Yolee said...
Thanks greatunclebill! Did you ever have surgery or do you just deal with it? Were you ever a smoker? I smoke I'm on medicine to quit now and I'm doing ok smoking less than before and hope to quit by Thanksgiving well that's my goal. I know that's most of my problem....
i smoked for several years and quit. no surgery. 42 years ago, rolaids was about the best medicine. i've worked my way thru all the medicines, currently using prilosec twice a day.
you will either love me or hate me, but i feel very strongly about this page i wrote for my personal website several years ago. i know iot has helped some, because i have gotten feedback. for what it's worth, here it is copied and pasted:
So you want to quit smoking? It is very easy to do when you
really want to quit. The key to quitting is a strong desire to quit. If you
don't have a strong desire to quit, don't fool yourself, it will never happen no
matter what you try. If you don't really want to quit, close this page and light
up another cigarette now. Come back when you're ready.
Never, ever fool
yourself into thinking that you are going to quit smoking for someone else,
because they think it is bad for you. This never works. Stand up for yourself
and quit or don't quit for your own reasons.
If you really do want to
quit, stop right now on the spot. It's that easy. If you can't or don't want to
do it right now, you're not really ready for whatever reason and may as well
close this page and light up.
If you quit right now, cold turkey, you
can expect strong desires for a smoke to last a long time. The key is to work
through them.
In 72 hours the nicotine will be completely gone from your
body. Until that time the desires will be physical. Your body craves the
nicotine. This 72 hours is the hardest part.
After 72 hours, the
nicotine and all of the physical cravings will be gone. This is why patches, gum
and gradual reduction don't work. With them you keep getting nicotine in your
system and eventually resume smoking, sometimes years later.
But you
still have mental cravings. You find out that you didn't smoke because you
wanted a cigarette, you smoked because you sat in the chair or got in the car,
etc, not because you wanted a cigarette. It's called a habit.
To break
the smoking habit you have to also break your other habits. For instance when
you're done eating, sit in a different chair. You will still get the urges, but
not as strong as the favorite chair. When the urges come up, just say no. They
will come often and you'll have to constantly say no, but over time they will
come less frequently and less strong. If you can't control the urges, suck on a
straw, it has the same effect. Remember, at this point the mental urges are to
do something with your mouth and hands as the physical addiction of the nicotine
is long gone.
Keep cigarettes within your reach. This is important. If
you're serious, you won't touch them. If you're not really serious about
quitting, light up and forget all of this.
And lastly, don't tell every
person you know that you quit. They will figure it out themselves. The more you
talk about it, the more they will talk about it. And the more it comes up, the
harder it is to stay quit. And never, ever say you're trying to quit. By saying
you're trying to quit you are telling yourself and everyone else that you have
not quit completely. Always say you have quit. Period.
I know this
works, because Jackie and I lived through it exactly this way at different times
in our lives. How long have we quit? It just doesn't matter anymore, because we
quit forever and ever. Dates are unimportant. After a while, clean everything in
your house. The nicotine has gotten into the car, carpet, furniture, clothing
and everything else. You will smell the difference.
Good luck.