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Welcome @Arnolder, congratulations on deciding to quit. Why wait when you're here now? ☺

Welcome aboard the train @JustQuit83 and congratulations on getting your freedom back You'll find all the support you want here from members in all phases of quitting from newbies like you to us old phartes who have a year or more so between us all you should be able to find any answers to any questions you may have while going through this tough first year. I'm glad you're checking out the various boards, lots of good info there as well as a fun Social Section for getting your mind off quitting while still staying close to your support. I'm glad the NRT's are working for you, please be careful while using them that you don't over use them. It can be really dangerous. I think it's safer to choose either patches or lozenges or take the patch off while using the lozenges and then put it back on if you need to. I'm going to move this thread to our Introduction forum so more members will see it

5. Make it happen

3. Sell it

Well done @ammj, one day at a time smile ☺ Another thing that was very inspirational in the early days is our tickers for your signature. You'll be able to watch the money saved, time since and cigarettes NOT smoked since you quit. I LOVED logging on ech morning to see mine. You can find the tab for them at the top of the forum ☺

1. Patent it

cpk Quit Date: 02/04/2015 Posted March 3, 2015 I've been doing some research online - various sites - and one thing I've noticed is that all those into new quits are extremely impatient, including me. All the newbies are asking, "When will this fatigue get better?" "I feel like crap...when will it go away? "My sleep is all off..." and I won't even go into the weight thing. The general sense I have is newly quits are a pretty impatient lot. I think part of it is what I'll call the "freak out" --- There are so many changes going on, good and bad. It's almost like being a teenager. It's just a general freak out, at not having a handle on what's going on with the body, the mind, the emotions, one's responses and reactions to the outside world. As well, teens have more social pressures, increasing responsibilities, heavier workloads... When my son was a teen he'd open the refrigerator door and just stand there... I'd say, what are you doing?, if you want something, get it and close the door...why are you standing there...? He'd act like he was just waking up, would say, I don't know what I want...and he'd close the door, but would be back 20 minutes later and do the same thing all over again. That about sums up this experience for me. I'm like a teenager. I don't know what I want. I think patience would help me see this isn't a bad thing. I'm freaked out because it's all new. I'm uncomfortable a lot. Like a teenager. But hey, being teenager-like at my age is okay for now. Link to original post: https://www.quittrain.com/topic/4664-patiencei/

Welcome aboard the train @chime and congratulations for taking back your freedom I agree with intoxicated yoda, using NRT'S is not a cop out so get that out of your head. As far as the patch goes we have quite a few members who used them at the start of their quits. I didn't so I'll let them give you any clues. I have read on several different posts that as their quits progressed they forgot to put one on in the morning and that's how they stopped using them. I'm glad you've been reading the forums. There's a lot of good info there starting with the pinned posts. I'm looking forward to your success

Prayers to your hubby @QuittingGirl, my father in-law had two already as well and he was fine and felt much better:)

9. Keep them entertained

Good job posting for help @ammj, just stay here and let the crave pass. You can do something that you usually do that you don't smoke doing like taking a shower or bath, eat etc. I never smoked in my car so I would get in my car and take a drive around the neighborhood, and it was enough to get rid of the craving. I also used my air cigarette. It's just an invisible cig that I would pretend I was holding and then I would take puffs just lie I would an actual cigarette and it worked great in tricking my mind into thinking it was getting the real thing Oh and welcome to quittrain Congratulations on taking your freedom back!!

Aine Quit Date: 2-26-2014 Posted May 4, 2019 The Law of Addiction Most quitting literature suggests that it normally takes multiple failed quitting attempts before the user self-discovers the key to success. What they fail to tell you is the lesson eventually learned, or that it can be learned and mastered during the very first try. Successful recovery isn't about strength or weakness. It's about a mental disorder where by chance our dopamine pathway receptors have eight times greater attraction to a nicotine molecule than to the receptor's own neurotransmitter. We call it the "Law of Addiction" and it states: "Administration of a drug to an addict will cause re-establishment of chemical dependence upon the addictive substance." Roughly half of relapsing quitters report thinking that they thought they could get away with using just once. The benefit of fully accepting that we have a true chemical dependency and permanent priorities disorder can't be overstated. It greatly simplifies recovery's rules while helping protect against relapse. Key to arresting our illness is obedience to one simple concept, that "one is too many and a thousand never enough." There was always only one rule, no nicotine just one hour, challenge and day at a time. Navigating Withdrawal and Reclaiming Hijacked Dopamine Pathways Like clockwork, constantly falling nicotine reserves soon had hostage dopamine pathways generating wanting for more. Sensing that "want" thousands of times per year, how could we not expect to equate quitting to starving ourselves to death? Again, the essence of drug addiction is about dependency quickly burying all memory of our pre-dependency self. Thus, the first step in coming home and again meeting the real us is emptying the body of nicotine. It's amazingly fast too. Cut by half every two hours, our mind and body become 100% nicotine-free within 72 hours of ending all use. Extraction complete, peak withdrawal now behind you, true healing can begin. While receptor sensitivities are quickly restored, down-regulation of the number of receptors to levels seen in never-users may take up to 21 days. But within two to three weeks your now arrested dependency is no longer doing the talking. Quitting fears and dread are gradually thawing and melting into "like" or even "love." You're beginning to sense the truth about where you've been. It's critical during early withdrawal to not skip meals, especially breakfast. Attempting to do so will likely cause blood sugar levels to plummet, making recovery far more challenging than need be. Why? A stimulant, nicotine activates the body's fight or flight response, feeding the addict instant energy by pumping stored fats and sugars into the bloodstream. It allowed us to skip breakfast and/or lunch without experiencing low blood sugar symptoms such as feeling nervous or jittery, trembling, irritability, anxiousness, anger, confusion, difficulty thinking or an inability to concentrate. Minimize or avoid those symptoms. Eat little, healthy and often. If your diet and health permit, drink some form of natural fruit juice for the first three days. Cranberry juice is excellent. It will aid in stabilizing blood sugar while accelerating removal of the alkaloid nicotine from your bloodstream. Also, heavy caffeine users need to know that (as strange as this sounds), nicotine doubles the rate by which the liver eliminates caffeine from the bloodstream. One cup of coffee, tea or one cola may now feel like two. While most caffeine users can handle a doubling of intake, consider a modest reduction of up to one-half if feeling anxious, irritable or unable to sleep following caffeine use. One caution. While we need not give-up any activity except nicotine use, use extreme caution with early alcohol use as it is associated with roughly 50% of all relapses. The above is an excerpt from John Polito's article, "Nicotine Addiction 101". It explains the science behind why it is so darn difficult to quit nicotine and to stay quit. The full article is here: https://whyquit.com/whyquit/LinksAAddiction.html Link to original post: https://www.quittrain.com/topic/12338-the-true-nature-of-nicotine-addiction/

5. Take them to the vets

I just got off the phone with my mother in-law, at almost 60 her oldest son was told he had a large mass on one of his lungs that's growing and most likely cancer. He refused a biopsy and was told he had 6 months to live if he does nothing. He's also schizophrenic so upon hearing this news he quit smoking but also quit his medication. Luckily they got him back on it and he has stayed quit although unfortunately it's too late for him................. Don't let this be you! Quit NOW!!!!

Congratulations @Stewbum on another month quit! You are doing awesome! Don't forget to spoil yourself today

Happy anniversary @Jordan7, I hope you have a great day and celebrate today

3. Make funny gifs with them

Woohoo @QuittingGirl, Congratulations on 9 months quit! That's Awesome! I hope you have a great day

10. Take on a drive Ten more things with your pet

Well done @Gus, you came across a trigger that you hadn't dealt with before and kicked it to the curb! The good thing about triggers this far into your quit as you saw was how quickly it passed

8. Put costumes on them

Congratulations @Kate18, on your great quit! Its awesome watching you celebrate year after year smoke free given how hard it was for you when you first decided to quit. You should be super proud of yourself. Thank you for sticking around to support everyone

4. Sleep with them

Congratulations @Brioski and welcome to the lido deck! You fought some bad cravings earlier in your quit while still supporting everyone else and for that you should feel proud Thank you for being so active here, I hope you stay for many years to come. Have a great day and celebrate!

10. Inherit family heirlooms With your pet