If you have given up smoking, How did you do it?

[irwtdt]

I really need to stop smoking, Not sure which way to go between patches, gum, ecig.

Anyone who has successfully given up, Which worked for you?

I went cold turkey....I also read Alan Carr book....recommended read

I moved to vaping when we were living in a flat and the lift broke. I also had a massive bout of health anxiety at the same time, snd as I get migraines, I'm already more predisposed to strokes, so the thought of smoking and adding to that, filled me with dread.

I vaped for about 5 years snd stopped cold Turkey when o found out I was pregnant.

I wouldn't recommend and e cig. I just another crutch to be addicted to. Still really quite bad for you snd a waste of money. People don't use them to quit, they just become long term vapers.

Maybe just try snd cut down at first. Impose smoking conditions on yourself like. If I smoke, I have to also have a cofffee. Or can't be on the street. Or only after a meal. Or not in company. Whatever makes sense for you. You'll definitely see the frequency go down, and then work from there.

Alan Carr and a piece of piss.

Over 20 years of chain smoking and several failed attempts at stopping and then I listened to the audio book and my whole perception to smoking changed and I quit four years ago and can honestly say I'll never start again. I don't miss it, I don't crave it, I don't have any strong reaction to someone else smoking.

The people I know who quit with vapes only one has successfully come off that, the others are puffing on vapes a lot more than they did cigs, and they do it in places they'd never light up, like round the dinner table, my mother is one, you can see her getting anxious if her vape isn't in her, she used to walk to the shop for milk with leaving the cigs at home, she can't even walk to end of her garden without puffing on her vape. So many times she's been asked to put it away because she's automatically gone to puff on it in a shop or something just cos it's in her hand. I know about six people like this.

I'm pleased she's not smoking cigarettes but I wish she'd quit the vape too because when she can't access it she would have a cigarette to satisfy the craving. I just say well done in real life cos people get very defensive if you say it's kind of feeding an addiction by a different method.

Hypnotherapy- amazing!

Slowly cut down and then vaped for a few weeks, when vaping I slowly reduced the nicotine until it was a 0% one.

Was an arse for at least four weeks.

I tried 3 times over 2 years.

I joined a luxury gym and didn't have the money to both smoke and be a member - so had to ditch the fags for a year

in my mind, very time I wanted a fag I pictured my daughters on the wedding day without me and went to the gym

Ive never smoked again 14 years later

I got a horrible chest infection and had some unused nicotine patches lurking in a drawer. Used those for about 5 days and haven't had a cigarette since 2007. Oddly, the sight of someone smoking on TV now makes me feel quite ill and am happy to say that about 3 months in, when I found an unopened pack of cigarettes in a cupboard, I binned them without even thinking about using them. Good luck. Do everything until something works.

vaping - one day i had finished a pack of ciggies and decided fuck it im done and went onto the vape
ive still smoked occasionally but can easily go from vape to ciggies and back with no issues
down to 0.3 mg vape juice now and will make the move to 0% soon

Champix
It is a wonder drug and impossible to continue smoking on.

I used the Quickmist sprays, makes quitting a doddle. Used to smoke at least 20 a day.

Be warned though, Quickmist is VERY addictive. I still use it after quitting 7 years ago.

I have never smoked but both my parents did.

My mum had hypnotherapy, nothing else had worked.

My bad has technically not given up, he is just seeing how long he can go without one. He's at about 45 years of seeing how long he can go.

I think this is a good approach because it is positive, you are actively doing something and it doesn't matter if you can only go 10 mins, you know you can do 10 mins so try 11 mins, or 12.

Also people don't ask , 'have you had one yet?' they ask, 'How long is it now'

In a previous career I was a clinical physiologist, when you stop smoking your body reacts.

One of things smoking does is paralyse the 'hairs' in your bronchial tubes. These waft particles of smoke, pollution etc out of your lungs.

Over the first two weeks these start to 'wake up' and do their job, the next 2 weeks they are doing a sort of 'spring clean' and trying to get the gunk out of your lungs.

This is when many people start smoking again because, well, you are going to be coughing up black mucus.

This lasts about 2 weeks, the first being the worst.

Then you have another 2 weeks of starting to feel better, after 6 weeks you are a non smoker.

I believe everyone can stop but you have to find the right method for you.

I had hypnotherapy 17 years ago, left and have never thought about smoking since.

Alan Carr. I smoked for nearly 30 years. Tried every method of quitting and couldn't do it. Then I read Alan Carr and haven't even thought about a cigarette in 3 years. It was very easy. I couldn't actually believe how easy it was!

Prescribed champix by the doctor. I tried literally everything and nothing worked, but I quit using this and haven't touched cigarettes again in a decade. Nor have I had an urge to. So glad I did it - I was an extremely heavy smoker.

After 20 years as a very committed smoker, I stopped by reading Allen Carr. I found the book a bit hard to start, and maybe a bit patronising in tone at the beginning but it's worth persevering with because it's amazing. It changes the way you view smoking, and makes you look at it from the perspective of a non smoker. He breaks down all the excuses we use to not stop, which makes it really easy. The day I finished the book I called myself a non smoker and I know I'll never smoke again.

Patches for a few weeks but they gave me awful nightmares and they were a pain In the arse to use, so ended up going cold turkey. I do think that you will only give up when you really want to is very true. I tried for years and years to give up, but only when I truly wanted to did I manage it.

Definitely read the Allen Carr book. I gave up immediately after reading the book a number of years ago and had absolutely no desire to smoke again. I just wish I could manage it with alcohol now, that's proving much more tricky.

I have given up successfully twice! Both times I cut back to my minimum and then just stopped. I had good incentives though; pregnancy and the prospect of major surgery.

Nicotine patches
I knew I'd won when I accidentally went out without one and didn't notice till I got home.
Stopped in February this year.

Vaping. Suppose I just switched one addiction for another but in ok with that.

I quit in 2004, so patches and gum were the main options. I think I'd probably vape if I did it now.

I used champix tablets and stopped completely within 3 weeks. That was nearly 3 years ago now. I would recommend the tablets to anyone

Allen Carr easy way then nicotine mints for a couple of days.

@MaryBoBary

I used champix tablets and stopped completely within 3 weeks. That was nearly 3 years ago now. I would recommend the tablets to anyone

I wouldn't, my DH took them and I thought he was going to kill us. The stories about them (in our case anyway) were correct.

I switched to ecig/vaping for maybe 2 or 3 months and then weaned off of that. Was much easier doing it like that than straight off of cigarettes and still kept my hands busy. I also have up alcohol at the same time as it was much harder to not smoke when I was drinking. Have been smoke and booze free for 3 years now!