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  #1   ^
Old Fri, Dec-14-01, 14:07
Atriana's Avatar
Atriana Atriana is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 2,118
 
Plan: South Beach
Stats: 170/139/130 Female 65 inches
BF:
Progress: 78%
Location: Atlanta, GA
Default Quitting Smoking Focus Group

OK - So now we have our own forum. Stand up and be counted, all you smokers who want to be non-smokers. Ex-smokers, share your insights and success tips.
My info:
Been smoking since I was 16. Quit once for two years, but substituted running. (Remember the 80's, LOL, everyone was a runner) The minute I stopped running, I started smoking again.
Since then I have quit a total of nine gazillion times, give or take. Get past the hard part. At about 5 or 6 weeks I get on the scale and go ballistic. The weight gain on top of an already pudgy body would send me over the edge.
Well, I'm 15 pounds or so away from goal. Want to quit. Just broke up an 11+ year relationship with a smoker. So now, if I'm not smoking there will be no other smokers in the house. Thinking about Friday the 21st as the day.
Anyone care to join me?
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  #2   ^
Old Fri, Dec-14-01, 15:21
itsjoyful's Avatar
itsjoyful itsjoyful is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,291
 
Plan: IN LIMBO!!!!!
Stats: 145/137/126
BF:28.3%/22%/18%
Progress: 42%
Location: Northern California
Default ex-smoker

greetings atrina -
i quit smoking for good back in April, and in May i ran the bay to breakers race. that was my motivation. once i finished that i started gaining pretty fast. i do continue to run, but my smoking habit was substituted with sugar. when i figured out the problem, i joined this forum, went completely lc, and now i must say, i'm an artificial sweetener addict.

getting ready to kick this one too..... just not quite that ready yet.

i'm so happy that you have decided to quit. it will improve many qualities of your life.

i'll be around to support if i can. good luck!
regards,
brenda
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  #3   ^
Old Fri, Dec-14-01, 18:00
zellie zellie is offline
Registered Member
Posts: 98
 
Plan: Atkins/PP/Kiss
Stats: 160/120/110
BF:
Progress: 80%
Location: homebase NY
Default

Thank you, Atriana!

This is wonderful. I'm so pleased we are getting ideas and experiences together. It's very useful for me the encouragement. I'm still gearing myself up to quit. I might even make the Dec. 21 with you, or at least start cutting down on my smoking, since I was originally thinking of mid January.

I was a runner too! Stress, overwork, made me drop out. Smoking was the solution. I knew it was bad. I started a bad eat-starve diet, etc. I am getting out of a bad marriage, and have decided it's time to take care of ME!
I've never been able to quit successfully. I'm determined to do it this time, this is why I'm asking so many questions. I want to be prepared for the problems.

zellie

Last edited by zellie : Fri, Dec-14-01 at 18:11.
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  #4   ^
Old Fri, Dec-14-01, 18:07
AngelaR AngelaR is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,483
 
Plan: Protein Power
Stats: 197/184/145 Female 5 ft 6 in
BF:45%/32%/22%
Progress: 25%
Location: South Eastern Ontario
Default Count me in

Hi itsjoyful and Atriana!

I'm a soon to be quitter. I'm a loser. That wouldn't sound good on my work resume, but on my life resume those are the best qualifications.

I've been LCing for 6 weeks, and will be giving up smokes by the end of the month. I've been smoking since I was 20, for 26 years. 1.5 packs a day now, even with not being able to smoke in the office.

For me smoking was more of a control thing than anything. I was married at the time to a control freak who demanded to manage everything in my life including how often I flushed the toilet. Smoking was the only thing I could take up that he had no control over, so I did it in secret until I walked away from that bad situation many years ago.

I've tried quitting so many times...acupuncture, hypnosis, zyban, patches, gum, cold turkey. I know that I will only be able to quit when I believe that I have regained control of my life.

Funny thing is, LCing makes me feel like I have gained control again. The biggest added benefit for me is that smoking with a bad case of keto-mouth makes cigarettes taste pretty bad.

It's nice to have a support group for this new adventure.
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  #5   ^
Old Fri, Dec-14-01, 18:17
alto alto is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 2,171
 
Plan: Protein Power
Stats: 296/278/179 Female  5'8
BF:
Progress: 15%
Location:
Default

I'm a happy quitter. I posted my tale over in the other thread

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthre...&threadid=27586

and don't want to go through it all again here, but the one big difference for me (I'd tried to quit dozens of times) was that, somehow, I convinced myself that I was a nonsmoker. It made the biggest difference. "I'm quitting smoking" I"m giving up smoking" -- right there, you're setting up a difficult task. "I don't smoke." It makes such a difference.

Good luck to all fo you -- Angela, the "control freak" angle really makes sense to me. Lots of teenager start to rebel against their parents -- then, one day, the nicotine dependency sets in and it become something else. It does make sense that if you're feeling "in control" generally that will make it easier.
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  #6   ^
Old Fri, Dec-14-01, 18:47
AngelaR AngelaR is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,483
 
Plan: Protein Power
Stats: 197/184/145 Female 5 ft 6 in
BF:45%/32%/22%
Progress: 25%
Location: South Eastern Ontario
Default

Thanks Alto. It took way too long for me to realize that. 6 weeks of LCing has proven to me that I can do something disciplined and with structure and that I have control over. I'm actually looking forward to being smoke free.
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  #7   ^
Old Fri, Dec-14-01, 18:55
Atriana's Avatar
Atriana Atriana is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 2,118
 
Plan: South Beach
Stats: 170/139/130 Female 65 inches
BF:
Progress: 78%
Location: Atlanta, GA
Default

OK everybody, we CAN do this. Now, how are we going to do it?
Patches
Gum
Zyban
Cold Turkey
Lobelia
Hypnosis
Actually, I've tried them all. Patches made the withdrawal symptoms more tolerable - but ultimately you are still addicted to nicotine while you are using them. Ditto on the gum, except with the gum your nicotine level rises and falls, so I had more cravings.
Zyban, the first time I tried it gave me hives. Plus, since it is actually the anti-depressant Wellbutrin marketed under a different name, the anti-depressant thing might be incompatable with weight loss.
Cold turkey - A slow build up to total hell on day 3 and then a slow release into just purgatory.
Lobelia - Used it in conjunction with the hypnosis. Don't know if it was just a placebo effect, but I was calmer.
Hypnosis - worked until I forgot to listen to the tape - by the next day I was smoking again.
So, what is everyone's plan?
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  #8   ^
Old Fri, Dec-14-01, 22:01
Karen's Avatar
Karen Karen is offline
Forum Founder
Posts: 12,775
 
Plan: Ketogenic
Stats: -/-/- Female 5 feet 4 inches
BF:
Progress: 100%
Location: Vancouver
Default

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
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  #9   ^
Old Sat, Dec-15-01, 05:25
AngelaR AngelaR is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,483
 
Plan: Protein Power
Stats: 197/184/145 Female 5 ft 6 in
BF:45%/32%/22%
Progress: 25%
Location: South Eastern Ontario
Default

For me - it will be patches, tons of water, exercise, and a fridge full of ready to grab allowables to deal with cravings.

It will also mean new rules in the house. If hubby wants to continue smoking, he will have a comfy place in the storage room in the basement.

*dreaming longingly of a house and clothing that doesn't stink from stale cigarette smoke*
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  #10   ^
Old Sat, Dec-15-01, 06:46
EllieEats's Avatar
EllieEats EllieEats is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 794
 
Plan: ATKINS
Stats: 164/130/132
BF:
Progress: 106%
Location: Gulf coast, Florida, USA
Default

What a great idea!!
I quit smoking for 17 mo. and gained a ton of weight. I got totally stressed and thought I could have that "just one" and now for past 6 mo. I smoke as much as I ever did.

When I first came here, I thought-- why couldn't I have found a motivating forum like this to help me through nicotine cravings?
This is so great.

I do intend to quit again but want to get closer to my goal weight first and this time I will go heavy on the exercise to ward off those extra pounds.

I used The American Lung Assc.-- Seven Step Program --exellent!
At least read it! It shows you how to break all the your automatic smoking cigarettes times and get down to the "I really need this cigarette" before you even quit.... The book explains it all... and so much better than I can.

Give it a read!! And you'll be seeing me back. Best of luck to all of you!!

Ellie
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  #11   ^
Old Sun, Dec-16-01, 19:59
KRISTY KRISTY is offline
New Member
Posts: 20
 
Plan:
Stats: //
BF:
Progress:
Location: Trenton Ont.
Default

Hi to all:
I also have been trying to quit smoking. About 6 months ago I decided the only way for me to do this after so many years of smoking was not to go cold turkey this time. I put my cigarettes in the kitchen in a drawer next to a window. When I was in the t.v. room and wanted a cigarette I had to get up out of that comfy chair and walk to the kitchen, open the window and have a smoke standing up. That worked for me, as I would have a couple of puffs and put it out. That works for the evenings. The cruncher for me was in May we found out that my DH has heart disease and I only smoke outside now. Why didnt I think of that before instead of the kitchen. I now only have 2 cigarettes a day. I no longer have the fear that I need to have a full pkg on hand. Hope this helps someone a little bit. KRISTY
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  #12   ^
Old Mon, Dec-17-01, 13:18
pegm pegm is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 615
 
Plan: Atkins
Stats: 230/197/135
BF:
Progress: 35%
Location: Wisconsin
Default

I was a very heavy smoker and the first time I quit cold turkey with no help or support. It lasted for 11 years! I was at the point where I hated the smell of them and never craved them.

Then I hit a VERY stressful time in my life (extremely rebellious teenage daughter), and one night when I was feeling especially stressed, I took one of my friend's cigarettes and lit it. I expected it to taste bad and make me cough, etc. like the first time I'd ever smoked. WRONG!! It tasted SO GOOD!!! I was hooked again (but I didn't admit it, even to myself). I smoked ones that I 'borrowed' from friends and relatives for a few months, then began buying them again. I tried everything to quit the second time: hypnosis, Zyban (gave me hives), patches, gum, inhaler, etc. I could not believe that I could not seem to find the will power that had worked so well the first time.

Then my daughter told me about a laser clinic that her boyfriend's mother had gone to in Canada. She was a 30 year very heavy smoker who had also tried everything to quit. The clinic worked for her. So I tried it, and it also worked for me (they claim a 96% success rate)!

Some of the advise they gave me was very helpful. They told me to drink lots of water and take anti-oxidant vitamins to help flush the nicotine out of my body. They also told me to carry a water bottle with me everywhere and every time I had a craving, to take a sip of water, so that after a few times I would associate the cigarette craving with thirst instead. This also substitutes a healthy habit for one that is bad for you. (The water has been great for low carb!)

I began low carb a month after I quit smoking, so I have not gained any weight, but I am losing very slowly. At least I am losing, though, and not gaining!

I know other people have success with patches or gum, but I think that I am the type of person who needed to just quit smoking and get the nicotine out of my body ASAP. Using patches or gum only prolonged the agony, and as long as I was getting some nicotine I was still hooked and was more likely to reach for a cigarette if I got a strong craving.

I do feel so much better! I can walk up a flight of stairs without getting out of breath. I don't feel wheezy at night when I lay down. I haven't been getting sinus infections. And I have this wonderful feeling of freedom -- I don't have to 'go outside for a cigarette' when I'm shopping, working, visiting at a hospital, etc. I have so much more time, now that I'm not tied to that pack of cigarettes!

So, please learn from my mistake. Once you are addicted to cigarettes, no matter how long it's been since you quit, it's never safe to have even 'one drag'. You will always be an addict, and must never, ever take a single puff!

I wish success to all who are in the process of quitting -- what a wonderful Christmas gift to give yourself!
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  #13   ^
Old Mon, Dec-17-01, 14:06
zellie zellie is offline
Registered Member
Posts: 98
 
Plan: Atkins/PP/Kiss
Stats: 160/120/110
BF:
Progress: 80%
Location: homebase NY
Default I'm cutting down!

Yesterday I started increasing my water intake and cutting down on cigarettes.

Proud of myself. I'm almost 2-pack a day, yesterday I smoked 15. I hope to be down to 7 by Friday.

zellie
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  #14   ^
Old Tue, Dec-18-01, 00:14
Atriana's Avatar
Atriana Atriana is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 2,118
 
Plan: South Beach
Stats: 170/139/130 Female 65 inches
BF:
Progress: 78%
Location: Atlanta, GA
Default

Thanks everyone for your insights and Zellie, way to go! Cutting down never worked for me. I would make myself crazy doing that. I can go from a lot to none easier than cutting down. Friday seems to be closer and closer- the thought of it is scarier and scarier. This too is usual for me. The anticipation of quitting can be almost as bad as the first 3 days of a quit. But Friday, Winter Solstice will be the day. The day from which daylight starts to again increase. A day of hope.
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  #15   ^
Old Tue, Dec-18-01, 04:54
zellie zellie is offline
Registered Member
Posts: 98
 
Plan: Atkins/PP/Kiss
Stats: 160/120/110
BF:
Progress: 80%
Location: homebase NY
Default

Atriana, don't be scared, I'll be around to hold your hand. I just posted something to another thread, the gist: "I'm doing something because I want to do it, not because somebody is forcing me". If I want to do it, I better get on with it, and stop talking about it.
I know it's bad for me, desire to succeed must conquer fear. If I fail this time, I will not beat myself up. I will pick myself up and try again immediately.

It was my doing that made me overweight, I ate the wrong things. My actions made me a smoker. I have to do something about it. I have to take control and be accountable for my actions.
It's nobody else's fault but my own. I admit to my mistakes and now I have to move beyond. Ascribing blame/fault does not solve problems.
I keep on telling myself "I am in control, and I will not lose control".

Hang in there Atriana!
zellie

Last edited by zellie : Tue, Dec-18-01 at 05:21.
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