|
Post by skate4life on Nov 18, 2014 9:59:31 GMT -5
www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/285570.phpThis new discovery has them going back to the 1970's to start again re reward center, dopamine, stress area of brain. I would be more curious to learn why some of us never do experience withdrawal symptoms like they all hype about.....
|
|
|
Post by David on Nov 18, 2014 13:49:19 GMT -5
I quit with Chantix. Lot's of people can't take it. I was lucky that it worked for me. I tried to quit for years and the 'nicotine fit' was to much for me. Chantix blocked the addiction.
|
|
|
Post by spike99 on Nov 18, 2014 22:24:19 GMT -5
For me, I quit "cold turkey' (via my first time trying) after 32 years of 1-1.5 pack / day smoking. After several weeks of getting mentally ready, I quit. And, never really looked back. My mind did have a few cravings afterwards but after 4 weeks, those leg pulling nags left as well. As they say, it was "my time to quit". For me, it was either stop smoking or die. So, I stopped smoking. Living or dying earlier than expected? I chose to live...
|
|
|
Post by David on Nov 18, 2014 23:52:32 GMT -5
I have had some friends who quit cold turkey and I have had friends who smoked till they died. I am so thankful that I don't smoke any more. I was told that cold turkey is the way to quit.
|
|
|
Post by jim on Nov 19, 2014 6:22:50 GMT -5
Thanks for sharing Skate thumbsupde1 I hope the new knowledge can be turned to into a new therapy for smoking cessation.
|
|
|
Post by pippy on Nov 19, 2014 12:24:13 GMT -5
I quit with Chanix after trying about 9 or10 trys . I had to cut my dose in half as the time before I used it but had a hard time . I have never had a craving since January 15 2012
|
|
|
Post by barb7330 on Nov 19, 2014 14:31:25 GMT -5
I quit cold turkey in 2007 and was told 2 months later I
|
|
|
Post by barb7330 on Nov 19, 2014 14:36:02 GMT -5
I quit cold turkey in 2007 and was told 2 months later I had COPD. I tried several times to quit as well. Since March of 2012 I have been on oxygen as needed but do use it all night. Wish I'd quit 40 years ago.... . Well it is still storming here off and on. The sun tried to come up a few minutes ago. Going to be a long winter if this snow stays. Calling for rain on the weekend so should take some of it down. Hope you all th_haveagr8daybutterflylady
|
|
|
Post by izzie on Nov 20, 2014 8:14:07 GMT -5
Good post, in a couple of ways..........First, I think it's important to understand the reasons why people start and stop cigarette smoking. I know why I started smoking, but I quit smoking cold turkey because I enjoyed better health without it.......EVEN MORE. Again, it's all about the pleasure centre in our brains. If you enjoy good health more than the pleasure from smoking...........it's easier to quit cold turkey and have very few withdrawal symptoms, just because of the shear determination of within you. Secondly, it would be great if more research was done about the pleasure centre in the brain and the chemical reactions humans have. It could be significant in treating depression and other mood altering reactions to our lifestyle and/or addictions. I don't think there is a lot of rocket science to this though. Let's take for example a person who has 2 addictions...smoking and sex, but they are in a confined space and they are allowed to make only 1 choice. They are told they will be provided with a cigarette OR another person they can have sex with. Some people might choose smoking because it brings them more pleasure and other people might choose sex because it brings them more pleasure. For some people with COPD.......we can't have either because of the lack of oxygen required to have great sex and cigarette smoke just makes them physically ill. Either way, we are just bleep..bleep..bleeped. everyone and never stop looking for the answers to your questions.
|
|
|
Post by jim on Nov 20, 2014 8:18:41 GMT -5
Hi Izzie, guess who has a big smile on his dial, thank you for such a candid post.
hug4U hug4U hug4U just trying to get you addicted to hugging. image002
|
|
|
Post by izzie on Nov 20, 2014 10:59:31 GMT -5
Hey Jim...........Thanks for the hug and your right.........hugging is a good addiction to have, along with a healthy and happy lifestyle. Not all addictions have to bad and smiling is contagious.
|
|
|
Post by skate4life on Nov 20, 2014 12:07:00 GMT -5
I don't want to open a can of worms or mud pie fights here but.....I'd rather smoke(quite entirely 3 months ago after 6 months weaning down at my own pace.)
I don't buy into the addiction, it's all in your brain physiology. It is a money maker and a crutch. There are too many people that decided to quit (for whatever reason) that had no trouble with all the commonly listed 'concerns.' Or stop for months at a time. Think about the last time you were really sick, like bad GI stuff or the flu, a copd exacerbation, anything that lasted 2-5 days. Now were you smoking the whole time? If you were not, did you experience cravings etc after 24 hrs without a cig? If you were in the hospital with an exacerbation &/or pneumonia, did you want to smoke? Are you fine spending a evening in a non-smoking environment and having a good time and not even thinking about smoking?
This is all just my own experience and opinion. I feel there is still too much unknown. If it works for you then great! I'll wait for more research.....
|
|
|
Post by izzie on Nov 20, 2014 13:44:50 GMT -5
To be honest, I still crave a cigarette and I still enjoy the smell of tobacco smoke.........but every time I had a cigarette, it felt like I was punching myself in my brain and lungs. We wouldn't put up with punches in the head or chest from another human being, but here I was doing it to myself day after day, flu after flu, and bouts of pneumonia and exacerbation. I couldn't wait till I felt a little better...just so I could enjoy another cigarette. But every time I had that next cigarette....I just felt dirty and gross about myself. I felt like I had no willpower or control over my life. I lived for the cigarette and my self-confidence was less than zero.
As each day passed without a cigarette robbing me of my health and time........I was finding better ways to make use of my time and my improving health. I still have COPD, but I enjoy better health without cigarettes. First, I started going for walks every time I craved a cigarette. As time passed, I began enjoying the walks more than the cigarettes. Next, I got myself a canine walking buddy and kicked the cigarettes to the curb and stomped on them so nobody else could smoke the evil things.
Dr Phil actually had a good confidence booster lesson to share with everyone the other day, which was to brush your teeth with your less dominant hand each morning. He said, if you can master that....you can be the master of anything else in your life, including quitting harmful habits or addictions.
But never stop searching for the things that will help you in your life.
|
|
|
Post by John on Nov 20, 2014 13:55:22 GMT -5
Hi Every one ! Good topic . I quit back in 2006 and like Barb was dxed 2 or 3 mos after . It came down to do you want smoke or do you want breath ? Do you want to live or do you want to die ? They also said I had 3 to 5 years left if I didn't quit and God willing 10- 20 - and maybe more if I did . That was 8 years ago now . I never give up anything till it hurts me . I sometimes get a twinge for one and I laugh and tell my self, Ya right ! The last time you picked up one, it took 20 years and not being able to breath or do much to put them down . As RoseMarie used to say , "That's my story and I'm sticking to it" ! thumbsupde1 th_haveagr8daybutterflylady
|
|
|
Post by skate4life on Nov 20, 2014 20:56:53 GMT -5
Yup John, everyone is different. I'm just one of those people who, although a pack a day smoker, could go away for a weekend and not smoke or be visiting with non-smokers and did just fine. I never smoked while walking on the street. When sick (non-copd)I didn't smoke nor wanted to. Last February I was in hospital 8 days and then an in-pt rehab place for 2 weeks with no smoking - didn't miss it then either. Once home I gradually started smoking again but never more than 3 cigs/24 hrs. I even kept a daily calendar so I could see when I smoked and how much of each cig I consumed....1 puff, 1/3 or 1/2 of cig before putting it out for good. I wanted to see if there was a pattern and its effect on my breathing.....but as time went by, by July I just didn't have the interest as much. Maybe twice a week I light one up, take a small puff and then put it out. Through all this I did not have 'cravings' or nicotine withdrawal symptoms. Hospital nurses kept trying to push a nicotine patch and I declined. I just didn't need it. Perhaps my brain is wired differently. I have read some interesting studies that talk about the physiologic effects of the nicotine are basically gone in 48 hours. Yes I know some of it is stored in your fat and it takes 2+ months (and lots of daily water) for a urine test to be clear. So that leaves some psychological issues in smokers. Again one size does not fit all people. I would NEVER advise people who want to try medication to not try.....it has helped a lot of people for sure. I tried 3 different ones over the years only because my doc pushed it, not because I wanted to quit, and had very adverse reactions. My brain is just different It was never a issue of living or dying.
|
|
|
Post by David on Nov 20, 2014 21:40:42 GMT -5
I had some friends who could pick cigarette’s up and put them down at their will. I couldn't do that. I smoked during bouts of flu. Last time I was in the hospital was 1983. I was diagnosed with Emphysema in 1983 and quit smoking in 2005. My brain definitely rewarded me after each cigarette. Chantix blocked the reward. When I smoked I didn't get any satisfaction out of it.
|
|
|
Post by izzie on Nov 21, 2014 7:44:57 GMT -5
skate4life....thank you for sharing your insight into the issues of cigarette smoking because I think it really empowers all of us, by trying to understand everyone's viewpoint on it. David...I think it's absolutely amazing that your body allowed you to keep smoking between being diagnosed with emphysema in 1983 until 2005, when you finally quit. I am glad that you finally quit though. My sister was a stop and start smoker most of her life. She might smoke for 4 months of the year, sometimes heavily, then she would say.....I just don't want to do it for while and quit for the remaining 6 months of the year. Her mental and emotional addiction to it wasn't that strong and by stopping and starting....it wasn't all that habit forming for her. I admired her for that. The only thing I can say is......I just couldn't quit smoking because my doctor or family wanted me too, I had to do it for myself. To be honest, by quitting for yourself..........you strengthen your personal desire to get rid of an unhealthy habit and replace it with a healthy habit. Yet, for some people, quitting cold turkey is too much of a physical shock to their bodies and they need to wean themselves down before quitting totally. I call it the (if my body could only talk syndrome). It's like my brain was saying quit smoking, but my body was saying....what is wrong with you? You inhale toxic smoke into my lungs everyday and I've adapted to that...now all of a sudden you want to quit Cold Turkey and I'm supposed to adapt to that IMMEDIATELY. But my lungs were saying.....if you really want to breathe toxic smoke into me, then go bloody well stand out in the middle of a forest fire or go become a fire fighter and go down a hero when they haul your body off to the morgue. Anyway, that's my personal take on the subject. everyone, and never stop searching for the things that will help you in your life.
|
|