Into the Ashtray
Anyone here successfully quit smoking cigarettes? I started taking Chantix and the stuff works like magic. So far a week has gone by since I quit smoking and I honestly don’t even think about or crave it at all. I’m a little worried about what will happen once I stop taking it, but I think I’ve got the willpower now that I see how possible it is to not smoke cigarettes.
Categories: JD
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Wow, congrats JD. How much does this stuff cost you?
Congradulations! I recently quit too. After my wedding in June. I was still smoking a little on the weekends but I haven’t had one since my knee surgery in August (it helped that I wasn’t drinking). I did it cold turkey, but I was consciously making an effort to cut down my daily intake for about a year beforehand until I was down to like one or two a day. I still crave them when I drink but for the most part I don’t really want them anymore. I just got tired of smelling and they really do make you feel crappy. I had some nicorette but I never used it. I just can’t wait to start running again and get my lungs back!
Grats JD, Good luck as it goes. I quit nearly 2 years ago now, i did it cold turkey, when i moved to Boston. One of the bigger things for me was the radical change of scenery and no habits.
I’ve heard some people swear by chantix and others who it didn’t help.
@Dacunha
After the insurance, it was $40 for the month. They say people typically take it for 3 months. I’m into my first month but I’m going to try to wean myself off the stuff and see how I feel. I wanted to tough it out but that just wasn’t happening so I thought I’d use a crutch for a while to get started.
@Mackin
Thanks! I can’t wait to have the lungs back. I go running sometimes but it’s super tough to do when you can’t breathe.
@Muerl
Well done Muerl! Those cloves must have been brutal on the throat. I’ve only smoked a few of those and they HURT =) The mixed reviews I’ve heard about Chantix really just go back and forth between “It really worked” or “I went crazy, woke up with phone numbers and sandwiches I didn’t remember getting, and started wiggin out thinking the McDonald’s sign was blinking a message to just me”. (http://nymag.com/news/features/43892/ if anyone is up for an interesting yet slightly terrifying read). I’ve been on Chantix for about 3 weeks now and I haven’t had any of the psychological side effects so I think I’m in the clear.
I think the biggest thing is you just have to want to quit. I know a couple of times I’ve tried to quit in the past I didn’t really want to, I just thought I should. Maybe part of that was being younger and not feeling as crappy, but I just reached a point where, while I still loved it, I was just sick of it. If you really want to not smoke, quitting won’t be that hard so I wouldn’t worry about coming off of the Chantrix.
That article was really freaky btw, be careful…
Hey JD,
I quit about three and a half months ago. I must say that the biggest thing that makes it possible is just deciding that you never want to be a slave to tobacco and nicotine ever again. There is no substitute for that realization. No gum, no patch, no therapy, no hypnosis, nothing! I’ve also tried to quit before, but always felt like I was depriving myself of something I’d rather be doing. I did it for the wrong reasons (money, health, etc…). This time I did it to be free, and I never looked back for a second!!! Welcome to being a non-smoker (notice I didn’t say ex-smoker…get used to that mentality)
Glad to hear it Yakov, that’s great! The advice that both you and Mackin gave about actually seriously WANTING to quit could not be more true. I have given some thought and occasionally some half-assed effort at quitting over the years, but nothing more than cutting down the numbers for more than a few days. I would never tell anyone that I was quitting because I honestly didn’t think I’d end up quitting, and that much I had shared with some people before. This time, I’m actually quitting =)
This is completely unrelated but too hilarious not to share:
LINK
(safe for work)
Quick update – I was on Chantix for a month, and have been off Chantix for about 5 weeks now. With the exception of one cigarette at the Phish festival (which I ended up hating and made my throat sore for 2 days), I’m now cigarette free!
To any smokers considering this, I highly recommend checking it out.