I hope you are all well....and spanking it to your quit!
I have been off work today and had plenty of time to think...a very dangerous thing to do I know....got a headache after a while!
I think I am coming to a tipping point in my quit.
I will soon be attempting to rid myself of my nicotine addiction, just as I have done with my smoking habit.
To me, the two things are poles apart.
I know I am a nicotine addict....I've always known I hated smoking!
If I am really honest the psychological breaking of the habit has been a lot easier this time (a large reason being this forum and my quit buddies).
It is ridding myself of the physical addiction to nicotine that I feel a little apprehensive about.
I know I am probably making more of this than I should but the "fear" of stopping the NRT is comparable to the "fear" of stopping smoking.
However, I know it is the final step in the action plan towards completing my quit.....no question...it will happen!
I have been thinking about my current state of mind and exactly where I am in my own quit.
To be blunt, not smoking is becoming boring and tedious....this I am grabbing and holding onto as a good sign!
I suppose I have been guilty of committing Allen Carr's cardinal sin....I have been "waiting for something to happen!" when in fact it happened, for me, on the 16th October 2012 .... around lunchtime.....just after a ham salad sandwich. (Funny, at this stage I can remember what I had for lunch....but not my last smoke......that's a great feeling!)
I feel I am at a tipping point now.
I feel half way up the ladder, pausing to look around and to be honest enjoying the company and the view......I do see a couple of snakes ahead but there is no way I'm sliding down them any time soon!! Not on my watch!
So 3,4,5,6 month+ and long term quitters......
I would love to know what stage are you at with your quit....and what lies up ahead?
Roll call!!
Take care peeps
Greg
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Nifty .. you have done so well with your quit and helped god knows how many on this forum.
I hope that you can find a way forward re stopping the NRT side of things ,but is there any rush ? I'm sure you will get loads of suggestions from the longer and similar timeline quitters , in the meantime would another ham salad sandwich tip you over into letting go of the no NRT fear ??
You will definitely do it and keep climbing that ladder
To be blunt, not smoking is becoming boring and tedious....
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Greg, you are doing tremendously well, but I am unsure about this statement, I feel you should still be celebrating every milestone, wasn't it you who said, keep your mind green to the reasons why you want to quit.
Stay strong and have another ham sandwich, you can do this, your strength comes from within.
Hiya Greg, I've been quit 4 months, cold turkey. I don't know what stopping your NRT is going to do to you but I can't imagine it'll be any worse than either quitting smoking or the cold you have now!
Up ahead for me? More not smoking, enjoying life, feeling proud of myself, happiness, joy, self respect, more money, clearer lungs, being able to do more physically then ever before, no more fear of being responsible for killing myself and the list goes on and on and on!!!!
Good luck chuck, and I for one will be right here if you need me when you do stop the NRT x
I can understand you're apprehension in breaking the NRT habit but I hope you're not over****ysing things. Try taking it slowly if you're really worried and eventually phase it out. Like Molly I quit cold turkey so haven't faced the problem you have now (apart from quitting smoking). You've broken the smoking habit you can do this, you know you can - you have your cycling as a release (I won't go on too much about that as Molly will tut)!
As for my quit, I'm 3 months in, and have the occasional want for a cigarette but it does pass. My previous serious quit lasted about 3 months too then I fell into the just 1 won't hurt trap.....need to be so careful not to get complacent!!!
hi creg if its any help am on patches step 1,on day 33 as non smoker. about 4/5 days ago i started cutting patch in half. Have talked with my G.P about it and he says thats fine and if it works for me its ok. he did ask why i just don't go down a next step ,but i feel this is right for me, i was smoking 20/30 a day, as my family would say ate cigs morning,noon, and night and tho the night .so at the min am very proud of ME. YOU have done great keep going.
Well Greg so much of what you are saying rings true with my own experiences.
Going nicotine free was a slightly daunting task but once I got round to it, it was no where near as bad as I had feared. Sure it added a challenge for a couple of weeks but not significantly bad that my quit was ever seriously at risk.
I was there with the boring and normal bit too, here are a couple of threads I wrote at the stage you are at.
Just get on with coming off the nicotine it won't be half as bad as you think.
Its an often said "fact" that nicotine is more addictive than heroine and cocaine, that may be true but basically that just means its easier to become addicted to. However, when you compare the physical withdrawal symptoms of coming off nicotine with pretty much any other addictive drug its very mild, after all how many people have ever robbed anyone to get the money for a pack of fags?!?!?!?
What you have to remember is that the addiction is overwhelmingly psychological, that's not to belittle the psychological side. As I see it its not vastly dissimilar to any other compulsive behaviour such as an eating disorder or gambling addiction.
Anyway loads of us have done it and succeeded so I have no doubt that you will be fine, you've done so well with the hardest part.
Please don't get me wrong, this was supposed to be a positive thread. I was just interested how other people were feeling at this particular stage of their quit.
I have indeed said in the past "Keep your memory green" as I believe in the very early stages of my quit this good advice was given to me when I was desperate to smoke.
When I first quit the excitement was wonderful but my mind and memory were fogged by the desire to smoke, so that advise helped me no end. Over time though, I feel I have entered a new stage in my quit, the excitement has dropped and I am dealing with the practical problems of removing my nicotine addiction.
Please don't think I am trying to put off new quitters.
The phase I am entering is a great one, as my life returns to normal, well, I don't want to be too normal...I'm still going to buy my Noddy Holder outfit and go in to work wearing it just for the crack!
What I said was:
"To be blunt, not smoking is becoming boring and tedious....this I am grabbing and holding onto as a good sign!"
Boring is all good to me at this moment in time
Thanks Nic, great threads.
Molly actually "re-birthed" one a while back and I posted on it....I should have just gone back and re-read it shouldn't I? doh!
Your quit seems very similar to my own as I notice you also started smoking at an older age than most. I was completely anti smoking and did not start until I was 18.
I nearly lost my first job through badgering the company owner to stop smoking in the office! I do recall putting posters up when she wasn't there.......really did not go down too well......but I felt like Citizen Smith at the time! haha!
Thanks for your kind words nonny and poppy
And as for Molly and Kazzy....well.....as you are my quit buddies...they do say you hurt the ones closest to you.....so I apologise now for any PM's I send you when I do quit NRT! chortle...titter!
Sorry Greg if I misinterpreted your posting, I read it as you having a slight wobble, great that you can embrace that and let others know what they may expect further down the line. It is actually uncanny what Nic wrote on his link as it is surprisingly similar.
All I have to say on the matter and I am not as eloquent as a lot of you....greg I read everything you put including pm's (please dont think I am ignoring you I am having a crisis at home....the missis is chucking me out grrrr....so its a bit of a nightmare)....not putting a nasty fag in your mouth is bloody amazing for the amount of time you have done....the nicotine once you choose to give up the patches will be out of your system in THREE days.....just THREE days....I think you have done the hard work....just grit your teeth and get it done fella..25 days for me....marriage break-up and I still havent smoked (I dont want any pat on the backs either)......I am with you all the way pal
Going through what you are and not smoking is a sign of great strength!
This HAS to be the quit for you.
The best present you could ever give yourself.
Now I'll be keeping a beady eye on you........don't you dare turn around ..... I got some 5" 70's platform shoes waiting to kick you up the ... Arsenal!
Hey there Nifty Greg, something tells me that this thread will get read alot!
First off, qualification. I'm not quite at three months just yet (so underqualified) but the two I've nearly completed I've done CT like Karen and Molly.
I, like Nic, think that with where you are now that any withdrawal you get isn't really going to be too much of an issue - you clearly have more than enough willpower and experience of abstinence to get through it, and it shouldn't last for more than a few days. It really is mostly psychological and nothing that your active steely resolve can't deal with. Good luck fella!
But stopping smoking for me could be different to you, as I've been associating the nicotine aspect with the physical act inextricably. Stop one, stop both, at the same time.
My abject defiance has been about the whole thing, not just the smoking part, mentally belittling a plant has been important for me and it's supported the psychological aspects of my quit. Maybe phasing out NRT like Karen suggests, you might not notice it as much?
I do know what you mean about tedium though. I'm getting impatient which is totally not my character. When is this going to be over, I've been quitting for weeks, La di da, ho hum, another day of not smoking....again.... When will the journey end? But I also believe there will a come a time when we don't realise we're on it any more, at virtually any time. and that's when we know we're in the end zone, our subconscience will tell us.
It's the habit too. If I think about it, smoking is only behind breathing and blinking in the "what have I done most often in my adult life" league table. That's effing scary! Ive done it more often than eating? Drinking? Wow, no wonder I'm bored now its gone, and I do need to get on a bike soon to replace it.
Well done in getting so far in the quit! And bossdean, crikey?!? :eek: Feeling for you friend, hope you get through this one ok!
I am four days behind you in my quit! Now, its not difficult anymore, I can deal with stressful situations without thinking I wished I smoked. The waist line has become more important now, which is a great testiment to how much easier it gets over time!
But every now and again, out of the blue, my inner voice suddenly says, oh would love a cigerette.... But its gone as soon as it arrives because I can now control the addiction, because my mind recognises that that is all it is, that I wont enjoy a cigerette and my health is more important; in essence my sub concious has cought up with my actual brain and knows smoking is ridiculus!!
The main difference this time, is I am not afraid to never again light up; thats what terrified me before and I believe that is what we must get over to beat this demon, it has to be never again and we have to want that! This is my time!! And yours too!!
All I have to say on the matter and I am not as eloquent as a lot of you....greg I read everything you put including pm's (please dont think I am ignoring you I am having a crisis at home....the missis is chucking me out grrrr....so its a bit of a nightmare)....not putting a nasty fag in your mouth is bloody amazing for the amount of time you have done....the nicotine once you choose to give up the patches will be out of your system in THREE days.....just THREE days....I think you have done the hard work....just grit your teeth and get it done fella..25 days for me....marriage break-up and I still havent smoked (I dont want any pat on the backs either)......I am with you all the way pal
You may not want a pat on the back, but you bloodly well deserve one!
However, you are fooling nobody with your cunning subterfuge!!!
Ahh haaa I got your number mate!
You're an out of work smoking cessation officer aren't you??
Chortle Chortle!
Titter!
Seriously though, you speak with what seems like the wisdom (and humour :)) of a long term quitter.. have you been quit before?
I do think that my quit is going to be the same as anybody that uses NRT in that some would say we are simply dragging it out and prolonging the process/pain, but I must agree with you....I didn't realise how the habit of smoking had worked itself into every part of my life! :eek:
I honestly don't think I would be where I am today without NRT ... it has given me time to try and smash the associations first.
However, you are fooling nobody with your cunning subterfuge!!!
Ahh haaa I got your number mate!
You're an out of work smoking cessation officer aren't you??
Chortle Chortle!
Titter!
Seriously though, you speak with what seems like the wisdom (and humour :)) of a long term quitter.. have you been quit before?
I do think that my quit is going to be the same as anybody that uses NRT in that some would say we are simply dragging it out and prolonging the process/pain, but I must agree with you....I didn't realise how the habit of smoking had worked itself into every part of my life! :eek:
I honestly don't think I would be where I am today without NRT ... it has given me time to try and smash the associations first.
Only time will tell if it has worked I suppose.
Thanks peeps
Greg
This is a great advert for NRT Greg! The thing is though, youre already over the hard bit! You got this in the bag!!
However, you are fooling nobody with your cunning subterfuge!!!
Ahh haaa I got your number mate!
You're an out of work smoking cessation officer aren't you??
Chortle Chortle!
Titter!
Seriously though, you speak with what seems like the wisdom (and humour) of a long term quitter.. have you been quit before?
Hi Greg,
Your post made me smile, good job sir, as the last couple of days have been slightly tougher. Easily managed, just a tad tougher. But "I'm moovin' on up now-ow...out of the darkness...."
If I was an out of work smoking cessation officer (I'm not), I'd have given up years ago and be sitting on a beach in Mexico escaping the british winter. Instead I'm sitting in my dining room!
Oh well!
I did attempt a quit a few years ago when my first child was born - it lasted about a month before an evening in a pub, a small, inocuous looking cigar...and the rest is unfortunate history. Darn it, that means my imp is 11 years old too! He'll be shaving and looking at dodgy internet sites soon, must give him a lecture!
It was a pretty feeble, half hearted attempt mind, I didn't really care too much at the time. This time I'm only too aware that I'm now at the age (42) where I have to get motivated in this. When I retire in about 20 years I hope my body's recovered to the point of negligable increased risk. Long and happy retirement, with many grandchildren running around.
At least that's the plan. And the motivation - longer life, better health, be there for my future generations of loved ones to feed them pasta and make them laugh
Gally thinks you've got this in the bag, I do too. Have a happy day!
I did attempt a quit a few years ago when my first child was born - it lasted about a month before an evening in a pub, a small, inocuous looking cigar...and the rest is unfortunate history. Darn it, that means my imp is 11 years old too! He'll be shaving and looking at dodgy internet sites soon, must give him a lecture!
Just had the same discussion with my boy, I recommended a good quality badger hair shaving brush and clearing your browsing history before shutting down.
5 months quit next week:). Patches first 8 weeks, no problems decreasing or stopping. Now just have inhalator at the ready if needed.
As I've said before, finding this particular quit journey quite easy (sorry). Apart from feelings of emptiness, it really has been OK. I think it's just simply my time, I have always, always felt so different this time.
Key - mindset.
So, after having saying all that, I've still not said, I'll never, ever light up again, why, what's all that about??!!??
This forum is stuffed full to the brim with succesful quitters. Quitters from all quitting walks of life. Alan carrers.....coldturkeyers........champixers......inhalatorers......NRTers.....etc etc. But the one thing that binds us all together is this forum. It is this forum that sees us through and supports us whatever our method. Whatever ups and downs and twists and turns we face in our varying journeys......this forum is constant......it always has the friends, the answers and the experience.
Nifty my good man. You are going to be totally fine.
Thanks for this Nifty. I use lozenges, dont know how many, but gaps between buying them are getting longer. i think I should stop the nrt but my worry is that I will then want to smoke. I do feel like a nonsmoker, so I think I am just not gonna worry and hope that they just tail off.
I'm just into month five and stopped using the Allan Carr method so didn't use NRT.
You will feel a bit weird for three days but it's just your body getting rid of the nicotine. I had a couple of bad nights sleep and when I did sleep I had some nightmares but I was prepared for it and knew what to expect. It only lasted three days and then I was fine. So, the worst you can expect is some dodgy sleep. You'll be absolutely fine
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