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How do I quit?
I wanna quit. But I have a stressful job where I even sneak out to smoke. Never before in my life cigs made me "happy". But I know they are a killer.
I look forward for breaks just to smoke. I also have anxiety/depression which is a barricade on my way to quitting.
Just wish there was something I could replace cigs with, just a few days to get used w/o them.
I feel powerless because just when I think I won't have my cigs during the break makes me depressed.
whyquit.com doesn't help.
If i was creative enough to do something during the breaks...............
Not to mention my co-workers smoke too
I look forward for breaks just to smoke. I also have anxiety/depression which is a barricade on my way to quitting.
Just wish there was something I could replace cigs with, just a few days to get used w/o them.
I feel powerless because just when I think I won't have my cigs during the break makes me depressed.
whyquit.com doesn't help.
If i was creative enough to do something during the breaks...............
Not to mention my co-workers smoke too
Oh and also I have the worst anxiety as well. I have panic attacks all of the time and I feel so guilty about everything that I have done while I was on the drugs. You just have to make up your mind and go with it. You can do it!
Just do it cold turkey. I have not had one in 2 1/2 weeks. It was the hardest thing that I ever had to do. Everyday gets better after about a week. Hang in there and be strong. I quit pills, drinking and smoking. These are things that can be done.
Thank you very much. I really appreciate this. I went on that website again and read some stuff I missed before. I think I can build a strong will to quit...but,
what I worry is that my depression may worsen. I can't afford to lose the job. I tried wellbutrin once and it helped me quit but it caused more depression. I don't want any patches or gums.
I just need to build the strengths I guess....
what I worry is that my depression may worsen. I can't afford to lose the job. I tried wellbutrin once and it helped me quit but it caused more depression. I don't want any patches or gums.
I just need to build the strengths I guess....
You have associated smoking at "stress relieving" and in order to have a successful quit, you are going to have to "unlearn" that thinking. It's not easy to do, but you can if you truly want it bad enough.
I would have to say that almost everyone who has quit felt the same way as you did while they were addicts.
What helped me tremendously was whyquit.com. The articles there felt like they were written for me....I saw myself in each one and I truly believe if you can identify yourself in them, then you can and will quit.
Everyone who works or is a parent has a stressful job and everywhere you go there will be people who smoke so you are going to have to be strong and get past it.
The physical w/d is 72 hours and after that, it's all about the emotional attachment. You might want to ask your doctor for something to help you with the stress...Welbutrin is supposed to be helpful.
Again, if you really want to quit and take back control, you will have to realize that smoking DOES NOT relieve stress but only adds to it.
Here is an article from whyquit.com that goes to the heart of the matter:
I Have to Smoke Because of All My Stress!
Stress is considered a cause for smoking by many people. Actually, smoking is a cause of stress. Recent correspondence dealt with reasons people give for going back to smoking: social situations, parties, alcohol consumption and stress. This month I wish to amplify on stress.
In January of 1979, Chicago and vicinity was devastated by a major blizzard. Heavy snows fell just after the New Year crippling the area. Additional snowfall continued throughout the week. During this time period I was barraged with phone calls from participants of the November, 1978 clinic claiming to be terribly nervous, upset and anxious from "not smoking." Curiously, most of them were feeling well during the month of December. They had occasional urges which lasted only seconds and were quite easy to overcome. What they were experiencing in January was different. Many felt that they were on the verge of cracking up. To them life was "just no good" without their cigarettes. Was the anxiety they were now experiencing really a side effect from giving up smoking?
To any outside observer the answer to the mysterious intensification of perceived withdrawal was obvious. In fact, if our ex-smokers listened to radio or television or read the front page of any newspaper, they would have encountered a story on cabin fever. By simply comparing their symptoms with those accompanying cabin fever they would understand what was happening.
Attributing the anxiety to smoking cessation was transference of blame. In fact, they were having a normal reaction to an abnormal situation - confinement due to the blizzard. They would have had the same anxiety whether or not they had given up cigarettes.
The above story illustrates an atypical time period in which numerous people experience similar complaints. In everyday life inherent problems exist. Work, family, friends, and money can all contribute to daily distress. Ex-smokers often think that if they just take a cigarette during a stressful episode the situation will be solved. For example, consider a person who finds he has a flat tire in a parking lot during a freezing rain. When encountering this kind of misfortune, the ex-smoker's first reaction often is, "I need a cigarette." What will actually solve this problem is changing the tire, and driving off in a warm car. What would a cigarette do to help this situation? It only makes the person see the flat tire longer and freeze more. This adds up to greater frustration. The first puff will probably reinforce the addiction to cigarettes which is a much greater crisis than the flat tire ever was. In fact, taking the first puff almost always results in a bigger problem than the crisis that "caused" them to take the puff. Even in a real catastrophe, such as a death in the family, injuries, illnesses, flooding resulting in major property loss, bankruptcy and so on, a cigarette will not solve the problem. It will just add another major problem to the originally bad situation.
Remember, smoking cannot solve problems of daily living. No matter what the problem, there is a more effective way of solving it than smoking. In fact, a smoker's health risks are a real problem that can only be solved if they - NEVER TAKE ANOTHER PUFF!
Joel
I would have to say that almost everyone who has quit felt the same way as you did while they were addicts.
What helped me tremendously was whyquit.com. The articles there felt like they were written for me....I saw myself in each one and I truly believe if you can identify yourself in them, then you can and will quit.
Everyone who works or is a parent has a stressful job and everywhere you go there will be people who smoke so you are going to have to be strong and get past it.
The physical w/d is 72 hours and after that, it's all about the emotional attachment. You might want to ask your doctor for something to help you with the stress...Welbutrin is supposed to be helpful.
Again, if you really want to quit and take back control, you will have to realize that smoking DOES NOT relieve stress but only adds to it.
Here is an article from whyquit.com that goes to the heart of the matter:
I Have to Smoke Because of All My Stress!
Stress is considered a cause for smoking by many people. Actually, smoking is a cause of stress. Recent correspondence dealt with reasons people give for going back to smoking: social situations, parties, alcohol consumption and stress. This month I wish to amplify on stress.
In January of 1979, Chicago and vicinity was devastated by a major blizzard. Heavy snows fell just after the New Year crippling the area. Additional snowfall continued throughout the week. During this time period I was barraged with phone calls from participants of the November, 1978 clinic claiming to be terribly nervous, upset and anxious from "not smoking." Curiously, most of them were feeling well during the month of December. They had occasional urges which lasted only seconds and were quite easy to overcome. What they were experiencing in January was different. Many felt that they were on the verge of cracking up. To them life was "just no good" without their cigarettes. Was the anxiety they were now experiencing really a side effect from giving up smoking?
To any outside observer the answer to the mysterious intensification of perceived withdrawal was obvious. In fact, if our ex-smokers listened to radio or television or read the front page of any newspaper, they would have encountered a story on cabin fever. By simply comparing their symptoms with those accompanying cabin fever they would understand what was happening.
Attributing the anxiety to smoking cessation was transference of blame. In fact, they were having a normal reaction to an abnormal situation - confinement due to the blizzard. They would have had the same anxiety whether or not they had given up cigarettes.
The above story illustrates an atypical time period in which numerous people experience similar complaints. In everyday life inherent problems exist. Work, family, friends, and money can all contribute to daily distress. Ex-smokers often think that if they just take a cigarette during a stressful episode the situation will be solved. For example, consider a person who finds he has a flat tire in a parking lot during a freezing rain. When encountering this kind of misfortune, the ex-smoker's first reaction often is, "I need a cigarette." What will actually solve this problem is changing the tire, and driving off in a warm car. What would a cigarette do to help this situation? It only makes the person see the flat tire longer and freeze more. This adds up to greater frustration. The first puff will probably reinforce the addiction to cigarettes which is a much greater crisis than the flat tire ever was. In fact, taking the first puff almost always results in a bigger problem than the crisis that "caused" them to take the puff. Even in a real catastrophe, such as a death in the family, injuries, illnesses, flooding resulting in major property loss, bankruptcy and so on, a cigarette will not solve the problem. It will just add another major problem to the originally bad situation.
Remember, smoking cannot solve problems of daily living. No matter what the problem, there is a more effective way of solving it than smoking. In fact, a smoker's health risks are a real problem that can only be solved if they - NEVER TAKE ANOTHER PUFF!
Joel
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