<p>I've been smoking for 7+ years. I love American Spirits and Kamel Reds. I enjoy smoking.</p>
<p>But, I need to quit for a few months. </p>
<p>I quit for 2 1/2 months, but picked it back up when I came back home (most of my friends smoke).</p>
<p>I smoke to relieve anxiety (such as when I'm exploring a condemned insane asylum, or even just outside in social situations), increase my concentration/focus (I have never and will never buy Adderal or Ritalin for various reasons) and suppress cravings (or I have a drink or two, but that adds up more than cigarettes).</p>
<p>I've tried switching to Snus, but I don't like that it's flavored. The mellow tastes weird, and the frost tastes like a menthol. I won't try dip or chew. </p>
<p>Any suggestions for how to find other means to address the reasons that I smoke? I have never found something to replace smoking with. I enjoy smoking, and I've quit before. It's more that I found it to be the cheapest and most enjoyable way to calm down and stay focused when I study, and give me a kick in the morning (not a coffee person). </p>
<p>Surprisingly, none of my friends have actually quit smoking, so they really couldn't offer any advice (a lot of them have smoked longer than I have). </p>
<p>Any insight would be appreciated, because smoking and getting in running shape don't really work...</p>
<p>Mind over matter, just smoke what you have left, dont buy anymore, suffer through the one week of hell during the withdrawal and then you beat the addiction.</p>
<p>Eh, I’ve tried not buying cigs. Didn’t work. I don’t get withdrawal from it, I’ve quit for periods of time, it’s just I can’t find another way to address things such as poor concentration. </p>
<p>Nicotine is by far my favorite stimulant, and I haven’t been able to find a replacement.</p>
<p>try working out and quitting at the same time. you dont have to quiet overnight, but keep smoking and start working out a little, and progressively increase the amount you work out while decreasing the amount you smoke. be smart bro, i just wrote a paper on the tobacco industry and some of the pictures//effects i heard//read about, respectively, were nasty.</p>
<p>I kind of think if I got an electric cig, I would smoke the entire thing. A cig burns out, and electric one runs out after about 150 hits. </p>
<p>Yeah, cigs are bad, but my doctor has said if you limit yourself to 3 or less a day, you are highly unlikely to have serious health problems. I believe it takes about 6 months for lungs to fully recover.</p>
<p>Obviously the potential for lung cancer isn’t enough to persuade me to quit. Heck, I might not live long enough to have complications from smoking.</p>
<p>If you really want to quit, you should just try to scale down your tobacco use over time. Using snus would be smart and just set up a schedule where you start at a certain number of packets a day and you go down 1 unit maybe every week or something like that to help your body with the transition. IDK I find smoking to be really relaxing before I study at the library or on my way to class but I try to limit myself to 1-2 cigs a day max and I try to not buy cigs too often bc I dont want to get hooked. I really like smoking but its such a scummy thing to do and you are just killing your longs. I’ve always wondered if smoking 1-2 cigs a day is really that bad especially if you don’t do it so much to build an addiction?</p>
<p>Cigarettes and I had our time together, but ultimately, I was / am too much of a hypochondriac to keep doing that to myself. </p>
<p>I found that phasing them out worked best, although some people swear by quitting cold turkey. I was not that psychologically chained to it - some people are, and they might be the ones who need pills or patches or whatever.</p>
<p>One thing though - do not bother with that Snus stuff. I don’t know why you’d say you wouldn’t do dip, but then would use Snus, which is normal dipping tobacco, just in a pouch! </p>
<p>The carcinogens in cigarette smoke are at least diffused throughout your mouth and respiratory tract. When you use chew or Snus, you place the wad against a single place in the mouth, which then absorbs all the carcinogens. So rather than getting a lower dose spread over a wide area, you get a high dose concentrated in a small area. It’s a really fast and really stupid way to help yourself develop oral cancer. </p>
<p>Kissing a smoker is one thing; the thought of kissing a dip user is downright disgusting. Fortunately I don’t speak from experience on the latter bit.</p>
<p>Also! While breathing the smoke is obviously damaging to your lungs and hence bad for getting oneself into running shape, any kind of tobacco is going to constrict your blood vessels and make it harder for your heart to work. </p>
<p>Just do whatever you need to quit using ALL tobacco products, basically.</p>
<p>I’ve bough cartoons online for the last two years, and when I did smoke FT it would be about 5-8 a day- to and from class and between class. Right now I typically only smoke socially- 2-4 a night when I go out.</p>
<p>I’d suggest you check out becomeanex.org for on-line live streaming video of folks who are successfully quitting. There are so many side effects from tobacco–the nicotine and the combusion products of the thousands of things they put into cigarettes/tobacco to make them as addictive as possible. These include elevated risk of heart problems including diabetes, high blood pressure and stroke, respiratory problems including emphysema and chronic bronchitis, cancer, and other things. I daily see and correspond with folks who suffer from the ravages of smoking–done by them or their loved ones and it’s really heartbreaking to see the reduced quality of life they have.</p>
<p>Tobacco and nicotine are the #1 preventable/avoidable public health issue. I’m very concerned that your doc isn’t helping you and encouraging you to quit for your current and future health. The health burden is cummulative and the sooner you are able to stop, the better it is for your health and that of your loved ones. Having to use supplemental O2 for the rest of your life is highly overrated. Volunteer to help hospice with cancer folks who need transportation & other things, to hear their stories.</p>
<p>Many people don’t related diabetes to smoking and multiple other issues, including low birthweight children, asthma, and so many other things. They ARE all linked to smoking and exposure to smoke.</p>
<p>Snus and Dipping tobacco are similar yet different in how they are manufactured. Snus isn’t nearly as dangerous to your body as compared to cigarettes and you don’t have to spit the excess saliva, unlike dipping tobacco. There have even been reports that Snus is generally safer when compared to cigarettes and chewing tobacco ([Snus</a> - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“Snus - Wikipedia”>Snus - Wikipedia)), obviously Im not going to say its safe to use, but when comparing different tobacco products it is clearly a better alternative.</p>
<p>since your main reason for wanting to quit smoking is the “getting in running shape” exercise bit, why don’t you replace your smoke cravings with exercise? Like instead of a morning smoke break to become more alert, go on a brisk 15 minute run. Or something of the sort. Obviously it won’t work everytime, but exercise does give you endorphins which give you energy/happiness in the long run (once you get over the initial exhaustion). And it may help you take your mind off wanting a cigarette. If you really want to kick the habit do your best to find a new (healthier) addiction.</p>
<p>I am very fortunate to have a healthy family. Luckily, no one in my family has any serious health conditions. Any health issues were results of car crashes and such, and other conditions aren’t genetic (herniated discs in back). </p>
<p>Regardless, I know about the health risks, and I’ve accepted them. It’s a tradeoff that I am willing to make, however illogical that may sound. Quitting by the time your 30 significantly reduces smoking related health issues, and the body is able to recover rather quickly. Sure, there are downsides, but I haven’t been able to find a substitute for nicotine. That is the main issue. Until a substitute is found, it’s going to be difficult to quit for more than a couple weeks or months. </p>
<p>I would think smoking related illnesses would be linked to genetics. I would think some bodies naturally handle some substances better than other people. Alcohol and liver damage comes to mind.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Is there any particular reason you’re against Adderall or Ritalin or the like? I currently take Adderall (via prescription, not illegally :)) and I’ve found it to help my focus and concentration. Also, exercising is a stimulant in a way.</p></li>
<li><p>Well for starters, you could try using the whole nicotine patches, gum, etc. to help you slowly get over smoking. Not sure how well they work but its worth a shot.</p></li>
<li><p>Slowly and gradually reduce the amount you smoke. You say you smoke around 4 a night (at most), so during the first 2 weeks, smoke no more than 4 times a day. Then, the next 2 weeks, go down to no more than 3x a day. Then the 2 week period after that, no more than twice a day, and etc. Of course, if that’s too fast, then maybe increase to 3-4 week periods, and try that. And if you can reduce the amount you smoke every week, thats even better. This is what one of my friends actually did (along with one other thing)</p></li>
<li><p>I know it might not be the most pleasant or appealing thing, but since you seem to smoke the most around a certain group of people (I think you said you picked the habit back up when you came home to your friends), then you might need to stop hanging out with them (at least in social situations or the like when they might smoke). I know it sucks, but you can find new friends. I’m not saying your friends are bad, but its just that if they are the source or a cause for your smoking, then you might need to spend less time with them. This is the other thing my friend did to help kick the habit. Also, if you smoke because of anxiety, then maybe consider going to a doctor and seeing if there is any other medicine to help reduce anxiety.</p></li>
<li><p>Withdrawal does suck…whether its drugs, alcohol, or tobacco. If it gets extreme, they might even have therapy or support groups for cigarette users (I personally don’t know of any). There are other things too. If you ever start craving to have another cigarette (but you’ve already smoked twice and that was the maximum you allowed yourself to smoke during that day), then just try doing something else that you like. Go out and get junk food (ice cream, milkshakes, etc.), or do something to take your mind off it (like watch a movie or listen to some music or exercise). I know eating junk food won’t get rid of your addiction, but it might help put it off (at least til the next day). This isn’t a strong solution, but it does help for some people.</p></li>
<li><p>If all else fails, then unfortunately you’ve got to bite the bullet and handle the pain we call withdrawal. It does suck. Luckily for you, you’re not too hooked on (you said you smoke 2-4 times a day on average). Many people smoke a pack a day, so your case isn’t that bad. I guess that’s good?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Really, each solution alone won’t do much, but if you try doing all 6, then its possible to get rid of this habit.</p>
<p>It would be hard for me to get an ADD diagnosis. Long story. I basically don’t agree when people buy Addy to help them gain an edge academic. Legitimate use doesn’t bother me. </p>
<p>I guess it’s not a big deal to quit for a set period of time, but I always just pick it back up. Especially during school. It’s one of my vices.</p>
<p>Eh well if you smoke because you’re having trouble focusing, then you might be able to get a diagnosis. Many doctors are pretty liberal with diagnosing. According to them, the only way to find out if you have ADD is to give you medicine (since there is no test or check up they can do)…if your symptoms go away, then they tell you to keep taking it. If not, then they tell you to stop. It’s messed up if you ask me. </p>
<p>If you do pick up the habit again when you’re at school, then look into what exactly makes you pick up the habit (friends, anxiety, stress, etc.) and look into fixing those factors to get rid of the root of the problem. Right now it may be easy to quit for a few months (since you only smoke 2-4x a day), but you might be at the point where if you keep doing it at this rate, a serious addiction might develop.</p>