Advice on QUITTING smoking

[playmorsiberians]

My new WOE is going great, losing better than expected. In addition to the new healthy weight I WILL someday be I also want the smoke-free me!

So, I am committed and I am ready to quit smoking, my quit date has not been 100% set yet but I am looking to it being within the next 7 days (1 week). I want to be armed with the knowledge and tools necessary not only to succeed in quiting smoking but also so that I don't fall off course with my Atkins.

Of course I have the fear of "gaining weight" as we all too often hear of the ex-smoker who gains 20+ lbs when they quit smoking. This is why I feel quiting smoking while doing Atkins will help as I will be accountable with my food choices as well.

Next......no drugs!! I am doing this cold turkey! Yikes!!

Finally......is sugar free gum legal? I am a 2 pack per day smoker, I am going to need something to keep my mouth busy.

Any advice or tricks that others have used would be sooooooo appreciated.

I've made it my ultimate long term goal to be a runner.....I would love to be able to get up and go for a 5 mile run someday. I want HEALTH all around, not just weight-loss. Think of it as a complete body transformation, inside and out!

I did quit during my pregnancy, no problem. And I found it really quite easy but that was 10 years ago. Then last fall I quit cold turkey for 5 days. Again, I found it pretty easy but on day 5 hubby and I got into it and to make him mad I started smoking again (he's a non-smoker). I really think I can do it this time with advice and tools to help me through the difficult times.

Wish me luck,
Lisa

[Doingit409]

I was a pack a day smoker. I tried to quit cold turkey and let me tell you that did not work for me. I would constantly find myself eating snacks all day long and not the good kind either. I don't know why but without that cig I would have the urge to eat. That combined with the fact that I was moody and very irritated all the time, I went back to smoking. This time I'm quitting in a new way. I started off smoking 20 cigs a day, then I went to only smoking 15. I wouldn't allow myself to smoke the whole pack. I would have choose wisely as to when I wanted that cig. (I would give the amount that I was deducting to my B.F. at the beginning of the day so I wouldn't be tempted to go past my limit) Then after about 2 weeks of that I cut it down again to 10. Now I'm only at 5 cigs a day. I know I haven't quit all the way but I'm working on it. I find doing it this way doesn't have my body craving that nicotine. I'm still getting it but slowly I'm reducing the amount that my body is getting. Monday I'm knocking it down to only two and then after that 0!! Hopefully since I'm slowly taking the nicotine away it won't be a big shock to my body when I go to 0. I wish you all the best!! I truely believe that two of the hardest things to do is lose weight and quit smoking. Congrats to you for trying to do both!!!

[Peej]

I quit smoking a little over a year ago. I used the patch though (for just the first 2 weeks) and was very successful. I see that you don't want to use any drugs, so I'll just give some tips that helped me after I stopped with the patch.

Just like with eating, find your triggers. Monitor the times that you smoke during the day and replace smoking with something else. For me, stress was a huge trigger. I had to choose the worst possible time to quit smoking by doing it during major exams. I kept carrot sticks by my side while I was studying so that I had an alternative to smoking. Of course carrots aren't going to work for induction but you could do the same with any legal snack. And the replacement doesn't have to be a snack, it can be an activity like going for a 5 minute walk or listening to music.

For me, the best thing I could do was to just not have any cigarettes around. It doesn't take much effort to take a cig out and light it up, but it takes much more to go to the store and buy a pack. As long as my friends and family knew that they were under no circumstances to give me a cigarette, I was fine.

I think its also a good idea to reward yourself. If you go a week without smoking, do something special for yourself. After a month, do something else. With all the money you'll be saving, you can treat yourself at little milestones that will make you want to stick to it.

As cheesy as it is, I also found it extremely helpful to carry a list of reasons I wanted to quit in my pocket. I actually did the same when starting Atkins also. Its a good motivator and I think addiction makes us forget how great it will be once we're free. Quitting was really really difficult for me, but now I find it hard to understand what it was like to have to take a break from what I was doing every hour (or less) to have a smoke.

I'm not sure if that will help at all, but I definitely think that quitting smoking is quite possibly the best thing you can do for yourself. I did gain some weight (I hadn't started atkins yet) when I quit but it was totally worth it.

[2BME]

Just convincing yourself that this is absolutely what you want will get you in the right mind-set. I tell people all the time when I am asked about my weight loss. "Losing weight is simple, but is is NOT easy. You just have to WANT it."

Have a plan and if you need to have some sugar-free gum to help you through, then by all means go to the store and treat yourself to 8 different flavors. The benefits of not smoking far outweigh any issues that may arise with the sugar-free gum. And once you get through the first week, you should be able to step down the sugar-free gum.

God bless you and best of luck. You CAN do this. Remember, it is simple, just not easy.

[ratucker5]

I just quit september 25th 2009. I am a 44 year old mom and started when i was 17. I had tried several times to quit. What it comes down to is you have to really want to stop smoking. My heart was never in it before. Yea i wanted to quit cuz it wasnt healthy or cuz of what ever reason. but in all honesty you can quit when your sick of smoking. I did it with out meds or therapy. I am not a strong person, I was just tired of not being able to breathe and play with my kids and well smelling like smoke. I thought about quitting for a month before i even gave it a try. What was i gonna do,it was the escape from the kids the hubby etc when they would bug me giggle. Well i started thinking wow smoking has been my life long friend...or was it... would a friend allow me to slowly kill myself,take away having fun with my kids, allow me to go out in public smelling..i dont think so..and if they did well lol i wouldnt want them as a friend. So I gave the voice in my head a personality, "a person that i no longer wanted to be friends with " you know the one that said go have that smoke it wont hurt,and every time i wanted a smoke i would say what kind of friend are you that is willing to kill me. some friend you are. well before i knew it.. i hadnt smoked a whole day. by day 5 it got easier. and now i am free of it..people smoke around me and yea i want to but you know what i dont want to go through the "withdrawls" again. Drink lots of water. I gained 16+ pounds thats when i ended up finding atkins this month. When i was trying to break the habit of it...believe it or not..get a straw from mcdonalds or burger king the fat ones..cut it to the size of your cig and hold it just like one and puff it works its sill but it helps. Best of luck to you.

[sadie147]

I was a pack a day + smoker, and yesterday was my 9th anniversary of being smoke free!

I was not on Atkins when I quit, however did combine diet (weight watchers) and exercise along with quitting, and lost 10 lbs at the same time. One of the toughest things for me, was I was used to smoking on breaks and at lunch at work , so I started exercising at lunch and making plans to go for break with my non smoking coworkers to grab a coffee etc. I also made sure I didn't use my cravings as an excuse to eat, I think this made a big difference too.

I did use Zyban to quit initially, but the side effect of insomnia was too hard for me so i went cold turkey after two weeks.

My biggest struggle, even to this day 9 years later has always been stress. I still crave a cigarette when I'm under pressure/stress. I had to learn different ways to cope with it with exercise, going for a walk/run etc.
The biggest thing I always tell people to keep in mind when they quit that I learned is that the cravings do not simply disappear, accepting that fact and finding different ways to to deal with them was what made me successful. I know too many people that fall off the wagon because the cravings get the better of them.


Good luck!

[dewdropinn]

Wow, also think 2 packs a day, and how much TIME that takes out of your day. IT's crazy how cigaretts can control your life sometimes. I wish you all the best luck and you have had some good advice on here.

[iamran]

If you want to quit smoking, just do it. I quit cold turkey while my husband would stand there and smoke in front of me. Its been 3 years now since I quit and my hubby still smokes. I did gain right at 30 pounds but I am working on taking that then some off now. I know a lady who quit smoking and gained 5 pounds so started smoking again. I think that it is better to gain weight and not smoke than smoke and stay thin. At least when you don't smoke you can get the weight off. If you smoke and are thin your overall health is at a greater risk.

Believe me if I can quit smoking, anyone can. Just do it, girl!

[ratucker5]

also when you quit smoking after awhile you can actually go for a walk with out being out of breath. You will have energy too.That will keep the weight off too. Atkins helps alot to with the energy and now the weight. I am weighting for my treadmill to come on sunday, I am actually looking forward to walking.

[Mickkey]

This site helped me: Quit Smoking All Together-the Web's Largest Quit Smoking Community

It's free. Get into the forums, and talk. They will offer you all kinds of advice.

I quit 6 years ago, (seems like a lifetime ago) and gained 30 pounds, but I wasn't following Atkins. I used the patch and it works. So glad I quit. I still will want a cigarette sometimes usually when I see someone smoking, but it passes in nano seconds. Cravings left after a few weeks, and just got smaller and smaller. I drank water ... gallons of it, it helps flush out the nicotine, and gives you something to reach for, and great for this WOE too. You'll have triggers, and frustrations, but you need to find something that will help you fight those. Use that site, they will give you dozens of idea.

Best of luck to you.