Speak not to me, yon cur. If thou persists, I shall be forced to slay thee.

Today was pretty rough. I'm fortunate in that most of my friends don't actually smoke but it felt weird to stay indoors throughout all of lunch knowing full well that there's some wonderful smokes available outside. Nobody's tried to pressure me into picking it up again at least.

Everytime you think its hard to quit think about this. My brother in law was 52 years old today. He passed on from bone cancer which was metasticized from his lungs. He smoked over a pack a day of cigarettes which were the cause of his death. Everytime you think about lighting up remember this.

Circe, hope it's going well for you. The nicotine monkey is a mother to get off your back.

I quit 4-5 years ago, but only because I was pregnant with my lovely daughter and had no other option. I know there aren't words to describe the *need.* I'm sure you know all the dirty details on what smoking does to your body, if not, research them again. That's the only thing that kept me from smoking while pregnant-- knowledge of what cigarettes will do.

Again, good luck!

Quitting smoking has to be the hardest thing to do. I have tried and failed several times myself.

Also knowing what cigarettes could do to your unborn child is reason enough to stop!

I'm doubtful anyone was on the edge of their seat waiting to hear the latest news of my exciting exploits but in a nutshell, I'm still going. I hate to say I'm safe now but I certainly don't have cigs in the back of my mind as much as I did at the back of January, although I still couldn't hang around a bunch of smokers without giving in to temptation, without a doubt. One of my friends has decided to try and drop the smokes for Lent and is looking to me for support on it if anything goes wrong with him so I guess I'm in a position with responsibility now. I'd say the prospects are continuing to look good, although I'm still concerned that I could relapse (can you really use that word for something like smoking?) with the slightest push.

You've done amazing, most people fall at the first hurdle. You can do it, you done it for this long when it is at it's hardest. You don't give yourself enough credit!

Well done so far Circle. I have cut down in general recently and now I am skint. Hope I continue even when I have some more dosh.

It was so weird...one day I just seriously didn't feel like another cigarette.

Quitting the herb was another story...especially since my connection just sent me a message that he is re-supplied. AHHHHHH

I stopped the cigs far easier than the good smokes too, I'm hoping I grow out of that as well.

:laughing:

Have you genuinely not had even 1 puff of a cigarette since you quit (January 2nd wasn't it?)

I smoked weed every day for 3 years from the age of 13. Then when I was 16 I went on holiday for two weeks, the first thing I did when I came back was light up a zoot. After about half it blew my head off and I couldn't handle weed again. It put me off. I've smoked it twice since then (2005.)

Great Circe :) the worst part is over. Now you just gotta stick with it!

I wish any and all who are quitting the abso best!

If you need any inspiration, this is what a couple months of radiation to your throat looks like:

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphot..._4805486_n.jpg

The funny bit? I don't/didn't even smoke! I just got "bad luck" cancer. I'm fine now (more or less) but trust me: YOU DON'T WANT THIS ****!

Stay strong and rock on!

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphot...67550095_n.jpg

Well done mate.

Think people become a bit desensitised to all the scaremongering on boxes and the like but when it's like that it seems more real and does really make you think.

Hope things are going well Circe, and to anyone else attempting this.

I tried as a new years and failed...but I've definitely cut down from last year. Has helped having a transfer in work and not having to watch the office empty every half hour, luckily I'm miles away from an exit and nobody else smokes which is good as the temptation to smoke is pitted against my laziness and usually theres only one winner there...but basically all my mates smoke so its hard to get away from it, and every time one of those bloody stop smoking adverts comes on all think about is having another one.

Thanks.

Btw, there used to be a local band here (Gainesville Florida USA) called Fluffy Kitty.

Im trying to quit right now, I get moody

It continues to amaze me people are so illiterate they associate any/all mouth/throat/lung cancer with smoking.

I've tried a few times, but I can't do it. I mean, I could, but I wouldn't have a job if I did. I jest you not. It is a stress relief, and I'm under a fair amount of stress these days. When the new phone system has evened itself out, it may be better (i.e. not 100+ calls in queue from the time I get there 'til the time I leave) but then we have the new system for managing accounts late next month, so that'll be a few more months of chaos.

I successfully quit smoking in August of 2011. I did this by switching to dip.

Tobacco. Works for helping you quit tobacco.

I tried snus once. Then, I got fairly drunk and smoked on top of snus. Never do that.

You can (and will) vomit.

Snus is actually really good, but you have to get the real stuff (get it shipped from Europe).
Don't try the Camel stuff. Just loaded with sugar and will rot your teeth out, and is way stronger than it should be.

The only reason I don't go with just the real Snus is it's too much of a b*tch to get sent here.
I'd really love to have some sort of purely natural tobacco leaf dip without the sugar and extra crap. I think that would be great to use and get used to, then slowly get off that and replace the oral fixation with something like sunflower seeds or what have you.

As far as the smoking thing though, those e-ciggs are pretty successful if you're just worried about the health aspect. My parents have been on e-ciggs for about 2 years now and no longer smoke cigarettes. They were heavy smokers prior. The only problem is they're constantly sucking on those things, non-stop. The addiction to the act of smoking isn't changed, nor is the nicotine addiction. It is just a less destructive replacement. Unfortunately, the hand-mouth fixation will still remain even if they vape juice with zero percent nicotine. And because that same fixation is there, it's really easy to fall back to actual cigarettes.
I think quitting from smokeless tobacco could be easier because replacing the fixation after the physical addiction has passed is a lot more realistic than carrying around a pretend cigarette.

I'm amazed if you've only read literature that says no cases of mouth/throat/lung cancer are associated with smoking.

I mean, not all cases could be attributed to smoking as well. My great grandmother was recently treated for lung cancer, and no one in my family ever EVER smokes around her, for fear of judgment. And she's never smoked. To the best of her knowledge, no one in our family has ever smoked. She also thinks beer is evil.

She was scandalized when we had wine and beer at my sister's wedding.

It just happens. This area, I suppose, we have a steel mill and an oil refinery, so that decreases air quality. But not all cancer is smoking related. And she didn't even get cancer until she was well into her eighties. She's fine now, because she's as strong as an ox, but she never so much as puffed a satan tobacco stick.

Quit smoking isn’t simple. Since it came into existence your routine of everyday and
becoming section of your lifetime. Strong and purpose desire is essential part during this period of quit smoking .Increase having of water additionally will help create your body healthier and help eliminate contaminants and poor supplies from the body. help yourself and help others . Don't smoke

Trying quite hard to quit right now. Had one cigarette in the last two days and probably only three in the last five.

then quit dilly-dallying, commit to that shit and cold turkey that mother fucker.

It's unfortunate that people often assume that persons with lung or throat cancer got it from smoking.

Obviously I wasn't doing that since I got throat cancer and am a non-smoker. I also recently played guitar at the funeral of a church member who died from lung cancer and never smoked. In fact, before her illness she was an Olympic-level swimmer.

The unassailable fact is that the absolute worst thing one can do vis-a-vis avoiding cancer is to smoke cigarettes.

I cracked a molar recently. Had I not had throat cancer and gotten radiation treatments, it would've required a simple tooth extraction. Instead, just today I learned from the oral surgery department at the hospital that I have to have a total of THIRTY hyperbaric chamber treatments (20 before and ten after) just for them to pull ONE DANG TOOTH.

http://nfrmc.com/util/images/Hyperbarics2.jpg

Again, if you smoke, please STOP.

How are the quitters of MB getting on with this then?

Have pretty much been on and off for a few months. The e-cig works fantastic, well when I have it on me. I find I generally smoke the e-cig just to play with smoke out of boredem but that's mostly why I smoked cigs anyway.

My dad said he took up smoking because he was bored and then gave it up because he got bored of it :laughing:

Also if you're giving up, have asthma and do decide to try the e-cigs be quite careful because mines can make me very wheezy sometimes so always have an inhaler on hand. I think that's cos I play with it so I'm almost constantly taking a puff sometimes.

Considering buying an e-cig for my dad. He really needs to quit to be honest as he has COPD (look it up, you can't cure it. All you can do, is slow down it's progression. The trap I'm worried about him getting in to is him thinking because his breathing is OK now he can carry on smoking cos once things start to get worse you are done.)

Still maintain that book is the best way to quit. The ratings are ridiculous:

Allen Carr's Easy Way to Stop Smoking: Be a Happy Non-smoker for the Rest of Your Life: Amazon.co.uk: Allen Carr: Books

The vast, vast majority of the 1-3* ratings are from people who didn't even bother to finish reading it. I bought it for my dad and he didn't finish reading it. He's been blackballed from the 'quit smoking' industry though, who would rather sell you something containing nicotine and keep you coming back.

Indefinitely worth a try. My friends mum has COPD so I know kinda what it's like and smoking certainly isn't any good for it. :(

Cheers Fetch, how bad is your friend's mom's COPD? Does she still smoke?

I'm going to buy my dad an e-cig, I've bought him patches, inhalators and books. Really don't want to get to the point where I can say I know what COPD is like tbh cos I know how nasty it can get. I just want him to stop tbh.

Trying to persuade someone to quit is like pissing in the wind though. I can only do so much but I am terrified as my dad is getting on a bit now.

My mom smokes too but she is far too ignorant to even consider quitting.

I'm contemplating quitting. But I don't wanna quit completely. I just wanna smoke when I really wanna smoke, and not every hour or two like I do now. I guess what I'm saying is I don't wanna be addicted. But then who does.

No one likes a quitter.

Circe how are you getting on?