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Looking for advice on how to quit smoking without switching to vapes.

The news has been scaring the shit out of me with the epidemic of vaping. So I quit vaping and using my JUUL. However, I'm back to smoking cigarettes now which will also kill you lol in different ways. Have you ever been a smoker and quit? How did you do it? I am scared that the craving will always be there....like with any other addiction. Any honest thoughts about smoking, quitting, and vaping would be greatly appreciated! 🙂 also thoughts/facts about cigarettes, the history of them, etc. thanks!!

vjohnson51 7 Sep 22
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I am currently smoking, but I did quit years ago. It was more like an experiment. Whenever I hear of some new hippie health craze, I have to at least experiment on myself with it. When there was a big to-do about wheatgrass, I tried it. I didn't juice it, I chewed it.. and a lot of it. I haven't heard of people using it to quit smoking, but my cravings instantly went away and I stopped smoking like it was nothing.

The only reasonable explanation I could come up with is chlorophyll is said to be structurally similar to hemoglobin, so it makes it easier for your body to break it down and convert it.. giving you some fresh, clean blood that helps flush out the nicotine in your body.

Of course I have no studies to back any of that up, but I can tell you that quitting smoking was a cake walk when I was eating massive amounts of it.

The house cats loved the stuff though and I seriously had to fight them off of my grow setup. Well they won one day and I came home to the whole thing wrecked.. so I stopped. A few months later some drama happened and I started smoking again and haven't looked back. It's on my to-do list to start it back up, but so is a lot of other shit..

In terms of facts and reasons to quit, nicotine itself (not even looking at all the other chemicals) is a pesticide. When an insect attacks a tobacco plant, the nicotine attacks the insects nervous system. This will slow down or even immobilize the insect, making them easy pickings for a predator. We don't notice it in small doses, but when you're smoking all day, it builds up and it's actually harming your nervous system. So you (we) are literally ingesting a chemical that nature designed to destroy nervous systems..

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I quit by vaping too, and no plans to switch back to cigs. If you must do some sort of nicotine, please either try the gum or patch or switch back to vaping! There were 6 vape related deaths that as far as I can tell were traced to off brand counterfeit Chinese THC cartridges. Get good quality juice and you’ll be fine. No one knows the super long term effects but I guarantee it’s not as bad as smoking is for you. The news hype about it was done entirely with the aim to get people to switch back to cigs, which is sooo much worse. Please don’t fall for it.

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How I did it would never be sanctioned by a doctor but here goes:

I used expired nicoderm patches left over from a previous attempt AND chantax

The chantax caused such vivid dreams that I mistook them for memories so only used it for a couple of weeks. I used the patches for about a month.

After that, whenever the urge hit, I would eat or drink something that had always made cigs taste bad such as milk, cinnamon, lemon etc.

Been smoke free for little over 10 years and have saved over 56K

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was smoking at 14. first quit in my early 30s. relapsed when i got stationed in germany & i couldn't resist the smell of the german & french turkish blends which were very cheap for service members.
still smoked into my 50s.
i don't think it's difficult to quit smoking. the nicotine is out of the system in a few days. it's just a matter of how much do you really want to give up something you enjoy.

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I quit using the nicotine patch, 26 years ago. I used three different dosages, for a month each. It sucked. It sucked a lot. It was very difficult. But I quit and I would never start again because I don't think I've got what it takes to quit smoking twice in one lifetime.

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There have only been 8 reported deaths from vaping, and details are very sketchy. (For example, didthe dead vapers have existing health issues? Versus how many cigarette-related deaths???)
IMO, if you must, Vape, do not smoke! I Strongly suspect the tobacco industry in this controversy.......

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Inherent in many of the quit smoking dialogs or methods is the idea that something will help you quit, when in reality, the ONLY thing that will help you is your own determination. Along with that determination, I also used psychology . . . . make yourself look at that nasty, gross ashtray with cigarette buts in it, start opening your mind to your bodies reaction, the taste, etc. . . . . but the main battle is your own to fight, and if you cannot muster the definite determination to quit, chances are pretty good you never will.

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Quite line of your state has one,American cancer society has one . Nicotine gum or lozenges, family doctor had options too

bobwjr Level 10 Sep 22, 2019
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I quit 32 years ago. I do most things with gusto and when I smoked I had a 3 pack a day habit. It was more than wonderful to quit and finally not want a cigarette all the time.

I quit twice in my life. The first time was when my son was diagnosed with asthma. The day after my second child was born naturally, someone asked me what they could get me and for some reason I wanted a cigarette. I then smoked for another 16 years. I bought a whole house air cleaner so I wouldn't hurt my children and always sat near it or went outside when I smoked.

16 years later I developed a severe case of recurring bronchitis and realized it was extremely stupid for me to smoke and quit cold turkey. I think the person that said motivation has a great deal to do with whether or not you're successful was absolutely right. I hope you find motivation soon. You can also consider doing the exercise of writing down why smoking is not conducive to your happiness. Here is my list:

  1. It is a documented scientific fact that it causes lung and heart disease both for the smoker and their captive family members.

  2. It smells bad to non-smokers and makes you smell bad as well.

  3. Flying Ash often ruins your favorite outfit or furniture.

  4. Most smokers spend the cost of a nice vacation on their habit.

  5. I bet you can add something to this list on your own. If you can I bet it will help you quit and I wish you all the luck possible.

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I used patches on about 6 separate occasions. It wasn't easy. They do take care of the physical addiction part of it, at least the nicotine part, while you learn to deal with other stuff like what to do with your hands and mouth. I'm a year and a month out this time. The cravings stay forever but other things happen and eventually you think of other things more often, just like any other form of grief.

I can breath alot better now. I started a new job where I walk 30000 steps a day opposed to the kitchen job I had where I ate fries and stuff at will. I quit when I switched jobs and I have still gained 40 pounds at least.

I quit with vapes for a while before too about 6 years ago. I always felt like I had nicotine poisoning and water on my lungs.

MsAl Level 8 Sep 22, 2019
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The first step is done: wanting to quit. I quit twice.
First time I quit cold turkey. Finished a pack of cigarettes and didn’t buy another. Withdraw symptoms are a bitch; flemme clogged throat, bowel changes are the primary physical ones. Not knowing what to do with my spare hand when I was drinking, not taking breaks because I didn’t know what to do with them and the socializing with other smokers were some of the mental ones.
After almost 11 years I picked up a pack of cigarillos on the way to hunting camp. In the evenings the guys sat around smoking and telling hunting stories, I figured it would help me fit in. Next thing you know, I’m smoking a pack a day again! But the price of cigarettes was going up, smokers were becoming more and more ostracized and I just didn’t enjoy the taste. But after a couple of failed attempts I realized I couldn’t go cold again. I picked up a program, can’t remember the name, where you get progressively stronger filters (and look funny, like a 1920’s smoker) and quit over a four week period. I liked it, because the first two weeks you can pretty much smoke as much as you are used to, then taper off the second two weeks. You also keep a diary of what time you have a smoke and why (after breakfast, bored, coffee break, etc.). After four weeks, I smoked my last cigarette and have been smoke free since, probably going on 30 years.
So, good luck, they didn’t have Chantix or patches when I was smoking and I think Nicorette gum was just coming out, but I knew I wanted the nicotine out of my system, so didn’t use them (I think I tried some and didn’t like the taste either). It is worth the effort.

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Smoke pot and get a patch. Or take chantix. Or chew gum.

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Well news hysteria aside, consensus scientific opinion appears to be that vaping is at least ten times safer than cigarettes.. The news cycle is getting caught up on the "news" that ten times safer than smoking is still far from 100% safe .And is reporting that fact so badly and sensationally that it's driving people to make the decision to switch from vapes back to cigarettes. I find it rather saddening.

When I gave up it was on Champix. NRT did nothing for me. But even the Champix took a few goes before it stuck. The secret is to keep trying and keep learning from each failure. Finally it became the case that when I was tempted to smoke again, the temptation was canceled out by the certainty that if I did, then in a few months I'd be back to a pack a day and facing the hell of withdrawal all over again.

As such the most positive message I can give regarding quitting smoking is paradoxically that it's a horrible experience. So do try to finish the job at the first attempt.

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Good luck. No actual advice on how to quit - seen people try every method available multiple times and never quit, seen folks quit successfully on thier 1st try.

Good luck is all I can say.

1of5 Level 8 Sep 22, 2019

Having sat through lectures (for a family member) it takes somehere between 35-40 tries to quit. Thats from statements about "im going to quit" and maybe quitting for a few hours, to a few days, to a few months. From my understanding, just keep quitting. Theres nothing wrong with quitting 20 times in a row if thats how long it takes.

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I've been on and off that wagon. I've come to the conclusion that there is just one fact in front of us.

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