I know this is a little off the topic of how to make a great start-up but I figure it's on-topic for mutual support and for an issue that prbly effects many of us stressed out types. How did you quit smoking and is it a complete fantasy to imagine getting it down to like, 7 or fewer per week when starting from an accidental habit (roughly half-pack / day, in my case).
Ask HN: How did you quit smoking?
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Re: Ask HN: How did you quit smoking?
#2I smoked a pack a day for about 5 years. Tomorrow is my last day of using the Nicoderm patch. I've been using it for 10 weeks and I used their 3-step program. It was rough because the patch kicks your ass physically, but it's been well worth it. My chest doesn't hurt anymore and I can breathe easy. I suggest using the patch.
Re: Ask HN: How did you quit smoking?
#3When I quit it was cold turkey, I'd keep saying to myself, 'You only _think_ you want a cigarette' to stay reminded that really I don't.
Plus, a couple years earlier I watched my father die of lung cancer, although he never smoked- so as bad as that was, it helped to an extent.
I assure you, it's NOT how you want to go.
Re: Ask HN: How did you quit smoking?
#4I switched to an e-cigarette All the sensation of smoking without the carcinogens and smell. More info here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_cigarette
And here's where I order my gear from:
Re: Ask HN: How did you quit smoking?
#5[deleted]
Re: Ask HN: How did you quit smoking?
#6Get really drunk and smoke something like 3 packs of cigs in one night. Even the smell of a cigarette will make you want to vomit for most of the initial withdrawal period.
Re: Ask HN: How did you quit smoking?
#7I quit cold turkey last year. August 28th it will be one year exactly. I have been smoking off and on since High school. All off times were accomplished just by not smoking. Every time I have started back up It was not a big deal. I guess this time it is different, I came to the conclusion that smoking does nothing for you, it spends your money, that is all. I replace smoking with cycling, nothing too major but definitely something positive.
As for your goal of getting to X perday, bad idea, you always fail, I always failed, every smoker I know fails at that goal. If you are going to quit, then quit. Wht is stopping you from quitting completely?
Re: Ask HN: How did you quit smoking?
#8After trying to quit several times, I never got to a point where the cravings were manageable. It seemed I would have to learn to live with the cravings, so two years ago I attempted cold-turkey and made it two months while wanting a cigarette most of the time.
Then a great thing happened; I started to think about it less and less. After 4 months I almost never thought about it, and cravings were very rare. The two or three cigarettes I've tried since quitting tasted just awful and made me nauseated.
Good luck.
Re: Ask HN: How did you quit smoking?
#9When I quit it was cold turkey, I'd keep saying to myself, 'You only _think_ you want a cigarette' to stay reminded that really I don't. Plus, a couple years earlier I watched my father die of lung cancer, although he never smoked- so as bad as that was, it helped to an extent. I assure you, it's NOT how you want to go.
I quit many times in many ways, each time because I wanted to stop smoking. It was only when I didn't want to smoke that it actually stuck. Maybe that's too zen-like, but that's my story.
Unless one is a chipper (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chipper_(tobacco)), it's an all or nothing thing. Just let go.
Re: Ask HN: How did you quit smoking?
#10I used nicotene lozenges with great success. However, it was a bitch to quit the lozenges because I stayed on them for way too long.
In the end, I wished I had just gone cold turkey. Quitting was totally worth it though (pack a day habit).