I'm on day 20 of Chantix and am still smoking. I'm only smoking 2 or 3 a day but just can't give it up. Am I not ready? Am I too weak? Am I not trying hard enough? I've given up the 2 hardest times to go w/o smoking of the day but for some reason I can't quit completely.
I'm probably going to get a lot or responses to just do it. Believe me, that's what I've been telling myself. I hate to admit it but i'm starting to think maybe I should try this again another time? I know it's not a miracle pill, and the smokes do taste pretty bad but i'm not sure i have the will power for some reason not matter how bad they taste.
The doctor wanted to see me in person before giving me the 2nd months prescription to see how i'm doing. That appt is on 3/7. I guess I'll keep trying and see what he says.
Hey Clearwater, fellow Floridian! You can do this, I never thought I could eventually give them up either. You just have to do it, like you said. Smoke the rest of the pack up, and set a quit date. For that day, you will not smoke. If you need to smoke the next day, go ahead. But try for one whole day. I still have 3 packs of smokes unopened in the pantry, but I set my quit day for last Friday night, and haven't smoked one since. Once you get thru that first day, the 2nd day is easier, but if you can't do it, you can't do it.
Are you sure you want to quit? Have you written down your reasons why? Can you tape them to your bathroom mirror so every day you see them and remind yourself why you want to quit! It's hard, believe you me, I never thought it would be a picnic, but I found the Chantix really works for me. Do you have somebody supporting you? I was lucky, my sister, husband and friend all quit at the same time so it was kinda fun asking, "how you doing" - "What are you feeling now" "Can you sleep" Comparing your symptoms and feelings. And knowing you are not alone!!
If you don't have anybody, please, please use this message board!! Everyone here is super friendly, and we've all been in your shoes before. Traveller and MeMaw and Kevin and Mangojunky - I feel like they are my best friends in the whole world!! They are the best for cheering you on and encouraging you to just do it. But you have to be ready and you have to want to quit.
So, go back, regroup, rethink, write it down, and try going for a day without cigs and see how you do. If you don't have any in the house to smoke, you can't smoke them, right? So get rid of what you have and keep yourself busy for 24 hours. Then see how you feel. You might not be ready - but if you are, we're here for you.
I have been quit for 4 Days, 3 hours, 31 minutes and 30 seconds (4 days). I have saved $6.21 by not smoking 41 cigarettes. I have saved 3 hours and 25 minutes of my life. My Quit Date: 2/23/2007 7:00 PM
It's very important to (1) set a date to start the pill and (2) a date to 'quit'. I procrastinated for a few weeks to get the Rx filled and then to start. Once I started and thought about my quit date (a Friday) I revised it to the following Monday and made sure 3 people knew my quit date (my live-in bf and my parents (who actually live downstairs). Although I've been extremeley selective with the people I've told, I think it's an important step to at least tell one person---although I 'quit' for me, having someone else know adds a bit to the pressure of 'doing' it. Sounds like you're just procrastinating the 'quit'. You're not enjoying them but it's easier to just keep having that couple a day than fighting the battle you know is to come. Believe me, Chantix makes that battle easier but it's still tough. You need to sit down, write down the reasons you are on Chantix to begin with, pick a quit date, tell someone and then QUIT. You WANT to quit and you CAN quit. For me there were 2 keys to my 2W 2D success thus far: Chantix and this board. You're on the Chantix and you're on teh board. You have the 2 best tools at your disposal. We're here for you. GOOD LUCK AND PLEASE SET A QUIT DATE.
ClrwtrQuitter,
Hi! You seem to be a little nervous to stop smoking. I understand that. I was too. I was terrified!! I had gone 40 years without missing one day of smoking.
Since you are on day 20 of the Chantix, the nicotine is not doing anything for you now. So it must be the habit that you are having trouble with. You are going to have to bite the bullet and not smoke any cigarettes for one day. That is the only way you are going to quit. Please give it a try. I do know how hard that is. The first day without a cigarette for me was terrible. I tried to sleep as much as possible. If I was sleeping, I couldn't be smoking. I also cried that first day. But I did make it through. Then came the second day. I thought WOW I made it one full day without smoking, I can make it two. It was easier after that. I don't know what else to tell you. It can be done. And you can do it!!
Hey Mark, it's great to hear back from you!!! I'm really glad you came back to let us know how you're doing.
First off, there is absolutely nothing wrong with you. Let's get that settled right up front. Chantix affects every one differently. Even if it's providing 90% of the help you need to quit, then you're off to a pretty good start. I had to wait a whole two weeks before it built up enough in my system. So don't feel too terribly awful about three weeks.
Second off, this attempt to quit has not failed. You're still working at it. You still want to quit. You have not even gotten to the point of starting over. You're just getting there buddy...
Now I'm going to suggest something rather unorthodox, but it worked wonders for my quit, so here goes. (Ok, Ok, don't holler at me too loud...)
I planned a quit date of Monday when I would have to go back to work. (Mondays were busier so I had less opportunity to smoke.) The Thursday before my quit day, I went out and bought some of those "Nicotine Free" cigarettes at the gas station. They are called "Quest-3". There are other makers of nicotine free cigarettes. Some are made with clove. Some are made with herbs. I then came home and threw out all the regular cigarettes I normally smoked. I then smoked nothing but the Quest-3's for the next four days leading up to my quit date.
During the first two weeks of taking Chantix I felt like I was going through nicotine withdrawal. When I switched over to the nicotine free cigarettes, I felt like I was going through another minor withdrawal all over again. Smoked quite a bit of them during those four days, but did not get any nicotine out of them that I could tell any way. They tasted pretty "blah", but I knew this approach was going to help me quit.
When Monday morning rolled around, I had already finished my last Quest-3. I thought about smoking more that morning, but I said to myself, "Hey you already quit the nicotine habit last Thursday. The worst is over already.". I had already been nicotine free for four days. (I.e. The worst days...) From that point on I was simply dealing with the old habit - not the addiction. (I guess you could say I faked myself out.) At that point I simply laid-down-the-law and decided SMOKING IS NOT AN OPTION ANY MORE. Thats it... Good bye... Sianara... Not a part of MY life any more... You have to be good to yourself from now on. The end...
For me, I really had to PLAN out my quit day well in advance. Monday night after work I took myself out to a smoke free restaurant to avoid the smell of smoke in my house. Even took myself out to the movies afterward. That was just a small part of the PLAN that I set up to deal with the triggers. I had a blast!!! I bought some of those electronic Honeywell HEPA air filters and turned them on Monday morning, so by the time I got home the house smelled pretty good. Went right to bed. Did the same thing all over again the next day.
Now for me to get through an entire morning of not smoking was big. So by Monday afternoon I was pretty proud of myself and figured, "Hey, let's keep this thing going." You just take it hour by hour, day by day after that.
Keep in mind the average number of cravings you should expect to have on quit day is usually no more than six and they should not last much longer then 2-3 minutes. I know you might think it seems longer, but watch the clock and you will see they really don't last that long. Gone before you know it. The Chantix helps speed up this process too, so you may find they don't last any longer than a minute.
In short, set a TARGET DAY, make a very good PLAN, keep PATTING YOURSELF ON THE BACK all during the quit, and by all means keep coming back to chat with us because having a bunch of Quit Buddies takes all the sting out of this exercise. And remember that if you DO quit smoking, you will never want to take another puff and have to go through this crap again.
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