Giving Up Smoking

Im now done smoking. Have been on e-cigs for the past 6 months and now that I am slowly starting not to see the need for that also, my time is coming to an end.

It is scary to think overall how much money you have burned. :(
 
Hats off to you going cold turkey OP, after that amount of time smoking. I quit cold turkey before and it's not nice. Keep yourself busy!
 
Just over 3 years since I gave up now & still going strong.

The amount of money saved from not buying cigarettes in that time is £25,582
 
Just over 3 years since I gave up now & still going strong.

The amount of money saved from not buying cigarettes in that time is £25,582

So you were spending on average £150 a week on smoking then Keith? No wonder you needed to give it up :eek:
 
That's at today's prices Rich

But yes I was smoking between 50-60 a day.

Best thing I even did was giving up smoking, for sure I put a bit of weight on but the benefits of not smoking far out weigh the extra few pounds I'm now carrying
 
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That's at today's prices Rich

But yes I was smoking between 50-60 a day.

Best thing I even did was giving up smoking, for sure I put a bit of weight on but the benefits of not smoking far out weigh the extra few pounds I'm now carrying

Bloody hell, well done on packing it in though. The thing is we are all different, at the end of the day and it relies on will power with whatever method you use.Some will find it easy others will not, it will also depend on what kind of lifestyle you lead, some people have pressure at work or in their family life or both. As mentioned it is all too easy for those that do not smoke to start shouting how disgusting and bad it is, sorry tell us something we do not already know. I started vaping after the heart attack in July, the wife had already given it up 4 months prior to this. She wanted to just have a go with my stuff as she said it smelled lush, she did and really liked it. Then after me breaking my ankle the other month she started smoking again, she only has about four or five a day and goes outside if she wants one. I have since let her try a few of the different liquids I have and she cannot taste a thing. I am at that point and have been for a while where I find the smell of smoking disgusting, however I do not alienate anybody that I am around who happens to be smoking. In fact the strange thing is, there are two couples we know who do not come around to our place now as we don`t allow smoking in the house.No loss to us though.
 
Heart attack here as well, that and my little one telling me she didn't want me to die

Mind you I have not seen much of that £25,000 saving, Mrs Keith has found ways to spend that
 
Getting cancer stopped me. Not lung cancer - breast cancer - but it was still quite motivational. Although giving up while dealing with one of the most stressful events of your life is somewhat challenging. Keep at it OP - weirdly I found carrying mine around and choosing not to smoke was easier than chucking them in the bin.
 
Great to hear that after three years you are still not smoking, Keith.

I have never smoked but would never have a go at anyone who does. As an outsider the physiological and social pressures to continue smoking seem very strong and I have great respect for anyone who has kicked the habit.

Dave
 
I/we stopped up nearly 20 years ago(from 30 a day) cold turkey, don't think there was a choice then, as said get a jar and put the ciggie money in it, empty an ashtray into a ziploc bag and when you get the urge have a sniff it'll help keep you away from the weed, I also found that when the urge struck I pretended to put a fag out out under my foot and this is supposed to fool the brain into thinking you've put one out and don't need another right away. Don't comfort eat and walk briskly when you go out, I've gained a stoine since I've stopped but that's probably down to getting older and a change of career in that time.
Cold turkey is the only way, anything is kidding on, one habit exchanged for another.
 
Cold turkey is the only way, anything is kidding on, one habit exchanged for another.
What an absolute load of crap, i tried cold turkey/will power several times and failed then tried with the help of some tablets, 7/8 years later im still cig free

When you next get a brain tuma remember the only way to get rid of it is to go in through your ears with scissors and cut it out as nothing else works
 
Will power works if you have got it, I've been clean for over thirty years now and it was through will power alone although it was bloody hard going. For those who can't do it on will power, take whatever help you can get! stopping successfully is all that matters.
 
I think smokers can only discuss their own experiences, and what worked or didn't work for them. No-one is really in a position to start making categorical statements about "the only way to stop smoking". Allen Carr did that, but he also mentioned that he used hypnotherapy to stop, before he wrote his books.

Smoking is a form of drug addiction and it's complex, like most addictions, because we're all different. I know people who found it fairly easy to stop, cold turkey or with help from patches, medication or therapy; and others who have battled with it despite trying just about everything they could find. I also know people who gave up long ago and have never been tempted to start again, and others who still get occasional - completely random - cravings, like my son. Others are social smokers, they can smoke a couple of cigarettes at a party, and it doesn't cross their mind to smoke again for months or more, and some people only smoke one or two cigarettes a day, but most of us get hooked quickly and it escalates from there.

Allen Carr also wrote about going out on a boat trip during his smoking days, and realising that he'd run out of cigarettes. He just about had a panic attack at the thought of spending the whole day on a boat without any, and held his friends up until he found a shop and bought some. The funny part was that he didn't smoke any of them during the day, and could never really explain this, but lit up as soon as they got back on shore. I can relate to this. An 11 hour flight from the UK to SA without being able to smoke doesn't bother me, but I start getting impatient and irritable if I get held up at immigration or waiting for my luggage, because I can't smoke for another 10 - 15 minutes.

Anyway, all the best to the smokers here who are trying to stop. I'll let you know how I get on.
 
What an absolute load of crap, i tried cold turkey/will power several times and failed then tried with the help of some tablets, 7/8 years later im still cig free

When you next get a brain tuma remember the only way to get rid of it is to go in through your ears with scissors and cut it out as nothing else works
I'm not allowed scissors so the the last time my brain tumor flared up I went in via my nose with some fencing wire,works every time.:hug:
 
What an absolute load of crap, i tried cold turkey/will power several times and failed then tried with the help of some tablets, 7/8 years later im still cig free

When you next get a brain tuma remember the only way to get rid of it is to go in through your ears with scissors and cut it out as nothing else works

I tried will power several times as well and the last time I tried it, it worked. 1987 IIRC.

Depending on where the brain tumour is, they usually go in through a triangular hole in the skull - you can still see 2 sides of the triangle on my forehead where they went in not to mention the ear to ear scar over the top where they peeled the forehead down to expose the bone. FWIW, apparently my earlier smoking was probably not the cause of the tumour but I doubt it would be part of a recommended cure!
 
I tried will power several times as well and the last time I tried it, it worked. 1987 IIRC.

Depending on where the brain tumour is, they usually go in through a triangular hole in the skull - you can still see 2 sides of the triangle on my forehead where they went in not to mention the ear to ear scar over the top where they peeled the forehead down to expose the bone. FWIW, apparently my earlier smoking was probably not the cause of the tumour but I doubt it would be part of a recommended cure!
LOL
 
And now Carr is dead from lung cancer.
 
I'm smoked 60+ a day for years, I used patches prescribed from the chemist, worked a treat for me, then after I used tic tacs sucking them not chewing when I felt the crave after the patches, one thing you really need is the want to give them up, if you think of it this way, smoking 60+ per day average a month you will spend a month is £600+ that'll get you a decent lens lol, but seriously you're health will benefit in walking sensible eating will keep your weight down, but the one thing as I've said is the need and want top give them up.
I wish you luck with it bud, it's not Easy, but hope you find strength to do it :)
 

Glad you find brain tumours funny. I can assure you it wasn't much fun at the time, especially for Mrs Nod - I was too ill at the time to realise I was ill. Luckily, I came through to this side changed only for the better (let's be honest, even the scars are probably an improvement!) but some haven't been so lucky.
 
Nod, i thought you were having a joke with us in reply to MJ4456's reply just above your initial reply about brain tumours
 
well done Keith, I'm almost 4 years free now :)
 
no way could I do cold turkey after nearly thirty yrs smoking and 30+ a day... I tried loads of times over 30 yrs to give up and nothing worked:( Until..

I did a patch for about 2 days... I then went onto herbal cigarettes from the chemist.. £1 for 20 and they stunk the house out... I smoked them for about 1 year.. then giving up herbal fags was easy....

you still get a pang if your stressy...

My real turning point was about a month into giving up I had a full medical at doctors for somehting unrelated... when told i had recently given up smoking she told me my lungs where clear and no signs of damage after 30 yrs a smoking..eh? i was amazed... it was like being given a second chance in life and no way was I not taking it..


WHY? Did I stop... i couldnt get to the top of the stairs without heaving..IMHO If you give up for money reasons you wont make it..


If you try cold turkey you might but its harder and has horrible side effects as gary coyle states for long term smokers...

For me... My teeth where OK while smoking.... but it seems all the smoking effects your gums and all the badness is stored in swelled smokers gums.. when i gave up my gums went down and all the badness came out.. my teeth started to go weak.. split and broke dead easy.. had to ahve a years dentist work to get them back to good..


so now its the hardest but best thing i did...all this about 15 yrs ago..
 
Well done everyone else who has given up smoking & good luck to those trying to give up which ever way you choose to do it
 
I've just remembered that a friend of mine (photojournalist) went to one of the Allen Carr clinics in South Africa. I saw her a few months later, and she said it worked for her and was pretty painless. That was about a year ago though - I was in the UK for a while - and I should catch up with her.

Anyone else with personal experience of these clinics?
 
Holy thread revival!

Good on you though! It's been about a year for me although I do vape now and again, but I get no nicotine stuff, I just like the different flavors lol. I also have a Shisha pipe on my living room table but that's just for pleasure, I'm not addicted to it, again I just like the flavours.
 
3 years for me,, think I'm definitely cured as my oh has carried on smoking all the way through
 
May 27th will be the 10 year milestone for me. Still don't miss it.
 
Well it is over 4 years now and still going strong
Good stuff.:D

Dad stopped "cold turkey" from 20/day ~35 years ago. He was having health problems, the surgeon said "you have a duodenal ulcer, I won't operate unless you stop smoking" (who says the NHS refusing to treat people who don't look after their own health is a new thing?). He stopped smoking there and then, never restarted.
 
Good stuff.:D

Dad stopped "cold turkey" from 20/day ~35 years ago. He was having health problems, the surgeon said "you have a duodenal ulcer, I won't operate unless you stop smoking" (who says the NHS refusing to treat people who don't look after their own health is a new thing?). He stopped smoking there and then, never restarted.


Dad stopped the same way about 20 years ago because so much of the cost was (and is) tax. Unfortunately it was probably too late for his health - lung cancer took him a few years back. I stopped about 25 years ago when they hit £2.50/20 after a budget. Put on a load of weight which I'm still carrying but working gently on that.

Well done to all who have managed to quit and stay off them!
 
Well I have passed my 5 year anniversary
Well done.

My missus smokes, has tried stopping a few times, but always lapses. She would like to stop again, but she has a lot of pains due to damaged arms, so now is not a good time to try and pack em in.
 
Well done.

My missus smokes, has tried stopping a few times, but always lapses. She would like to stop again, but she has a lot of pains due to damaged arms, so now is not a good time to try and pack em in.
E-cigarettes?
 
Packed up cold turkey beginning of March, worst nine months of my life healthwise both mentally and physically.

Still got dreadful sinus problems although the cilia are working expelling all the tarry nastiness of smoking for forty years

Lung function seems ok, had the spirometry test and to be safe a chest x-ray too, nobody prepares you for just how awful it is.

Good on anyone who packs up using whatever method, just don't start again, pretty sure you would still feel crap anyway
 
I would like to see the figures of how the amount of smokers in the UK has varied over the past X amount of years. I've never been a smoker but it feels like so many less do these days. I hardly know anyone who smokes.
 
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