[The Horrible Esthete]

I'm presently at the 35:00:00 mark of life without cigarettes, and the withdrawal symptoms are quite the force to be reckoned with.
I feel like I've eaten two caps and a stem, if you know what I mean....

I knew it would be a shock to my system when I finally deprived myself of the standard 30-Marlboros-per-day (all "reds", no less), but I am truly amazed by the tenacious grip that nicotine can have on both the mind and body of its willing minions. I feel like a wild animal caged in my own skin.

It would be best to completely remove myself from all social contact for another day or two - some guy here in the office just asked me how the (Xavier) Musketeer basketball team will do this year. I just blurted "They'll struggle." and kept walking.

Maybe I'll fashion a sign that warns passers-by:

!!!!!!!!! PMS !!!!!!!!!
(Pardon My Smokelessness)

[fingernailsonhull]

I'm not a smoker myself but I've heard from people who have quit that it can be extremely intense. You're headed in the right direction!! Keep up the good work!!!

[scottitude]

Damn, 'Esthete, it's gotta be rough, but even attempting to quit is a huge step many of us (myself included) don't have the balls to undertake, especially cold turkey. It's a nasty habit that I often wish I could break but thinking about it creeps me out and makes me fear for my sanity and the safety of my family and co-workers.

Nicotine is said to be a far more dificult addiction to break than heroin, and I've seen some hard-suffering junkies tryin' to kick. Like any addiction, it can be beaten and you're on the right path. Supposedly, after the first five to seven days it gets easier so hang in there at least that long , if you can.

Props for making the effort and seriously man, I wish you success. I'd have to take time off work and be heavily mediacted to even attempt it.

Rock on! :thumb:

Scott

[Tthip]

Maybe this could help. (Well, it couldn't hurt)

Twenty minutes after the last cigarette, blood pressure drops to a level close to that before the last cigarette.
Eight hours after quitting, carbon monoxide levels in the blood drop to normal.
Twenty-four hours later, the chance of heart attack decreases.

After one to nine months, coughing, sinus congestion, fatigue and shortness of breath decrease.
One year later, excess risk of coronary heart disease is half that of a smoker's.

After five years, stroke risk is reduced to that of a nonsmoker.
After 10 years, the lung cancer fatality rate is about half that of a smoker's.
Fifteen years after quitting, the risk of coronary heart disease is the same as that of a nonsmoker's.

[skippy the wonder dog]

I quit cold turkey after smoking a pack a day for 10 years. That was eight years ago.

It gets easier after the first two days. After that, you won't feel any real withdrawal symptoms. After a couple of weeks, you're quit for good. After a couple of months, you won't even think of it anymore.

Motivation is the big thing. If you aren't truly motivated to quit, you won't succeed, patch, no patch, gum, no gum, etc.

Good luck! :thumb:

[jen]

Good luck to you...I have seen many people quit and it was very difficult but the best thing that they could ever do for themselves and those around them :thumb:

Plus, think about what your doing to your supposed to be healthy pink lungs

[jen]

Healthy lung:

[LastStop]

mmmm...I just got a hankerin' for a big, fat, juicy, rare steak... :lol:

[joshwayy]

Great job...keep it up, I have been a closet smoker for almost 12 years (quit for 3 years in there somewhere) and have been good lately...when I get good and drunk I seem to relapse. It is an incredibly hard thing to do, and remember it often takes 2 or 3 attempts before it takes. For me, I have to avoid the situations when I want a smoke...which pretty much meant being awake...so I've been sleeping a lot lately.

[clearlyentranced]

Good for you..I wish I had the balls to try it, but I am too weak of a person, and I'd be a complete a** to every single person I talked to. Can't risk that.

[o78]

You've gone this far, don't turn back! I quit 4 years ago after smoking for 9 years. It was super hard to quit...especially since I did it cold turkey. But that is how I had to do it. I tried numerous other methods but nothing ever worked. I just woke up one day and knew I wanted to *stop*. One of the hardest obstacles for me was being able to go out for drinks with friends and not smoke. I always smoked twice as much when I drank so it was really hard to fight off those cravings. But it does get easier as the days go by, I can honestly say I have reached a point where I no longer crave them - ever. Even when I drink. I find it hard to believe I was ever a smoker in the first place. If you really want to quit - for yourself - then you will be able to it. Just keep yourself really busy!! And as the days get colder you can sit back in a nice warm place and watch as the smokers are stupid enough to stand in -30 just to have that cigarette (which used to be me).

[LastStop]

Good luck to ya dude. Any updates on your progress?

My Mom quit smoking cold turkey after about 35 years of heavy smoking. It was doubly impressive because she has degenerative spinal disease and therefore basically sits around her house in pain every day. She only leaves the house about once or twice a week because of her condition, aside from going for short walks if the weather permits.

Anyways, the point is that she is BORED OFF HER ASS. Just imagine how boring that would be. She's had this for over ten years now, with virtually no hope for it to get any better. In fact, it's almost certainly going to get much worse for her as the years go by. She is on about 10 different kinds of medicine, most of them for pain management. This is a person who had every reason to say "fuck it - why should I bother quitting smoking, it's one of the few things I enjoy doing", and her boredom made it that much more difficult to quit.

Anyways, she's also had two heart attacks in the last 5 years, and even that wasn't enough to make her quit. What finally made her quit despite all of her personal hardship and her 35 years of smoking, was her love for my Dad. He had a really bad case of the flu a couple years ago, and was stuck home from work hacking his lungs out for over a week. One day my Mom was watching my Dad cough like that, and said to herself "How the hell can I smoke in this house when he's coughing like that?". Seeing him like that finally made her realize the serious possibility that HE might some day end up with lung cancer from second-hand smoke, and she quit then and there. This was over two years ago, and she still craves cigarettes every time she sees someone smoke or when she catches a whiff.

My Mom's awesome

[The Horrible Esthete]

Wow....thanks everyone for the well-wishes and encouragement! I'm about 56 hours in and still going strong - I think I can succeed!!

:thumb:

It's hard, though - I liken it to self-induced torture. A group of 7 of us are all trying to quit at once - all are friends. Yesterday I watched one buddy - a grown man - break down into a sobbing mass on my front porch. Needless to say, he's having a 'rough go' of it. It sure can bring you to your knees...

Tips for attempted quitters:

1. Keep a 'fight one urge at a time' attitude.
2. Stay busy.
3. Chug lots o' water.
4. Use the Nicorette gum to fight the more severe cravings.

[Stephen Dame]

Hugh Dillon once told me it was harder to kick than Heroin, so don't let anybody scoff at how far you've come already. It might get easier, it might not, but it'll be so well worth it for so many reasons that I don't need to tell ya... keep up the great work, good luck!

[o78]

Tips for attempted quitters:

1. Keep a 'fight one urge at a time' attitude.
2. Stay busy.
3. Chug lots o' water.
4. Use the Nicorette gum to fight the more severe cravings.

Oh god...If you can do without it - stay away from the Nicorette gum. I chose to live through my cravings rather than chew that crap anymore. If you don't mind the taste of metal along with dizziness, nausea, and light-headedness then this gum is for you! That stuff made me feel 10 times worse than I ever did smoking - so not worth it. *chew - chew - stop* or whatever. Who has the time to sit there and monitor how many times you chew a piece of gum consecutively? Is there anyone who has actually had some success with Nicorette? I know numerous people who have tried it and got the same results I did. Ew. Gross. Yuck.