I got to quit smoking

[Artanis95]

Hello Everyone,

I am new to the forum (first post) currently hailing from middle Tennessee and I like to hunt and fish for anything that promises a change in scenery and a new experience. I moved to Tennessee from Colorado and in the past year have decided to get into the public land opportunities this state has to offer I've drawn two muzzleloader tags for catoosa in October and November, I've been spending time in cherokee national forest seeking the native trout while scouting for bear sign and I believe it's time to quit.
I've been a smoker for about 18 years from a young age and was looking for advice tips or tricks to help kick the habit not only do I feel it's slowing me down I'm expecting my first born child late this year and I know it's slowly wearing me down.

 

[Scrappy]

I quit Copenhagen like a hundred years a go. Still to this day all my hunting related expenses comes from the account I set up to put the money I save from not dipping. Not really a tip on quitting but a really good motivator to continue to not smoke. My whole mind set was I hated spending so much money on such a stupid habit.

 

[TheGrayRider]

Good luck to you. Smoking took 10 years off my uncle’s life. He died at age 74 when he easily should have made 84.

 

[fatlander]

I kicked Copenhagen a few years ago. I honestly thought I was going to end up single for the first month after I gave it up. To put it lightly, I was an absolute bear to be around. I saved 5 bucks a day and use it as my fun funds as well.

The only tip I can offer you is you have to quit, not want to or need to. Many times I wanted to quit, or I tried to quit. The day I actually quit I told myself, I’m done with it and never touched it again. Every time before that I “wanted” to quit or “needed” to quit never worked. Set the goal and dictate how your life goes forward. Stop being controlled by cancer sticks. Good luck!


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[Gearqueer]

I could give you really good advice because I’ve successfully quit so many times.


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[Marbles]

People are different in what approaches work for them. All I can do is share what worked for me.

I never quite, rather I told myself I was cutting back significantly. At my peak usage I would go through a can of dip, a pack of cigarettes, and 2-3 cigars/pipes a day. In the past 2 years I have had 2 dips (both I spit out in less than 10 minutes), maybe 3 cigarettes, and about 40 cigars/pipes. Not perfect, but I consider it good enough.

Reminding myself of how bad it is for me whenever I do it helps. Nicotine destroys the lining of blood vessels, as every organ needs blood, it damages every organ. It can contribute to dementia along with a long list of other problems. Zero is best, but reduced consumption helps.

Because of how the brain works, you crave the activity long after the physical side of addiction is gone. Whatever activities you tend to smoke while doing will make you want a cigarette. Part of breaking this association is engaging in the activity and not smoking.

If you can figure out a way to make it less pleasurable when you smoke, that can help. This works best if the link is more natural than arbitrary. With dipping, once I got my tolerance down (I was putting a quarter of a can of Copenhagen straight in, then smoking a cigar at the same time), I would make myself keep the dip in until I got sick.

I use to dip a lot on long drives, so I learned how to shell sunflower seeds in my mouth and used that as an alternative. I was not able to completely replace dipping with seeds immediately, but now I no longer want a dip when I drive.

Some times I will buy a can, but never open it and throw it away after 6 months. Something about knowing I can have a dip helps me not really want one.

If you can't tell, I had a harder time quitting dip than cigarettes.

After 3 months of not smoking many things in your lungs will be recovered and you should start seeing improvement. It will take about 10 years for your cancer risk to return to that of a none smoker though.

If you like books and psychology, I would recommend reading The Biology of Desire by Mark David Lewis.

I whish you luck.

 

[LongWayAround]

Of all the foreign substances I've ever consumed, cigarettes are by far my most regrettable. I smoked about a pack a week, so not a ton, for about five years in my late teens/early twenties. I preferred menthols so my quitting method was to chew gum any time that I wanted a smoke. After dinner, before/after class, it was just a habit that I had associated with certain activities. So anytime one of those cravings happened, I would chew up two or three pieces of gum. Eventually the things so disgusted me that I really haven't wanted a cigarette since.

 

[*zap*]

Just Do It!

 

[HuntInWild88]

Chantex or how we've you spell.you...I tried another of different things but I can honestly say Chantex works.. however you also have to actually want to quit. I used chantex the first time. Then for some.dumb reason started again..after my new wife basically demanded I stopped smoking and losing my father to lung cancer at 51 and my mother at 53.. i quite for good...

 

[Fatcamp]

I used patches. It is important to use some type of replacement and taper off due to the anti-depressant effects of nicotine. Depression following cold turkey method is common. Your state should have a Quit-Line set up. Give them a call and they may have patches for free.

 

[Fatcamp]

Chantex or how we've you spell.you...I tried another of different things but I can honestly say Chantex works.. however you also have to actually want to quit. I used chantex the first time. Then for some.dumb reason started again..after my new wife basically demanded I stopped smoking and losing my father to lung cancer at 51 and my mother at 53.. i quite for good...

Beware! Significant side effects are present with Chantix.

 

[HuntInWild88]

Beware! Significant side effects are present with Chantix.

Some crazy dreams for sure!!! But it does have other side effects on others..

 

[Youngbuck86]

I quit Copenhagen several years ago cold turkey. I went from a 1-1.5 can a day habit for 10+ years to nothing for the last 7 years. If your mind isn't made up, you won't stay quit for long. Make sure it is something you want, and you will do anything to quit. Once you are 30-90 days in, your job become not starting again. No "just this last one" or "I deserve this one as a reward". It will be hard, but doable. I still have dreams where I've started again and I wake up disappointed in myself, but they don't happen as often as they used to.

 

[TommyV10]

Smoked over a pack a day for 20+ years, went to my doctor who gave me a prescription for Chantex and quit in less than two weeks. This was over five years ago and haven't had a cig since.

 

[300wmxcr2]

Quitting smoking is something you need to decide to do for yourself, nobody else. We all can have different reasons, save money, live longer, smell better, have more energy etc but it need to be a decision that comes from inside you.
I have quit a couple time before because my wife and kid wanted me too and I knew it was the right thing to do but really didn't want to. Always ended up back smoking in a few months or a year.
When I did finally quite for good, I decided one morning that I wasn't going to smoke any more and have never looked, the first 3 days were tuff but everyday it got easier. It is not as hard as you think when you do it for yourself.

Ask any recovered addict and they will tell you the same thing. Smoking is an addiction just like any other drug.

 

[Sccritterkiller]

Dec. will be 3 years smoke free for me. I had quit a couple times before..once for 2 years...I was a pack a day for 15 yrs...patches worked for me...but once I had a beer or 3 I would fall off the wagon...I haven't fallen off yet and now the smell of smoke makes me sick. I have been known to vape a little after a few drinks on the weekend. Some folks would consider that cheating...so be it...I am not waking up at 2am and having to have a cigarette to go back to sleep anymore so I consider it progress. You won't quit until you decided you want to quit. Good Luck!

 

[Fatcamp]

Some crazy dreams for sure!!! But it does have other side effects on others..

Some significant mood disorders with that stuff. Even easy going people can have serious psychotic episodes.

 

[Yard Candy]

I smoked a pack a day for 5 years and tried to quit many times, as most smokers do. Here's how I ended up quitting.

I switched from cigarettes to a disposable cig thingy from CVS, overnight. It was not battery powered, you don't plug in, it doesn't hold a charge. It's a single use (well it lasts a while, but once it runs out that's it) item. Once that thing ran out (about a week or maybe less) it got tossed in the trash and that was that. Done deal.

I realize this won't work for everyone but it worked for me, and here's why.

For me the hardest part of quitting was breaking out of the routine. This is what non-smokers will never understand. You wake up, have a cigarette. Get ready for work, have a cigarette before leaving. Get to work, have a cigarette, etc.... those mini checkpoints throughout the day are habit, they feel needed. It's part of you. Without them, everything feels 'off'.

By having the "disposable cig thingy" I was able to break out of those ritual time stamps but while still feeding the cravings my body wanted for the nicotine. I could pull it out of my pocket and take a few hits anytime I wanted. In the car, in the bathroom, at my desk at work. That broke me out of the routine. Then once the thing ran out and died, I actually kept it to puff on for a few days just because we like the action, the way it feels. Then I tossed it. From that point on (as I see it) it's straight will-power to get through the nicotine cravings. You've already broken the routine part. Keeping toothpicks on me helped with that too.

O and I also didn't announce it to a bunch of people or make it a big thing. I kept it quiet and did it for myself.

You can do it.

 

[Ditchpanther]

I quit after smoking 17 years with chantex, but as they said above, beware. I was smoking and taking it at the same time and almost had a heart attack. BP was 190 something over 90 something. I stopped both the same day and that was about 5 years ago. I was 32 at the time. What also helped me get to that point was to stop smoking in my car and after eating. Those were the 2 big craving times for me. You will still get cravings ecen years later but they will last less time and be further apart. Good Luck!

 

[MJB]

Good luck
I quite last year cold turkey, smoked for 12 years half pack a day.

Was easy to say no, but man I was hungry all the time, so watch the weight gain. My singing voice cam back strong after 4 months. I can hit the range on some tough songs that I couldn't when I smoked.

Found a pack in my hunting pants after 6 months, smoked a few but didn't want any of it so the pack hit the trash.