smoking?

Hi Sue, hope things are going well.

I quit (again) last night. I'm doing patches again via the pharmacy's programme where I will attend each week to collect them and a tube of nicotine mints and have a breathaliser test.

Like you, the mornings and daytime in general are the hardest for me so I decided this time to smoke until just after tea time, when I was snuggled up on the couch. I still had a slight panic this morning but not nearly as bad.

I've taken out another genealogy subscription to give me something to focus on. Maybe you could try throwing yourself into a hobby that distracts your mind?

I must try and get a hold of that Allen Carr book that others are talking about, I hear it's really good, have you read it?

I am really rooting for you Sue, we can do this x

C'mon ladies, you can do this! You are strong independent women, you have got through some really tough things in your lives and now it is time to think of yourselves and your own health for the future. Stub out that cigarette and take a deep breath. Say to yourself that this is the first day of your freedom. Do it now.

In the Allen Carr book, he likens your lungs to the bowl of a smokers old pipe, where all the slutchy sticky tobacco slime has collected over the years. You want rid of this in your lungs, right? You want your aveoli to be free of all that crap and to move about freely to make your lungs work as they should. You want to smell fresh, of scent, perfume, soap, gorgeousness. You want your breath to be less like the bottom of a bird cage and more like Snow White when the birds are helping her clean up. So come on girls, get out your brooms now, clean out those lungs and make Christmas 2016 your first smoke free Christmas!

And in doing so, you can save the ciggie money and buy yourself something beautiful to treat your new re-invented self!

Ah yes rubylady you've just reminded me. I used to spend so much money on tobacco that when I became a non smoker I treated myself to my first new laptop a couple of months later.
Also, the tipping point for me I think was being told that I had early signs of macular degeneration. When I read that smoking can be a major cause it scared me, even though I'd seen all the evidence of what it was doing to the rest of my body. Your eyesight is so precious.
Having said that I didn't think I'd be able to do it. The fact that the Allen Carr book worked still amazes me.
I remember doing the unthinkable - going to work for the day without any cigarettes on me and NOT feeling panicky.

This is a hard one. I have tried using Alan Carr method and nicotine patches and failed. I refuse to use an e-cig... (my thoughts)just swapping one addiction for another. To be honest...I like smoking. My husband used e-cigs and had limited success. He is back on cigarettes again. I think you have to REALLY WANT to give up, as others have said, set a date in the new year, and try going "cold turkey". I wish you all the best, you are making the RIGHT decision just talking about it is motivating. Let us know how you are getting on. :-)

When i actually manage to stop I will let you all know.truly will!! So fed up of myself.....?

Sue1169, just stop beating yourself up when you don't manage to stop, you WILL one day. I smoked for over 40 years and managed it, eventually. I just loved smoking and really didn't want to stop, it was only my family and money that made me take a good look at what I was doing, that was seven years ago.

Yes, I could start again tomorrow, but I won't and nor will you when you finally find something to give you that extra pressure to stop, I wish I knew what that magic thing was, but you will find it one day. The first one in the morning was the hardest, there was a time when I couldn't imagine not having it and that was my excuse not to stop. How stupid.

How did I do it? I set a date, bought some herbal cigarettes and mixed them with normal cigarettes and didn't know which I was going to pick out of the packet. I did that for a fortnight by which time I hated the taste of both types and then went cold turkey. Worked for me, but everyone has their own story to tell.

We are all rooting for you, don't despair, you will achieve it because you want to and you also know you have a whole army of gransnetters behind you. Good luck

sue1169 we are only a few weeks away from the New Year tell yourself YOU WILL NOT SMOKE IN 2017

Aww again thank you ALL!! Re New Year well off to Dubai late Jan for the birth of my daughters first baby(8th grandchild) Im staying for a while to help out..so def need to be smokefree by then!!...Am going to do it ?

What a lovely reason to quit Sue.

Yes it is GwannyAnnee. Hows it going with you? Good I hope!!...

sue1169, please do yourself a favour and get an ecig! If is literally the only thing that had worked for me. It will be 3 years in January since I last had a cigarette and there were absolutely no cravings! I know that people say it is still an addiction and I agree with that, but you will see, your sense of smell improves, your food tastes better; I could go on.
I also know that giving up the ecigs is easier than giving up smoking. You don't get the intense cravings that you do with cigs. (Admittedly I haven't done it yet but I do plan to). Good luck to you, you will get there!

Has anyone tried Champix? Just prescribed them today. Starting them on Tuesday.

DH managed to give up using Champix, had his last ciggy the day of Will's wedding and never looked back. I tried at the same time and they were working for me but I had the side effect of depression. Frightened me but as soon as I stopped I was fine. Cannot remember how far into the course I was, sometimes think I should have carried on. Go for it wot, just be mindful of possible side effects and go back to whoever prescribed them if you need to. A lot of people have been successful with them. Good luck.

E cig everytime . I tried so many times with different methods , patches , gum, cold turkey, herbal cigs . Bought an ecig 2 years ago and have never touched a ciggy since . Contrary to what the tobacco companies are putting about , they are 99% less harmful than smoking . Good luck x

Thank you, Alima; most encouraging! I do suffer from depression anyway but I'll watch out to see if the tablets make it worse. Being a "non smoker" would cheer me up!