I have smoked since I was 13 now 35. I have tried to quit a couple of times but was never serious. The more I think about smoking or try to the more I smoke.

How has everyone else managed to do it? I have tried Wellbutrin (Zyban) and the patches. I have heard of great success with the gum but then have seen people get addicted to that.

How much weight did you gain? Right now that is my biggest fear about quitting. I tell myself that once I reach my goal weight and maintain for 3 months I will quit. I know I am using that as an excuse.

Any advice would be helpful.

Pam

Hi Pam!

I quit smokin just over 10 months ago. Tried the patch for a week, but then decided cold turkey was the best way for me. I won't lie....it was hard and I was miserable and very difficult to be around (just ask my hubby!) and yup, I gained weight. However, that doesn't have to happen to you! I was not careful and used the excuse of quitting smoking to eat what I wanted when I wanted.....I figured it was the carbs or cigs....so I chose the carbs. I paid a heavy price.....literally.....but now I am back on the wagon. There are lots of people on this forum who have been able to both hand in hand and continued to lose weight or maintain and I am sure that you can too. Just remember not to be too hard on yourself....nobody's perfect and we are our own worst enemies.....one day at a time is the best advise that I can give.

I wish you much success....you really can do this.....I'll be on the sidelines cheering you on!

Jo

I quit cold turkey Christmas morning 2002!!!



It was hard but that was my Christmas gift to me! Maybe the Easter Bunny could bring you a special gift of - no more cigarettes!

I waited a year until I knew I wasn't gonna relapse then started the LC WOL to get rid of all the pounds I had accumulated over the years.

I know how hard it was to quit and I know how hard it was at first to adjust to LC living - I definately found quitting smoking easier!

If you really want it you can do it!!

I feel so much better than I ever have! Hubby put up with me while I quit and then 3 months later he quit!

I think it's definately a good thing we didn't both quit at the same time one of us probably would have killed the other one!

We are both so much happier now - not to mention wealthier! They weren't cheap when I quit so I'm sure they aren't cheap now!

Start a "smoke fund" for something you really want and put all that money from the cigarettes into a fund for something good for you!

We tried at first to do that but ended up eating out, going to a movie, doing other fun stuff with the kids instead. That was just as good for us because we wanted to live longer to annoy them later in life so we thought it appropriate to spoil them a little more now!

Good Luck I know you can do it!!!

Both times I quit (haha), I did it cold turkey. I never understood the physical "pains" people went through, because there aren't any. I think it's all in your head. I quit with Allen Carr's book "Easy way to quit smoking" the first time, the second time was when I moved to the U.S. and I already knew how smokers are treated here and was not interested in being a social outkast ;-)

Also, of course, for all the obvious reasons like health, etc.

As for the weight gain.... I am not going to lie to you: the first time, I gained about 30 lbs. in 3 months, and it took me 2 years to take it off again -- in the end, unfortunately, only by starting to smoke again. It sounds crazy, but all the dieting and exercise did nothing, but once I was back on track with my two packs/day, the weight just came bouncing off within months.

The second time I "quit" (I have to put this in parentheses, because I still smoke occasionally when I drink alcohol), I "only" put on 20 lbs., of which I have lost 10 in the last 2 years. I've done WW, working out 6 days a week, now doing lc with little to no success as you can tell from my stats....

and the thing that bothers me most is that I just KNOW I would lose all I want and more if I went back to smoking. In fact, while I was smoking I could eat an entire pizza in the evening all by myself, had roughly 2 litres of REGULAR coke almost every day, AND GAINED NOTHING.

Oops, I guess this was more of a promo to continue smoking... not intentionally, really.

But I suggest quitting without patches or gum or anything like that, because you stay addicted that way. Funnily enough, you have to be just as drastic with the nicotine as you are with sugar/carbs/etc. on Atkins. No cheats.

Good luck!!!!

The first time I quit, the only time I gained 25 pounds that Im now trying to loose. Heres the messed up part. Im quiting AGAIN in 10 days. Oh boy oh boy. I'll need all the help I can get.
Angel