My name is John, i'm 42 and have been smoking since I was 18.
I smoked 25 a day until TODAY :).
I have made many attempts at quitting and all failed, my most successful attempt was in 2010. I quit as a years resolution using nasal spray nrt, 5 days later attended my local stop smoking service and was prescribed champix. I know that taking champix whilst still smoking was the appropriate route but hey. Well it turned out to work really well, I had no side effects other than a slightly reduced fuse and only slight at that and the champix totally killed my desire to smoke making the quit almost simple. At the end of the course after coming off champix I started getting cravings, intense little gits which I later discovered is quite common and a problem for a lot of people but I just got stubborn and ploughed on through. I then had on of the worst days at work ever, I am a train driver and some poor troubled soul launched themself under my train - not going into further detail I was a smoker again. 25 a day again unless i'm drinking when it's closer to 40-45
So here I am again however this time around the champix is not helping, I started the course 3 weeks and 2 days ago and I am not feeling any benefit from it at all, maybe it will kick in soon, hopefully. I made a descision, keep smoking and hope the champix kicks in or bite the bullet and just stop.
The Result?
I had my last cigarette and half past midnight last night (Sunday), I have to confesss my mind is like a yoyo. One minute I feel like superman and the next like I would win gold for britain in the olympic 'smoke yerself dead' event.
I have got hot sweats (the weather is half the cause) but i'm digging in ready for the battle.
I know from experience how much easier this would be if the champix worked like it did on my previous attempt but it isn't so got dig deep I guess.
Sorry all for my first post sounding like a real whinge from a soft-lad but believe it or not prior to today I would have gone outside halfway through for a smoke so it has been a distraction for me.
For anyone in the same boat I wish you good luck and I know how you feel.
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Good luck to you Chillihound, the days ahead are gonna be a rollercoster, you'll feel FABBO being a non smoker but then in the next instant you could have a horrific craving and feel like the world is going to fall down round your ears, it's that difficult. My only advice would be to hold on tight, the days will pass and the craves will get less and less. This forum helps a lot, there are loads of us in the same boat and I've found the advice, help and support on here invaluable, especially in the earlier days of Hell Week.
Welcome to the site Chillihound, and congratulations on making the decision to quit. Good move.
You're right, you probably will have to dig deep over the next days and weeks, but just take it one crave/hour/day at a time, and focus on that. Soon you'll start to feel better, bit by bit. And it is so worth it. So, SO worth it.
Sorry to hear of your dreadful experience with the suicide. I can't imagine how horrible that must be to deal with and I'm not surprised you smoked, anyone would have.
Best of luck with your quit. You can do this. Hang tough.
Thanks blondie, reading around I have already found many useful posts by your good self - thanks again.
I find having the kids around helps.......sometimes. They have the uncanny knack of making me keep it together just when I could really let go and they don't even know it. Rest of the time the little so and so's drive me mental.
Going for a walk in a minute to the shops, looking forward to NOT spending 6 quid of fags.
A long cold cranberry juice is on the top of my crave list at the mo.
'A long cold cranberry juice is on the top of my crave list at the mo'
Brill, that cranberry juice is going to do you a million times more good than ANY cig ever did for you!
Good to see you are using the word crave for thirst. All craves are emotions or needs of some kind, its only the nicodemon that tricks us into thinking these normal emotional/physical craves can be solved by nicotine.
best wishes for your quit, your making a great start
well done you, now even if you have nothing to distract you just don't think about smoking, condemn it to the trash can, it's nothing and you just don't need it, really you don't, non-smokers don't need it so why should we?
Well day one is drawing to a close. All in all it's not been a massive uphill struggle.
There have been moments when I so wanted a cigarette, times when whilst not even thinking about it I for a split second looked for my fags out of habit but on all occasions I got my head down and muddled through.
Do have an empty feeling like something is missing, had it all day but this is to be expected.
One thing you are not my friend is a soft lad, rather the bravest of the brave for quitting again. Keep on the path my friend, i have just given up today and am feeling pretty bad, but i know there is no gain without a little pain - And the pain of cravings is nothing compared to the pain that being a cigarette smoker can potentially cause......You are doing the right thing.
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