yournamehere

I disagree, Shani - that's like cutting off a leg an inch at a time so the patient doesn't suffer the whole loss at once.

Quitting is quitting. Period. Slowing down is torture. Leave the slowing down to the patch or gum.

wooÐs - if you're going to quit, you've got to smoke your last cigarette NOW, and when you stub out the last of it in your ashtray, you've got to know in your mind that it was the last cigarette you'll ever smoke. If you're not committed to that, don't even bother trying - you'll just be torturing yourself for a few days for no good reason.

90% of quitting smoking is simply wanting to. It really is. Most people who successfully quit smoking agree that the reason they were finally successful is because they finally really wanted to stop smoking. Again - if you're not 100% sure you want to quit, then you're not going to succeed.

In my case (27 years smoking; quit 11 years ago) I found the nicotine patch to be an immense help - it really cut down on the physical cravings. In fact, I even remember thinking "This is too easy - when is the other shoe gonna drop?" It never did.

Psychologically, you'll still want cigarettes for a long time - way after the physical addiction is over. Whatever you do, don't fall into the "reward myself" trap. No matter how long you've gone without a cigarette, you don't "deserve" to smoke "just one."

'Cause it's never just one.

I used to describe the psychological cravings as a mental game of Whack-A-Mole - you never know when or where they'll pop up, but you've got to smash them in the head and force them back into their hole . . . until the next one pops up.

Please be encouraged by the fact that every day will get easier, and the cravings will get weaker and the time between them longer. Soon enough, you'll actually be able to look at a smoker and think, "Ugh! I'm glad I stopped doing that!"

You'll start to feel healthier in only a few weeks. Your stamina will increase, you'll breathe easier, and smell and taste food better. You'll even notice that when you catch a cold it won't affect you as badly as they used to.

You can do it - as long as you really want to. All it takes is being totally committed to being an ex-smoker.

Good luck!!

__________________
If you want to avoid 95% of internet spelling errors:
"If your ridiculous pants are too loose, you're definitely going to lose them. Tell your two loser friends over there that they're going to lose theirs, too."
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