boombox

How the hell do you quit both at the same time? Trying to do both but feeling overwhelmed. Cigs always ends up with me drinking. Any ideas?

Dee74

Have you tried patches, gum or ecigs at all?

D

Austin4Wyo

I didn't quit them together. I was three months sober when I quit smoking.

Some say do it together, some say don't. Personally, the way I drank, nicotine withdrawal and alcohol withdrawal were going to be hellish no matter what. Typically, I drank until I was out of money, so that meant I was too broke for booze AND cigarettes.

I keep a tight eye on my nicotine cravings now. Prior to every relapse in the past, I have started smoking again. I subscribe to the view that if I smoke a pack a day and take ten puffs per cigarette, I'm giving my brain 200 small doses of an addictive drug, which can severely mess with my brain chemistry. No reason to tempt fate with 11 months sober as of today.

swindon32

No way was I doing both at the same time! Don't put that extra pressure on yourself to give up your vices all at once - us addicts have a habit of transferring addictions so you don't want a food issue cropping up or something to really complicate things lol. Booze first, then when you're ready the cigs will go.

letitgo

Chantix help med alot with cigarettes. I quit drinking and then quit smoking 3 weeks later. It a bear because your removing your 2 go to inhibitors. Its extremely hard. 4 months later it was worth the anxiety and mental warfare. I have saved alot of money. I can breath and smell better. I havent had a hangover at all either. I was able leave places anytime and do whatever i want. I have never been too sober to drive. Its well worth it. Take care

bigsombrero

I agree with what swindon says here. I quit booze first - it's a bear and best handled without a second battle on your hands. I moved to e-cigarettes (vaping) and it was a good solution that worked for me. Baby steps with the smokes. But make sure you quit the booze and keep that a priority for now. IMO.

doggonecarl

I don't smoke, so who am I say if that association is valid or not. But the kind of drinker I was, I had all kinds of things that ended up with me drinking: Getting off work, the weekend, having money, going out, football, holidays, hurricanes, depression, spicy food. You name it, I ended up drinking.

Maybe you were that kind of drinker too.

keeppushing

I've been trying to kill my addictions to cigs and alcohol since my 20's. I managed to stop cigs cold turkey a little over 8 years ago. No idea how to stop alcohol yet, but I will never stop trying.

As an aside, I found (by pure accident) that trying to stop alcohol without fixing my nutrition made life difficult for me. I managed to improve nutrition dramatically this year. At the same time I went from 0% abstinence with alcohol to about 40%. Don't know if they are related, but I think staying away from refined sugar and processed carbs helped curb my cravings a bit. My weight is also dropping fast

Good luck,

KP

Fluffer

I quit smoking first, drinking later. Getting free from smoking was much more intense but also over in a month or two. Drinking is more psychological but I think the changes to your brain linger much longer, at least if you have been doing it a long time. If I were a smoker and drinker today, I think I would quit them both at the same time and go for the total reboot of my brain. Bite the bullet and get it over with. I don't believe in patches or tapering from nicotine as I think it just keeps the addiction alive.

Lorax1981

Cigs went first for me, then the beer maybe 2 months later, weed another 2 months after that. Good luck! However you choose to do it we support you and your awesomeness!
-Ted

adelina123

I previously found that when I stopped smoking I didn't want to drink nearly as much. I couldn't see the point of having a drink if I couldn't smoke .... like having fish with no chips lol. It was drinking that took me back to smoking in the end back to full on fish n chips!! Maybe it's best to just get rid of both together x

Marcher13

I quit them together boombox and I'd be doing both for 40 years so it can be done. What really helped me was focussing on what I could do instead of the "can't". Making my health and fitness a priority changed my life.

I'm now a pain-in-the-arse reformed smoker who can't tolerate the smell of tobacco.

Saskia

I quit cigs 30 years ago after 20 years of very heavy smoking. After a month I decided I realized that I could make it. It has taken me about a year to become solidly sober.

Soberwolf

Hi Boombox in the uk they have stop smoking classes & help

Smokefree | Home

If your not uk see if your local health services have anything similar ?