Has anyone tried given up smoking here? If so, how successful were you?

[XRchic]

Hi everyone

I was just wondering who on here has attempted giving up the smokes? If you have attempted, is this your first attempt or have there been a few? Has anyone actually been successful and stayed off them for good? If so, how did you do it? Cold turkey, patches and gum or just a gradual cut back?

I ask because I have recently begun a new attempt to give up. I have gone cold turkey. I have not had a cigarette in two weeks and two days. Not a single puff. No patches, no gum. Just cut them out and that was that.

I have smoked since I was about 15 and I am now nearly 34. I gave up when I became pregnant with both of my kids and did not have a single cigarette during their pregnancies. I also did not smoke when I was breastfeeding them. I did take it up again when they were around 6 months old as my now ex, smoked too and it was so hard to resist.

I have not had any other attempts, other than those two. This is the longest I have gone without cigarettes since very early 1998.

The first few days were bad as the nicotine withdrawls hit. Once that went, then it has just been a matter of breaking the habit. I have had a few tests: a long driving trip (to Melbourne and back) and a good few hours in a pub last weekend with lots of people smoking. I resisted both, with difficulty.

I am sick of the cost, the smell on my clothes, my kids hated it that I smoked and my fella hated it with a passion. So I had a few reasons and now that I decided I was ready to do it, I have decided to go ahead and try.

So far so good. I honestly do not know if this will be a permanent thing and I am taking it day by day. I dont know if I am going to give in one day and just start up. But my Dad has given up with me and that is great because he is a diabetic asthmatic!

Anyway, does anyone have their "giving up story" to tell?

Cheers

Jac