Greetings…
Well everyone, today IS the day. Tomorrow was supposed to be the day,
but due to unforseen circumstances, I have pushed the day I stop smoking
to today. What a week I have had and I’m going to share it with you and
ask a little favor. Allow me to use today’s column to talk to anyone and
everyone “out there” who has wanted to stop smoking, is thinking about
quitting, and those, like me, who KNOW it’s not an option to fail if any
quality of life is to be improved by improving my health…
It has been suggested that I write a journal about my experiences while
trying to kick this nasty habit and I will share any and everything that
comes up, but will use the blogs for the major part of it to cut down on
the amount of stories that will only make sense to those who are going
through it or have gone through it. I don’t expect it to be “pretty”,
and I won’t sugarcoat it if I’m having a rough time. I offer the blogs
to those who may want or need an area to talk to each other and actually
try to help each other. Who knows, maybe we can accomplish something
together…
The blogs can be a useful tool for people because someone can always be
“around” to offer up some advice or make a comment, even if you are away
from the computer for a while. I’m going to try to figure a way to separate
the actual column and devote one area for those of us who need some support.
Maybe I’ll call it the “Smoking Section”, or…”PUFF THIS”! just because…
Hahahaha
I will ask you to feel free to laugh at some of the things I will be
going through and Lord knows, no one finds some strange things funnier
than I do, which is why I sometimes, <ahem> get myself into a “situation”.
Oh well, that only makes it funnier to me. I will share what I have done
this week, what I am doing now, and because my sister wants me to succeed
enormously, she was able to get something for me to test, and if it works,
I will share it with you and let you know if it works…(Hang in there
Debbie, I’m testing it as we speak”), so far so good!
Wish me luck and I wish everyone who wants to join me mucho strength and
the best of luck. I will use the blog to try to vocalize the emotional
feelings that are running through my mind and have as I worked my way
up to saying good-bye to the ciggies, and yes, there are emotional issues
believe it or not. Some valid, some maybe not so valid, but they are real
feelings…
Ok, here goes…
Last Friday, I went to my doctor for a follow-up visit after my recent
hospital scare. I went for a particular reason, and that was to get
a prescription for Wellburtin, an anti-depressant that has been EXTREMELY
successful in helping people stop smoking. Dozens and dozens of readers
sent in the suggestion when I first talked about my “problem”, and I was
actually looking forward to quitting because it looked like there was a
way to ease me into it without as much “stress”. I had gotten Chantix
before for the same purpose and decided against taking it when too many
reports started coming out about some real bad side effects. When the FAA
actually came out and placed it on the banned list of medications for
pilots because of effects on the mind, I decided to not risk it and threw
them away…
Back to the Wellburtin. My doctor told me Wellburtin and Zyban are the same
medication and used for the same purpose. There were some side effects, but
he didn’t go into them because he felt that the success rate of the drug
far outweighed any “minor” side effects. He told me to pick a “target date”
to stop smoking and start taking the pills twice a day for a week before
the actual quit date. I wanted to start right away, so the following day,
I started my “treatment” program. One in the morning, one in the early
evening. The day I would stop smoking would be the following Saturday…
At first, I didn’t notice “too much” because quite frankly, I was on
Prednisone and antibiotics from the doctor in the hopsital. Combined
with a daily Thyroid pill and as a person who rarely if EVER takes medications
or even aspirin, and I swear I started to “rattle” when I walked with all
the pills floating around in me…
Flyboy left Saturday and for some reason, I had a TON of energy and do what
I do best when I have a lot of energy. Clean the house! I worked and worked
all day and although tired that evening, I couldn’t sleep and in fact, went
to bed at 1:00 A.M. and woke up wide awake and ready to go at 3:30 A.M.
Hmmmmmm, OK, I am the type that doesn’t require a lot of sleep, but even
I needed more than this. I tried and couldn’t fall back asleep and got
up, figuring I’d just take a nap later in the day…
Took my dose of Wellburtin and noticed I didn’t smoke quite as much and
the taste of the ciggie seemed a little “different”, and again, felt
that this might just work…
Tired as heck by the afternoon, I tried to take a nap and after an hour of
tossing and turning, I realized it wasn’t going to happen and got up. I
never went back to bed until 2:00 A.M. I fell asleep and woke up soaked
in sweat. Hair, neck, Pj’s, pillowcase, etc. Hot flash you say? I don’t
think so this time, this was a very different type of feeling. My heart
was racing, my hands were shaking, and I was having a hard time breathing.
Different than the hard time of breathing when I went to the hospital…
Something wasn’t “right”, but I wasn’t sure what was wrong or what was
causing it. I hadn’t eaten in two days because my appetite was non-existent
and in fact, the thought of food made me nauseous. Hmmm, I thought, maybe
this is really too good to be true, maybe you won’t even gain weight like
EVERYONE does when they quit smoking…
By Sunday night, I still hadn’t slept and was wide awake again. I decided
to go on the Internet and look up the side effects of Wellburtin and see
if it was the culprit of my “condition”, because along with the all around
rotten feeling, I did something VERY strange while Flyboy was gone and
he and I are still cracking up over it. Enjoy a good laugh at my expense!
I was watching the Food Network. Bobby Flay was going to do a “throwdown”
with Phil, a seafood restaurant owner in Monterey, California. Understand,
I am not a fond lover of fish, although shrimp, lobster and crab are about
the only real “seafood” I like. Anyhoo, I started watching the competition
for Cioppino, a tomato based fish stew with all sorts of fresh seafood from
Calamari to crab and clams, as well as various other types of fish. I not
only sat mesmorized watching the two chefs cook this dish, I swear I looked
like Moosie with a mouthfull of drool forming!
I listened intently and found that good ‘ole Phil sells Cioppino and ships
it out frozen from Monterey, California, and what is the closest state to
Caleeefornia? Areeeezona! I went online and ordered a BUCKET of Ciopinno,
filled with almost every type of fish I WOULDN’T eat if I was starving
in the middle of a deserted Island!
OK, NOW I knew something really wasn’t right! I looked further into the
side effects and imagine my surprise when I saw “irrational behavior” as
one of the side effects, as well as most of the other uncomfortable things
that were going on with me…
I knew that I would still be determined to stop smoking, but not with
the help of a drug that wasn’t reacting well with my body and mind…
I called the Pharmacist Tuesday morning because I knew I had a better
chance of getting a few answers rather than waiting for my doctor to
call me back, IF he ever would. When I finished explaining what was
going on, she firmly told me to “Get off the pills pronto”…
After the last dose on Monday, I stopped taking the Wellburtin and actually
went through a nasty withdrawl. Sweating, shaking, jitters, loss of appetite
followed by ravenous appetite, mad dashes to the bathroom, headaches and a
chest that felt like I had Hampsters running around in there doing Riverdance.
(Don’t ask me how I came up with that analogy)…
It has been the most bizarre experience in my life. I became “manic” at one
point, extremely up and hyper, followed by a “crash” of sorts, complete
with tears. Oh yeah, I just GOTTA get me some more of this medication!!!
For those who have had success with Wellburtin, you are lucky and I hope
it continues to work and get you off the ciggies, but if anyone has anything
near the reaction I had and am still getting over, I feel your pain, and
guess we’ll just have to figure out something else, which I may have…
I may have found a safe “crutch” I hope will help me through this
without any adverse effects. I don’t know if anyone has ever heard
about “E-Cigarettes”, or Electronic Cigarettes. Basically, they are
a “fake” ciggie that has a cartridge of flavor and although you can
inhale and puff, nothing more than a water vapor puffs out. Nothing
goes into your lungs. There are cartridges that fit inside them in
various flavors and different levels of nicotine if you choose to
wean yourself off of the nicotine gradually, like you would do with
the patch, gum or nicotine inhalor. I decided against any of the Nicotine
cartridges because I know the actual nicotine is gone from your system
in 3-5 days, after that, it’s the HABIT that most of us smokers have the
problem kicking. For me, this seems to be the “magic” that I will need
to get me through various stages until the time I no longer even need
this, and if I still do, I’m not harming my body, and the price is MUCH
cheaper than cigarettes…
My sister has been instrumental in helping me with this, (because she
absolutely HATES smoking and wants me to quit and get my mom to quit).
She was able to get me a few test kits to try out. If I like them and
feel they might help others who are in the same boat as me, she agreed
to carry them on our site. She also agreed to carry the refills because
I don’t want to use something that I can’t find refills for…
It has a rechargeable battery and can be charged through a wallcharger,
car cigarette lighter, and even a computer USB port, which is perfect
for me since I do alot of work at the computer and yes, smoke at the
computer. People working in an office can actually use one of these
e-cigs because…there’s no smoke, no odor, no nuthin’!
I’m already thinking of the possibilities. On the airplane all the way to
Chicago, in a restaurant, in a bar for those who only like to smoke when
they drink. Illinois casinos where they now ban smoking and give us reason
to drive to Indiana! (Hey, always planning my trips to Chicago). I will
be able to “smoke” in the car and not stink up the car which actually
makes me sick, even though it’s MY smoke making the car stink! Same goes
for the stinky ashtrays that I not only hate smelling, but looking at to
remind me how much I smoke…
No one can tell you to “put it out” because there’s NOTHING to put out!
Admit it, sounds too good to be true doesn’t it? My sister overnighted me
a kit that contained two e-ciggies and the “research and test” department
went into action at my kitchen counter…
I tried the “E-cig” on Wednesday for the first time. I still was smoking
regular cigarettes and trying to get the dang Wellburtin out of my system.
Flyboy charged the battery unit part of the cigarette and the initial
charge took about five hours to get to “full power”. The cigarette itself
is a little heavier than a real one of course since it is a metal body and
a plastic mouthpiece, which is the cartridge of “flavor”…
My sister sent me various flavors including vanilla, cherry, chocolate,
apple, almond, one called, “Marlboro” flavor and one flavored “tobacco”.
Some had high Nicotine, medium, low and zero nicotine. I was interested
in the zero, but in the interest of “research”, I tried everything…
I have to tell you…I have NEVER seen such a cool device, and if the
power of suggestion has anything to do with stopping smoking, I’m already
there! I felt like I was smoking the real thing. Inhaling, exhaling and
watching a “puff” of vapor blow out of my mouth without any smoke, fire,
ash, or…ODOR! I felt like a kid with a new Fischer Price toy!
Flyboy watched and of course, since “boys love toys”, grabbed the other
one, popped in a cartridge and started puffing away. The end of the
cigarette has a red light that lights up when you inhale and it really
looks like you’re smoking. Ginger and Moose, who have never shown any
interest in a cigarette while I smoked, were intrigued with the red
flashing light at the end. Moose shoved her nose into it and started
sniffing it. She obviously could smell the vanilla flavor cartridge,
and didn’t back away when I puffed a cloud of”smoke” at her face…
OK, not hazardous or annoying to dogs, score another point…
I concluded that particular test with a BIG thumbs up. The next test was
really the important one though. It’s easy to get excited about a fake
cigarette when you have a pack of the real things sitting right next to
them…
I decided to “bite the bullet” and go for it. I put my cigarettes away,
out of sight and decided that my “new best friend” was now “in charge”.
I revamped my “plan” a little and grabbed the “low” nicotine cartridges
and decided to start with a few of them and give myself at least one day
with the new cigarette and a little nicotine…
Each cartridge lasts about 150 mouthfuls or “puffs” I guess you would
call them and I’m not even sure if that’s good or bad, a lot or a little
because I was so enthralled with this thing, I think I was puffing it
more than normal in the beginning because, quite frankly, I was playing!!!
The bad news? I went through probably more cartridges from “horsing around”
with the unit, however…the good news? I threw my cigarettes AWAY!!!
The better news? I didn’t go to the garbage and fish them back out a few
hours later…Yep, I thought about it and was ALWAYS conscious of them
in the garbage…
I called my sister up the following day and begged her to get these things
in stock, even if it was only for me! She thought I was nuts when I told
her she should get one to try. OK, in retrospect, why would someone who
has never smoked want to try something that is good for stopping the
original bad habit that can kill you? (I told her to cut me a break, I
was caught up in the excitement)…
She promised she would talk to the company and try to get some kind of
kit for smokers, and also promised she would make sure refill cartridges
will be available, because until the time I don’t even need or want the
fake ciggie, I want to make sure there is NO reason to go back to the real
thing!!! As soon as I find out if they will be available on out site, I
will definitely let those of you who want to know when and if they will
be sold. As I said, I have a sample that I am trying and that is as far
as I get involved in that respect…
So…Am I a non-smoker yet? nope, there’s still Nicotine in my system, and
who is kidding who? The withdrawl I’m going to be going through the next
few days is the thing that makes quitting hard, marriages fail, murders
happen, and committment papers signed…
And aren’t you all glad I will be starting a new blog to share all the
“fun” with all of you? I’m not sure when the blog will be ready, I’m
going to work on it this weekend. If I can quit playing with this e-cig
long enough to get some work done!
The blog will be aptly called quitsmoking.gophercentral.com
If you want to quit, join us, if you have already quit, join us and
share tips with us and give us a hand, and if you never smoked and
hate smoking…PLEASE join us because…we’re all going to be “on the
edge” and we really will need to yell at SOMEONE!!! I’m hoping to get
it up and running this weekend…
(Barring any wackier than usual behavior)
Oh, and by the way…Phil’s Fish Market called to let me know my “bucket
of Cioppino will be delivered this afternoon by 3:00 P.M., just in time
for dinner…
Considering it cost me almost 100 bucks for the medically induced purchase,
it looks like I’m going to force myself to eat something I wouldn’t have
eaten for free, let alone paid for a week ago…
I had one other “incident” regarding food the day after Flyboy got home.
I was working on my column and Flyboy was trying to put himself into a
coma by watching GOLF. Out of “nowhere”, I called over to him and said,
“We gotta go somehere”! He said, “where”? and I, in a rather “forceful
state”, said…BURGER KING! I don’t think I have had Burger King in over
5 years mind you. Knowing this, he thought I was joking until he turned
around and saw my face! Bless his heart, I think he could tell it was
going to be another one of those “food things” and grabbed the car keys
and took me to the Burger King drive-thru. He ordered what he wanted
and asked me what I wanted. I said, “one of everything” and we both laughed.
However, I DID order a Whopper with cheese, large order of fries, an order
of onion rings, AND a large Vanilla shake!!! (I’m actually nauseous typing
all of that…
I dug into the bag of fries on the way home and nibbled on a few. When we
got home, I spread out my personal “feast” in front of me and BAM! lost
my appetite totally. I took a bite of the whopper, had one onion ring, a
sip of my shake and I was done! Flyboy is eating in silence, but watching
this whole thing with the goofiest grin on his face. He knew I had never
eaten eaten a full hamburger, let alone everything else I ordered, but
indulged me and probably was very thankful we were not married to each
other when I was pregnant and prone to cravings…
I opened up the Whopper, removed all the onions, tomatoes, etc and gave
Moose and Ginger the rest of the whopper and fries. The were already
drooling as much as I was when I watched Bobby Flay! I didn’t give them the
onion rings of course, and they went into the garbage after Flyboy had one
or two. The shake disappeared into the freezer where it still sits…
Good thing I got off the Wellburtin, a few more days on it and I might
have bought a car or a new house…
Hmmmmmm, I may have just gotten an idea…
Honeyyyyyyyyy, it’s not my fault there’s a new car in the driveway, it
was the Wellburtin…
Have a great weekend everyone and smokers….we CAN do it!!!
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You can do it. You just have to get in that “mind set” that’s all.
My mother quit cold turkey 30 years ago. She did gain weight though.
I have friends who have done the “e-cigarette” or something similar with no problems with quiting, I know you can do this. Just hang in there and take it one day at a time.
Have a wonderful weekend
We’ll to it together!! I decided about a month ago to quit; started by writing down each and every time I lit up–what an eye opener!! The next step was to put it off everytime the ‘urge’ hit, first for 15 minutes and then longer from that point, pretty soon I could get past that urge and do the same again. Of course, there were times it didn’t work, but hey, I’m only human!!
About that time I heard of an offer through the state of Michigan and the American Cancer Society to help quitters. I sat down one afternoon, hit redial for 45 minutes (the line was that jammed with calls), was on hold for 1 1/2 hours before finally getting a human, but I was soooo
determined. (Good thing I was, program ended within days–they ran out!) I decided to go with the free patches. Tammy, my counselor, called within days, we set the quit date for April 13th. She has called twice, and will continue to call during the whole process.
I went from being a 2 pack a day smoker down to less than a pack on my own, which I was very proud of. Yes, even with the patch, I have lit up a few times, talk about a nicotine overdose–not good. Biggest problem I have is keeping my hands busy when the urge hits.
I so look forward to your quit smoking blog, and further info on the e-cigarette and hoping they are not too expensive.
Thanks Jamey–we’ll kick this habit!!!!!
GOOD MORNING EVERYONE AND GOOD LUCK TO THOSE JUMPING ON THE “NON-SMOKING
TRAIN”…make that PLANE!!!
Jamie
Jamie,
When you first mentioned the E Fifty One (I think it is called) I went on line and looked it up. I was really impressed and wanted to try it as soon as possible. I haven’t yet. Now that I know that you have tried it and have some sucess with it I am determined to get some. So if you sister can get these for a cheaper price I will be the first to order( after you). The last few months I have developed this headache that is on the right side at the temple area and I have a very hard time getting rid of them. I can have them at least 2 to 3 time in a month. They last for 2 to 3 days, it doesn’t cause me to lose sleep but the headache is there in the morning when I get up.
So yesterday I decided to test to see if it was the cigs. Everytime that I lite up the headache just pounded at the temple.
So please see if you lovely sister can get these so people can use them, I want to quite as soon as possible and I think these would just be the thing that will get me there.
Maybe your sister can tell me where she got them and I will try and order them myself. What I looked them up on internet they can run from $49 (for a starter kit) up to $149. So hopefully she will be able to get them at a better price.
All my best to you on this adventure.
One step at a time, Jamie. One hour at a time. One day at a time. I stopped smoking about 15 years ago and finally got to the point where I laid x number out each day and when those were gone, that was it. Then I noticed that I smoked more in the evening after work, so cut those down one at a time over a short period of time. Honest to God, I had very few withdrawals. I am so pleased you got off the medications. I just started sleeping decently after almost two years of about four hours a night…and what was the cause? An allergy medicine. Did my doctor tell me about side effects? Yes, but sleeplessness was not one of them nor is it listed on their website. I had to research other sleepless people telling the world that they, too, gave up this prescription drug so they could sleep again.
Good luck. I know you can do it. No one says it is gonna be easy, but we are all holding you up!
Have never heard of e-cigarettes, but whatever works, that’s the way to go. I know you can do it and may all your other want-to-be-non-smokers, hang in there. It can be done. After fifty years of smoking, I did it cold turkey, but again, it was the mind-set thing. We all are marching with you and believe in all of you going thru this. Bless you all.
While I’m happy for you, I gotta tell you..If you still have something “lit” in your hand your not totally breaking a habit. Love you tho..no hard feelings? PS: I had the same breakdown when I took Prozac..by the second nite I had packed my suitcase and told my hubby to take me to our psychiatric hospital..pronto. He didn’t of course, but I got treatment the next morning. I will never forget that..ever..
Good Luck Jamie. I quit about 25 years ago. The method used by the group I joined was to gradually cut the number and strength of the cigarettes. By the time I got to the lowest nicotine dosage and the few cigarettes allowed, I did not enjoy smoking anymore. Had one day of withdrawal. Did put on a little weight but it was worth it
Louise said…
“While I’m happy for you, I gotta tell you..If you still have something “lit” in your hand your not totally breaking a habit.”
Totally agree with the “habit” issue…The most important “habit” to break first is the Nicotine and smoking habit…The other will take care of itself in time…
First things first…The e-cig is “lit up” by a light, it isn’t “lit up” by a match…
Jamie
Hi! You can quit. I did cold turkey about 5 years ago. My Dad died of lung cancer I didn’t want to end up that way myself. I did try wellbutrin years ago and when I could not figure out how to turn off my lights in my car (that I had for a few years) I quit taking it pronto. Even though it was working I felt like I was looseing my mind. Good Luck and hang in there!!
Hi Jamie:
Great post today, just keep in the front of your mind, ‘i can do it’ as i am doing it. i’ve been a smoker (well now ex) for over 30 years (can’t even count anymore lol) and quit two weeks ago, my husband and i are both doing it together also. We are using the chantix and took that for 1 1/2 weeks while smoking and set out date and then just stopped. So far the cravings have not been extremely bad that i want to kill someone for a ciggy lol. but they are there. i have heard of the side effects of the chantix and have had non other than upset stomach in the morning but i make sure to take it with food. I have heard a lot of people have great success with this. I wish you great luck in your quiting and cant wait for your new quiting smoking blog, that should be fun. keep up the good work jamie!!!
Hi Jamie,
Best of luck with breaking your smoking addiction. I am a non-smoker, but the e-cig sounds like a great product for those who are, and wish to quit. Now if only they made e-food for those like myself who need to lose weight. Arrrggghhh!!! I guess we all have our vices….. (hmmm…e-food???)
Jamie, I wish you all the luck in the world. The e-cig is a great idea. One of my co workers got one because he had to fly to Africa and knew he could not make the airplane ride without a cigarette. The e-cig made his trip go by without a problem. He is not interested in quitting smoking but he has cut back. I think the great thing about the e-cig for those using it to quit smoking is that you are giving up the nicotine, but you still have the e-cig to go through motions of smoking and then eventully you get past the withdrawal of the nicotine and then you can move on to quit the “habit” of smoking a cigarette and not have to do it at all at once.
I have done my first post on the smoking blog… Still working on it, but you may find my initial “smoking post” a trip down memory lane…
quitsmoking.gophercentral.com
Come on down!!!
Jamie
Jamie this was one of your best and funniest letters. I know exactly what you are going through. I have been trying to quit since January, but something always comes up, like my fur baby dieing. I was doing pretty good until then. I have cut down quite a bit and am still trying to quit. I bought one of the e-cigarettes on E-Bay for $25. It came with 6 refills, but I don’t think they have refills after those are used up. If your sister sells them I will buy another one. I showed the e-cigarette to my doctor and he was so amazed he had to take a picture of me smoking it. LOL I am going to knuckle down and really try to quit for good too. Mine have the water vapor, no nicotine.
Tell your sister to hurry and get them because the FDA is trying to stop them.
Good Luck with your quitting and I hope you don’t kill anyone along the way. LOL
Hi Jamie,
So sorry you had all the problems with the Wellbutrin. Glad you were smart enough to get off of it. I quit smoking cold turkey about 12 years ago. You have to really want to do it. I said a lot of prayers and God answered them.
My husband is in the process of quitting. He hasn’t had a cigarette in 8 days using Chantix. Luckily he hasn’t had any side effects. I am praying that all who want to quit, will be successful.
Good for you, Jaime! I’ve never been a smoker. My grandfather smoked himself to death five years before I was born and I am allergic to something in cigarette smoke. Every time I am exposed to cigarette smoke for any length of time (besides walking by it) I end up very short of breath and feel like I am having an asthma attack. The only time that I got in someone’s face about smoking was an ex-fiancee. I was having severe depression and health problems–he told me that I just needed to “snap out of it” and that he would NEVER give up his cigareetes even if it put my health on the line. Then he wondered why I told him that he needed to find someone else to date.
I hope that quitting goes easy for you. I took Wellbutrin years ago, but for depression. I wound up in the emergency room with a migraine that would have killed a mule! I have had migraines before that and since then, but that was the worst one. When the triage nurse asked to rate my pain on the 1 to 10 scale, I replied, “12.” The next day, my doctor switched my medication because that was the only thing different in my life. I’ll say it again: Good luck, Jaime! and I’ll be following along on the blog, not because I want to become fooder for people trying to quit, but genuinely care about you and pray that will succeed for good this time.
When you stop smoking, you should go by the sign in an almanac. We live on a farm and when my husband weans calves from their mother he goes by the days the almanac says to do it. It REALLY works. In April the “Old Farmers Almanac” says the best days to quit smoking in April is the 10th or 20th. In May the best days is the 18th and the 22nd.
Good Luck.
AF
good for you, Jamie, to try quitting those nasty cigarettes!
ok, let’s see how I can give some positive input: I smoked ever so briefly when I was in High School, because my boyfriend did & was buying my cigarettes for me. when we broke up, I had to buy them myself. this was 1967. I had no job, and the cost was too much for me, then they upped the price to 45 cents A PACK! that’s it, I quit.
then there was my mother. She had started smoking at 15,when they were only 5 cents a pack. I watched her go from a somewhat healthy weight person ( who just smelled bad from cigarettes) to weighing 74 lbs. at age 76 when she died of Emphysema. she was a skeleton. she developed type 2 diabetes, & couldn’t get enough of the right foods ( being addicted to all the cheaper brands full of not much of anything except cost) & even after having to wear an oxygen mask & have the tank at all times by her side, she kept 1 nasty looking real cigarette to put in her mouth, unlit. I had to take her car away from her, at her doctor’s request, because she would pass out at anytime,& I couldn’t let her hurt or kill someone else over her addiction to these damn cigarettes. My youngest son, couldn’t visit her in her apartment, due to the smell of the cigarettes, and the remnants of the nicotine on everything that would suddenly set off an ear infection in him, or worse.
she was not allowed to smoke in my grandmothers house ( where we lived), or at any of my aunt’s homes, either. she saw a friend of hers one day in a supermarket, & when the woman wouldn’t answer her in her usual loud voice,my mom said to her husband,”gee, you’re lucky! she’s got laryngitis!’ the guy told her she had just recovered from throat cancer surgery where they removed her voice box. nothing seemed to deter my mom from her cigarettes. pleading, being eliminated from various functions, nothing, except her dying, stopped her smoking. If you can beat this, Jamie, good! I wish you all the strength in the world to stop & not ever look back at those dirty things.
Jamie…You can do it and we’re all cheering for you.
I quit smoking about 21 years ago (after smoking for 20 years) when my youngest baby(she will be 22 in May) was about six months old…COLD TURKEY…when I felt a twinge of pain in my chest. I knew that if I didn’t quit, I wouldn’t be around to see my children(4) grow up and enjoy the childhood and now young adulthood. Yes, I gained weight, was irritable, had withdrawal symptoms and all that goes with quitting but it was well worth it. I was there for them. Now that my babies are having babies(2 on the way) and I’ll get to see them grow up, too.
I am trying to quit. Have had no luck so far. I am actually smoking during the day and hiding it during the evenings when my husband is home. He has totally quit smoking when he is not around me.Help!!! If the e cigs work let me know. I need help. good luck to you and me.
Hi Jamie,
I know it sounds weird, but a gal I know in Mesa who was a heavy hardcore smoker for 40+ years went to a hypnotherapist (I think it was called Positive Changes) and quit. I couldn’t believe her results. A few years later, I tried the same route, except I live up in the White Moutains area and went to a wonderful hynotherapist in Pinetop/Lakeside. I went to the first of my 3 hypno sessions the week before I quit. I quit smoking entirely after that first session. I found it better to quit cold turkey than to cut down, think about cutting down, metering out my smokes, etc. I actually took my husbands backhoe and buried the remainder of my smokes and all the smoking paraphanallia. I’m heavily into symbolism
Anyway that was over 2 years ago, and I’m still smoke free. I had been a smoker almost 40 years and had never even thought about or attempted quitting before. Best of luck!
BTW, I’m a great dane owner/lover too.
Cynthia
I am glad that you stop taking wellbutrin. My son was medicated with wellbutrin for depression and all he gets was a seizure. We think he had epilepsy, but it was a side effect
of that pill the doctor told us. Good luck Jamie y que pronto triunfe en dejar el cigarrillo por su salud.
WOW! Sure are a lot who are trying to quit! It took me two or 3 tries before I could finally do it. Well, not quite true….I had had a cold I could NOT shake for about 3 weeks and was sitting at my computer when it occurred to me i was having a hard time breathing. I thought well, I’ll have just one more cig then that’s it…..well, that didn’t happen! I figured, why bother? This is me I’m hurting, no one else and I can use the money I save for things we need around the house. Smokes were at that time around $2 a pack.
Ok, I still had a cough for another month but the doctor said it would happen as my lungs were getting cleaned out.
I do feel better but also put on a few lbs but that was me needing something going to my mouth. Anyway, I did it and don’t have the worry of wondering if….”did I put that cigarette out before we left the house?”. Yeah, THAT used to be a big worry for me but not any more.
First, I wish all of you who are trying to quit, the best success. Many years ago I watched my then father-in-law chain smoke, lighting one off of another. Then I got to watch him still continue after the drs told him to stop. Three years later, I got to watch him smother to death because he didn’t listen. If you have never seen anyone smother to death, while on oxygen, it is not something you want to see, never mind experience yourself. He begged for his every last breath, asking God to forgive him for smoking. Before he died he got cancer, but that isn’t what killed him. The dr said he just plain smothered to death. No it wasn’t just a short period of time he suffered that way, it was many,many months. So if any of you who smoke can quit at all, I strongly urge you to do so. I hope I never have to see anyone else suffer like he did dying from smoking.
Jamie, I just read your post about qutting smoking. I have all the faith in the world in you that you can do it. I am a non-smoker myself, but have been around friends that have smoked, and quit. I think the e-cig is a great idea, and if you can get them to sell on your site, that would be great for all of those who are trying to quit and other means didn’t work. I am also so glad that you got off the wellbutrin before something bad happened to you. Some times I think that doctors don’t know what the hell they are talking about when they precribe certain drugs without letting their patients what the side effects might be. Anyway, if you need somebody to yell at, feel free to use me as your punching bag-lol. Take care and keep the faith
me and my husband used Wellbutrin to quit smoking. Our doctor instructions were. For the first week, take only 1 pill daily and smoke as much as I wanted. The second week, no cigs, and 2 pills a day (I couldn’t even last a week, after 5 days, it was like ick why did I light this)
You are the 2nd person I know that was told to take 2 pills a day right at the starts, and my friend had the same symptoms as you.
I think the dose is too strong!!!!
I am writing to you NOT to admonish, criticize, or judge. I am only sharing what’s on my heart. In 1992 my precious mother had a little stroke. she recovered beautifully. However, the Doctor told her she had to absolutely stop smoking. Since she had smoked for so long (which everyone in her generation did) she was totally addicted and LOVED the habit. She could not stop. Then on March 23,1993 she had another stroke. Only this time she lost the use of her entire right side. She could barely speak or express herself. My dad had to do everything for her. She lived like this until Sept 6,2008. It was pitiful to see her unable to enjoy her life. She had worked so hard. She was always so social. I am sending every positive thought your way. Please explore every avenue to help you stop smoking. God Bless you & good luck!!
Good Luck Jamie!
I grew up around parents who both smoked non-stop. They both died from lung cancer.
I gave smoking a try when I was 15. Never inhaled, just wanted to fit in with the other kids. Despite the peer pressure I decided that I just didn’t want to smoke. It was the early 60’s then, and more people smoked than not. Since I never had the addiction to nicotine, I can’t imagine the pain smokers go through trying to stop. I applause you and all others that are trying to quit.
I read in awe, the side effects that you experienced with Wellbutrin. Our doctor made a big faux paux by writing that on a prescritption he prescribed to my husband. What he meant to prescribe was Wellchol, a cholesterol reducing medicine. If it weren’t for the very observant pharmacist who questioned my husbands need for Wellbutrin he would have started taking that in overdose amounts.
Lots of luck in your venture to quit smoking.
Oh wow, oh wow! I’ve heard of those e-cigs, but they’re so darn expensive! I live in Ontario, so if you can get your sister to sell them on gopher central for cheaper (I hope!), that would be awesome!
My hubby and I want to quit too!!!!
Good news Tracey, it looks like our site will be carrying them in the very near future, (within weeks I’m told). The price should be a pleasant surprise too!
The FDA is looking into banning them and isn’t it amazing that the tobacco lobby is “helping” them…
Why didn’t the FDA ban cigarettes years ago?????
Jamie
YOU CAN DO THIS—I QUIT COLD TURKEY—VERY VERY HARD BUT THE ONLY WAY I COULD EVER DO THIS—I SAW AN AD ON TV WITH A PERSON DYING OF LUNG CANCER–TOOK MY CARTON OF CIGARETTES AND PUT THEM IN THE GARBAGE AND IT WAS PICKED UP THE NEXT MORNING—I CRIED MANY TIMES BUT A I TOLD A NEIGHBOR I WAS QUITTING AND HE LAUGHED AND SAID NO WAY—-THAT DID IT FOR ME—I AM VERY STUBBORN AND I THOUGH I WILL SHOW YOU AND I DID—IT HAS NOW BEEN 22 YEARS!!!!
Jamie, I am on board going thru this with you. Waiting for your sister to get them on her site. I have been a smoker for over 50 yrs. Tried to quit several times to no avail. Let’s just make it happen. I have a best friend since grade school and we have always smoked, until last summer she was in a auto accident and had to have surgery, they put her on the patch and she quit (the patch didn’t work for me.) I always said if either one of us ever quit…ANYONE could…my mistake, I am still working on it.
You go girl!
My mother smoked for almost 70 years. She had to be moved to a nursing home and taken outside to smoke. She was the only resident in the place who smoked!! After a year of this she had some medical problems and was ill for about a week. She could not smoke. Do you know she forgot she smoked!! I noticed she was irritable and coughing a lot. She was not herself for 2-3 weeks and now she looks better and has actually gained some weight – she needed it. What in the world does this tell us??? I am not sure – but something!!
I quit 25 years ago. I too tried many times and I will tell you the secret of how to quit. First of all realize you are miserable smoking and miserable (right now) not smoking. And secondly never and i mean never NEVER pick up another cigarette. I haven’t touched a cigarette in all that time. And remember it is just one minute at a time!! GOOD LUCK
Jamie, I quit smoking years ago. It really is hard to do, but please do it! You will feel the difference when you breathe, your home will smell fresher and most of all, you will be saving your life. I support you in all your efforts. You already passed the biggest test by throwing your cigs in the garbage. Good for you! You can do it!
That’s GREAT Jamie! WHOO HOOOOO!
aglayachka1: wanna love. like in Twilight)