Posts by analogwolf26

So... it’s been 11 months since my partner and I finally quit smoking. To be honest, those pills we mentioned before really did the trick; they helped us get off the wagon, so to speak. Looking back at these past 11 months, here is how things stand for me:

- I can breathe with full lungs. I love taking long walks through the woods with the dog. It feels incredible... just amazing.
- Everything in the house smells clean. The clothes, the air... everything. There isn't that damn smoke clinging to every living thing anymore.
- I feel proud of ourselves for making a smart move for our own health—and for everyone else in the house. Plus, we aren't just throwing money into thin air.
- Our friends actually respect the decision. They look at us with envy, saying stuff like, "I wish I had your willpower," or "You guys are so disciplined..." blah blah blah... if only it were that easy for them.

But...

- Even after 11 months, I still crave a cigarette. I find myself cursing everything just to try and forget the habit. If someone lights up on the street in front of me, I end up following them like some junkie, just sniffing the smoke.
- We put on weight. A lot of weight. We haven't lost it yet, which just makes me even more irritable and depressed.
- Now that it's summer, we're outside all the time. Sitting out for coffee with friends is actually kind of hard... I almost envy them. They get to enjoy their coffee and "get away" with a smoke, while I'm stuck sitting there "not allowed."

In short, quitting smoking has left me feeling more high-strung (should I mention being significantly rounder?) than when I was actually smoking.
The negative side effects have pretty much outweighed the positives.

My conclusion? It's total shit to start this whole process.

Is anyone else struggling with these side effects? Help... 😢

For those curious... here's a link packed with all sorts of urban legends surrounding Coca-Cola.
Some are true, some are total nonsense, others are just plain suspicious...
Have fun digging through it... 😁

http://urbanlegends.about.com/gi/dyn...2Fcokelore.htm

Michael Fox46 said:It’s been six months now...👋 👋

I hit my nine-month mark today without smoking. It’s good. Bravo me, I guess...🙂
The downside is that I still really miss my spit. 😢 .
Some people tell me this can go on for years. For those of you who quit, when did you first realize the spitting was gone, but you actually stopped missing it?

Way to go, Kenneth Hernandez67, you’re an absolute powerhouse! I am genuinely thrilled for my husband... honestly, do you even have limits? 🙂 😘

ana123 said:Hey everyone!
Where can I pick up some Smoke Away tablets?

Where are you located? In Canada, they carry them at TV shop stores.

You can always just order them online... www.smokeawayonline.com

They really worked for me and my partner. We haven't touched a cigarette in almost 8 months now...👋

My spouse and I both quit smoking six months ago. It hasn't been easy... we've put on some weight, and we're both struggling a bit with the kid, but we're finally getting back to a normal rhythm. We can actually go places now that were totally off-limits before. Sometimes I'll just sit in a Starbucks for half an hour enjoying the flavor of my drink. Or I'll hit up a nice restaurant. I don't get all agitated anymore, because I don't have to rush out after dessert and panic about finding a spot to light up a cigarette...

I live in Canada, where smoking is pretty much banned from public spaces altogether. You only see it in bars, and even then, it's restricted to designated areas.

God, it used to bother me so much. I felt like a second-class citizen. Now, I can grab a coffee at Starbucks to go, stand outside, and just enjoy it. Whether it's 90 degrees or 10 below zero, who cares... as long as I can smoke... yeah right...

In my opinion, there isn't a single smoker out there who is actually happy about smoking. No smoker enjoys that morning cough, the bad breath, or the way their clothes and hair constantly smell like smoke... they don't like the fact that they have this miserable habit they can't seem to break, either. They hate the massive amounts of money they throw away on cigarettes, and whether they admit it or not, they're always thinking about their lungs, cancer, asthma... At least, that's how I felt. Sure, maybe I enjoyed a cigarette or two after a nice meal... but everything else was just a cursed habit. You smoke, and you hate yourself for it.
Quitting is damn hard. At least it was for me and my partner. To this day, I still feel the urge to light up after a good dinner... but I won't. We've been "clean" for six months now. We go everywhere. Because we're allowed to. We are incredibly happy and proud that we managed to kick the habit. Considering what fools we were to start in the first place...

Like the saying goes, someone using cocaine is only hurting themselves. But a smoker? They're hurting everyone around them, and they don't have any right to do that.

Roger Cox10 said:Look, I don't get this part... 😕 why swap one nasty habit for another? 😕
By the way, whenever I stop smoking, my appetite completely vanishes... 😕 whereas people always claim they start eating like crazy. 😕 I'm actually quite the opposite... 😁

Lucky people.... I hate you...😁 If only I were the other way around.
I'm sitting here eating cantaloupe, and there's a grapefruit waiting for me next. I'm currently in the middle of an aggressive weight loss phase because my appetite was through the roof for the last few months.😢 🙂 😠

stormynomad6 said:I’m actually pretty proud of myself. I haven't touched a cigarette since yesterday. It wasn't even that brutal yesterday, mostly because I stayed busy doing things totally outside my normal routine—spent the whole day outdoors in nature, and the cravings just didn't hit. It wasn't until I got home last night that the urge finally showed up. So, naturally, I wiped out my entire chocolate stash 😳

I get it. We all end up devouring every sweet and salty thing in the house once we quit...
Get yourself some low-calorie snacks ASAP 😁. Those rice cakes that taste like Styrofoam, carrots, celery sticks, bell peppers... they say popcorn isn't bad either. And drink plenty of water. 🙂

Michael Sanchez7 said:Today marks exactly two months since I quit smoking. You wake up and actually start respecting yourself more than you used to. It’s good character building. Every single day, that craving just dies a little more...😉

Right?
I feel the exact same way about myself. Maybe it sounds silly, but whatever...
I watch smokers on my way to work, shivering in front of those massive skyscrapers... shaking, clutching their coffee in styrofoam cups, pacing back and forth while they frantically try to catch those last few drags... That was me four months ago. Now I just look at them and think—they look ridiculous. Then again, you realize a cigarette isn't just a habit; it's an addiction. You can't just say "bye-bye" and walk away. Very few people can...
In the beginning, the mornings were the hardest part. Right when I'd wake up. That’s when the urge hit the hardest. Coffee without a smoke? No chance...
God knows how many times lately I’ve wanted one, especially after finishing some heavy physical labor around the house and thinking, "Alright, time to sit down and light up 🙂." And then it hits me: "Crap, 🙂 I don't smoke anymore... 😢." It was rough. But now, the thoughts are getting rarer as the time passes... 👍 🙂

lonetinker9 said:For crying out loud, I’ve already brought this up three times on the Health board, across three different threads... honestly, you’d think I was on their payroll.😁

😲 Yeah, sure! You totally broke Rule 5 of the HOUSE RULES.

I did not. 😁
I’m just recommending what worked for me. And it wasn’t just me. We passed the word along, and it helped others too. I’m not joking around here. 🙂

They aren't some "miracle" pills, even though they felt that way to me. Check the website—the ingredients are listed right there. I actually asked my primary care physician for his Amen—he agreed the formula was perfectly fine.
There are plenty of future doctors on this forum... we can debate the chemistry if you want.

As for my motivation... there had to be a reason.
For me, it was health. And then there was the massive amount of money saved (two smokers' worth). There's more to it.
Mentally, I prepared myself for about a month. It was a bit harder with my husband—he was pretty skeptical. In thirty years, he’d never even tried to quit. So, we decided I’d go first, and if it worked for me, he’d follow suit. Turns out, we both quit within a week of each other.
Yeah, we put on some weight. Now we just watch what we eat and hit the gym more. A few extra pounds is nothing compared to the favor we did for our bodies in the long run.

🙂

Stormynomad602 said:So where can I actually buy those pills??👋

If you’re talking about those herbal SmokeAway ones, you can try looking online at

www.smokeawayonline.com

Here in the States, they even have them in those late-night TV shopping channels.

Dammit, I feel like I've already brought this up three times on Health forums, across three different threads... like I'm working their marketing department or something.😁

But seriously people, the stuff actually works.👍

lonetinker9 said:Does anyone have experience using different nicotine replacement products, like gum, sprays, and stuff?

I do.
To be honest, the things I used don't even contain nicotine. I never wanted the nicotine versions... mostly because of that constant social pressure where people judge you, saying, "Well, there's nicotine in that gum, so you shouldn't be smoking." With what I used, that restriction doesn't exist. There's no pressure to stay away from a cigarette if you aren't technically "replacing" one.

Two years ago, I quit using Ziban. It took three months. Then a major health issue hit, combined with all that stress, and it pushed me right back to cigarettes. (Supposedly Ziban is pure chemicals; I heard about a few fatalities and some weird side effects...) 😲

Fast forward two years, and I heard about SmokeAway. Herbal tablets that supposedly "cleanse" the system of nicotine and break the addiction.
I started on October 3rd. By the second day, I hadn't touched a single cigarette.
On October 11th, my husband started too. He didn't light up once the next day either. It was unbelievable... like the craving just washed away. I still can't quite believe it, especially since my husband has been a smoker for over 30 years and never even tried to quit. Now, he's wondering why on earth he bothered smoking for three decades in the first place.

We've been smoke-free for three and a half months now. We're happy. We're finally breathing deep... food tastes amazing again (well, he's enjoying it more than me) and we've both put on some weight. Now we're trying to lose it together and get some exercise in. But honestly, we're just too happy and proud to care about the truth. 👍