Quitting Smoking - Somerville,OH

My fiance just recently quit too! He first started using the patch but basically gave up on that because he didn't like it. He has smoked one cig ( He was very stressed out ) since quitting and didn't even smoke the whole thing because it tasted nasty to him. Whats seem to work for him is straws. He cut them in half, and would chew/play with it. For him it was about having something in his hand and mouth and that works. When he's not using a straw he's chewing gum constantly.

Good luck! (:

Wow your boyfriend has a wonderful woman in his life. He ought to hang onto you!!! If he can get through a bit of time, the sleeping problem will go away and he will feel really great sleep eventually...have him suck lemons (the tartness satisfies a little of the tongues desire for the nicotine when he can't sleep. Others recommend various teas (check out which ones, I am not sure) and of course when you are together you should be kissing something like all the time!! No I guess people have to eat, too. Good luck, it is hard and tell him if he sleeps up not to be discouraged. Many people do.

Cold turkey is the only way to go. He will quit when he decides to quit. I tried many times, but the last time (7 years), I truly decided to become a non-smoker, and that was that. I have never even gone near a cigarette, because I know that non-smokers don't even have one puff!

I was sick on the couch for a month. Head aches, stomach aches, etc.

All you can do is ignore his irritability. It will pass. The first 100 days are the hardest, but then it gets much easier. Yes, that is right, 100 days of hell. ;-) But then you get your sense of smell back, and you start feeling normal.

I quit smoking about 10 years ago, and it's not an easy task. I find it wonderful your posting this to help him! The best thing you can do, is just be there and understand he will be very irritable, shaky, literally sick at times. I used an aid when I stopped smoking, which helped some, but I found changing my habits to be the most helpful. He should find something to 'replace' smoking with, like exercising. Also, the times he would normally have a 'cig', are the times he needs to find a replacement for it. Stress from work or home can definitely cause you to give in & have one. I did it 5 times before I finally quit. He shouldn't be h*** o* himself, as long as he goes right back to non-smoking he'll get there. Good luck to you both & remind him how wonderful he will feel & will gain his sense of smell & taste back again, not to mention adding many years to his life!

my son (& many other family/friends) did the ear "zap" thing....auriculotherapy. It works!

Hi K., every cigarette he DOESN'T smoke is cause for celebration!

And if he 'fails' this time, he is one try closer to the 'real' time!

Good Luck to him, it'll only happen if HE wants it, not you. :(

Be proud of him for trying hard.

I'd like to make a joke and say quitting smoking is easy, I do it every night!

It CAN be done, I'm rootin' for him!

:)

Feb 10th is 2 years that I quit smoking cold turkey because if I didn't, I was probably going to lose my eye sight. That was my reason and I am sure he has his own,so it's good to keep a reminder close by of all the reasons he hates that addiction. I kept a list in my pocket. I would take it out and read it until the cravings passed.
I had some sleep problems too.
I found this website to be REALLY helpful. It's basically a support group for people quitting cold turkey and it gives you a lot of really good reading material to have incentive through those tough initial stages.
www.whyquit.com
Thank Goodness he has such an understanding and helpful girlfriend! It's tough but he can do this! Best wishes!

Cold turkey is rough but you can do it. First three days is the worst and the worst to be around someone. Best to walk on eggshells, also he needs to relearn handling stress and anger. Understand he will be angy for a lot longer than when he was a smoker. Its like dealing with a young child, smokers learn to handle stress through a cig not actually dealing with the issue. All this has to be retaught.
As for you, constant encouragement is key. Understanding irritability and handling it ok is good. Support support support not hinder even in heated times.
My first time quitting I used rubber band on the wrist. Any time you have a craving, snap your wrist with it. Oh thats smarts and it works too!

What about trying Nicotine gum? Otherwise, he will just have to deal w/ the cravings and have a lot of self control. I don't think there is an easy way. Hopefully Nicotine gum will help. I hope you won't be living 2 hours apart for long. Long distance relationships are hard!

CONGRATULATIONS to him for quitting!! IT IS HARD! I quit 3 yrs ago using Chantix, but you are right the side affects were bad. I used coffee stir sticks to chew on when I craved a cigarette especially when driving. I had them everywhere!! It really helped me and did not cost that much.
Be patient and keep telling him how happy you are that he quit!!
Good luck and God Bless!!
D.

When my husband quit, I felt so awful and helpless, because it was really something only he could do. I couldn't quit for him. But I really was very helpful, just by being his "rock". He never wanted to talk about it, but my job was to pretend to ignore it. Not say "wow it's been 5 days, great job!" or anything. If he slipped, he told me (he tried to hide it at first but that wasn't cool with me) and I wouldn't judge, I'd just hug him and say "no worries, you'll be all good tomorrow". Sometimes he'd say "wow I'm really having a craving" and that wasn't an invitation to discuss it, but it was a great cue that I should find some way to distract him.

And yeah, he got pretty irritable for a while, you just have to suck it up. And a pack-a-day long-term smoker has some nasty physical side effects of quitting, like horrible itching (as the body releases toxins through the skin) and nasty loud coughing up what looks like gooey black tar (which had been in his lungs for years). It's a good thing - the body getting rid of all the bad stuff it's been holding onto - but it's hard to go through.

My husband tried for years to quit, everything from cold turkey to ramping it down, the gum, the patch, the pills, you name it. What finally worked for him was a book called (I think) "Quitting: The Easy Way"; the author's name is Carr. It basically just says "you know smoking sucks, you want to quit, so just do it", which seems almost too obvious, but somehow it totally worked for him. He said "ok this is my last cigarette" and that was it. That was over a year ago and despite the occasional craving (I don't think that ever goes away) I really believe he's never going back. He likes being able to breathe :)

Grats to your boyfriend, and I hope both of you make it stick!

My sisters husband quit smoking right after Thanksgiving- also going cold turkey. What he does is if he feels like he needs to smoke, he does a bunch of sit-ups or push ups or whatever exercise until he feels like he is going to puke and then he doesn't want to smoke. Not sure if that is the best way to go about it since I have never smoked and had to quit but that is what he does.