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• June 13, 2008 3:46 p.m.

  I am on my third Chantax pills and still smoke. Help

  - Bev Warden

• June 13, 2008 12:03 p.m.

  Hi I wish to say to whomsoever is reading this and is trying to quit, go for it!!! Don't let the bastards murder you!!! I have overcome alcohol, drug, and nicotene addiction. It is always the same method. YOU have to take responsiblity for your addiction and then do something about it. Believe me when I tell you that there are thousands of people out there ready to cheer you on and help you out. YOU ARE NOT ALONE!!!! It took me multiple tries to quit each addiction. Although it is possible the first time around, it may take more than one try. Do not be discouraged or beat yourself up. YOU WILL SUCCEED!!!! When you do you will be able to say to yourself ,"Well, if I quit smoking I can do this as well!" It is amazing what you will be able to accomplish after you succeed at this task. If you have a hard time thinking about quitting for the rest of your life, just do it for 1 minute, and then stretch that minute to another one and then another. They will all add up until the days of smoking are far behind you. Just get through this second, or minute, or hour, that is all you have to do. I have used this method to help get me through all of my addictions. Being a recovered nicotene addict will also help you feel empathy for others who struggle with any addiction. Being a recovered nicotene addict will help you to realize that a lot of drug addicts began with cigarettes. Nicotene is not now, nor has it ever been your friend. It is a very deadly enemy. God

  - Bing Haley

• June 13, 2008 11:36 a.m.

  I got sick passed out with a cigarette in my hand lucky I didn't burn myself up. Haven't smoked another cigarette in thirty years. I am 54 years old feel and look great.By the way cigarette were $.50 a pack for twenty cigarette when I started smoking. To quit you just have to do it, and counter act the little voice in your head that keep you unhealthy.

  - Patricia

• June 13, 2008 11:11 a.m.

  At 76, I have smoked for 60 years. I have health challenges, such as colitis, so an determined to quit. Looking forward to your blog.

  - Betty OLeary

• June 13, 2008 10:00 a.m.

  I noticed some references to 12-step programs in the comments. Though I don't know of one for nicotine, it is the principle I use to stay quit. After 25 years of on and off smoking, I have been smoke free for almost 3 months. I don't have to quit smoking for the rest of my life--I just have to do it for today. I can do that.

  - Joanne

• June 13, 2008 8:30 a.m.

  I woke one morning after a night of partying and drinking and wondered what the terrible smell was in the room. I opened my eyes and saw an ashtray full of butts. The more awake I became, the more pronounced the smell was. I took the ashtray and threw it in the trash and never smoked another one. That was in 1982, and I have enjoyed the vacations, clothes, meals, and other things that I was able to buy with the money I no longer spent on cigarettes. With the cigarettes gone, the urge to drink booze also went away, so it was a double effect. I am now 64 years old and have never felt better. I know how hard it is to give up the weed, but if you will take the time to list a page of advantages and disadvantages to smoking (and be truly honest with yourself), you will see that there really are no advantages whatsoever to continue to smoke. With a pack of 20 cigarettes costing anywhere from $3.00 to $5.00, you may as well set fire to $100.00 a week and you would really be better off in doing so. Good luck to all who are really trying to get off cigarettes.

  - Ronnie

• June 13, 2008 12:05 a.m.

  I believe I was addicted to nicotine by the time I was 13 and I smoked for the next 45 years. For most of that time I didn't want to smoke but I couldn't stop. I really believed I was someone who could never quit. Over the years I admitted I was an alcoholic and was able to quit drinking (and using drugs) with the help of AA and a Power greater than myself. Then, after being sober and clean for 20 years I finally turned my nicotine addiction over to that same Power greater than me that got me sober. I still thought it would be impossible for me to quit but then one day shortly after that, while putting out a cigarette butt I had the simple thought "it would be nice if that was the last one" and, well, it was. That was over 4 1/2 years ago. I found a lot of support on the internet at sites like this one. People told me "it's not easy but it's possible" and that helped. During the first couple weeks I learned that there was another way to get past a craving other than by having a cigarette. By NOT having a cigarette. In other words the craving goes away on its own after a couple minutes. Having a cigarette only sets up the next craving. My advice to any one whose trying to quit is just be aware every time you light up that you're doing something you don't really want to. And ask yourself "What am I getting out of it?" Lastly, ask a Power greater than yourself to help you. I sincerely wish you success.

  - Jim

• June 12, 2008 7:01 p.m.

  Oh, what's the use!!! I know I'll be a burden on everybody and even THAT doesn't stop me. Thanks for this venue to whinge.

  - Vivian Anderson

• June 12, 2008 5:55 p.m.

  I have been trying to quit now for 5 years. I just can not seem to kick the horrible habit. I am down to 5 cigaretts a day and mentaly I just can not say good bye to those 5. I hate the fact that I am not strong enough to do it on my own. My boyfriend has been very supportive but is getting frustrated with what he describes as a lack of commitment. I don't disagree. John I read your comment and I have been in that boat many times. I set dates and when that date rolls around I always manage to have 1 or two left in my pack so I postpone it until a later date and the cycle continues. I feel such quilt when I light up and ask myself,"Why?" every day. I give credit to all that have quit and send you my congrats, I just hope that I will join you very soon.

  - Christine

• June 12, 2008 5:31 p.m.

  I quit smoking nearly five years ago. I think the biggest hurdle is the dread of quitting; the myriad "what if"s that seem to pop up at just the "right" times, before things even get started. It can drive you a little batty. My favorite is, "Well, I don't want to waste the four that I have left in my pack, so I'll quit after I smoke those. What if I quit after that, okay?" Ah, since when did smoking ever improve our chances of quitting? We'll then smoke those four, say, "Well, it's now December 29th, so I might as well wait until New Years. Okay?" It's a crazy addiction alright. I don't need any convincing there.

  - John

• June 12, 2008 4:10 p.m.

  I tried to quit a number of times. One day in the middle of January I went outside the place I work in for a smoke. Can you picture this? It's zero degrees the wind it howling and here I am shivering and puffing on a cigarette. Stupid isn't it? I tossed the pack into a trash can and never smoked since.

  - Nussy

• June 12, 2008 12:48 p.m.

  My wife has smoked for over 30 years and recently quit. I've never been a smoker. She claims I don't understand what she's going through and she's right. However, she claims she thinks of smoking every minute of every day. She has no way to calm down or deal with stress. And her job is stressful. Has anyone tried hypnosis? Any comments pro or con on hypnosis or other types of treatments will be appreciated. She has stopped smoking now for three months and I'm afraid (she is too I think) that she'll break down sooner or later and light up again. Thanks.

  - Dave

• June 12, 2008 12:11 p.m.

  I stopped smoking four years ago, after thirty years of continuous smoking. I am still quitting, as the addiction is with you all the time. I know that if I ever have a puff, I will be back into the habit. My wife smokes all the time. Every morning, I go to the kitchen and find a pack of cigarettes on the table, with one suggestively popping out, and a lighter at its side. It is something that never goes unnoticed, and sometimes I have just caressed the lighter, smelled the pack of cigarettes and... Well, so far I have not given in. It is a daily test. When stopping the habit, I helped myself with nicotine gum, using it as prescribed for almost six months. I took advantage of a transatlantic flight, where you are not supposed to smoke, and the moment of truth was at the Charles De Gaulle parking lot when I did not light the much-craved-for after-landing fag. The first days were the most difficult ones, but it helped that the only person smoking at the place where I was staying was my wife, so she was the one who had to find somewhere else to smoke. I have to confess that for a while I started to drink heavily, probably trying to appease all the nicotine cravings and the bad temper that ensued. Sometimes still the cravings hit me hard. But I hope I will never give in. Something else that helped was a dentist's appointment I had made before the trip to have my teeth whitened. She warned me: it won't last if you continue smoking. I just stopped. I am still stopping. Luck!

  - Xavier

• June 12, 2008 9:31 a.m.

  I smoked when I met my husband to be, he thought I smoked so when he lite up he handed me one and I thought I looked pretty cool. Just like a movie star that in the late 50's was all we saw. Anyway, had 6 children, we both smoked in the home, while I was holding them. Didn't blow it in their face but we all now know what 2nd hand smoke does. Anyway, my husband died of Emphysema at 62, but that didn't deter me. I purchased my cigarette's by the carton so I would never run out. Tried to quit many times but I enjoyed smoking. I fly often to visit my sister, at these time I couldn't smoke so I would use the patches & it worked fine but I couldn't wait to get home for a cig. Then last summer, now at 68 I finally got tired of the smell, the constant "live your life looking forward to the next cig." I had been on vacation for 2 wks. with my sister so I had been wearing the patch, I figured now was the time & I would go down the line with the patches if I had to. Got home was so busy taking care of my grand baby, it was 3 pm & I would realize I hadn't put a patch on. This happened all week. So, it was so simple once I made the decision. Don't give up you will succeed just like me it will work. I do believe in the patches, used them for years but I never smoked with one on.

  - Fran

• June 12, 2008 7:17 a.m.

  My biggest hurddle seems to be while driving as the tobacco keeps me awake at the wheel. I also seem to find a reason to postpone a quitting date because of some social or stressful event about to happen. I guess this all goes to the "will power" issue. I've watched my husband use Chantix for 6 months with no apparent effect. So... what to do?

  - BK Miller-Riley

• June 11, 2008 11:41 p.m.

  I have been using chantix for almost 3 weeks. It helps a lot. I don't even think about smoking during the day when I'm at work. When I get home, I kinda want one, and after dinner I really want one! So I take another Chantix and deal with the short lived nausea, and then I'm fine. I quit last year for 8 months cold turkey, but turned into someone I didn't like. Always felt like crawling into a black hole. Scared to be around the people I loved, cause I'd just spout out the thoughts that were in my mind that are best kept to yourself. I hated hurting them, then i always felt guilty. I don't know what is in cigs that affect some people that way when they quit. But I never got over it until my husband made me go see the doc, who suggested I try zoloft. I only take the smallest dose, but it has saved me. I'm scared when I quit again this time, I will again turn into the emotional wreck who can't find beauty in anything. I'm hoping for the best, and staying on the zoloft & chantix. Wish me luck. And good luck to all of you. The best thing! I can smell my perfume instead of nasty stale smoke on my body and hair.

  - Ang from Wyoming

• June 11, 2008 9:06 p.m.

  I've been smoke free for almost 4 years. I did the patches and hypnosis. They worked for a little while but what really worked was, "The Will To Quit" I set up a quit date, weened myself down to less than 5 cigerettes a day. Had my last cigerette on New Year's Eve 2004 and never looked back. It was tough I'll admit. But what was tougher was the thought of never being able to see my grandchildren. I don't have any yet but hope to one day. My advice to you is, you'll always want one, Just don't have one. The longer you stay away from them the easier it gets. Remember: YOU'LL ALWAYS WANT ONE, JUST DON'T HAVE ONE.

  - Shelby from Michigan

• June 11, 2008 8:43 p.m.

  Margaret from South Africa I cut a drinking straw in 1/2, and use it to hold in my fingers like a cigarette, or to inhale deep like the drag on a cigarette. I find it helps just to have something in my mouth and hands when I am really craving smoking. Be careful, I have caught myself going into public with it!Looks rather funny according to my family!

  - Joann from Illinois

• June 11, 2008 8:38 p.m.

  I have smoked for 32+ years and about a month ago went to the Dr and got Chantix, did it for the first 2 weeks but was forced off cuz of the stomach aches. Im trying the patch now but sometimes stress really gets to me. It is a tough habit, guess a person needs more faith

  - Bob

• June 11, 2008 1:00 p.m.

  Congradulations....this is a much need contribution to quitting smoking....I did it 40 plus years ago for myself and my kids.....and never touched another evil cigarette.....keep up your great work....

  - Gene -Lockport, NY

• June 11, 2008 12:47 p.m.

  I have been on Chantix for 4 weeks --no side effects and actually have had no effects at all--still smoking --I heard it gives you stomach aches but I feel absolutely nothing--It is not doing anything for me whatsoever!!!

  - Pete-Davenport, IA

• June 11, 2008 12:46 p.m.

  OK, I QUIT SO MANY TIMES BUT SOONER OR LATER STARTED BACK. I TRIED WELBUTRIN, COLD TURKEY...... I'D LIKE TO KNOW WAHT WILL ENSURE LONG TERM SUCSESS??

  - DEDRA

• June 11, 2008 11:25 a.m.

  In 1980 at age 42, I began searching for a hypnotist to help me quit smoking. I was sick with sinus infections and bronchitis frequently because of the smoking. After three sessions with a psychiatrist trained in hypnosis, I never wanted another cigarette. That was 28 years ago. However, after 20 years of smoking prior to 1980, I was left with a badly damaged heart. Today, I am 70 years old, and I would not have made it this long if I had not quit smoking. It is wonderful to be free of the slavery of cigarettes.

  - John--St. Cloud, FL

• June 11, 2008 10:29 a.m.

  In 1970 I read a story in the Reader’s Digest titled “I Wrote My Own Obituary” by a man that had died of lung cancer who had been a life long smoker. The story was later depicted in a film short staring Richard Boone which I saw in a college health and safety class. It was very emotionally disturbing. I thought that could be me someday. Then and there is when I decided to quit smoking and that was 36 years ago. But being a world class hypochondriac did also help. Incidentally Richard Boone died of throat cancer at age 63 in 1981.

  - Doug

• June 11, 2008 10:24 a.m.

  I am 67 years old. I have been smoking since I was 15. I have copd and know I need to quit.I know how hard it is to quit.my life is in such a mess right now, my husband tried to kill me.My Sons moved me from my home in fear for my life. so I am hiding now in another state until my husband go's to court. I filed for a divorce but he don't want to give my half of the marital property. My husband not only smoke's but is a drunk and use's very bad drugs. I am praying real hard for myself I think GOD will see me thru all this. Betty

  - Betty