Smoked for about 15 years, tried a few times to stop, never worked. Made myself a promise to stop once I get a dog. Got a dog and stopped smoking with no problem.
Possible contributing factors:
- When it was time to stop I was already pretty disgusted by smoking. I just needed a last push.
- My mind was in a more positive state after I had a deep depression for a few years. I was also more conscious about my health because of that (see previous point)
- My friend group and work place used to be full of smokers and somehow that changed over time, so I was often alone with my addiction
Cold turkey. You make the time to quit “now” and not a later that never comes. It worked for cigarettes and fast food. From that point you live with yourself.
Warning though for my advice. I care little for my own happiness, quiting those were not a pleasant experience. I did not strengthen my resolve to overcome weaknesses, in bouts of depression I discarded things that made me happy for my health.
I went to work for a MS only company and had a work issued laptop.
Helped a lot with my addiction - at least for a while.
I have relapsed though and have a rack with 3 2 unit servers running that OS that I shall not mention and countless VM/Containers and docker images - I also have several VPS in data centers and run a small Lemmy instance, Blog, online shop…
Um, I think I need help again.
Quiters Inc
Replace it with another not as self harming addiction.
Allen Carr’s Easy Way to Stop Smoking
For anyone who might want to stop smoking, just grab a used copy or download it somewhere
Indeed. I was really skeptical but to my surprise, it really works! Maybe not on everyone but I suspect it does for a high proportion of people.
smoking: I decided it was disgusting. it was like a switch flipped and I had no desire to do it anymore.
and it helps that it actually is super nasty (I can only imagine how I used to smell), and ruins everything; I just had to realize it.
Girlfriend was thinking about breaking up with me because of it. She never outright said it or threatened it but I could feel it yk? The worried comments were becoming more like requests. I’m lucky I wasn’t in too deep, addiction has just begun to settle in so breaking out was too difficult.
She has admitted to me since that she did come very close to ending our relationship. Glad it didn’t come to that
She’s a keeper!
Oh for sure, we’re at 4 years now. This happened between year 1 and 2.
Was it the shark fucking?
Yes
There are more than 420 of you ? Or are you the last one ?
We are a collective swarm with one consciousness
I quit smoking via vaping. I started out vaping high nicotine and then gradually decreased the concentration until I was vaping nic-free and then not at all. I haven’t smoked OR vaped in the over 3 years since.
I’m not sure it would have been possible for me without flavored vape juice, though: vaping a good flavor that’s very different from tobacco flavor helps by making real cigarettes taste absolutely awful in comparison. Like “the first cigarette you ever smoked” awful if not worse.
Vaping tobacco flavor makes it much harder to not backslide since normal cigarettes won’t taste awful to you and will deliver not only more of a nicotine kick, but also several other addictive chemicals that aren’t in e-juice.
In conclusion: banning flavored e-juice, which was already illegal for children to buy, will lead to thousands if not millions of people dying from tobacco related diseases because the most effective smoking cessation product was made much less effective for no good reason.
Went through the same path and managed to stop vaping at 0mg after a while. Tried many times to stop smoking, and vaping was the only thing that did it. I’m guessing vaping flavor ate mostly illegal because governments weren’t maming enough money out of it.
Yeah, sounds like I had about the same experience as you: before successfully quitting via vaping, I had been trying basically every other method including prescription medications for 10 of the 18 years that I smoked. Nothing worked until vaping.
I’m guessing vaping flavor ate mostly illegal because governments weren’t maming enough money out of it.
More a case of Big Tobago still having a lot of politicak influence (read: give out a lot of bribes to politicians AND normally benevolent organizations such as the main anti-cancer foundation here in Denmark rely on sales of traditional cessation products for significant portions of their funding.
The latter is even more fucked up than the former IMO: organizations whose sole purpose is minimizing and researching cures for cancer were the main opponents to the best tool to eliminate the most common cause of cancer.
They indirectly CAUSED cancer because otherwise they’d have less money to do their great work of helping PREVENT and treat cancer.
If only they and vape makers had agreed to the same profit sharing deal as the traditional cessation product makers, vaping would probably be fully legal for adults with no unreasonable restrictions AND more effectively kept away from kids like the traditional ones are. Might even be the most used method, since it’s the most effective one.
It announced changes to the pricing of its API for third party clients
I’m still going strong, too. Congrats.
Me too but now i got a new one
I quite smoking. Much like another post. Swapped to vaping then lowered nic levels to zero. Then I also played a game with myself. How long can I go without vaping. Never told myself I couldn’t. Id just want it more. But just told myself. Can I wait 10 minutes. Pushing it a little longer each time till I was going hours then days. I don’t remember the last time I did it. It just merged into not needing it. I still get cravings at times but I think I just kinda tell myself can I wait an hour and then I forget about it or the cravings is gone.
Mom didn’t raise no quitter
Proud of you bud
Which addiction?
For Adderall, Vyvanse, Dabs, Alcohol, Benzodiazepines, and meth I went to rehab and learned why I used the dopamine inducing substances, to really get to the root of the problem. Honestly it’s been a world of difference and if anyone is struggling feel free to reach out. Childhood trauma is a bitch.
For vaping I am currently using nicorette until I run out and then it’s cold turkey!
For energy drinks I looked up how bad they were for the body and heart specifically every time I wanted one.
The biggest thing for me that has helped is getting the idea in your head that you’re not currently “quitting” but instead you’ve already “quit”. It’s more of a finality of a statement and helps reinforce no relapse. That doesn’t mean you won’t ever go back in a moment of weakness, however. What’s important is to not turn a lapse of willpower into a total relapse.
Hey, I’m struggling and I’m intrigued by your first paragraph.
Hey, please reach out to me. I’m here for you and I’m an open book. Any questions, any concerns, and any advice you need I’m right here with you. I am here for you and I am judgement free. Anything I can do to help let me know even if you just need someone to talk to in recovery.
I… read a book?! A friend told me about “Allen Carr’s Easy Way to Stop Smoking”. I was more the skeptical but ended reading it and, well, it worked! I had been a heavy smoker for 15+ years a that point. Made me realize you can actually use mental suggestion to change some habits.
I never did, i replaced them often tho.
Binge Eating, Cigarettes, Drinking, smoking pot… dropped all that tho when i got hooked on a cocktail of Tramadol, Hydromorphon, Lorazepam and Fentanyl through my doctors because of chronic pain. started abusing that stuff and had a few close calls. I tried quitting cold turkey but wasn’t strong enough.
Forged a pact with my doctor, deposited my pain meds at his place and saw him 3 times per week for my next dose for over a year, but i couldn’t stop abusing my meds.
Finally last year with the help of my therapist and a program for addicts transited over to suboxone.
i’m still addicted, but it’s not self destructive anymore. When i’m feeling ready, i will slowly reduce my substitution over months, but even if i’m never ready for it, at least i do not damage my personal relations and my health anymore, i’ts just a pill in the morning to keep the cravings away.
The important part was putting my addiction on the table. Addiction thrives on feelings of shame, and i went through a lot just to hide my vice from my partner. Putting it into the open enabled me to get help - first in therapy, then with my doctor, and then with my partner.
Tl;dr: Get Therapy, start talking about your addiction to get rid of the shame, many addictions can be replaced with less damaging / health-neutral options if you’re not ready to leave your crutches behind yet.
