Started smoking again!!!

NOOOOOOO, don't start again! I quit almost 4 years ago and I have never looked back.
Yesterday I was helping my Bro-in-law and my Nephew repair my Nephew's pickup truck. They were both smoking cigs and I was getting sick just smelling the smoke. My throat was scratchy and my eyes were burning. I couldn't wait to finish the job.
What should have been a rewarding family experience was made sickening to me by cigarets.
 
3 PACKS A DAY!

Holy moly, that is serious dude!

I am weak...no doubt about that!

Hats off to you to kick such a serious habit....So BillRay, how did you quit?

Did you just do it in one go or did it take a few times?

Understand that smoking is a ritual. There's many actions that have nothing to do with smoking but have everything to do with your habit. The opening of the pack, pulling it out, tamping the end, putting it to your lips, fidgeting with your lighter, flicking the lighter or match all happen before that first drag.

When you say "don't smoke" your brain hears "smoke". Instead of saying "I'm not going to smoke" say "I'm going to make healthier choices" so the word never appears. And understand that you don't "quit" a habit but rather "replace" it. So you must replace that bad habit with one that is positive.

I quit five minutes at a time. Every time I wanted a cig I made myself wait five more minutes.

It's a lot of willpower required to do this though. Your mettle will be tested. Don't let the bastards win, I'm tellin' ya!

Wanna know what's even harder to quit? Gnawing your fingernails.

Best of luck.
 
NOOOOOOO, don't start again! I quit almost 4 years ago and I have never looked back.
Yesterday I was helping my Bro-in-law and my Nephew repair my Nephew's pickup truck. They were both smoking cigs and I was getting sick just smelling the smoke. My throat was scratchy and my eyes were burning. I couldn't wait to finish the job.
What should have been a rewarding family experience was made sickening to me by cigarets.

I saw your playing on YouTube (I play what I feel...)

If quitting smoking will make me play like you

Then I just had my last cigarette!
 
Drumkat, you are a drummer. I believe in you.

As the others have said, not to nag but to further the point, smoking has no benefits whatsoever. If you are going through a lot its understandable, but play more drums if you can, or take a walk, it clears your head better and relaxes the body and mind rather than killing it. Or maybe just find another goofy little habit to counter smoking like making tea or something.

Plus, you could afford more drum stuff! That can cheer up anybody!

But think on this: What's there to gain from putting yourself back in those old stinky/poorer shoes?
 
Drumkat,

You need an incentive to change (other than health reasons). So when I quit 3 years ago, I calculated my average monthly spent on tobacco. Which, in Australia, is quite a lot.. Then I opened a separate bank account and have been transferring the amount that I saved by not smoking into the new account every month. That's my drum fund. So whenever I feel the urge, or wonder why I gave up, I look at my drums. That's why.

Dutch
 
Drumkat,

You need an incentive to change (other than health reasons). So when I quit 3 years ago, I calculated my average monthly spent on tobacco. Which, in Australia, is quite a lot.. Then I opened a separate bank account and have been transferring the amount that I saved by not smoking into the new account every month. That's my drum fund. So whenever I feel the urge, or wonder why I gave up, I look at my drums. That's why.

Dutch

Hey Dutch,

I really really need to quit hey

I am a Registered Nurse in Intensive Care

I see end stage COPD in patients

They end up in a bad bad way....yet I still freakin' smoke

It is nowhere near the amount I used to smoke but still...

God I am such a total idiot

I will get myself in the right headspace and try again ASAP

I can remember recently one patient who hung himself

He was still alive but was brain dead

I remember having to turn off life support with his 14yr old daughter standing next to me

Her daughter cried in my arms for about an hr

My uniform was soaked in her tears

That was one trigger that got me back on the ciggies

That situation affected me deeply

I know it is NO excuse, but at the time it seemed the one way to get through it all
 
Hey Dutch,

I really really need to quit hey

I am a Registered Nurse in Intensive Care

I see end stage COPD in patients

They end up in a bad bad way....yet I still freakin' smoke

It is nowhere near the amount I used to smoke but still...

God I am such a total idiot

I will get myself in the right headspace and try again ASAP

I can remember recently one patient who hung himself

He was still alive but was brain dead

I remember having to turn off life support with his 14yr old daughter standing next to me

Her daughter cried in my arms for about an hr

My uniform was soaked in her tears

That was one trigger that got me back on the ciggies

That situation affected me deeply

I know it is NO excuse, but at the time it seemed the one way to get through it all

Yes, you are an idiot. Quit smoking now!!!

I meant that with much love and respect. I used to smoke for several years myself. I had my last one about 13 years ago. I tried to quit 3 times before it finally worked.

For the final attempt, I had a sort of method that I used that I didn't really realize was a method at the time. I've heard of folks smoking one less cigarette per day until they are down to zero. I sort of did that unintentionally.

I picked a date a few months out (I honestly don't remember that date now) and told myself I was going to quit on THAT DAY. At first, I didn't change anything about how many I smoked per day. Eventually I did smoke a few less every day. I have often wondered if telling myself that I was going to quit had something to do with that. I think overcoming the mental addiction aspect of it is a huge part of it.

Once I had that out of the way so to speak, I just had to deal with the physical withdrawal for just a couple weeks.

I hope this helps you in some way.

Good luck.
 
... but recently substituted one of those devices where you can buy your own oil and just huff nicotine vapor and flavoring. It does seem to be the lesser of the 2 evils, but nicotine is a poison all by itself. I don't trust the flavorings either, they can't be good for you. So it's a lateral move, those smoking devices. My son has one that looks like a "chamber" pot pipe from the 70's, only straight. In a way, those things, and e cigs, are worse, because people do them in public and I'm sorry but they do have a sickly odor about them. And people around them are still inhaling 2nd hand smoke.

But then you get the people who smoke well into their 80's.

Some people die from it, some don't. Go figure.

I have been using one of those vaporizer/e-cig devices since before thanksgiving. I think it has its plusses and minuses. For one it isn't smoke, just a liquid-vapor. There is a lingering cloud, like cigarettes, but it dissipates fairly quickly. I wonder if I can drown from it?
It also seems "healthier" if you will. There was still a withdrawal period for me, probably from the 132,165,498,421 other things in cigarettes, but definitely not the nicotine withdrawal. The switch was fairly easy. And it doesn't hurt in the morning.

My family has many smokers and many not. Some have died from something related, some from something not. It really seems like a crap shoot. I have been dealing with it for 20 years now myself. I like the e-cig. Real cigarettes are a bit gross to me now.
 
I gave up smoking in late 1976 after smoking 2 packs a day for 4 years pretty steadily. I agree with all stating you have to be ready or have a decision gate to push you into doing so. Mine was a terrible cold and I remember being at work and feeling totally like dog doo trying to get through the first cig of the day. I thought to myself "This is insane" and gave up on the spot. I'm glad it was not that difficult at a young age to do so.

Still, about 2 to 3 times a year, I'll be dreaming and realize that I'm smoking. I get so mad at my dumb dream self for picking up this terrible habit again after being off for so many years. It is not as though I miss it at all but I guess it is still buried in the subconscious.

Best of luck with your battle: it is worth it!
 
Yes, you are an idiot. Quit smoking now!!!

I've heard of folks smoking one less cigarette per day until they are down to zero. I sort of did that unintentionally.

I picked a date a few months out (I honestly don't remember that date now) and told myself I was going to quit on THAT DAY. At first, I didn't change anything about how many I smoked per day. Eventually I did smoke a few less every day.

No need to explain your Idiot statement....you are RIGHT!!

Us Aussies are tough skinned

That idea of smoking less per day is actually a really, really good idea!
 
When I was younger (teens/20's), I actually tried to get addicted to smoking. Almost everyone I knew smoked. Strangely, I just did not get addicted. Fast forward to 6 years ago, I lost my mother, my son was taken from me, I lost my job and eventually the family home. Drinking heavily to try and kill the pain, I picked up the smokes and before I knew it, they were an everyday part of my life.

I have not been able to stop yet, I know a 1000 reasons to quit and not a good one to continue, but right now I am not ready. I was sober for 9 years and took this back up again, there will be a time to stop both, just not now. I will know when it is.

Beating yourself up will do no good. You have time, the lungs are a remarkable organ, they repair themselves after an amount of time.

I wish you luck and success in whatever you do.
 
I feel your pain, drumkat. I've quit I don't know how many times and end up going back for some reason or another. I spend as much time "quitting" as I do smoking. I even picked it up again after two and a half years free of that stinking mess! I've just cleared the 2 year mark and think I'm over it this time. I'm on the East Coast US and packs run $5-7USD; I figured my savings to be approx $2500+ annual. Ridiculous. In the past, I had tried about everything to quit; gum, lozenges, patches, cold turkey, etc. In the end, it's all a matter of choice and will power. Best of luck to you on your journey.
 
When I was younger (teens/20's), I actually tried to get addicted to smoking. Almost everyone I knew smoked. Strangely, I just did not get addicted. Fast forward to 6 years ago, I lost my mother, my son was taken from me, I lost my job and eventually the family home. Drinking heavily to try and kill the pain, I picked up the smokes and before I knew it, they were an everyday part of my life.

I have not been able to stop yet, I know a 1000 reasons to quit and not a good one to continue, but right now I am not ready. I was sober for 9 years and took this back up again, there will be a time to stop both, just not now. I will know when it is.

Beating yourself up will do no good. You have time, the lungs are a remarkable organ, they repair themselves after an amount of time.

I wish you luck and success in whatever you do.


It sounds like you are hurting

I am no longer living with my children

If you want someone to talk to about things PM me
 
Understand that smoking is a ritual. There's many actions that have nothing to do with smoking but have everything to do with your habit. The opening of the pack, pulling it out, tamping the end, putting it to your lips, fidgeting with your lighter, flicking the lighter or match all happen before that first drag.
Man, all of this verbage makes me want to light up. :p

When you say "don't smoke" your brain hears "smoke". Instead of saying "I'm not going to smoke" say "I'm going to make healthier choices" so the word never appears. And understand that you don't "quit" a habit but rather "replace" it. So you must replace that bad habit with one that is positive.
good idea. use positive self-talk instead of negative - much like " I will not forget...." versus " I will REMEMBER.."

I quit five minutes at a time. Every time I wanted a cig I made myself wait five more minutes.

It's a lot of willpower required to do this though. Your mettle will be tested. Don't let the bastards win, I'm tellin' ya!

Wanna know what's even harder to quit? Gnawing your fingernails.

Best of luck.
I smoke cigarettes yet it's an occasional thing and don't I consider myself a "smoker". Sometimes I'll go weeks or a few times months without one, and the pack I have goes stale.

On the other hand, the vast majority of people who see myself or anyone like me smoking, automatically categorize them as life-long two pack a day smokers. The social stigma.

Using the same logic, everyone who has a drink is automatically a drunk. Not quite fair.

I genuinely feel bad for those who are addicted, heavy smokers.

Also, I can't stand second-hand smoke. It makes me gag, even if I'm smoking myself.

Overall, life is short and too short for me to suggest others how to live their own. We all know the possible consequences of smoking.
 
I'm a smoker. I smoke 3 - 5 cigs a day; rarely more, rarely less. A pack lasts me 5-7 days without fail and I've been smoking for 34 years. I love smoking and I love it with coffee...frankly I don't think I plan on quitting. I smoke the Marlboro Special Blend red variety and to me they taste wonderful. There are few things as enjoyable as lighting up on a cool night with a nice cup of coffee.

Am I dumb? Yes, I think so. I'm sure there will be a price to pay. The fiddler will catch up to me one day I suspect. There is nothing good about smoking even at my clip. No matter how you look at it, it is unhealthy and causes damage. It often makes me ask a very difficult question which is "what is it about myself that I don't value such that I'm willing to hurt myself with this behavior..." Not a pleasant question.

I hope you can drop your habit! It is not easy. Be smarter than someone like me who is stubborn and won't quit. No amount of justifying the behavior (like I do) will stop the cumulative effects to your health. Unfortunately, for some of us, it may take an event....a bad one....to tear us away from the powerful allure of the smoking process.

You *can* do it....make a list of all the reasons you have around you to be healthy and active!
 
You guys that have replied to my thread are just beautiful, awesome people and bad ass cats for taking the time to respond to my feeble attempt to ask for advice.

Thank you to you all, it means a lot

By all means, keep the posts coming.....
 
Drumkat, if you want to quit, have you asked TColumbia37 how he has managed it?
 
if we were meant to smoke we would've been made with chimneys.
I enjoy occasional cigar or plant ionce or twice a year though.....
 
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