First Post, First Quit Attempt in 18 years. - Smoking Cessation Message Board

Jafo232 · 12-14-2004, 11:38 PM

Let me start out by saying I started smoking around the age of 13 on and off, and basically really started around the age of 16. I am 35 years old and I have come to the realization that I must quit this habit. It is so unhealthy, I know if I continue, my chances of a normal lifespan are seriously diminished. The last time I tried to quit I was about 18 years old and in High School and it lasted about 4 days cold turkey and I couldn't take it and started again.

I would also like to say that by no means do I want to stop smoking because I do not enjoy it. In fact, I cannot remember a cigarette that I smoked that I did not enjoy. I love the taste, the smell and the feel of smoking. If there was a way that I could continue smoking and be somewhat reassured that it would not take me out any earlier in life than if I didn't smoke, I wouldn't even consider quitting.

Over the years my smoking has increased to about a 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 a day smoker depending on conditions. The other day, for no particular reason, I picked up a pack of nicoderm (21mg) and this morning, instead of waking up and lighting a smoke, I put the patch on. Most of the day in fact, I did not have too many cravings, but the later it is getting, the more I am craving them.

I am hoping perhaps the patch is losing it's potency, and when I put a new one on in the morning, the cravings will go down. I have been trying to do just about anything to get my mind off of smoking. Working seems to actually do the trick, which I thought the opposite would have been true. Unfortunately, I write code for a living and you basically just cannot stare at a computer screen all day, so when I do just about anything else, I am in hell.

I don't mind the occasional craving like I had earlier in the day (like one or two an hour), but they seem to be getting more common. Does this ever go away? Do they decrease?

I have read many of the threads in this forum hoping to get more feedback on everyones personal experience on when the cravings started to ease, or at least a reduction in their frequency.

I know not everyone's experiences are the same but any advice you can give me here will really help.

I really wish I could ride my mountain bike, but weather here in NY is really not cooperating. There is not much you can do for excersizing around here this time of year that would get my mind off it.

Anyway, any reply will be helpful, and thanks.

Jafo232 · 12-16-2004, 12:32 AM

Here I sit, smoking a cigarrette after two days of quitting...

I just could not get any work done writing code jones'ing for a smoke. I was constantly bouncing around. My energy level went through the roof while it remains 15 degrees outside.

When I bought the patch in the store a little voice in my head told me now is not the time, wait until spring when you excersize and actually like going outside, but I knew I was just rationalizing. Part of me fears I am now, but I am going to put off quitting until I can mountain bike again. During the entire year I rode that bike 5 days a week and would even take it to the store instead of driving my car.

This time of year, (November - March) I am basically stuck inside my home working very hard. I am a free-lance programmer and generally I squeeze in as much work as possible this time of year so I can work less in the spring/summer/fall and get out. Being basically a shut-in for this time, add the stress of double-time working, plus holidays, weather, etc, I just think it is too much to expect a succesful quit attempt. After I came to this realization, I was very down in the dumps. It makes me feel like I am just making another excuse not to quit. What really makes it worse, I know if I did not have so much on my plate I could definitely do it. These two days taught me that I have come a long way since I was 18, and have much more willpower.

I came accross this article which really cheered me up, and I think I will follow this idea:

http://my.webmd.com/hw/health_guide_atoz/aa153040.asp?navbar=aa99125

In particular, it notes bad times to quit:

* High-stress times.
* Times when you feel low or depressed.
* Periods in which you have little contact with friends or family. However, if those friends or family members smoke or if you are usually around people who smoke, a good time to quit might be a period of time when you are away from them.
* Just before a holiday. (Holidays require a lot of energy and may provide more temptations than other times of the year. For this reason, the "Great American Smoke-Out," which is held near Thanksgiving and Christmas, may not be a good day for some people.)
* Right after a serious loss or difficult life change (the death of someone close, a stressful move). However, if the life change is seen as progress towards a better future, it might be a good time to quit. For example, immediately following a divorce may be a bad time or a very good time to quit, depending on your attitude toward this life change.

The first three pretty much describe my scenario, all of which will not be the case in the spring. I am trying to decide on a good date to set as my quit date, and I think I am going to settle on May 2 (It is a Monday, good day to quit).

I would like to thank those who are running this site, much of what I read in these threads was helpful.

In the end, these last two days were an eye-opener for me. I did come to the realization that quitting is not as bad as my childhood memories would have me believe. That I can go at least two days is helpful. I just hope that I stick to this new plan and finally rid myself of this plague.

Loud · 12-16-2004, 03:08 PM

Hello, Jafo. I hope you can stay quit. Most people have to go through several quits, before they "get it right". I was one of those people...Now I have emphysema, diffuse lung nodules, and lung scarring. I did quit...almost 2 1/2 years now..But the damage has been done. You started smoking very young. The younger a person starts smoking, the more damage they do to their lungs...Its dangerous especially for someone under the age of 18, to start smoking. It has to do with the fact that young lungs are still developing, when a person starts poisoning them. My advice to you: stop thinking about how great cigarettes are: and start focusing in on how you might end up with a lung disease, like me, if you don't quit and stay quit. Period. Makes no difference to me if you start smoking again. Look: if you develop a lung disease, its YOU who has to face the consequences. No one will sit up at night, worrying about you. I wish someone had really told me the truth: maybe I could have just quit before so much damage occured...Deb