I first quit - and that was the first time in 31 years as a smoker - on November 3, cold turkey. I lasted 6 hours and I was crawling through every pocket of every article of clothing to find a cigarette.

I was at the point where I detested smoking and would do what I had to do to quit (yes, even gain weight) so I went on the patch November 15. It worked! I have gone to half the dosage now of my own accord, take it off before going to bed and put one on later in the afternoon.

It still doesn't stop all the wacky stuff in my head that makes me want to smoke and I have found this week especially hard.

Of course I wish I could have been all butch about it and gone cold turkey, but I don't think it would have worked. Going one step at a time with "the patch" is just fine.

Alto's suggestion is good. View yourself as a non-smoker. In a crowd, identify with the non-smokers. Repeat it to yourself first thing when you wake up in the morning. I am a non-smoker! I think that saying you have "given up" smoking is unwise.

I read recently that there is "more to quitting smoking than quitting smoking." How true!

Karen