Ya know - After 3+ decades of smoking

[The Polack MSgt]

Camel no filters at a pack a day rate, I quit.

With Chantix and a pissed off wife's help, I managed to stop.

On Ground Hog's day no less - Because I'd tried to quit so often before that I had to do the "It's Groundhog Day" joke.

But right this minute I'm craving a damn butt so bad t ain't even funny... Thank dog the smoke pit is a quarter mile from here...

[Fresh_Start]

1. congratulations.. That is a huge accomplishment. nt

nt

[TreasonousBastard]

2. 40 years of three packs a day and it wasn't easy...

10 years ago I quit and I still feel the occasional urge to light one up.

Good on ya for quitting-- it never goes away completely, but it does get easier. Really, it does.

[JayhawkSD]

40. Well, for some it does go away completely.

I quit smoking in 1984, after three decades of four packs per day of Pall Mall unfiltered. I cannot recall the last time I had the slightest desire to smoke anything, or an even remotely wistful thought about the habit. It's been years. Yes, it did take quite a long time, but I can assure you, the urge to smoke is utterly and completely gone.

[Aristus]

3. I'm still scratching my head over how people start in the first place.

It looks bad, smells bad, tastes bad, it's expensive, and it killed such legendary bad-asses as Ulysses S. Grant, Yul Brynner, and the Marlboro Men. Men, plural. All three of the Marlboro Men died of smoking-related diseases. They didn't look so macho laying in those hospital beds.

I'm glad you quit. Stay strong. Nicotine ain't got nothing on you...

[Foolacious]

13. I always wondered why cigarettes are seen as "macho"...

... given that they are rather dainty.

BTW, American and Canadian cigarette manufacturers load their products with lots of additional chemicals meant to enhance their addiction power. I don't know if that's the case elsewhere.

[usaf-vet]

15. Here is how thousand of military age men (and maybe) women started.

October 1965. Boot camp. Texas. Drill instructor on the first morning standing in front of what was to be home for 8 weeks.

Drill instructor ok here is how it works. "Twice a day those that smoke get a 15 min smoke break outside in designated area.
the rest stay in the barracks polish boot, clean, straighten lockers, read training manuals... STAY BUSY and AWAKE!"

Drill instructor "OK HOW MANY OF YOU SMOKE? TAKE ONE STEP FOWARD! LAST CHANCE ANYONE ELSE?" I became a first time smoker on that day in that very minute.

I then smoke for 8 years and stopped the day my son was born. Cold turkey. 45 years as of last month.

I know my two brother-in-laws have similar stories of when and how they started.

[Aristus]

23. That's awful.

Were those drill sergeants taking kickbacks from the tobcco companies?

I went through Basic Training in 1986, right after the US Armed Forces prohibited smoking during basic.

Even so, I grew up in a non-smoking family. I would rather have polished boots than smoked.

[Marthe48]

24. Tobacco manufacturers got permission to add smokes to the rations for soldiers

My parents both smoked a lot. I think I was addicted because of second hand smoke.

[Aristus]

25. Yeah, C-rat packs came with a little mini-pack of smokes.

4-per, I think.

Sick...

[Marthe48]

31. and my husband said cigarettes were super cheap at the PX

like .10/pack, about 1/2 the cost we paid in stores.

[The Polack MSgt]

36. Cigs were sold in the Commissary and Exchange without taxes

A carton of cigarettes would only cost about $4.50-$7.00 without state and federal taxes.

Clinton changed the law and made the minimum on base price 90% of the average local price. So since the mid 90s that loophole went away.

BTW, the difference in cost is pure profit for the Exchange system - They still pay NOTHING in federal and state sales taxes but sell smokes at 6 or 7 times their cost

[JayhawkSD]

41. I think I'm a bit older than you.

Sea stores cigarettes were $1.00 per carton.

[The Polack MSgt]

44. I don't remember what they cost back in my 1st enlistment (Joined in 82)

But I remember being mad when prices tripled stateside.

Over seas prices stayed low for a while but by 99 it was worldwide

[JayhawkSD]

48. Yeah, I'm older than you.

I joined in 58. I have some dirt in my yard that's younger than I am.

[The Polack MSgt]

56. Probably not Top - Probably not

Never hurts to be optimistic tho.

[Marthe48]

52. John (my husband) U.S. Army

66-69

He moved from Salem WV to Woodsfield OH when he was 12. Some of his first Woodsfield friends asked he if he smoked, drank or cussed. He said no. One of the boys laughed and said, 'You will!' Ha

[Canoe52]

4. Ex camel straight pack a day smoker myself

Quitting was the hardest thing I ever did, best thing I ever did.
The cravings get less the further you go. I didn’t dare even touch a cigarette for years for fear I’d light it up.
Remember, cigarettes are not your friend, they are the enemy and they want to get you addicted and to kill you.

[JayhawkSD]

47. I don't think I would argue with that.

I stopped drinking in 1982. Stopped smoking in 1984. Admittedly, I barely remember the first year after I stopped drinking, so it may be that I was simply more conscious in 84 than in 82, but stopping smoking seemed harder.

[Glamrock]

5. Stay strong brother!

You can do it! That monkey wants back on your back, fuck him!

Damn, my monkey just hit me in the head. I need to lose mine....

[rurallib]

6. Take about 10 really deep breaths when the urge hits you

That really helped me when I quit.

Congratulations on getting this far - we love quitters around here.

[TygrBright]

7. It's one of THE most difficult addictions to kick, physiologically and psychologically.

Physiologically because of the profound "sticky" effect of nicotine dependence in the brain.

Psychologically because ingesting nicotine is usually integrated so thoroughly into the actions of day to day living and function.

Kicking this one is a real bitch.

Congrats on your many weeks, and good luck for many, many, many more.

Hang tough. Redirect those craving thoughts the instant you become aware of them. Distract yourself: A short walk. Shoot a few hoops. Do a small but absorbing household task. Make a phone call to catch up with a friend (unless you're one of those "being on the phone automatically means having a butt going" people, in which case, make it a hand-written note or postcard you can drop in the mail.)

If you don't mind the "group-y thing", a lot of community clinics and health centers have 'quitters support' groups that work on motivation and support to stay off the butts, too.

Stay strong!

admiringly,
Bright

[flamin lib]

8. I know you have a craving right now but if you give in

YOU START ALL OVER. It'll pass in a few minutes so buck it up.

You are past the chemical dependency stage so don't restart it.

Be aware that the behavioral aspect of habitation can take two years to diminish. It's like mourning a loss. Don't let this lead you back to a debilitating chemical addiction.

Hang in there, man.

[heaven05]

9. bravo, glad you could quit

the bout with cancer made me quit. It ain't easy. And yes 6 months later I still have a strong desire to 'light one up'. AIN'T going to do it. I curse cigarettes now, every time I want one. Congrats

[The Polack MSgt]

28. Glad you can talk about a bout with cancer in past tense. Congrats back to you

[packman]

10. Good for you -

Lost my father - after having one lung removed - and never will forget his final days as the cancer ate his frail body to a skeleton. Then, a brother, a heavy smoker and drinker lost to throat cancer, dying in a hospital room after they removed his tongue, part of his throat and most of his gums.

With that type of memories, I almost lost it when, sitting in a doctor's waiting room for some leg pain nonsense, a guy went off rambling about how doctor's don't know shit about smoking/diseases/cancers. I related my story about holding my father's head up so he could cough and breathe after his surgery. However, I don't think anyone could convince that guy - he was hooked and in deep denial.

Again, kudos to you and all those that support you .

[Faygo Kid]

11. 39 years and now COPD. Off to the doc on Friday.

I can't breathe anymore. Quit now, everyone!

[MFM008]

26. My mom quit

23 years ago. Shes dying of COPD.
My dad started smoking at age 12,
Hes been dead 18 years of a heart attack.
Congrats to all who quit.
You know why?
There are FEW good stories about continued smoking.

[lunatica]

12. I quit with Chantix too

I smoked 30 years and more than 2 packs a day.

As you know you don’t crave a cigarette the same way when taking Chantix. You have to resist the pattern of smoking which means that your brain is telling you that whenever you did this activity before you would smoke. So every time you do something that you used to light up you get the craving. But once you resist the urge a couple of times your brain will settle down and stop reminding you.

That’s why the cravings go away pretty quickly. It isn’t your body that’s craving the nicotine. It’s your mental habit of smoking during certain activities that you’re fighting.

If the craving is too strong then go do something else where you don’t get the craving anymore. Your urge will go away quickly.

You can do this.

I’ve been a non smoker for more than twenty years.

[haele]

21. Spouse stopped smoking 20 years ago - cold turkey, with the help of Tic-tacs and jerky.

He used to smoke pipes at home and cigarettes on the road. Got rid of them all when his daughter told him she didn't like the smell of smoking while they were on the long drive to his mom's home for his weekends with her.

He takes Wellbutrin now for his bipolar/depression (which he had been "self treating" with the smoking in the first place) and that is basically a low dosage of Chantix. So there isn't a trigger urge to smoke anymore, and the smell of heavy smokers rather makes him sick, and he's unhappy that his daughter and son in law are both using smoking instead of seeing a therapist or psychiatrist to deal with their personal stresses in life. As he says, $20 for a doctor's visit every three months, a $35 scrip for three months of Wellbutrin while on MediCal and being honest with oneself - accepting and learning to deal with day to day stress - is far less expensive than a pack a day habit to cope and not just shut down when faced with situations that make one unhappy.

He says what he really misses is the feeling of ritual smoking gave him- he identified smoking with the excitement of the ability to control and manipulate fire, the first smell of the smoke, and the feeling of release the first drag gave him. Smoking the pipe gave him more of a feeling of ritual in the care and display of the pipes.
But, Tic-Tacs and Beef Jerky got him through the year of no smoking before they finally figured out he was bipolar and put him on his meds to help him function in life better.

Haele

[lunatica]

42. Cigarette smoke makes me nauseous now

And the two times I took a drag in the last twenty years I had a horrid slimy taste in my mouth all the rest of the day. It was as if I had licked a full ashtray that included tobacco juice. It was horrible!

And like your husband I really liked smoking.

[Tikki]

34. That is what it's all about. Your brain wants to smoke, NOT YOU.

You don't do everything your brain tells you. You may want to hurry across the road, but you don't go running out into traffic just to get there.
You know smoking is more than just bad for your health; it is robbing you of your time and money.

In my case the people of California gave me an out...they voted so I couldn't go anywhere with my grandson and still find a place to smoke.

The people of California voted, also, to make it very, very expensive to smoke.

I took these laws as a clue...I quit smoking 14 years ago.



Tikki

[lunatica]

45. The California anti smoking laws helped me too

I quit right at the time it became illegal to smoke indoors. It helped because the visual of seeing others smoke was gone. All I had to do was walk past the smokers just outside the entrances.

It was wonderful to go to movies again and not get a craving to smoke halfway through the movie.

It was the best thing I ever did for myself.

[jimmil]

14. The craving never goes away.

Try and stay in situations where you don't normally smoke or there is support around you. I found I don't smoke around my wife so I became closer to her. I made the house off limits before the final push to quit. I bought a new car that I wouldn't smoke in. Paid everything in cash which I carry very little of. All sorts of things that before I knew it smoking became a real pain in the ass so I just did something else. It worked for me. Good luck to you sir.

[Ohioboy]

16. Don't give in!

You may be craving that cigarette right now, but the craving does go away. I know because it went away for me, and everyone else I know that quit. You didn't crave cigarettes before you started smoking, right? Hang in there!

[jalan48]

17. My dad finally quit when he went on oxygen. Hell of a way to go.

[marble falls]

18. You got to admit: you feel better now than you ever have in a long time. Butt, Smoke Pit.....

Go gitch you a pulled pork sammich. We're old, we need protein. We don't need that ciga-reet.

If that doesn't help, there's this: Non-smoking spouses of smoking mates are HUGELY more likely to get bladder cancer than anybody else.

Hey man, I know you can make it. Embrace the suck. Go Army.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

19. Perhaps another way to get motivated to quit

is to attend someone's 50 year high school reunion. You will have no trouble at all picking out the smokers. They -- the ones that are still alive -- look a good twenty years older than their classmates.

[Runningdawg]

38. The exception

I was the only smoker in my class. Everyone else liked to get drunk at the lake. They still do - guess who looks better?
FTR - I quit 4-1-18.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

54. You were the only smoker out of how large a class?

If there were more than 8 people in it, that's an astonishing low smoking rate.

Probably somewhere over a third took up smoking in my era (graduated high school 1965) and by the 50th it was shockingly obvious who the smokers were. It's incredibly aging.

[Runningdawg]

61. Well you kinda of nailed that one

There were 7 people in my class.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

62. Oh, my!

Clearly I am She Who Knows All.

Well, I still stand by my suggestion to attend a 50 year high school reunion, only find one with more than 50 returnees.

[BigOleDummy]

20. Still

trying myself...…. down to about a half pack a day but seem to have hit a wall. Tried patches...… no help , tried the gum , no help and they kept me thirsty and my mouth foul. Been smoking for 45 years now and have stage 3 COPD. My doctor seems reluctant tp prescribe Chantrix but I may ask again soon. Almost to the point of just saying to hell with it and smoke until I die.

[The Polack MSgt]

32. Chantix raises blood pressure, so that may be why

I tried to quit at least a dozen times before. Patches and gum never worked for me.

8 years ago I went cold turkey and lasted 10 months - Until my son had a medical crises and almost died - there was a 24 hour gas station across the street from the hospital that carried Camels...

103 days so far... Or as my wife like to point out $921.85 ($8.95 a pack in Illinois)

[Jimvanhise]

22. ROD SERLING, THE SMOKER WHO HATED SMOKING

In 1971 I attended a talk given by Rod Serling in Miami. He held up his cigarette and declared, "This is a monkey on my back!" He had tried to quit smoking countless times. He started when he was in the paratroopers where they got free cigarettes donated by the tobacco companies. In 1975 at age 50 he died of a heart attack and the doctors couldn't save him because they said he had the arteries of an 80 year old man which disintegrated in their hands. That's what those poisons in cigarettes do to you.

[shenmue]

27. Thank God you quit

[Marthe48]

29. Cinnamon red hots

When John and I quit, we each ate a bag of those a day. I also would go out to the far end of the yard after dinner almost every night for the first few months, and cry my eyes out. We both stopped eating the candy a few months after we quit. We both gained weight, we both lost weight. It really helped to stay away from smokers. We were on the outs with both sides of the family, and by the time we patched things up, the smoke annoyed us, but didn't tempt us. lol

I prepared myself to quit, the last time, but creating a mantra and repeating it to myself daily for almost a year before I quit. (I want to quit. I can quit.) And also repeated to myself that I was giving myself health, not denying myself cigarettes. After I got through the worst of withdrawal, and I felt tempted, I asked myself if I really wanted to go through it again?

We put the money we spent on cigarettes into our savings. If you don't care so much about your health, quitting does improve your standard of living.

We got to lecture our kids about smoking. I smelled smoke in their car and pointed out that they had brought pictures of damaged lungs from school to show us, to help us quit, and watched us suffer as we quit. My younger daughter said it was her cousin who had smoked in the car. I reminded her that she and her sister told us constantly how they hated the smell of smoke, and yet, she allowed her cousin to smoke in her car? So we had fun making sure the girls didn't smoke.

I chewed a lot of gum, too. I learned how to make the wrapper chain and that gave me something to do with my hands.

If you don't have something to do with your hands, maybe you can find a hobby that keeps your hands busy, like knitting or even makework-stringing beads, coloring (those adult coloring books really do help stress!)

You can do it. Hang in there!

[byronius]

30. I always kept one thought in mind: quitting smoking won't kill me.

It felt like it at times.

But after about six months, I got a wave of personal power that made me feel years younger. It's a great thing to do -- sooooo hard, so powerful.

Go man go.

[Doodley]

33. Take up another harmless addition instead.

[jmbar2]

35. Congratulations!

I quit 20 years ago, after numerous tries, slips and retries.

What helped me a lot was to re-characterize any cravings as the evil voice of demon tobacco, trying to hijack my own intelligence to get me to start again.

I would try to identify what rationale it was using to get me to start again:
- Just one more, and then you can quit again
- This is a bad time to try to quit because....
- You deserve just one because...
- It's been X days - time to celebrate!

Then you argue the case with the tobacco demon, and debunk the arguments. Once I started doing that, it was amazing how many rationales my addicted brain would come up with to smoke again. It transformed every craving into a sort of victory, instead of a loss.

Good luck and hang in there. Go smell a forest, if you haven't recently. Reward yourself - you deserve it!

[CountAllVotes]

37. Glad you have managed to Quit!

Good for you!

Many of my friends are dead from tobacco.

I too used to smoke but I never much cared for this habit so I quit a long time ago.

I'm glad I did as when I run into the few still around that still smoke, OMG, what a nightmare of a condition most of them are in.

Take it one day, one minute or one second at a time!

Hang-in there and yes, you are on track! Please try to stay on track!

Take care.

[Gothmog]

39. Congratulations

This is great news

[stpetegreg]

43. Congratulations!

I quit about 14 months ago after smoking for 46 years. After an act of stupidity (cleaning a relative's filthy shower with heavy-duty cleaner and without adequate ventilation) and being unable to take a deep breath for over an hour after, I decided if that's how it feels to be oxygen-deprived, I'd better quit. It really scared me. I now take the stairs when possible, push myself physically and 60 ain't so bad after all! It does get easier so hang in there!

[The Polack MSgt]

46. Thanks Stpetegreg

I'm looking at 60 from not so far away nowadays. I remember thinking that 55 is old, I was an idiot then.

Welcome to DU BTW.

[Soxfan58]

49. Good job

And good luck

[appleannie1943]

50. For me it was over 50 years. You will have moments but they will become less frequent over time.

I am at the 8 year mark and hardly ever think of smoking anymore. When you get one of those cravings, go do something you never smoked while doing. I took more showers than normal the first year. Keep busy helps too. Good luck.

[handmade34]

51. please stay strong!!

and give your awesome wife a hug

[vlyons]

53. Congrats! Stick with it

My father smoked filter-less Camels forever. Every morning, he spent 15 or 20 minutes coughing and spitting up into the toilet. Eventually, he got terminal cancer. The last year of his life, he said that people in the cemetary felt better than him.

As uncomfortable as you feel right now, it pales in comparison to what terminal cancer feels like. I quit smoking 35 years ago. I craved ciggies for about 2 years after I quit. After that, the craving left me. So hang in there. Cheers

[The Polack MSgt]

57. Thanx Man.

Every morning in the shower I'd cough up crap that looked like baby squids, but somehow didn't really think of the harm...

I get attacks/urges/cravings a couple times a day, but thankfully it would be logistically difficult to light one up before the urge passes.

I work in a large facility and the smoke area is downstairs, out the door and 250 yards away. When the cubical starts to close in on me I take a walk around the campus.

Put some distance on the Pokémon Go game

[Canoe52]

58. Posted earlier but wanted to say, it's easier to NOT have a cigarette now,

than when you first quit. For me the first 3 days was the hardest.
Next hardest was getting past the first 3 months.
At a year I knew I had it licked, but still didn't dare to even have a cigarette in my hand.

Good Luck!

I'm the guy who would wake up and have a cigarette in the dark, when I took a shower I kept an ashtray close by so I could take a puff while I showered and then have a puff after brushing my teeth.

[WhiteTara]

55. This is where meditation comes in.

You can sit on your chair and "smoke" that cigarette and will get many effects of calmness. Sit comfortably and while breathing normally simply "see" yourself smoking. Do the whole ritual in your mind. you'll be surprised.

[BobTheSubgenius]

59. You know the old saying:

"Quitting smoking is easy. I've done it dozens of times."

For me, that was somewhat true. I quit for over a year three different times, and 3 different ways. What I found the easiest was to set a time...."I'll have my next one at the top of the hour. I can hold out 20 more minutes."

Then, the top of the hour rolls around, and I'd think "THat wasn't SO bad. I can do another 15 minutes."

Each time, I wouldn't smoke a whole cigarette; I'd light it, take a couple of puffs, then put it out. Just enough to scratch the itch.

Eventually, and not that long, really - 3 weeks, I think - the durations between puffs got greater and greater until there was nothing but duration.

My son was 2 then. He'll be 38 in October. I think I've got it beat this time.

Oh, yeah. At my heaviest, I smoked the strongest filtered brand in Canada, and 50 a day of them.

All I can say is DO IT! Whatever it takes.

SO worth it.

[applegrove]

60. I quit using Chantix and 5 months into the quit I stopped craving. I never want

to smoke when i see someone doing it. I also smoked herbal cigarettes in my 3r and 4th month of my quit (after I stopped taking chantix). Only when i really wanted a smoke....once or three times a day I went herbal. After two months of herbal smokes I was disgusted with the whole process. I think the chantix blocked the pleasure center of the brain from getting a nicoteen hit. Then the herbal smokes replaced then sensation of lighting up and liking it with lighting up and disliking it. A one two punch. Worked for me.

There is also the quitnet. log on when you are having a crave. Get kicked around or supported by a bunch of quitters. Thank them for teasing you. Thank each and every person. And your crave has passed while your hands were kept busy typing (the craves only last a few minutes eh?)

Good luck to you. It is such a relief to be quit. I've been so 10 years and I never crave. Best thing I ever did for myself.

[DashOneBravo]

63. Well done!

[The Polack MSgt]

64. I evaluate communication technicians and systems in field exercises

for USTRANSCOM - we are conducting a seaport opening exercise right now as a matter of fact.

It is so hard to walk past the smoke pit some times. Smokin' and Jokin' were really the only fun parts of field life.


But still smoke free - so far so good

[DashOneBravo]

65. That's a pretty cool sounding job

Yeah I know about chilling, it’s a good way to let the troops see you laugh. I’m sure it’s a definite trigger. My father used to carry jolly ranchers to beat the craving.

I never smoked but I did dip and chew. It help keep you awake and also when you were hungry.

[The Polack MSgt]

66. After I retired I tried to go civilian for a couple years

Didn't like it.

Got a job where there's the best of both worlds.

I get to play with tents and gear and GIs but after 12 hours I got to a Hilton watch ESPN have a beer and sleep w/air conditioning.

It ain't so bad...

[DashOneBravo]

67. You hit the 10 ring Top

You certainly earned it. I’m like you and my idea of roughing now is staying in a Holiday Inn Express instead of a Holiday Inn Hotel.