[NFS2024]

Originally Posted by GTO

Just posting this if it helps motivate a smoker to quit.

That's awesome ! Can clearly see the difference. Guess you have lost weight as well?

Am desperately trying to quit but not successful. Not even able to quit for a day despite trying many a time. Not sure what to do. Have tried all methods prescribed.

Will try once more this time around.

[2000rpm]

Originally Posted by NFS2024

That's awesome ! Can clearly see the difference. Guess you have lost weight as well?

Am desperately trying to quit but not successful. Not even able to quit for a day despite trying many a time. Not sure what to do. Have tried all methods prescribed.

Will try once more this time around.

One idea which can work, but a slightly silly one.

Go to a 3-5 day trek with 1 day stock.

Either you will consume everything in 1 day and wont have access for 2-3 days in the mountains.

OR

You will consume judiciously for the stock to last 3-5 days.

DONT TAKE THE BACK UP STOCK . My friends have a back-up stock but inadequate medical kit on small treks.

[KaandBaaz]

Originally Posted by NFS2024

Am desperately trying to quit but not successful. Not even able to quit for a day despite trying many a time. Not sure what to do. Have tried all methods prescribed.

If you buy cigarettes by the pack,firstly stop doing that. Secondly just dont buy more cigarettes.

Check for triggers that cause the urge to smoke and whenever you get a urge try suppressing it by doing something else for 2-3 minutes (it can as simple as drinking a cup of coffee / talking to a colleague / going for a stroll in the office it self). And last but not the least stay away from your regular smoke buddies for a few weeks.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by NFS2024

That's awesome ! Can clearly see the difference. Guess you have lost weight as well?

Am desperately trying to quit but not successful. Not even able to quit for a day despite trying many a time. Not sure what to do. Have tried all methods prescribed.

Will try once more this time around.

Nope. Not the route to success.

Don't try to give up: do it. Do it, and from that time on simply say no to demands from your body or mind.

It has to be an absolute decision, with no going back. That's why trying is not good enough, and why it hasn't worked for you so far.

Do it... It actually won't hurt as much as you think it will!

[Mortis]

Apparently vaping is now banned in Maharashtra according to an article in the Times

[NFS2024]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Nope. Not the route to success.

Don't try to give up: do it. Do it, and from that time on simply say no to demands from your body or mind.

It has to be an absolute decision, with no going back. That's why trying is not good enough, and why it hasn't worked for you so far.

Do it... It actually won't hurt as much as you think it will!

I get what everyone is trying to convey, it's just that am unable to implement this and hence the rant. It feels good to see many folks out here have already quit. Hats off to you guys.

[Gannu_1]

Originally Posted by NFS2024

Will try once more this time around.

Switch to nicotine gums and see if it helps. Start with the 4 mg and chew one when you get a craving or whenever you usually smoke. Get rid of the cigarette packs when you do so. Good luck!

You may get hiccups with gums!

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by NFS2024

it's just that am unable to implement this

It's just that you haven't made up your mind yet. Believe me: been there [not] done that! So while you are going on being a smoker, just be a smoker, and save yourself the anguish. But when you decide to quit: do it.

Sure, it took me years and a nasty health problem that started to actually frighten me. Fear really helps, but it is optional, and better nothing happens to health that is that bad.

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

Switch to nicotine gums and see if it helps

Some people claim that only cold-turkey works: it might have worked for them, but if you need a crutch to help you on your way before you can finally stride out, nicotine free, that's fine. Nicotine patches worked for me. Gum might work for you. But I strongly advise date-limiting the course. Follow the instructions and stick to the regime: by the end of it, you will barely notice it's been a few days since your last gum or patch.

When you're ready...

[GTO]

Originally Posted by NFS2024

That's awesome ! Can clearly see the difference. Guess you have lost weight as well?

Yes. I quit smoking thanks to this thread, and lost weight thanks to the weight loss thread. Team-BHP rocks .

[R2D2]

Well, I crossed a significant milestone today - I completed 15 years as a non smoker.

Just one more year to go before the # of years I smoked equals the number of years since I quit.

According to what I read on several quit-smoking sites back in those days, as a rule of the thumb it takes your body as many years to repair itself as the number of years you spent smoking.

Of course the # of cigarettes (or God forbid cigars!) smoked per day will also impact the time it takes for a full or nearly full recovery i.e. where you have more or the same risks of getting cancer and/or heart ailments as a non smoker.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by R2D2

Well, I crossed a significant milestone today - I completed 15 years as a non smoker.

Congrats R2D2! You got to give yourself a big treat this weekend then.

According to what I read on several quit-smoking sites back in those days, as a rule of the thumb it takes your body as many years to repair itself as the number of years you spent smoking.

Wow, that's 22 years of recovery for me then. But well, that's any day better than 22 further years of damage (if hadn't quit).

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by GTO

Congrats R2D2! You got to give yourself a big treat this weekend then.

Thanks Rush. Yeah, my treat has been a pat on the back from the spouse and even better reward has been that I can take the stairs instead of the lift whenever required without huffing and puffing and being breathless at the end.

The ability to breathe deeply is a blessing I tell you. It's my mission to help people give up this habit and to my credit I encouraged an ex-colleague to give up when we were working together. He's been off the stick for about 9-10 years now.

Wow, that's 22 years of recovery for me then. But well, that's any day better than 22 further years of damage (if hadn't quit).

Sooner the better I say. I am sure you notice the difference in your breathing, heart rate and even the boost in physical stamina after you quit. The earlier you quit (as in age) the better because the body's ability to repair itself diminishes with age. This was a key driver for me back in '04.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Congratulations, R2D2, and well done for spreading the word and helping others. Of course, they can't be helped until they are ready, but when that day comes, you, me, and all the rest of us are here to help.

ISTR a doc at a medical check up telling me it takes 20 years to fully recover, but no point in dwelling on that: recovery begins on day one.

It's been 27 years for me. Guess what! Tobacco turned up in a dream last week. Long time since that happened. I wasn't actually smoking, but feeling for the once-familiar packet of Golden Virginia rolling tobacco that, once upon a time, was part of my definition of security.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Congratulations, R2D2, and well done for spreading the word and helping others. Of course, they can't be helped until they are ready, but when that day comes, you, me, and all the rest of us are here to help.

Absolutely. And it all boils down to will power.

ISTR a doc at a medical check up telling me it takes 20 years to fully recover, but no point in dwelling on that: recovery begins on day one.

20 years is a very long time and that's why one MUST drop this habit ASAP to give time for the body to recover.

Guess what! Tobacco turned up in a dream last week. Long time since that happened. I wasn't actually smoking, but feeling for the once-familiar packet of Golden Virginia rolling tobacco that, once upon a time, was part of my definition of security.

Gee! Nearing 3 decades, congrats TEG. Yeah, the familiar taste and smell and dare I say it even the feel (of holding a cigar/cigarette) of comfort offered by Lady Nick. We ex-smokers are aware of the games she plays. She's one heck of a Siren, your life winds up on the rocks.

[ashwinprakas]

Originally Posted by NFS2024

Am desperately trying to quit but not successful. Not even able to quit for a day despite trying many a time. Not sure what to do. Have tried all methods prescribed.

I believe you need a friend or rather a co-quitter.

My father was back in the country for a month and I didn't bother smoking even once, didn't even get the urge to.

A couple of hours after he left and I was back to it, which has led me to believe that it is more psychological than physiological.

A quit-buddy would help track progress and the co-ownership really helps.

Edit: Gum, Chaap etc. Doesn't work for me, it just rewires my stimulus. I'm actually fine with the concept of smoking, I find it similar to the concept of killing to eat, it is the dependency that gets to me, no one deserves to be weak like that.

Happy Quitting,
A.P.