I know I have to quit, most times I want to, sometimes I really enjoy smoking...I'm actually scared!

[laurie17]

Arrgghh, It's like that nervous feeling you get as a kid starting a new school.
I am on Chantix right now. Plan to quit Sat. 6/21/08. I Signed a contract with my 11 yr old in Sept. 2007. I agreed that I would quit by the time he finished 6th grade.
Well, He finishes on 6/20. My kids have been on me for many years to quit. In fact, my oldest has lost respect for me because I have not quit upon his many requests.
I want to. I have for a very long time. I feel so guilty just about every time I smoke a cigg.. I am actually embarrassed when I buy them. To think that all of this should have made me want to quit.
Worse yet, I lost my mother to lung cancer caused by smoking, my Aunt two years before that, and my step father in between those two deaths from Emphysema and COPD. If that did not make me want to quit....What will???

[raychel]

You...yourself...that is all that is standing in the way between being a smoker & non smoker.

You need to work out what you are feeling and fearing in regards to quitting. There are many many long term smokers here who are quitting and keeping the quit, I'm sure they wouldn't mind offering you some advice.

Me, I smoked on and off during my teens and then really became an addict when I turned 18 and besides a few practice quits, smoked pretty regularly for 5, almost 6 years and even with 'only' (ha only, but I've heard people say oh you didn't smoke that long) with only that amount of time, I got so dependent on the habit...I can only imagine what it must be like for people who have smoked 20...30 years or longer!

[laurie17]

Thank you raychel. You are right, I need to do this for me. One of my fears are, I am going to be a loon or worse, possibly very depressed. I am one of those 20 year old smokers. I started when I was about 15 and never really stopped. I tried a few times. Only really serious once but, family members all got very sick at once a few years ago and I needed my crutch to help me through it. So, here I am....

[Jaded]

Hi Laurie, I too was a 20 + year smoker, quit once for a little over a year then started back. That won't happen to me again. I have made up my mind to be a non smoker, the freedom from smoking is more than you can imagine at this point.

I also was a Chantix user, used it for a little less than a month, set my quit date one week after I started my prescription and haven't looked back. But you know, quitting has to be something you really want, if you do want it then you will quit. I too have 3 children who for the longest time would beg me to quit smoking, I wanted to..but I just wasn't ready

Lots of luck to you!! 😃

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My quit began One Month, Twenty Eight Days, 8 Hours and 24 Minutes ago, while extending my life expectancy 7 Days and 5 Hours, by avoiding the use of 2077 smokes that would have cost me $390.44.

[tara2]

I am only on Day Four of quit, but can tell you what is really getting me through. On Day One, when I was very crabby, I talked to my six year old and explained to her why I was so crabby. She has been yelling at me to quit, so when I told her that was what I was trying to do, she threw her arms around me and told me she was so proud of me and that she would be an extra good girl to help me. I can hear that little statement in my head, and everytime I get the REALLY bad urges, I look at a picture of her and LET that run through my head. I know that by picking up a cigarette now would not only disappoint me, but would break her heart. You have children too, so why not sit with them the day before your quit date and talk about it. Let them totally express their feelings to you on your habit (even though I am sure it will hurt you at the time), and I am sure that will help you get through those initial days - it sure has with me!

[melissa9]

Well I don't know about what will make you quit cause I am not you. But I know what finally got me to quit. It was when My 10 yr old looked at me and said " Momma when I get big I am going to smoke just like you" It was like someone stabbed me in my heart. I dont' want her to smoke. It is like being on death row. You just don't get to know the day and time you are going to die. So I asked her "if I try to quit will you promise not to start?" I said try cause I didn't think I could do it. She said yes. So I did my best to quit. And now I have been quit for 3 Weeks, 6 Days, 12 hours, 18 minutes and 54 seconds (27 days). I have saved $206.34 by not smoking 825 cigarettes. I have saved 2 Days, 20 hours and 45 minutes of my life. My Quit Date: 5/22/2008 8:00 PM. Draw your strength from you kids. Mine have helped me more than they probably know even tho I have tried to tell them.

[cindy25]

Yes, scare tactics and common sense about our own health will not motivate addicts to quit! If those things worked, I would have been quit many moons ago! In addiction to being scared of quitting-I think each one of us has to reach a point where we weigh the perceived "pleasure" of smoking with the real costs. For me, it wasn't my health worries as much as it was wanting to be free from the chains of the addiction. Free to go somewhere without worrying about my "fix" issue! Free from the smell! Free from having to THINK about it daily. Finally, I wanted to quit more than I wanted to smoke. You need to find your turning point. You can do it.

[polly2]

Hi Laurie,

My grandmother died of lung cancer when I was 18 years old. She was like a Mom to me. Even though I knew cigarettes took her away from me, I continued to smoke and still do 32 years later. I just wanted to let you know that you are not alone. It's tough, but you can do it, just as I can too. That's why I'm here, just as you are too! I'm sending a big prayer up for you to kick the nasty butt out of your life!!

Polly