the patch....

[smoke gets in my eyes]

...itches. :saywhat?:

[Ann]

WHOA!!!! Does this mean...???

Good for you Smoke (you may have to change your name to "No Smoke Gets In My Eyes")

Oh you are so much braver than I am, but certainly an inspiration!!!

[smoke gets in my eyes]

Going to dinner, show and fireworks with two non-smokers. One just stopped smoking because he almost died a few months ago from an aneurism (sp?). Guess now is as good a time as any. Anybody got a tootsie pop?

[Debbie]

Yes I do have a cherry and a grape! Way to go Smoke, maybe I should have bought a patch instead of a pack

Hugs,
Debbie

[lyn_blossom78]

Your not going to believe this, Smoke, but I'm sucking on a tootsie pop as I read your post! Weird! Mine's chocolate--and you can have a few licks if you like. We just got back from parades, and they threw lots and lots of candy. I ate all the tootsie rolls already, and started in on the only tootsie pop. But if you don't like to share I can give you the one charms blow-pop or any flavor you like of dum-dums.

Never had to quit smoking--my biggest habit is eating, chocolate mostly (how am I doing?)

Hang in there, and hope it goes well!

Lyn

[EmotionalMeg]

What?! You smoke Ann??
I am shocked
I don't know why.

And YIPPEE for Smoke!!
OK, you are my new hero... I have vowed to quit smoking before I was 30 - My birthday is in December ... You'll just have to stay a non-smoker until I can jump on the wagon with ya. Is there any room??
Good for you girl, I'm so proud

BTW... I KNOW how much it itches... what got me thru the last time (I quit for 3 months) was how HEALTHY I felt! And that each day I was doing myself GOOD!

Keep it up girl, we're rootin for ya
Meg

[Stephanie]

Good for you Smoke!!!!!!!!

OK Meg, we use Smoke as an inspiration because I'm suppose to quit when I turn 40 and my birthday is in Dec. too. We have 6 months, sooooooo smoke em if ya got em!!!!!!! (not you Smoke)

I quit once but they didn't have the patch then, believe it or not ....I dipped, you know skoal. Can you believe it. It worked and I quit for 6 1/ 2 yrs.

[Ann]

Meg

I guess an angel smoking is a strange sight. Maybe I am a litttle like John Tavolta's angel in "Michael" - a little rough around the halo.

I have psyched up several times to try to get ready to quit, and have even gone 4 or 5 days, and I don't smoke that much maybe 8 or 10 a day....but I am just a failure. This angel turns into a nasty little she-devil and it's a terrible sight.

I honestly think that next time I get up the courage, I will go to a non-smoking clinic or something. It really is a nasty addiction.

I bow to Smoke and anyone who has beat nicotine.

[Gabe]

bowing to Smoke. Just thinking about quitting cigarettes makes me break out in a cold sweat. The last time I tried to quit I was so foul that total strangers on the street wanted to kill me. Best of luck Smoke, I know what a hard habit it is to break.
Ann, I had to laugh at Andie McDowall in "Michael" when she said "Angels don't smoke!" Certainly some of us do. And I will be laughing for weeks at "a little rough around the halo."
Peace,
Gabe

[EmotionalMeg]

Angels come in all shapes and sizes and sorts.... You may be a smoking angel Ann, but you still have a kind and patient heart - you can be MY angel anytime
Meg

[matters]

Good for you Smoke!!!!!

You CAN do this. Remember, one day at a time! I wish for all my
Alanon board pals to find the strength to quit! I want you around with me for many, many years. I quit so long ago that I can't really remember the cravings. I guess I was never a real smoker. Mostly when I went out. I never had to get up in the morning and light one up. I know you will be successful. Yeah for tootsie roll pops! Those cute little baby carrots might help too.

Take care and prayers going your way,
matters

[liddy]

GL Smoke !

that's a tough one ! I quit once with hypnotism
it lasted 18 mths. and one day , there it was an unopened
red pack of winston on the sidewalk at work,I looked
around and quickly put it in my pocket. The first one made me high - It doesnt take long for the addiction to come back...

Will try again one of these days
Hugs
liddy

[smoke gets in my eyes]

suckers....

no... I don't mean any of you guys. Had a little difficulty with the patch. (Mostly with paying for it.) I am now ready to give you some tips on the sucker cure.

Works great. But suckers all have their advantages and disadvantages.

Dum Dums- Lots of flavors. Cheap. Yummy. Plentiful. Basic. But the name keeps reminding you why you're having to take the sucker cure.

Tootsie pops- Easy to find. Hard not to bite. A few more calories than some other suckers.

Charms Caramel Apple Pops- Really do taste like caramel apples. Hard to find. Don't bite... your teeth will stick together and you could lose a filling.

Jolly Rancher Pops- INTENSE flavors... but there are only 4 flavors. Smooth candy that will not cut you tongue. The cherry is so strong it's sort of like eating a mouthful of marischinos.

Starburst Fruit Chew Pops- Wow. 5 flavors with chewy stuff inside. They have vitamin C in them so you don't want to eat the whole bag or you could get the runs. Also, the candy is kind of jaggedy and sort of cuts and then after about 10 or so the vitamin C starts to irritate the little cuts.

[Debbie]

Smoke have you ever tried Blow Pops (the sour flavors), they are sour and inside is the surprise of bubble gum. You might like them.

I also heard (veering off the sucker theme here) that cinnamon sticks work, haven't tried it myself. I keep trying to quit and I keep failing. If they keep going up in price, I will just have to.

Many hugs,
Debbie

[smoke gets in my eyes]

Oh yes! Blow pops. Those are good. And you don't eat them so fast because you can chew on them awhile.

Cinnamon sticks? What do you do with them? Chew them? Pretend they're a cigarette and just act like you're smoking? Stick two of them in front of your bicuspids and pretend you're a vampire with poor dental hygiene?

[Debbie]

Suck on them I think, and act like they are a cigarette. I saw this on a couple stop smoking sites. They are a substitute.

I don' think you need to pretend you are a vampire with poor dental hygiene silly girl

[smoke gets in my eyes]

Well, okay... but if you got bored it might make for some diversion.

[Debbie]

Yes perhaps but Smoke don't do it in public!!

[NoDoubt]

Yeah Smoke (or is it smokeless?)
I quite on 12/31/02. I used the patch. My husband and I did it together (3 months before he quit drinking). I feel so much healthier!!
I know the patch itches when you first put it on. I found the best locations were on my biceps, triceps, traps and lats (arms, back of shoulders, and on my lower back).

WARNING::::: They gave me wicked dreams (actually had a dream about Kid Rock. YUCK!!!!) So you might want to take them off before bedtime (just as I was going to bed worked for me) and have them next to your bed so you put one on just after you wake/shower.

It worked for us. Just keep thinking how much healthier you will be.
Good Luck! You can do it!!!
NoDoubt

[midknight]

Way to go Smoke!

I just quit today also! I've had 2 aversion therapy hypontism sessions and the patch! It can be done. We got through life before you started smoking and we can now.

Congrats!

-Midknight

[JT]

I quit for 3 years if you can believe it. During that time I started running and I was up to 5 miles. It is the Beav's fault doncha know...all that stress and all.

My advise....and I WILL be doing it again (pick a date) Zyban (Wellbutin) in addition to the patch. It is almost effortless. Oh and Jelly Beans! The whole thing is SOOO oral!

That tooth under my driver's seat is not the only one I have ever lost!


JT

[EmotionalMeg]

Thanks so much for bumping this up ... The deadline for me is fast approaching, and Quitting has been on my mind so much. I have not tried the sucker thing, but I have a weakness for those penny candies - you know, the goody bag candies that the kids always whine for?! I am looking for the caselot sales now, so I can stock up on them for later.

Meg

[smoke gets in my eyes]

Is caselot like BigLots and OddLots?

Today was juice day. My jaw was getting sore from the suckers, so I thought... juice is good for you... sip juice.... not a lot of calories... that is unless you drink it all. A whole bottle of V8 and half a carton of orange juice will give you a stomach ache. Trust me. I can't wait till tomorrow though. Whenever I eat a lot of acidic food, my silver jewelry turns my skin black where it touches and for some reason that really entertains me.

Now I am about to try the sleep cure.

[Ann]

I'm just dropping in to cheer you on, Smoke(less).

I read once that red licorice is the candy to choose when you need candy. I can't for the life of me remember why but I think it was wayyyy ahead of anything else sweet.

I have a little book that I read when I am trying to stop, and it has many affirmations and good stuff that can help keep your mind occupied. One of the sayings that really hit home with me was "Quitting is hard. Dying is harder". ( I know...ewwww...but it did get through even my thick skull).

Here's to another smoke-free day!!!! You go girl!!!

Hugs
Ann

[smoke gets in my eyes]

I am at the end of the first week of cold turkey. Whoop di doo. Does anyone happen to know where the phrase "cold turkey" came from?

I visited some stop smoking sites, but it made me want to smoke, so I'm not doing that any more. However, the blurbs said that the withdrawal symptoms are worst in the first week and usually mostly gone after a month. You'd think I could write my own blurbs. I've done this enough times.

"The first day, you will succeed on the strength of your self-righteous smugness. You will hardly notice the withdrawal symptoms because you are so busy dreaming of pink lungs and convincing yourself that YOU aren't going to get fat.

The second day... you meet the gremlin. He's been there the whole time, but he always had a cigarette in his mouth before. Now he's talkin'. He sez it hurts a little. He sez he doesn't know what to do with his hands. At this point, still convinced YOU aren't going to get fat, you drench the gremlin in some extra glasses of water.

The third day... the gremlin is stomping around in your temples. He keeps telling you we'd feel so much better if we just had ONE. C'mon... ONE. He begins calling you ugly names in a harsh tone. Your surprised response is to mimic these words and tones outloud when talking to your cat, or unfortunately, other people. You stick a sucker in his mouth.

The fourth day... the gremlin kind of likes suckers. But he bites. He eats a whole bag in about two hours. Now you both have the queezies and nobody wants a cigarette.

The fifth day... the gremlin sez "just one, just one" but you know where that leads. You pour water on him, but he's learned to swim. You stick a sucker in his mouth and he bites it's head off and laughs. You break out the serious desserts. That's the day you introduce the gremlin to the blimpling. The blimpling has been living inside you this whole time, too. The blimpling explains that these desserts are necessary for our HEALTH. Any caloric sacrifice is okay if it keeps our lungs pink. The gremlin is eating cake. He doesn't care two sticks.

Day six... the gremlin cheats. He tells you you'd better get on the scale. Bad move. He tells you to drown the blimpling... who doesn't know how to swim yet. It looks like the gremlin is going to get rid of his arch enemy. There will only be him to listen to when the blimpling is gone and THEN he'll get a cigarettte... ha hah. But just a the last minute, you start hacking. You get all scared about your poor lungs and get into an argument with the gremlin. This gives the blimpling a chance to grab onto a loose piece of phlegm and stay afloat. Now the blimpling is cold and shivering and a bit humble. He whines that he'll be good if you'll only warm him up with a little coffee. Flavored. With extra cream. The gremlin complains that we used to get to have a cigarette with our coffee... but gets distracted again because he steps in some of that stray phlegm.

Day 7.... as you wake, you find that the gremlin and the blimpling are no longer at each other's throats. They have devised a conspiracy. They propose that you go our for a nice big breakfast and have some leisurely cups of coffee and top it off with something that will really feel good... a cigarette. Just one just one. It almost works. You open your wallet and are amazed to find out there is nothing there. How can this have happened? You should have an extra 3 bucks a day from where