Has anyone successfully quit with the patch?

[Smittenroade]

You know, I tried everything from the patch to the gum and couldn't quit with any of it. Then I started getting bronchitis over and over and my lungs were just shot. I quit for awhile, and then started up again after about 4 months. I finally realized that no matter what crutch I used it always fell down to me in the end. It might not be the advice you want to hear but it all falls on you. There is no miracle cure to smoking, a couple things make it a tad easier. However, its really all in your mind. You just have to decide to not smoke anymore. If you can make it past that 2 weeks the physical part is gone. But in my opinion it is still hard as hell. None of that Ill wheen off them or Ill quit later stuff. It will be HARD AS HELL to quit. More than likely the hardest thing you have ever done. Some scientists have compared smoking addiction to crack addiction. I used to work at a hospital and have seen people smoke theirselves into graves with lung cancer. I just woke up one morning and said, this is the day I never smoke again. It has been 3 years now and I am nicotine free. EVERY single day is a challenge. Its not as hard as it used to be but I know that I can still slip up. The difference is I choose not to.

 

[domino7]

I quit by using only the patch, and had smoked for 30+ years. It took me about 5 tries though. The hardest part was the fact that I didn't really want to quit lol. If you think you can smoke the occasional cigarette, or let your guard down, you can't. It only takes a few days to get your mind used to the fact that you don't smoke. Stick with it. It's worth it.

 

[domino7]

A friend and his sister quit by getting hypnotized. I didn't think it would work, but they haven't smoked since (2 years). They were both long time smokers too. I think the biggest part is to convince yourself that you're done. Once I knuckled down and committed to it, it was surprisingly easy.

 

[Bec]

My husband quit using only the patch 6 years ago and hasn't touched a cigarette since! For me it has been 11 years but I had better motivation...I was pregnant with my first so I quit cold turkey the day I found out!

 

[True Grit]

txcarl1258 , just wondering how the not smoking is going?

Well, I hope. Fwiw the more times you try to quit the more likely you are to finally quit, if that makes any sense.

 

[arabianequine]

My MIL finally was able to quit on the medication "chantix" after 40 some years of smoking. She tried being hypnotized and it did not work.

 

[arianna]

I quit in 2005 with the patches and sunflower seeds. This is what I wrote for someone else on Yahoo Answers about my experience:

"I smoke for 14 years as much as two packs/day and in 2005 I quit smoking and never had a cigarette or crave for it since then. I tried many times before to quit and failed. Here's how I managed to do it. There are four things you have to deal with: Pleasure, Addiction, Temptation, and Habit.

Step 1: (Pleasure)
You want to have a bad taste of cigarettes in your mouth. Buy cheap, non filter and the worse tasting cigarettes you can find. Do that for about two-three weeks. That will increase your desire to quit and your mind will remove the "good taste" of smoking and replace it with this bad taste. I even water and dry non-filter cigarettes and then smoke them. The smoke hurt my throat and that was the last memory I wanted to have about cigarettes. It works even better in the winter when you can smell it as well. It helps a lot to have that memory when you crave for the "good taste of a cigarette".

Step 2: (Addiction)
Lower the nicotine intake, buy lite cigarettes, try to stay on the bad taste as well.

Step 3: (Temptation)
Prepare all your friends and family who smoke and stay away from them for the first few weeks. Start your quiting on a friday so you can be in the house and don't have to see any store that sells cigarettes in the first few days.

Step 4: (Habit)
Change habits associate with smoking, for instance I use to smoke every morning with my coffee (when I start quiting I stop drinking coffee at all because my mind would always want a cigarette when I would see a cup of coffee)
I also use to smoke when I would take my brake from work. So on my break instead of going outside I would go in the break room.
Avoid doing anything you usually do when you desire a cigarette.

Step 5: get extra help with NICOTINE PATCHES.
They will help a lot with the nicotine crave in the first few weeks. With the nicotine patches you will still miss the habit of putting a cigarette in your mouth, and that's the part most people fail when they try to quit, because they don't have the will power. I didn't had the will power either. Don't use nicotine gum. Stay with the patches (Steps 1,2,3).
Chew SUNFLOWER SEEDS for the first few weeks. The constant motion of your mouth can eliminate the wish of having a cigarette in your mouth without having to eat all day long. It helped me a lot actually.

The first 2 weeks are the hardest one. But if you follow my tips even a person with a very low will power can do it.
Don't start the patches until your mind HATES cigarettes and smoking, otherwise you will smoke with the patches on".

For me quiting smoking was very hard. Cold turkey quiting is easy for those who have a strong mind and a strong will power, but for all of the other people, few tricks and a little nicotine help will get you there

Good luck!

 

[andehens]

I quit with the patch after 45 years of smoking, I quit 5 years ago and rarely have cravings. There are so many other habits associated with smoking that must be delt with, simple things like carrying something in your hands when you go out. I also did not get in a hurry with the patch and move up with the smaller sizes too soon. I also took it off at night. Good Luck!!!