A while back I have read on one of the affiliate blogs several tips related to healthy working environment. Since the author of the article most likely was not a smoker there was nothing in the article nor the comments about smoking.
Maybe I was the only smoker affiliate out there, but I knew that if I follow all the tips which included from good light in your office to plentiful of water but if I kept a pack of cigarettes on my desk none of the tips would do me much good for me.
Some times things just “need to click”. Things began to click for me few days ago when I accompanied my wife to one of her doctors. In the waiting room looking for something to read I picked up a little booklet with information about smoking quiting aid called Commit. As usual I was skeptical what I am going to find inside. I have tried similar products in the past to help me fight the addiction without plausible results.
I think my major mistake was that I never analyzed and tried to understand what my addiction to smoking really was.
If you are a smoker and would like to quit, what I am going to write may help you out.
My Misconceptions About Nicotine Addiction.
I think I failed so many times in the past was due to misunderstanding and ignorance about addiction to nicotine. I often thought that if I can just stop smoking for three or four days, it would give me enough time to get the nicotine out of my system and therefore will automatically diminish the cravings for it. The truth is that some of the former smokers get cravings even years after they’ve had last cigarette. The addiction has to do more with what is in our brain- literally. Certain receptors of our brain become accustomed to be stimulated by the nicotine and over the time need more and more of it.
I also thought, mainly as a result of other people telling me so, that all you need is will power to quit smoking. This made me feel like a crap- since evidently I had no will power. The truth is that will power is not quiet enough- at least not me.
I guess big part that I did not want to quit in the past was that I did not have “enough” reasons to. I knew that there are good reasons to quit, but I never admitted they were valid reasons for me personally. Since two days ago they have become quiet clear and can be divided in two groups- health reasons and financial reasons.
Health Reasons For Quitting Smoking
I took them out of the little booklet, they are short and to the point:
- 20 minutes after quiting smoking your heart rate drops.
- 24 hours after last cigarette the level of carbon monoxide ind your blood return to normal
- 2-12 weeks after quitting your chances of heart attack decreases
- 1 year- your excess risk of a heart decease drops to half of that of a smoker
The list above can be twice as long but these were convincing enough for me.
Financial Reasons For Quitting Smoking
These are more interesting and of course may vary from country to county or from state to state if you live in the US. Anyway, here in New Jersey you can pay as high as $6 a pack and if you only smoke half a pack a day you spend $90 a month for cigarettes, and about $1,100 a year.
That is about 10 additional websites I can afford. Or I can always get the $2,000 in cash and burn it a fire place- this at least will not harm my health. I can’t believe that just by quitting smoking I could have paid my car off five years ago!
Why Did I Chose Commit?
Quiet simple really. I have tried patches and pills of all sorts in the past. So I needed something different this time around. I don’t really like gum so I had to settle on Commit a nicotine lozenge. They don’t really taste that great but they seem to be doing the job helping me to find the cravings. I know that some people out there will ask whether or not this is like cheating, it still delivers nicotine into my body. I honestly do not care, it if the only way out of this addiction by cheating my way out of it so be it. I do however think that any from of nicotine replacement for those trying to quit is better than cigarette itself. After all now your body is getting only nicotine, while every cigarette generously provides you with following:
You can get Commit from Amazon at about $52, but I would recommend you to check out your local pharmacy which can save you $20.
It has been 4 days since I’ve had my last cigarette and so far things are going great. I used so far about 4 lozenges a day. In a day or two I plan to cut it down to 3 a day and plan to be nicotine free 4 weeks from now. So wish me luck and I would also appreciate support as well!
Have you seen the e-cigarette? ( http://diggy.wordpress.com/2007/05/11/ecigarette-not-icigarette-its-electronic-not-virtual/ ) It seems like the best of all worlds. It gives you soemthign to hold and even has “smoke” for you to blow out. I’ve only seen the pics but i think it’s slick.
eCigarette just triggered a craving lol… no thanks I will stick to Commit.
I quit smoking cold turkey and that worked just fine for me. I only had 4 terrible days after the last cigarette until the cravings started to go away, never to be felt again.
I quit smoking cold turkey and that worked just fine for me. I only had 4 terrible days after the last cigarette until the cravings started to go away, never to be felt again.
Hey it's been a year and the half. How are you managing so far? I hope you have kicked the habit like I have. Although I felt terrible then, I am feeling great now!
smoking addiction is an uncontrollable dependence on the highly addictive nicotine stimulant present in tobacco products. Nicotine alters the levels of certain chemicals in the brain that causes smokers to experience pleasurable changes to mood and concentration. When a smoker stops smoking they crave the nicotine effects and can suffer withdrawal symptoms such as anxiety, depression and irritable.
Nicotine is a highly addictive substance that occurs naturally in tobacco. It is the active ingredient in tobacco smoke. It has a pungent odor and an acrid taste. Nicotine is defined as a poisonous, oily, pale yellow substance that turns brown upon exposure to air. In concentrated form, nicotine is used as a potent insecticide.
Did you know : there are over 4,000 chemicals in cigarette smoke? These include formaldehyde (used to preserve dead bodies), ammonia (used in strong cleaning liquids) and cadmium (a highly poisonous metal used in batteries).And if that isn’t reason enough for you to quit smoking, there are more.
I have now switched to electronic cigarettes, and i strongly recommend that all of you do the same and stay happy by quitting the real smoking.
I know exactly what you mean. I’ve been a smoker for decades and although I know it’s killing me I don’t have the willpower to quit. But I found these new, “healthy” cigarettes that let me get my fix without damaging my lungs. Check out my blog!
I’ve had many people tell me they have had an easier time quitting with electronic cigarettes because they were able to choose the nicotine strength and wean themselves off gradually.
I tried gum and patches to give up but they didn’t work. Whilst I am still actually smoking with the e-cigarette, my health is better as is my pocket.