Quitting Quickmist - Thread

[QuittingQM]

Hey Everyone,

I've seen many posts regarding the notorious Nicorette Quickmist. I've decided to stop using it cold turkey as of 3 days ago... I actually stumbled upon this post originally:

healthunlocked.com/nosmokin...

I've made a few comments about my experience so far on that post.

I thought it might be helpful for others to see someone out there who was able to put down the quickmist cold turkey and be successful. Some background on me:

I've never been a smoker, I started using QM as a stimulant / cognitive enhancer about 3 years ago, which makes me getting hooked on it a bit more embarrassing as I was doing nothing more than experimenting with nicotine to begin with. I'm also not sure if this makes my quitting experience different from those who had nicotine addiction prior to using QM.

Just some context about my relationship with QM, I wasn't waking up in the middle of the night for a spray ever, I also wasn't bringing it with me when going out to run errands or even when I was going out for dinner somewhere. I could typically go a few hours without it no problem. However, I work from home and I made a habit of going through about one cartridge every 3-4 days. I found I was going through it even faster during quarantine.

I also stopped using it for about a month last year, but eventually talked myself back into thinking I could use it moderately. I suppose my use may not be as extreme as other posts I've seen but I would still get anxiety when my QM was running low. I almost never let the QM completely run out before having a replacement(s) handy.

My last QM spray was Saturday around noon, so I'm just past 72 hours of no nicotine! I didn't even make a plan to quit that day.. I ran out of QM in the morning but was being lazy and didn't run to the store right away to get a QM refill which was odd of me. By the time I did get around to doing it, the first store had none left in stock and the 2nd store only had the berry flavour QM which I hate. Right then and there I knew it was time to quit once and for all. It had already been about 2 hours since my last spray so while standing there in the supermarket I accepted that the next few days would be crappy but I'd be thanking myself in about a month or 2 once I'm rid of the invasive and expensive habit.

I'll try and keep this post updated with just how I'm doing. Feel free to ask any questions!

[Atta1 3 Months Smoke Free Valued Contributor]

I’ve read it’s really hard to quit so a massive well done to you x

[QuittingQM in reply to Atta1]

haha thanks, only on day 4... I'm feeling optimistic though

[Atta1 3 Months Smoke Free Valued Contributor in reply to QuittingQM]

The nicotine should be out of your system so now it’s the mental battle, you’ve got this x

[QuittingQM]

Coming up on 2 weeks tomorrow, still going strong, but super hard habit to break / stop thinking about. My brain is still expecting a spray after doing certain things... It's certainly easier now than the first few days.

[QuittingQM]

Still going. I feel the more time you put between yourself and your last hit of nicotine the harder it is to imagine going back because how hard you've clawed to get where you are haha. There are still times I crave the mist... but it's slowly drifting to the recesses of my mind and no longer the foremost thought when I wake up in the morning.

[QuittingQM]

It's crazy how many other changes start occurring once you get off nicotine. All those little nagging voices in your ahead about stuff you should start doing or stop doing can no longer be silenced by a little dopamine rush brought on by a quick hit of nicotine. Nicotine really does have a way of paving over any problems by seeking temporary relief from it. As you can tell, I'm still off QM and I'm feeling pretty good about being able to drop ~3 year habit cold turkey. I still have some issues with my mood and have felt life is a bit more beige of late but I think some of that is because my brain is learning how to enjoy life without nicotine again. One other really positive thing is the MONEY SAVINGS!! Quitting QM is literally putting about $200-$300 per month back into my bank account. I'll try to check back in here again maybe in a few months. Feels like I'm talking to myself but I know when I first started really thinking about quitting I was reading threads on this topic that were 5 years old so hopefully this thread will be of use to someone at some point!

[QuittingQM]

Still going.. and can report.. it does get easier, you just have to say no to nicotine everyday.

[mads1996]

I'm here! I'm listening to this. I've been addicted for about 5 years and I started using it when I was only a light cigarette smoker at best. I know you last posted about 7 months ago, but I'm finding this very helpful.

[mads1996]

I made this account to reply, and for anyone else who's having the same trouble. I couldn't find much information anywhere else on the internet, but it's been a very big struggle to try and quit the quickmist. It's taken over all the nooks and crannies in my life where I least expected it. I'm glad to see that you've been able to get off of it so well. I've been trying to cut down but not having much luck so far, especially with quarantine and not being very busy for most of 2020 and now 2021. I think boredom has been my worst enemy, with a quick nicotine hit used to fill the empty space. Like others, it's the first thing I do in the morning and before I go to sleep. I don't take it out the house with me though, and I can go a whole day without it if I'm busy. It's when I get home that the trouble begins.

I've been trying to cut down for the last few days, but when I reached the final stretch and realised just no more nicotine was going to come out of that bottle; I panicked and ran to the chemist to buy some.

Now I sit here feeling very upset with myself with 3 nicorette sprays sitting next to me. Was it worth it? Nope. But the back of my mind is feeling very pleased that the nicotine wasn't gone for very long.

I don't know what I'll do. I think I might try to make it stretch, cut out using the nicotine from 6pm onwards or something similar. I hope you're still doing well without it, I'll be using this as my guide to quitting the quick mist for good!