never smoked nikotine in my entire life, an have sworn not to do it, the only one amongst my friends that hasn't.

fun reading stories like this

my 50 year old stepdad smoked when he was in his twenties, stopped smoking when he was 25, and mentioned a few months ago he'd had a craving for a cig so strong, it was like he'd just quit a few days ago.

nicotine's ahellofadrug

I was smoking for many years. I used to hang around with kids a lot older than me. They hit the age where drinking, smoking and drugs became decisions and simply put, I was younger and easily influenced. I became addicted to smoking through peer pressure, and found it extremely difficult to quit.

In more recent years, I've bought several electronic cigarettes. It became a bit of a hobbie, buying the latest models, mixing up different flavors and strengths of liquid, but I was still smoking cigarettes on the side (less than before). My brother has been on solely the e-cig for about 3 years now, but it just didn't have that 'dirty' feel of a cigarette.

Anyway, I really wanted to quit smoking, so I decided to stop. I considered myself a drug addict, and that in order to quit, you don't give yourself little bit of the drug. The key was knowing how the addiction worked (or at least convincing yourself of how you think it works). My scientific explanation (right or wrong I do not know) is that your body requires a certain level of nicotine in your blood to be 'satisfied' and while you're not at that level, you will suffer from nicotine withdrawal. This withdrawal will only occur while there is still some nicotine in your body, but once the nicotine has left (after 72 hours), you will no longer suffer from nicotine withdrawal, but from associations with smoking (basically, the habit rather than the addiction).

So I quit. For 72 hours. 72 hours of HELL! I nearly killed a guy for driving the wrong way around a McDonalds car park. Because of my understanding of addiction, I couldn't allow myself to have even a single pull on a cigarette, because that would put a tiny bit of nicotine in my blood, which would take 72 hours to leave, and so I'd suffer from withdrawal for 72 hours from that point. Simply put... I never took another puff. After 72 hours, things got remarkably easier. I had queue induced cravings, after eating, while walking, after waking up, but these were because they had been part of my routine for a long time. They get weaker and weaker, and now I'm probably down to one or two queue induced cravings a month.

I quit smoking on the 4th of January this year (I don't like doing new years resolutions as you should do something because you want to do it, not because of a specific day). To some, that may not seem like long, but I'm sure to a regular smoker, or anyone who has quit before, that is pretty impressive. I'm not going back to smoking, I haven't had _ANY_ nicotine since I threw away all my stuff for the fear of having to go through those 72 hours of hell again, and being too weak to do it. Maybe someday I will enjoy a nice victory cigar with my friends, but for now, it's simply not going to happen.

As for the feeling. I do feel a lot better. I was always reasonably healthy despite the smoking, and I haven't noticed too much on that side of things. I feel great though, simply because I wanted to quit for so long, and it really gets you down when you're unable to quit, and you feel weak, depressed and controlled by little white sticks of smoke. I taste things a lot better now, I smell things a LOT better. Breathing is a little bit easier, I don't have a permanent cough (was only a small one). The most surprising thing for me, is how less stressed I feel. I thought I'd get stressed at things really easily and have no 'cure' for it, whereas before I'd just have a smoke. At the moment though, I'm simply not getting stressed half as much as I did while I was a smoker.

Anyway, sorry for the essay, but I figured if someone wanted to quit, it might be useful for them to hear. I had tried some nicotine replacement stuff before, but I realised I needed to get off the addiction, and by my own theory, having a patch or gum would simply attempt to address the habit of smoking (which took months to truly break) but it would keep the addiction. I think it's better to fight off the addiction first... and it worked!

Oh and one last thing. Anyone who has quit smoking before will understand...

But OMG, the dreams!!! They are some fucked up shit when you quit smoking!!
I've had dreams about being a penguin with cactus hands that stabbed cigarettes to hold them, or being back at school revising for exams while chain smoking pack after pack with friends to the point where we went out to restock and filled the entire car up with packs.

Nicotine is some powerful shit, but honestly... the dreams are hilarious!

started smoking in grade 10. started because "you get higher if you have a cigarette after smoking a joint".

When I was 16 began going to community college with my cousin who lived with us, we would study outside together because she could smoke and I enjoyed the fresh air and sunlight and so on, it was an enjoyable time, sometimes we would get pizza from the cafeteria ten feet away and eat while we studied and worked and she smoked. I never smoked with her because I didn't want to go down that road and I was perfectly fine without it I had never heard of it having much benefit other than stress relief but I wasn't remotely enticed.

My supercatholic family eventually discovered I didn't share their religious beliefs and my world transformed, I didn't know how much I needed the polite cheerful greetings in the morning or the love of my family until the tone of everyone in my family was replaced by snarky passive suspicious arrogant better than you tone that I had to endure for the next 2 or 3 years.

I had no privacy, because at any point in time they wanted to know if I was "doing any satanic shit" I tried to talk to the only person in the world I figured might support me in the tinyest way about it, my gay uncle who basically responded with "they did worse 2 me so fuk u pussy"

My mind was turned upside down in a week, I was at the breaking point of tears(which says something, because I was born with a condition where crying is almost impossible for me), I had plans before but now I didn't everything was topsy turvy, I was so out of my mind from the daily disrespect, distrust and arrogant "you're retarded and slightly evil" attitude I got from my family ,(and mainly the day or 2 everyone in my family wanted to get ahold of my through phone or face-to-face to yell at me and demean me) I was just going through the motions and habits of being alive and pretending it wasn't like that because I didn't want to talk about it. The internal chatter of my mind, that voice in my head that everyone has was silent. A week later my cousin and I were smoking outside, and she looked at me, and must have realized what was going on inside of me, and gave me a cigarette. I no longer cared about life or the future or had any conscious thoughts so I took it and smoked it and everything was right with the world, there was peace. I wasn't completely depressed, I was actually able to get back to studying, but the feeling only lasted a half an hour, and at this point I couldn't bring myself to care about the classes because all of my plans were trashed and I was under too much mental duress to come up with new ones.

It only got worse when my cousin told them a month later I was "smoking and summoning demons and shes worried about me." "Now look what that evil path of devil has done its driven you to smoke and probably drink and throw your life away" (The irony 0_0)

I began smoking whenever I could, whenever I could get a hold of them to take my mind off of losing the people that meant everything to me, because I couldn't buy them myself I asked family that smoked to get them for me. (It always seemed really bipolar to me, that they did that for me.)

When I turned 18 I moved to another state and basically told them "later bitches." I never really mentally recovered and still quite haven't but I was able to buy my own smokes and I chainsmoked the hell out of them to keep my mind off of everything. 2-3 maybe 4 packs a day for 2 years, until one day in the middle of a highlander scrim like 2 years ago I coughed and wheezed so much that I had to stop and couldn't say shit to my team, who began to wonder wtf why did the medic just completely stop and not say anything, so I tried to talk but all that came through when I held the mumble key down, was wheezing and hacking. (which really scared them because now all they hear after a minute of silence is choking and coughing) I quit cold turkey on that day. I gave my pack and 2 or 3 remaining cartons of cigarettes to my roommate told him "I'm done smoking here enjoy."

I worked cigarettes out of my budget immediately, (the strongest thing you can do to kick the habit is spend that money on other things. If you get the craving, scrounge up 6 bucks and go to the gas station, make sure you walk out with energy drinks and candy or something similar, preferably a stimulant, or tightly budget your free cash so that you can't buy it at all. If you quit smoking, look at your budget and understand how much money you saved by quitting and spend that on something else. Actively thinking about the money you are saving and using it on other things turns the element of greed in your favor, instead of it being against yourself.)

I didn't smoke for over a year until last December where I bought a pack and immediately threw it away (I had trained myself to immediately destroy the entire cigarette or pack the second I got the slightest bit of guilt about it(or give it to someone else if I'm near a smoker)) I smoked half of one cigarette before crushing them all and throwing them in a dumpster.

I have now and then got the urge and tried a cigarette, only to remember how sick they make me now and immediately throw it away.

.

I feel like replacing one addiction/dependance with another isn't the best way. But hey, if it worked for you, more power to you.

While it is true that you replace one addiction with another, an addiction to coffee and energy drinks isn't going to be as life threatening, or quite as long lasting or powerful/hardtostop in the long run.

This is very true and of course a caffeine addiction is certainly a better choice. However, quitting via this method can also make you more prone to relapse. But it seems to be working for you, so everybody's different and it can work.

i don't smoke but i have started to dip. shit habit. shit life.

I used to smoke a few Black and Milds a week because I liked the head change.
The only real reason was whatever stressed me at that moment.
Now I bought an e-cig and that's all I "smoke"
It tastes really good and doesn't fucking destroy your lungs, and after a while I still get my head change.

Damn, brings back some memories.

I went to middle school in an affluent area in Massachusetts, and smoking was really looked down upon. I viewed it as dumb and basically education taught us how detrimental it is to your health and stuff. Most kids did not, and those who did were considered losers and were usually the goths.

Then some shit happened, I went to an international boarding school in India, and in 10th grade I kind of got peer pressured into having my first drink. Shit felt good, mainly because I liked hanging out with the cool kids or whatever, and that first night I had a smoke and a little bit of weezy. I got pretty fucked up, but I had a great time and hey the juniors/seniors actually chilled with us.

Smoking gave you that nice light headed feeling, that's what we all enjoyed, but more than that the adrenaline of it was the main factor. We got in trouble if we got caught, and expelled if we got caught with weed. We had a system where the younger classmen would be on 'watch'. MaxClark666 aka the infamous Ametrine went to this school with me, and he was one of the highly rated watchmen I must admit, he gave discreet warnings and had good vision. lol. We also did some dip (chewing tobacco), some more than others, because it was far more easier to hide and partake in, and we liked to spit everywhere, it's India.

But yeah, smoking did make you cool in my school in some way, a lot of the top athletes would also partake including myself, and chicks would be like omg. Weed was something I always preferred though, but way too risky, so we would down fucking nasty quarts of cheap local Indian booze like it was nothing. We called our class the class that would never graduate early on because everyone we knew was slowly getting kicked out of school.

I never got caught though, so I continued smoking cigs occasionally, but the nice buzzed feeling eventually dissipated. Came to college in Boston, and met some of my close friends while having a cig after class outside. Here also the trend was that very few Americans smoked, but a lot of international kids did like the French, Indians, Asians, etc. But the weed in America fml is amazing, so slowly I stopped smoking throughout college and increased getting high levels. By graduation I smoked a cig maybe once a week after a night out or an amazing meal. By now, I smoke doobs consistently, expensive but shit's dank

Now in my first or second year after graduation, I just don't smoke cigs, but I still occasionally crave it after a good meal. Also I worked in a medical related company now and barely anyone smokes it seems. So yeah, my smoking story plus more.

However, I will smoke dokha if I can, it's an arabian tobacco, usually bought from Dubai, that shit is AMAZING. One hit and you're woozy as fuck.

i smoked a few times just to see how it feels
and honestly, it doesnt make me look cool and makes me stink.
d0ntsm0k3

My grandmother smoked a pack a day for 65+ years.

I would have bet my life she couldn't quit, but a couple of years ago she slipped on some ice while she was walking outside and broke her ankle.

She needed surgery, which took 2 days to complete and she couldn't leave the hospital during that time so she figured she might as well quit.

Still can't believe it.

This really hit home for me. My problem is that even though I'm "quitting," I'll still bum a smoke pretty regularly (about every weekend) from friends. I always thought that it wasn't doing me much harm, but I'm still smoking and I'd really just like to be done with it.

My grandfather smoked for most of his life, quit when I was about 5 years old or so. He still ended up with lung cancer but was thankfully able to beat it with several months of treatments. I've been offered several times since leaving home for college, but after all he went through I've never taken a single drag of a cig. I don't think I could.

Both my grand parents died of lung cancer and they were long time smokers.

My mom has been smoking for I'd say 25 years and she's 45. She said numerous times she wanted to quit but she gave in back everytime within a few days after finding an excuse.

Never touched anything of the sort myself. None of my friends smoke and I honestly have no desire to do anything like that.

Sad thing, I met an awesome girl recently but turns out she does smoke cigarettes. Not sure if I could date her now.

I don't smoke mainly because i know what it can do to you plus i'm a huge pussy to even try. But i do understand peoples reasons for doing it.
also my very traditional african mother would disown me in a heartbeat.

I would like to suggest anyone that smokes to consider vaporizing. It's not the same of course but once you get used to it, it will change your life. E-cigs will work and will provide you nicotine while not also providing you with hundreds of other chemicals created when you com-bust carbon plant matter, paper and additives.

i can't wait for marijuana cigs

Back in my high school days I never had any intention to pick up smoking. All my friends of the time were just starting to smoke marijuana and cigs. Eventually I was peer pressured into trying weed, soon after graduating I moved and started working. My girlfriend at the time, who got me the job, was smoking cigs and had told me to try smoking one after smoking weed. Soon after this I was just smoking cigs to get a break off work, that is where it started for me. Nowadays I will buy a pack and it will last me a week or more, however if I'm out Friday or Saturday night with friends it won't last nearly as long due to people asking for a smoke or me just chain smoking them cuz I'm bored. A normal day for me is just tied up with vaping trees and 1 cig at night.

Always hated cigarettes as a kid because my schools did big nonsmoking events to discourage us from trying. Showing bowls of flem, hooking up a smoker's lung to an air pipe, other freaky shit that really got to you when you're 8.

Then I went to Scotland for university and pretty much everyone smoked. Right outside the university doors, right outside apartments, lighting up right next to their newborn babies lordy. I could never handle cigarette smoke before but I got so used to it by my final year there. Fortunately I arrived a few months after the whole country passed nonsmoking laws for indoors, and then the smoking age went from 16 to 18 soon after. I started to understand why the habit was so addictive in the first place, and damn was it tempting to start smoking during breaks with my coffee. Managed to resist though I've certainly eyed e-cigs a lot. A co-worker of mine offered a puff off her e-cig but I didn't want to tempt myself even further into the habit.

My grandma smoked for almost 40 years and quit before I was born. Now she's got about half a lung and has to bring an oxygen tank with her most of the time. It's a nice, grim reminder that it's probably not worth it.

I was drinking heavily with a friend one night and out of nowhere I told him, "if you ever see be smoking or about to, slap the shit out of me." Well, out of my mind since I had been drinking, I notice his pack of cigarattes on a stand near his bed and asked if I could have one. He said yes and, of course, forgot to slap me (I was being serious about it) and tell me to never start smoking. I ended up smoking his entire pack within a few hours.

I woke up not remembering I had smoked but I also woke up really wanting one and from then on I started smoking. For the first year I really only smoked a pack every 2-3 weeks. This was because my mom didn't know and I wanted to keep it that way. Eventually she found out and was okay with it (as much as she could be) and now I smoke around half a pack a day.

I mainly smoke because it keeps my stress free and keeps me busy and stops me from thinking about everything all the time. It's rough, but the effects of smoking are rougher, though for some reason that doesn't seem to overshadow why I smoke in the first place.

Being a smoker sucks when you don't have money, I should probably quit.

I never really got the habbit of smoking cigarettes, I mean I have smoked a lot of cigs while drunk, but I don't have an habit or addiction to do it. Never even reached the 3-4 cig/day quota. Most likely I'll smoke 2 or 3 out with friends and don't touch it for months.

The only tobacco I buy is for mixing with stuff, and that's only on the weekends.

I tried smoking with a friend when I was a kid, but it was pretty gross and I never had the desire to try it again. I really don't know many people at all who smoke, which is a good thing because I find the smell disgusting. I don't think I could be close friends with anyone who smoked frequently, not because I hate smokers as people, but I can't stand the smell. Anytime I'm at a smoker's house I have to immediately go home and change my clothes or shower to get the smell off.

I scolded one of my friends for smoking cigarettes one day, then she offered me one to try. I decided to take it, and smoking is honestly a lot better/less gross than most people picture it to be. I smoked my friends' cigarettes for a couple weeks, then started buying packs for myself. I only smoked for a couple months, then decided to quit due to several factors including: marching band, costs, my family's lung cancer history, and it getting harder to hide from my family all the time. I've been tobacco free since last Tuesday.

If marijuana was legalized would you have tried that instead of cigarettes to calm your stress goldy? Just curious since most people argue that 'weed' is more fun than cigarettes.

People would always tell me that you weren't really a smoker til you were at one pack a day. I probably smoked close to half a pack a day at my peak, but despite what they said I felt the effects of smoking for sure. I'd been smoking for over 4 years, starting from hookah to black and milds and then finally to cigarettes. There were times where I felt like I just couldn't take a full, deep breath or a sigh wouldn't feel like a sigh just because you couldn't inhale enough. For some reason, drinking would make my voice guttural and clicky, and breathing became so hard it felt like a chore. It was weird and pretty bad now that I think about it, but when you're smoking you always end up justifying not wanting to quit somehow.

Then one day my friend asked me to go on a club run with him. There are bars/restaurants that hold weekly runs downtown where I live and you get free pasta and $3 pints afterwards, so I was like well shit why not. They give you routes to run and you have the choice of running a 5k route or a 10k route. The smoker in me was like you're crazy, you haven't walked more than 50 feet in like half a year and your lungs probably look like a piece of pumice rock. But having ran track in high school and being an avid cyclist/swimmer in college, I was like come on bro you got this. So we ran, and I stuck it out for the 3.2 miles but I literally thought I was going to die by the end of it. I went from sitting on my ass browsing reddit and smoking cigs for 6 months to running the slowest and most agonizing 5k I've ever ran in my life. But something changed in those forty minutes. My lungs became clearer, the colors looked more saturated, I felt lighter and more energized. I hadn't felt that good in ages. I had a sudden spur of motivation to start exercising regularly and I told myself I would never touch another cigarette again. The pain of running the tar out of my lungs was terrible and my calves were so strained it felt like someone was snipping my muscle fibers with a pair of surgical scissors - but the important thing was that it didn't kill me, so it became inspiration to make me stronger.

I probably ate five full plates of pasta and was so full I almost couldn't finish my beer. We chilled for a bit and enjoyed the miller lite ladies that had come to advertise their beer, but we both had work to do so we got in our cars and headed back to campus. I had my window down, the wind was blowing through my hair, and I was reveling in how good I felt about just completing a 5k in record time with 3 pounds of extra tar in my lungs. Then I thought to myself, there could be no better time for a cigarette right now.. and it was the most satisfying cigarette I've had in 6 months.