Hi I'm Rowland and I'm battling to stop smoking. I've been trying and failing since January. I've tried all sorts of stuff to quit and keep smoking again. Ive been to the easyway clinics, read the book , cold turkey, patches and now I'm on day two of the gum. Is there anyway you can help me?

Aww hi rowly....

It's great to see you back....well done....

We will support you all we can.....

Keep reading.....learn all,you can about this addiction....and why we're hooked....

Posting ,making friends,supporting others,joing in the games,it all strengthens your quit....

One day at a time....don't over think longer than that.....just that one day....

Keep telling us how you are doing....

This time buddy ,let's get it done....

Hugs xxx

Hi Row,

 

I am so happy you are here !  

 

You can stop the battle.  Commit to Not One Puff Ever.  it is a commitment.  NOT ONE PUFF EVER.

 

For some, the gum is slow agony.  For some, gum is their path to Freedom.

 

You can quit smoking.  Stop putting things in your mouth and setting them afire.

 

Remember to keep your blood sugar up with fruit juice.

 

Drink lots of Ice water.

 

Breathe DEEP breaths of Beautiful Oxygen !

 

Jump around.

 

Read everything on the site  here.  Read it all again and again.  

 

Post here, post often.  Good for distraction, commitment and accountability

Great to see you back Rowly, congrats on quitting again, lets make this your final sticky quit,

We can only support you luv, you have to do the hard work,

I think you need to figure out what keeps pulling you back to the cigarettes, you have got to realise they offer you nothing but a slow painful death, what is it that makes you go back to them ??

Try start changing your mindset, fake it til you make it, repeat a millon times that you hate smoking, they make you feel like shit, dont let any positive thoughts enter your head (there really is nothing positive)

Treat yourself everyday for the first couple of weeks, then every week etc, you need to stay quit long enough to see and feel the fantastic benefits of being a non smoker, you owe yourself that at least, once you get to that stage, there is nothing that will make you want to be a dirty, stinky, no confidence, embarrassed by your stench, smoker again.

You really can do this, please start believing in yourself, we do xxxx

I agree, good to see you Rowley!

 

Like Sue said, what we can do is to support you on your journey.  And the only thing you need to do to get all the support you need is to be here, with us.  We want to help you, so please let us ;)

 

Oh, and huge congratulations on 2 days, that is a great achievement!  Come here, read and watch everything possible, and post daily :)

Welcome :)

You've been given some good advice. 

Have you made a list of all the reasons you don't want to smoke? Make that list and keep it handy. 

If you have read Allen Carr's book, may I suggest reading it again? I have read it 2-3 times. 

You are not giving up anything when you quit. 

And you have so much to gain!  

Welcome back and good job on quitting again.

 

CAn you tell us why you keep relapsing?

 

FYI... I used the gum myself and I successfully quit...so it works.

Welcome back Rowly.

What we can do for you is support you and walk with you on the journey. Yes, you relapsed, but you keep coming back and trying again. These videos are a great watch and so are these documentaries.

 

I know that it is hard but try to stay with us as much as possible. It is critical to read and post about what you are going through. If you reach your hand out someone here will always grab on and try to help you through whatever you are going through. :)

 

Again, welcome back. 

Welcome back rowland :)

 

The main thing is you have not given up, you WILL find your sticky quit

 

with all the help in the world, it really does boil down to you wanting to quit more than you want to smoke and then anything that comes your way you can resist it

 

keep posting and work it through

Great to see you back, Rowly!  We stay smoke free one day at a time, one moment at a time. 

 

If the desire starts gettin under your skin, come here and post.  That is the single best thing. 

 

You've got this! :)

Welcome back, Rowly.  As others have said, you have to do the work.  You have to convince yourself that smoking is not  an option...you can cry, scream, rant, rave...anything but smoke.  Only you can not put a cigarette in your mouth.  We are here to support you in any way that we can.  So glad you came back!

Good to see you back!

 

I agree with all the responses above.  You have to do the work and for me whenever I had a crave, I would take deep breaths and sip water.  The crave will pass in a couple minutes and each time I couldn't believe I made it!  Pretty soon it added up to a week, then months and the rest is history!  I think it is important to read all you can on addiction.  I read for hours and hours!!

Ah the eternal quit, I remember it well. I did a stint from July through to March before I got it, ya know all those practices made the real deal a done deal.

 

If it helps the way I did it is this:

-Snot/Nope - I could remember these, no fancy sayings, just one of these two when a thought arose.

-I read up on whyquit.com on the journals/stories of people who had died. One a day until they were all read. Every time I imagined it was me and I had to tell my loved ones I had xyz illness and it was caused by me smoking. I cried a lot but became too scared to smoke - finally the health bit kicked in doing this.

-I posted, sometimes tripe. I responded so much that sometimes the whole board had my name written next to it, normally in the mornings :)

 

 

They are my tops tips. Gum is fine, cigarettes are not fine. So if it's working like that then all good really. Not for everyone but you do what feels right.

 

Fake it till you make it - solid quitting advice. Hate cigarettes with a passion. They are taking your money, stealing your very breath, how bloody dare they, you will not give them the time of day!! Yeah that can defo work!

 

Remember every tough time is a battle faced and the more battles you win - the closer the victory is! On a really bad trigger or crave, face it down, stare it in the proverbial eye and dare it to think it can have you. Every bad day/crave/trigger/moment is a big leap forward in your quitting journey. 

 

Welcome back Rowly. x

I don't know what the **** to do anymore. I can't stop. I have just smoked again out of anger and frustration. I feel like huring myself, punishing myself for screwing up again. After almost 48 hours of not smoking someone pissed me off and instead of hurting them I chose to smoke instead.

Aww rowly...please listen to my story....this is your life we are talking about...it doesn't get anymore serious than that...

My hubby and I smoked our way through 52 years....always quiting tomorrow....always finding a reason to have just one...

Always thinking ,the nasty stuff will happen to someone else.....

Where we are today....oh yes we have both quit now.....

Hubby is in last stages of emphysema.....he carnt even shower himself,go to the bathroom himself...I could go on ,and on....

Me.....I was told last year if you don't stop smoking you'll have your feet cut off...

..wouldn't it have been better to have quit earlier and still enjoy live.....

This is blunt.....you have to make a choice ,chance ending your smoking career this way....or do it now....

Please think over this hard....

Hugs xx

Start again, Rowly...that is all you can do.

 

breathe DEEP and put the smoke down, destroy the others.

 

make a commitment to yourself for the next five minutes...the next ten...the next hour...the next few hours...

 

You CAN do this.  You just aren't doing it and you're psyching yourself out.  

 

Relax.  Breathe. Stop lighting cigs on fire.

 

 No Rocket Science here....Not One Puff.

I threw the filthy things away after destroying them. I made a list of why I don't want to smoke anymore and plan to read it regularly. Damn this I'm so sick and tired ov this shit.

Hi Rowly.

 

Good to see you here.

 

Sorry to see you struggling.

 

It takes a huge amount of strength to keep putting yourself through withdrawal like you do.

 

You might want to quit for good, it will be easier!

 

Getting things going is tough, but it is doable. All the advice you need is right here.

 

You can absolutely do this Rowly. Welcome Aboard.

I threw the filthy things away after destroying them. I made a list of why I don't want to smoke anymore and plan to read it regularly. Damn this I'm so sick and tired ov this shit.

 

 

 

I  am so happy you are going for it !  Fabulous Rowly.

 

You never have to feel this way again !

 

Get good and angry about the addiction...that will fuel your commitment

 

but, be kind to yourself.  You are quitting smoking !  

 

Every moment by moment, you are free.

 

Congratulations.

 

Love,

S

 

p.s. It gets easier and easier...soon.  

Rowly

Write yourself a post and respond to your own SOS here.  Tell yourself what you need to hear to keep going. 

I want to help, I really do, but it's tough. Maybe read the blue room post in quit smoking for my thoughts. 

 

x

Dear rowly....you can do this....just commit to n.o.p.e.....

Never stick anything In your mouth and light it...ever........

Stick this board.....we will help you all we can.....

Hugs xxx

Hi Rowly welcome back to the QT, addiction stinks, but you have to remember that is what you are an addict and at the minute you are allowing the nicotine control over your life, take back the control, when stress hits, before you take a puff, stop and ask yourself would it make you feel better or would it make the addict in you feel better, when someone annoys you and you get that crave its the addiction talking, smoking will eventually kill you surely you are worth more than that, yes its difficult, yes it hurts, yes the craves and the pulls are strong, but you can control all that and get through it, one tiny single step at a time.  Nothing more, NOPE one step at a time Rowly, we are all here, we have all felt the craves and pulls, we understand how you are feeling and we are here to help and support you all we can.  xx

Rowly, glad you threw them out.  Please believe that there is not one positive result of smoking, I think you know that.  You have got to get it in your mind that smoking hurts no one but you  Make up your mind that you will not smoke regardless of what happens...and that there is no such thing as just one...

 

If I remember, you've already had some pretty significant health issues, haven't you?

Rowly, hi. Some thoughts. Stop giving yourself permission to smoke in the beginning when you are going through withdrawal. I don't know of any good tricks other than for you to use all of your strength to hold out when the waves come.

 

Colleen used to have a tag on her signature that said something like the only way to the other side is through. To me in this context, it means going through the baptism of horror for a few weeks and then trudging on day by day, week by week, until the urges pretty much go away and you are past it. The urges for me have gone away for the most part. I am pretty fat but whatever.

 

And everyday you should take steps for your quit. Post here. Read your Allen Carr. Exercise. Deep breath. Eat candy. Wean yourself off the gum when ready. Annoy your friends by talking obsessively about your quit. Watch stop smoking videos and meditation on youtube. Etc.