I hate trying to give up smoking

[dish]

I hate the fact that nicotine is so addictive.
I hate the fact that cigarettes are so unhealthy.
I hate the fact that trying to give up means I'm constantly distracted, constantly annoyed, constantly light-headed, constantly spaced.
I hate the fact that nicotine gum tastes horrible.
I hate the fact that nicotine patches actually hurt.
I hate the fact that this is one of the hardest things I've ever tried to do.
I hate the fact that I'll probably fail - again.
I hate the fact that giving up means no more cigarettes ever again. Ever.

Apologies, this should probably go in the 'rants' thread or something. But I'm in a very bad mood (did you guess? ) so it's going here.

Children, teenagers, college students - they keep on telling you never to start smoking. Well, for once, they are actually right. You might think you could never get addicted, but, yes, you could. And addiction happens very quickly and very easily. Unlike the reverse.

(I'm dealing with this like a rational adult ie. drinking beer after beer in an attempt to stop thinking about smoking.)

[Spiryt]

I heard that weed is pretty good help in giving up ciggarets.

(Please don't kill me for that comment)

[Totally Guy]

If anybody is thinking of starting, start with the small patches ands work your way up to full cigarettes. Is that a joke? Well it started off as one, but but it really gives the humourous V sign to peer pressure. And psychologically you'd have to spend money on something dumb, just to make a dumb joke.

I've never had a cigarette, I've got enough insecurities without that one, and enough needs like water food and sleep to consider.

[dish]

I heard that weed is pretty good help in giving up ciggarets.

(Please don't kill me for that comment)

I won't.
Did you know that in the UK most weed is mixed with tobacco to form a joint? Thus, it is not in the slightest bit helpful in giving up nicotine.

I haven't smoked a joint in many, many, many years. On second thoughts, I have never and would never dream of doing such a thing. Not online and not in real life. I mean, I'm a teacher for goodness sake. We're incredibly boring.
And, sad to say, alcohol is legal while marijuana isn't. So that's a big factor.

[Player_Zero]

I won't.
Did you know that in the UK most weed is mixed with tobacco to form a joint? Thus, it is not in the slightest bit helpful in giving up nicotine.

I haven't smoked a joint in many, many, many years. And, sad to say, alcohol is legal while marijuana isn't. So that's a big factor.

You could always just get high. That'd solve your problems.

...Besides, the amount of tobacco you put in a joint isn't very much anyway! You'd have to get pretty DAMN high to account for the amount of tobacco you smoked... Wait, are we allowed to talk about this?

*Ahem*... Back ON topic, I still don't see why people start smoking... It isn't cool unless I'm doing it, ya' know.

[dish]

I still don't see why people start smoking... It isn't cool unless I'm doing it, ya' know.

There was this guy. Tall, dark, and handsome. Many moons ago...

[Mauve Shirt]

It isn't cool unless I'm doing it, ya' know.

Says the viking wearing a top hat, monocle and a multicolored afro.

Cigarettes taste and smell gross, and basically are just something to do with your hands. That's addicting and bad for your health.

My sociology textbook says marijuana should be legalized and it would solve social problems. My sister thinks that our social problems would be less dreadful if everyone were high.

[dish]

Says the viking wearing a top hat, monocle and a multicolored afro.

I thought he was a pirate skeleton?

In other news, one of the snakes just escaped and nearly ate one of the cats.

Thoughts on marijuana: it's illegal. Thus, this forum is not an appropriate place to discuss it.

Personally, I wish some government somewhere would actually ban nicotine. I would move to that country.

[Spiryt]

Cigarettes taste and smell gross, and basically are just something to do with your hands. That's addicting and bad for your health.

My sociology textbook says marijuana should be legalized and it would solve social problems. My sister thinks that our social problems would be less dreadful if everyone were high.

Hmmm. Actually I felt somewhat bad after smoking weed, while it's definetly not what should happen. And after smoking ciggarete I always feel kinda relaxed.

However :
a) My brain is generally in sorry shape
b) I smoke only when someone is giving it for free (never actually bought ciggarets it's kinda a waste of money)

[Player_Zero]

Hey, being weird IS style.

The viking comment refers to the style of clothing I am planning to buy in order to complete my transformation into the ULTIMATE weird-guy.

...Still don't understand addiction, though. I mean, sometimes I could really go for a cup of tea, but if that cup of tea had a reasonable chance of eventually giving me cancer, or made my teeth turn yellow then I'd think twice...

I'm not really helping, huh?

[dish]

Cigarettes taste and smell gross,

You've got to understand that when you're addicted to them, they taste and smell delicious.
(Well, in moderation. The tiny little smoker's lounges at international airports can still get a bit too much even for me.)

and basically are just something to do with your hands.

My hands like having stuff to do.

That's addicting and bad for your health.

Hence the original point of the thread.

[CannibalHymn]

Cigarettes taste and smell gross,

Cloves.

Personally, I don't see why people quit. Cigarettes cause cancer. As does the sun, sunscreen, artificial light, the chemicals in the air (moreso than cigarettes; in Providence, I would be safer smoking a pack of cigarettes a day inside, and wearing a gasmask outside), so you're pretty much out of luck avoiding carcinogens unless you live in a lightless room with filtered air. Which you don't, since you have a computer screen.

As for addiction, you're already addicted to air, water, protein, fat, and various vitamins. What's wrong with adding something debonair to the list?

[Tempest Fennac]

Reiki could help here. I tend to get my best results when sending it over IM or Gabbly. ( http://www.gabbly.com/www.giantitp.com ). In regards to being addicted, nicotine isn't actually essential for keeping you alive, and it's expensive.

[reorith]

acupuncture might help. although it might be hard to find :(

[Player_Zero]

So, CannibalHymn, you're gonna' overlook that it makes you smell bad to other people and turns your mouth into something unholy, then? Sure it's not the worst habit ever, but it's still a bad one. I could start picking my nose all the time and the likelihood of me needing medical treatment over it may be low, sure, but it doesn't mean it's a good idea.

The threat of something you don't want happening happening if you don't quit could help, I suppose... A mortal threat would work best, I feel.

...Or you could get one of your friends to cancel your internet connection if you don't do it or something...

Getting some friends know you're trying to quit would also be a good idea... That way you'd have more reason to work at it...

[Tom_Violence]

I'm one of those really annoying people that gives up smoking surprisingly easy. Which I prove regularly, since everyone knows that smoking is incredibly cool and I find that actually staying non-smoking holds some difficulty.

[Narmoth]

try chewing on ordinary gum every time you want to smoke. My father quit that way (he didn't cut out smoking at once, but smoked less and less over half a year until he stopped completely)

[Zarrexaij]

Heh, my mom used to be a smoker but quit a few years ago. We've saved so much money from her quitting, she used to smoke at least a pack a day, sometimes two or three.

Having asthma, I can safely say it's not something I'm willing to try. I view it as a very gross habit. Smokeless tobacco is even worse.

[Collin152]

You can do it!
When you feel you need a stick of that nauseous vegetable matter, just bite your knuckles so hard they bleed! That's how I kick my addictions!

[Klose_the_Sith]

Yeah? Well I hate working, but it must be done.

I believe that you can quit, like what other people have said

Tell other people

That way theres peer pressure on you to quit.

Also, find some nice but really anti smoking friends and hang out with them frequently. Things like that can rub off. As for the hand thing, take up knitting. It helped a guy I know. (I am completely serious). If knitting is too cool for you try tapping out tunes on a surface, you get addicted to it and then your hands are occupied.

[Mando Knight]

My grandfather once told me that he quit smoking "cold turkey" a long time ago after realizing how much it cost him... though he might not have ever started, since his Alzheimer's messes with what he saw/read/heard about and what actually happened to him...

No personal offense to smokers itP, but I've always found the smell of tobacco smoke to be one of the most disgusting smells on earth, (maybe not ranked as high as a skunk's spray, but still up there...) and that fact alone is a major deterrent.

Illinois has banned all smoking inside or within 15 feet from public buildings, and so my workplace (Wal-Mart...) has cleaned out the employee associate smoker's lounge... (regardless, there are quite a few on the night shift who still smoke...)

[Semidi]

It was easy for me to give up smoking.

When I was 16 I moved to a completely different state without any connection to buy cigarettes from, and was too shy to make friend quickly enough.

Blammo, I was forced to quit. Though I'm now sort of glad I quit, it would be nice to smoke without the whole cancer thing hanging over my head.

Though the first few days of schools sucked.

[poleboy]

I quit cold turkey.. sorta. I had a really nasty cold one winter and couldn't smoke (or at least enjoy it) because of it. After a week or so of not smoking, my nicotine addiction was manageable, and even though I lapsed a bit, I was more or less clean after a month or so.
I still smoke sometimes, if smokers are around and I'm drunk (the combination is fortunately rare), but I can't handle more than half a cigarette before my throat starts to hurt, so it never amounts to more than that.
While I can't say for sure, pacing might be a good idea. If someone else is there to keep tabs on you (and you on them) you will likely be much more motivated, perhaps even feel guilty if you do have a smoke.

[Icewalker]

I suggest not trying to stop suddenly or do something else, but rather slow down. Reduce the number of cigarettes you smoke every day by a little. I've done this to get rid of habits, but not addictions, so I'm sure it'll be a lot harder, but it seems like a good way to do it.

As to the "everything gives you cancer so screw it" comment...basically all of those can either be protected against or are a myth. The air quality one certainly isn't true (at least not to any seriously influential extent), unless Providence is several orders of magnitude more polluted than anywhere else on the planet.

[Amotis]

I hate the fact that I'll probably fail - again.

Funny thing is that from what I've heard and experienced, that's the way most people quit and it's kinda a good sign that you've tried it before. Most people don't quit the first time, they try and try again until they do. Like when I first quit it was after going cold turkey, failing, going cold turkey, failing, etc. Until the cold turkey finally stuck. Of course, I started again but I had quit for a year or so and started again outside reasons of addiction so I think I really did quit. Now I just don't care. ^_^

[Narmoth]

Now, to ruin everything: I have a work colleague that smokes tobacco that smells very nice, almost so nice that I'd consider to start smoking.
That is, if I still was in junior high, not in medschool

[dish]

Cloves.

Now you've made me think of clove cigarettes. (Mmm, Indonesia.)

So, I should get my friends to nag me. This seems to be the consensus.
I'm not sure if I could give up gradually. I strongly suspect it's got to be cold-turkey.

[CannibalHymn]

So, CannibalHymn, you're gonna' overlook that it makes you smell bad to other people

I reiterate: cloves.

and turns your mouth into something unholy, then?

You ever eaten sugar? Yeah.

[Gorbash]

I actually tried to start smoking a couple of times. Every time I almost puked after the ordeal, and lost every notion of ever trying it again. It's still beyond me how is that fun/cool/enjoyable thing to do.

[reorith]

I actually tried to start smoking a couple of times. Every time I almost puked after the ordeal, and lost every notion of ever trying it again. It's still beyond me how is that fun/cool/enjoyable thing to do.

i light up on occasion. like i carry a couple cigarettes, marlboro reds, in the case i use instead of a wallet. if i'm engaged in a boring conversation, i'll interrupt the speaker and whip one out and light it, pull a few drags on it dramatically and then blow a cloud of blue-grey cancerous indifference before making my escape. i've yet to do this often enough to lead to an addiction. my life is so boring and pathetic that i'm willing to damage my health in the name of showmanship. also when i drink, i drink red wine with near exclusivity, but thats only because of the book the outsider i haven't seen sideways, but i'm sure it sucks.

and smoking is cool just ask

1. james dean
2. albert camus
3. sean penn
4. humphrey bogart
5. gillian anderson
6. christian bale
7. colin farrell
8. johnny depp
9. kate beckinsale
10. lindsay lohan