Tell me all the good things about stopping smoking please

[Fjmb]

I’ve smoked since my mid teens, at times up to 40 a day I now smoke about 20 a day.

After a few half hearted failed attempts I’ve decided that this time will be a successful attempt! I’m goi to use patches, an inhalator and listen to Allen Carrs audiobook every night in bed. (I have all of these ready to go).

I know the health risks, I know how much money I’ve smoked, I know my clothes stink .... I am still a bit nervous (I don’t even know what of!) about quitting . Shamefully, my biggest motivation is money and smell - it should be my health but thinking about that has never worked for me. I’m spending around £12 a day on cigarettes, I enjoy smoking but I so much want to quit!

I need ex smokers to tell me all the fantastic things about being a non smoker (partly so I don’t light one now, partly so I have real life stories to aspire to!)

@Fjmb

I’ve tried a vape before, I’m not keen on them. Maybe the few I’ve bought have been rubbish but they leak, make me cough and splutter and I end up just putting them in a drawer and going to buy cigarettes

The first one my wife bought me years ago was pretty dire, and I had nobody to tell me how to use it properly. It's come on a bit since then. You get all the advantages of giving up without any of the draw backs, and unlike patches they actually work and are enjoyable.

You're very welcome

Good luck with it all.

Oh god the smell. I cringe when I think that’s how I smelled. Stale smoke on others makes me heave now.

I quit 5 years ago. I smoked about 10 a day for 20 years.

The biggest thing for me is the freedom you have once you've stopped. I used to plan my days around smoking. Walk to the bus stop = fag , work tea break was spent smoking rather than sitting and resting , I would be reluctant to do certain activities as there wasn't a place to smoke nearby. When I think about it I really limited my daily activities to make sure I could light up.

The funniest thing was that when I smoked on a work break I'd have to walk for minutes to reach a spot that was approved by my boss as I worked in a school and we obviously couldn't smoke anywhere in sight of the playground. It was almost like that scene in the it crowd when Jen smokes!

Good luck op. You'll be glad you quit.

@Fjmb

Inthesameboatatmo that sounds absolutely horrific! You’re the same age as me too. I can’t imagine how traumatic that must’ve been for not only you but your children too.

Thank you everyone for your pushes in the right direction! It’s just what I need! In the time taken to read and reply I’ve just not smoked that cigarette! Not sure I want/need it right now.

I’m going to be so embarrassed when I smell myself properly aren’t I?! I spend so much money on home and personal fragrance just because I love smells - I’m not carrying the smell I think I am am I?!

Watchingthetele I completely get the addiction part - most of my time is consumed just thinking about smoking, even when I’m not consciously thinking about it iyswim? ‘I can’t stop at that shop for milk, they don’t have my cigarettes.... Oh can’t wait to get home for a cuppa and a cigarette.... Oooo a sunny day! Great I can get the washing out because it all stinks of cigarettes.....’

It was but thankfully I cannot remember anything, the children on the other hand can , they panic if I don't answer them if they call me ,I have a tendency to clean with headphones on lol so they come rushing around the house to make sure I'm ok but hopefully that panic will diminish in time

@HappyWipings you’ve just made me remember how I would never go to the cinema because I couldn’t smoke. After quitting, the cinema became one of my favourite things to do! Smoking just takes over your life and constrains what you do so much.

You probably won't die of an aggressive lung cancer that entails the final few weeks of your life slowly drowning on your own saliva and fluid as it fills your lungs

Don't give up. First of all, if you've made up your mind to quit smoking - do it! Don't step back. Quit smoking through vaping is not a bad idea. Vaping help to quit cigarettes by getting nicotine with fewer of the toxins that come from burning tobacco. My DH's brother has stopped smoking cigarettes this way. It wasn't so easy and immediate. He's actually still vaping but veeery seldom using only good, certificated products, like Gold Bee. A vape itself also matters. There're different kinds of it, for lighter smoker or heavier smoker. Nevertheless, it's only a first stem to get rid of smoking. Then you'll get more positives: you'll definitely smell better, as everyone's told you; also, your health will improve, health of your heart and lungs, blood pressure and heart rate will improve; your skin will look prettier, etc...