Smoking

Yes, smoking definitely makes Crohn's worse. Google "Crohn's and smoking" and you will find lots of research. Hopefully that will motivate you to quit NOW.

Sorry, new to this am I right in assuming UC is ulcerative colitis?? I am one of the very lucky few to never have known any one with cancer so although I fully understand the seriousness I haven't yet experienced how deadly smoking can be so I suppose for that reason my motivation to quit is less. Do you know what exactly about smoking is said to help those with UC? Don't ever feel stupid though stay positive don't put yourself down I know stress and negativity and worry can make crohns worse so I try and always stay positive and happy, that's why I find it hard to quit smoking also as soon as I find another stress release I will have more motivation to quit. I definitely need to do more research in to smoking and crohns i think

Dave's definitely onto something. When I was quitting I did use nicotine patches at first, but when I wanted to smoke, I'd first "air smoke" - slowly breathe in as deeply as you can, then slowly exhale through pursed lips. Then I'd exercise hard for about ten minutes. By the time I'd finished that, I felt so clean and virtuous, and the physical craving had passed.

And yes, people with Crohn's are more likely to be smokers, while smoking actually seems to help prevent the symptoms of Ulcerative Colitis. Even though I have UC, though, I'd never go back to smoking.

Apparently smoking is actually one known cause to trigger Crohn's disease (environmental trigger) I started smoking at 14 yrs of age...my CD affects primarily my colon (got sick with CD in my early 20's) however carbon monoxide is known to help with inflammation in the colon (hence UC or crohn's colitis) my CD only affected my small intestines the first 2 yrs of being sick....I quit smoking in my 30's for about 3 yrs and it made my CD in my colon much worse, I started again and it helped cut down some symptoms a bit...I even had a colon rectum surgeon tell me NOT to ever quit smoking, I should have listened to him but point is, nothing is really written in stone cuz although smoking is bad in general and can definitely have a negative impact on crohn's, in my case it's a little different.

My cousin who was a smoker, quit smoking cold turkey after seeing a hypnotherapist. Apparently, when she saw someone smoke after that, she felt revulsion, not craving.

No idea if this has worked for others, or if it is any way backed by studies. I do know that it worked for her; she lived with us when she quit cold turkey. I'm guessing you need to be very prone to suggestion for this to work. Of course, I can't even bring myself to consider letting someone essentially program my head.

I hope you find the will to quit.

Thanx for all the advice guys, I have already tried the e cigs.. They make my cravings worse as I feel like I've had some fag but not all and my urge to finish is strong!! I would be willing to look in to hypnotherapy for it but I would have to wait until I'm well enough to start working and earning money again as I imagine its not cheap!!... The bicycle idea is the sort of thing I was going to try but with maybe horse riding or yoga or similar but again I need to wait till I'm a bit healthier at the moment my body is too weak to exercise. So nothing seems to be a quick fix 😞 I wish I had never ever started, only regret I have in my life !!!

Never looked at it like that, its a good point, I think yoga I could do at home with dvds and exercise dvds and that sort of thing also my sister has a horse so riding would be possible every day when she goes to feed it. I suppose classes and gym and that could be saved for a once a week thing just as a morale/endorphin boost and even a bit of social time. I'm not keen on biking or walking but my other half does aggressive in line skating and is going to teach me but again all this will have to wait till my health is up , still looking for something more immediate

I used a smoking cessation similar to Champix and it worked wonders as far as being able to quit, it didn't even bother me if I saw others smoking or smelled people smoking, it was the weirdest thing cuz I was a die-hard smoker myself before I used that smoking cessation to quit back in the early 2000...not a single craving at all by the time I was done smoking within my first 2 weeks...I actually felt like I had never smoked in my life...I wish they could make a med like that for IBD and IBS. They no longer make the particular one I used (wish I could remember the name of it though) gave a lot of people scary dreams and had some weird possible side effects but I never really felt any of them other than it increase my libido some lol.
When I made the decision to start smoking again it was harder than the first time in my teens, I was so grossed out by it, could only have a few puffs off the first smoke and literally almost threw up (didn't even feel that bad when I was a teen and started smoking). As I mentioned before though, starting up again did give me some bowel improvement compared to not smoking and I do enjoy smoking and never plan to quit again...my health sucks anyways and I've been denied enough pleasures thanks to my health issues.

It was Zyban, that was the name of the smoking cessation I took!!