Hi, Im new to this blogging malarkey so forgive me if I waffle a tad! 2 months ago I was diagnosed with emphasyma & was told today that I have a 65% lung capacity! I was also fitted with a pacemaker 6 weeks ago after suffering indigestion-like symptoms and taken to A&E where it was discovered I had a type 2 heart block, slow heartbeat & the electical impulses were cutting out at times, it's been a busy couple of months I can tell you!! I have been suffering from depression for a number of years which started after the death of my partner, who died of emphasyma nearly 8 years ago!! I find it so ironic, that I now have what my partnr died from! I am 53 years old and have been a smoker since I was 11 years old, although I am now trying to give up - any good tips anyone?
Emphasyma: Hi, Im new to this blogging... - Lung Conditions C...
Emphasyma
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Hi Rastagilly and welcome to the forum, there's always room for another on here 
I'm still in the novice stakes of being a non smoker (18 days) but I chose to do it this time by going cold turkey. Smoking was the habit, but nicotine was the drug. I have such a sadistic personality, I'm enjoying this starvation of nicotine It's held me in it's grasp for 45years, so now this is payback!
It doesn't matter how you do it though, there are many nicotine replacement therapies, books, motivational talks etc., it's what feels right for you. You will get tremendous support from the folks on here - not nagging, not demanding you quit, just positive reinforcement and support.
I've been finding the longer I'm off those white sticks, the more infrequent those cravings are getting, but I took on the battle one ciggie at a time. Every time I got over the craving, I treated myself with a tasty Malteser (okay, probably a handful at a time), or a wine gum. Keep your fidgeting fingers busy, and also change the timing of things. My worst cravings always befell me after dinner at 6pm. I still eat dinner, I changed the time, and that's worked for me. I'm no longer getting that craving.
I wish you the best of luck with this, and know if you want to do this, you can - in your own time
Sandra x x
Hi Sandra
Thanks for your reply and encouragement, at present I am using nicotine tabs that you let dissolve under the tongue and if Im honest I don't rate them much, but now Im determined to add a dollop of will-power into the mix and see how I go from there - changing times sounds a great idea so will give that a try and see how that works.
Again, thanks for your reply - very glad I came across this site 
Gina
Welcome Rastagilly you will find lots of support here, you can waffle all you like we all do.
Hi exblonde - Im very glad I came across this community, browsing through I have already picked up some very useful information and tips. I have a feeling I will become a regular visitor with, hopefully, plenty to waffle about! lolx
Hi Rastagilly welcome on board. I use the nicotine lozenges as well as a matter of fact I'm still using them 4 years on. Keep going with them it's so very hard at first but believe me it dose get easier.
Welcome Rastagilly
What rotten luck. Best of luck with giving up smoking. I was lucky and have never smoked but my husband did and I saw what a struggle it was for him to give up. I still got asthma and bronchiectasis so don not beat yourself up too much about smoking - it seems it is the luck of the draw. But now it is the best thing you can do to help yourself by giving up. Since I joined the community I have seen a lot of support to those who are giving up so please let us know how it is going for you so that we can help you.
Lesley
The way I stopped smoking was to chain smoke so that my tongue was so so furry that I could not put another cig. To my mouth I felt ugh! It worked for me as the new patches had come out and my Doctor has informed me that if I wore a patch and smoked I would overdose. That's the word that got me hence I never put the patch on in the first place....'overdose'. Too strong a word.
Hi, my son gave up with the Alan Carr book. I just stopped though I was never a heavy smoker and didn't smoke for a long time.
I've noticed that many here have become non smokers by using Champix.
More people will come on to help, advise and support you. Also the BLF have a page here somewhere with their very good ideas.
Very warm welcome to you and good luck with stopping, it's the single best thing you can do for yourself and your lungs. P
I think that it takes 3 days (or approximate) to clear the nicotine,
cc
Cravings related to nicotine withdrawal should diminish in another day or so. Breaking the habit can be more difficult. Your support is very important. Finding substitutions are important: crunchy foods, new activity, exercise, sleep, meditation are good coping mechanisms.
This helped me, I knew that after a day or two it would not be the nicotine I required but the hand to mouth, the habit of years.
So I purchased the cigarette inhalers, hand to mouth, the electronic ones were far to close to smoking that they can be inclined to lead you back to the real thing.
Good luck and remind yourself that after a day or so it is not the nicotine you need to tackle but the habit.
Ros x x
Hi Rastagilly. Welcome to the site.
I was diagnosed a year ago after I gave up smoking, like one or two others on here, i had no symptoms if it before i quit. I have been on this site ever since. Firstly, 65% lung function is pretty good although I appreciate you have other health problems too.
It's therefore even more important to quit so that you can stop your emphysema getting worse. As others have said, there are lots of ways to quit. After several failed attempts I did it through my GPs smoking cessation clinic. I found the support helped and I took Champix, which as far as I am concerned is a miracle drug. You start the tablets and smoke for up to 2 weeks. By the end of that 2 weeks I no longer got any kick from cigarettes and I couldn't taste them, so I just stopped. That was 18 months ago and I have not had one since.
As Champix does not contain nicotine, I lost the addiction o that pretty quickly.
Whatever method you choose, I wish you lots of luck.
Lynne xx
Champix from our stop smoking shop,prescription only. Smoked for 45yrs,been clean for 4 in September,no pressure,dont expect you to stop first go. Good luck and have a treat box for all the money saved.
Your body takes a while to get used to not smoking but giving up definitely helps slow down the progress of the condition. I stopped after 53 years with the help of patches.. Best thing I ever did. Good luck, keep well. Joyce
I was very lucky to be able to stop immediately I was diagnosed over 2 years ago,I realised I had to otherwise I wouldn't have been around much longer.there is lots of help and support here,you are never alone and folks will always do their best to pick you up,And of course theirs always the BLF hotline to help you.
Good luck and. And a big warm welcome.i hope we can hear more from you soon.
Xx
Hi rastagilly welcome to this lovely site iam new to the site to I only joined last week the people in this site have given lots of good advice Iam to stopping smoking Ian on day 3 of not having a ciggy and yes it's hard but.like everyone said it's so worth it good luck v DC
Hi and welcome Rastagilly. two years ago I had a mild heart attack and angina. I blamed the fags so gave up there and then and haven't looked back since. Like Lynne, it was after I gave up smoking that I was diagnosed with emphysema. I was ok before that. Rather odd but there you go !
Hi i and my family suffer from asthma there was 6 out of 7 with the illness ,,unfortunately we lost our sister to emphysemia at xmas,she smoked and was asthmatic,I smoked and have asthma i tried over and over again to get of the fags,nictotene patches chewing gum tabs under your tongue i did stop but not for long i don t rate NRT either.I then read the book Alan CARR S the easy way,I have not smoked since ,i was on 20 a day for around 27 years,i now wake up in the morning i dont think of fags i have food ,again no thought of fags and drink beer no thought of fags.In fact its as though i have never smoked i feel great i have my life back please give this a go ,if you do i really hope it works for you goodluck Sean
Hi! My husband, his son and two of his brothers (all life time smokers) have given up by using an electronic cig called Vaping I think...look up Vaping on line. You can start at a high strength and work down to nothing... But still continue getting your "fix" and a feeling of a hit at the back of your throat ..apparently lol. Also I know for a fact that my husband and his son both of whom had a really bad smokers cough are now no longer coughing. I would recommend this method of cutting down and ultimately quitting over patches etc. good luck! Ps I was a smoker myself for many years but after having major surgery and being stuck in ICU for weeks I quit with patches.
hi and welcome your with nice people hear anything u are not sure of someone on hear will advice u/ i have found that out myself ,take care
Mindset is soooooooooo important! However you do it remind yourself that you are choosing to be a non smoker!
Good luck with the quest!
Auntymary xx
Well as you will have noticed everyone stops smoking in different ways. I finally stopped after 45 yrs of puffing. I did not stop when I was diagnosed with copd, kept on puffing for several more years. I have caused even more damage by carrying on puffing away. I think you are doing the right thing by trying to give up now. Well done, what ever route you decide to take to quitting the evil weed there are plenty of people behind you on this site. Oh four months no smoking for me. Good luck xx
Well done nixy but thank you also for admitting that you did not give up right away after being diagnosed - I was diagnosed about a month ago and had every intention of giving up but ..... had been feeling such a failure for not giving up yet, especially when reading brave people like nowheeze's winning battle with the weed, so just nice to know I'm not the only 'idiot' (no offence meant) who has not given up immediately. And well done on the four months.
Hi there, It's a tough one alright. I started when I was 9, I'm now 49. I got to stage 4 or very severe before it was diagnosed..It was impossible for me to continue to enjoy smoking as every time I smoked I realised that I was little more than a puppet for the illness. You don't smoke out of choice, though you may think you do, you are not a person with a disease, you are now a disease who has a person. Little more than a slave who has been stripped of free will and will do what this disease demands until you die from it. I know this sounds very brutal but the reality of this illness is really horrible, This is for real, every time you smoke the sickness wins, I think it quite important that you understand the disease as a real living entity, a thing that wants nothing more than your slow painful death, and the first thing it takes from you is your free will. You have the illusion of free will until you chose to give up , then you will find out who's in charge.
This worked for me. Find a good (recommended) hypnotherapist. Book an appointment and just don't even think about it until you are actually in the chair. Submit totally to the process. We are often unable to fix things within ourselves, we need proffessionals to repair or set straight those things we can't. I knew I didn't have the will power to quit without help, I didn't have time to weigh up the pros & cons the this and that of it. Had I waited to find the strength in myself I would not be here now.
Giving up smoking is not quitting a habit , it is excorcism plain and simple. And COPD is not some benign disease, it is a living conscious parasite that demands the death of the host once it has sucked every last drop of joy and life out of it's existence.
I am truly sorry to put all this in such stark terms, many may find this too preachy, or just too harsh, but as you know this is a real killer and in a very real sense this is a matter of life and death, you must harden your mind to it .
I really wish you all the best, it will be tough, but nowhere near as tough as not quitting. I smoked my last cigarret on the 10th Dec last year. I still crave the odd puff but I'm buggered if I'm going to be kicked around by some cheap disease.
All I have to do now is work on my sydlexia.
Welcome to the site, i use the e-cigs, nothing else worked for me. The alan carr book was a bugger to light lol
HA HA like it scars made me laugh. Welcome to the site rastagilly, I love the name how did you come up with it? My dad had emphysema too, and I have bronciecatasis and other health problems I gave up the fags 7 years ago and I went cold turkey, hubby gave up using the gum and is now addicted to the gum, its not easy. Any way I wanted to say a very big welcome Best wishes Julie
Hi rastagilly. I gave up six years ago, having tried three previous occasions without lasting more than a couple of months. I found the inhalator worked for me. Gave me a instant hit of nicotine when I got desperate. Have you tried contacting the stop smoking organisation for help? There's a whole range of help available. Best of luck.
Yes stop it..... try patches or chewing gum has worked for a lot of people & I hope it helps you too .good luck.
Peggy🌹
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