's side.

Still, is it me or does smoking make you think it tastes good when it doesn't? What the hell? I tried smoking cigars again, my favorite. I am one of those people who smokes because they like the taste. I have yet to buy the cigars I used to smoke, Criss Cross. But damn. So far the ones I tried are ASS, they taste ass or don't taste much at all.

It reminds me when I first had a cigarette, Mavericks. Used to love them until I stopped smoking because I didn't like not being able to breathe. Awhile later, a coworker of mine introduced me to Criss Cross. I tried tasting Mavericks again only to realize they didn't taste as good as I remember.

I guess God doesn't want me to smoke, man. Unless if I get a pack of Criss Cross again and they end up tasting good. I doubt it. I really wanna relive that feeling, though.
 
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It may sound dumb and completely obvious, but I'll say it anyway. The key is self control. It's not so much the nicotine that's addictive, it's the shit they put in with the nicotine nowadays. Once you educate yourself on how fucked the tobacco industry is, it makes quitting a lot easier. And again, self control.
 
FUCK THIS GAY CHUNGUS HABIT AND ITS WITHDRAWALS


It's been three weeks after two years of half to a pack a day and I genuinely feel like in the last few weeks I have been struck with down syndrome. It got so frustrating I bummed one off a buddy yesterday and the immediate return to normal brain function only made me want to quit more.
I had to quit because I think I am developing an allergy to nicotine because every time I smoked/zynned the last few months my chest hair started getting super itchy, it's bizzarre.
 
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Brain fog was by far my worst symptom. I could barely function and don't know how I would have dealt with anything more than the bare minimum of my responsibilities.

Can't say for sure when normalcy returned but it did eventually. Toughing it out was worth not having to pay someone money just to use my own brain properly.
 
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Okay, day 8 of Chantix and I only smoked twice yesterday, zero so far today. I'm just past the point where I am in "malicious compliance" with my goal. Yesterday I would have said "I don't want to quit, but what I want is immaterial to what is smart." Today I am saying, "Yeah, I do want to quit and I don't want to go through life being a non-smoker griping about his desire to smoke. I don't want to be a dry drunk about tobacco. I want to quit and I can't hedge my bets any more. I want to be able to jog 5 miles as soon as possible."

When I started caring about my credit score, no part of me ever "missed" skipping a student loan payment (since paid off) and paying it in full with the penalty a subsequent month. I decided I wanted a good credit score, researched how to do it and just fucking did it. I now have 802-812, depending on source. If my health were a credit score, it would be marginally above 450 at present (maybe marginally below 500), but I am confident I can get it in the high 600s with a bit of consistency of current habits.

Every day I'm going to TRY to not smoke AT ALL. If I fail a few more times, so what? One day it will no longer be a challenge not to smoke.
 
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Just dropping a little tip that seems to be helping me so far...

I Ozium bombed my car, it has never been so fresh. I changed the cabin air filter too, you have to completely clean out and vacuum your car first. That ozium shit is a little pricey (for what it is) so I don't want to smoke in my car and have to buy another one just to do it again.

Smoking on my commute was a deeply ingrained habit. But I'm also cheap and lazy and don't want to inconvenience myself with another car bomb.
 
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