To all ex-smokers what are the benefits of quitting smoking and what is the best way to quit? -
Your clothes, house, car and mouth don-t stink any more.
You are able to climb satairs without being out of breath.
You can sleep better at night.
You are less susceptible to colds and flu.
Your overall helath imporoves significantly.
I can see that you are building up your resolve to stop. Soon, you will be ready.
Quitting smoking is a great opportunity to learn about ourselves, as you have already observed.
Congratulate yourself on having the desire to stop - then you are over the worst, but still need to maintain your resolve. It-s just so easy to start thinking that just one won-t hurt, but it does. Just one achieves nothing except feeling the need for another. Whatever you do, don-t have just one.
Here-s a few home-brewed tips that might be useful.
It-s not just nicotine addiction - there are 50+ chemicals in cigarettes. Also the main problem is habit.
We have been used to having body sensations which we translate as -my body needs something-, which we have attempted to satisfy by having a cigarette.
When we try to stop smoking, we still get these -my body needs something- sensations, and we still feel that we want a cigarette. We have to train our body to be more selective. When we feel we need something, we have to work out what it is that we actually need.
A glass of water is an excellent substitute if nothing else comes to mind, as it helps with the clearance of the toxic substances in our body. Another good substitute is a bag of salted peanuts, used in combination with the water.
Another thing to do is to find an activity which occupies the mind or body. Go swimming - nobody wants to smoke while they are swimming. Slowly, as our body adjusts and translates the -want something- feelings into something other than cigarettes, then the feelings begin to go away. We know its not a cigarette that the body really needs, because as soon as we-ve had one we still have the feeling, and want another!
We will have a few bouts of feeling or even being short tempered. We must try to bite our lip, and control; ourselves. Recognise the short temper as being the removal of toxins which are trying to find a way out. They went in through the mouth, and they try to get out that way to. We must learn to keep our mouth closed, and force the toxins out the other way.
After we have stopped for a while we will begin to feel that just one wont to any harm.
All that leads to is a desire for just another one. We must guard very strongly against the desire to have just one.
The main benefit for quiting smoking would be your health, and the health of the people around you (your frineds/family/loved ones) Not to mention the expense. The best way to quit is cold turkey! Its tough but well worth it in the long run!
Cold Turkey !!
I have been a smoker and I stopped 15 years ago .
I praised myself for every day I could do without a cigarette .
After a few days , I started to have a hard time ....I wanted one ....but I said to myself ...- come on , you got this far already ...keep going , keep going - I did .
I can run , I can do a lot of things I couldn-t do anymore , because I had no breath .
I feel soooooo , much better now .
To live longer, and to just go cold turkey.
The best way to quit is to go cold turkey. You can expect to cough up litres of gunk (slight exaggeration) in the first six weeks - as your lungs repair themselves. You will find that you will not catch anywhere near as many colds or infections and that you can walk, run and climb stairs without gasping for air. Your speaking and singing voices will be sweeter and stronger. Your skin will lose it-s yellow or grey pallour and you will regain your sense of smell and taste. In fact food will taste so good that you will be awestruck! You will have fresh breath, your tongue will lose its furry coat and your teeth will actually start to whiten. Your clothes, hair and skin will smell nice and clean instead of like an old ashtray. These are the immediate changes. Long term - your heart will be healthier, your lungs will breathe easier and you will be at less risk of developing a whole host of chronic diseases and organ conditions - including cancers. In fact - your whole body will feel, look and be so much healthier. You stand the chance of living for an extra ten years. The single defining moment for me - I mean the moment I decided not to smoke any more - came when I saw a man ravaged by tongue and mouth cancer. He had still not given up the habit and smoked through a hole in his throat. It still makes me sick to my stomach thinking about it 25 years later. You can do it! GOOD LUCK!!!
Neverending benefits.. it-s not about -living longer- but quality of life.... Better for my teeth, hair, skin and pocket... No more of that slavery. Once you quit for a while, you can smell smoke on someone from miles away, it-s really weird.
I just quit, so did not use any technique, but I understand that for someone is really difficult to quit....
The benefits are myriad. Just smell your apartment/house and clothes in a week and you-ll know the answer to that one! Seriously, the main benefit is the ability to BREATHE. If you can go to the gym while quitting, that-s the best way to realize nearly instant gratification.
The best way to quit, however, is going to depend on you and you alone. Everyone-s got advice about how cold turkey is the only way, or conversely about how cold turkey is too difficult. Only you can make that decision. If you choose to use a certain method because others have bullied you into it and it doesn-t work for you, then what good will any of it be when you are smoking again? I like the patch best, but my last quit was cold turkey. Some people liked -The Easy Way- by Allan Carr, some people find the help of nicotine gum to be a priceless substitute, while some find that the patch breaks the need/feed chain while helping them to deal with their addiction one aspect at a time.
Good luck to you. It-s most important that you choose your quit method. Don-t forget to use online resources like quitnet as well.
When i finally quit smoking, i was able to eat better (better appetite), less respiratory related infections, better relaxation of the mind, better relationships (more people will hate you for smoking than not smoking). It-s your choice man...
Take it one craving at a time. Try to immediatley think of something else, even if its as mundane as listing as many colors as you can think of. I try to tell myself -I won-t have one this craving, maybe the next craving...- It has worked so far for me.
My main reason for quitting is health and it ages our skin so much more rapidly. I don-t need any help in that area.
There are so many benefits they couldn-t all be listed here. The best way to stop for one person may not work for another. Try cold turkey, patches, gum, or slowly cutting back. With a little perseverance you-ll find the one that works best for you. Good luck, you wont regret it.
Smoking can make you sick more often, make your clothes, breath and hair smell like an ashtray, cost you tons of money and inconvenience, make you feel ashamed because you know you are an addict, and scare you with the thought of breaking that addiction as being very painful and hard. I quit by accepting these facts and using my willpower to calm myself. You can use the patch, gum, cloves, hypmotism and what ever else works for you, but just make up your mind first to respect yourself enough to give up this ridiculous addiction.