stop smoking help

[piglet50]

my ds has decided to stop smoking he wants to try one of the patches. has anyone used them? he's asked me to pick up some for him. i looked at the different brands and read the instructions. what i would like is some actual user's info. best kind to use, side effects, etc. i know everyone is different but a real person's experiences are sometimes the best. thank you in advance for your help. say a prayer that he's successful.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Do not get the patch. Have him go to the doctor and get some Welbutrin.

Then do it under the guidance of a doctor. My dh did this and it worked very well.

I quit cold turkey.

 

[DaisyD]

I used the patches to quit. I used to be a pack a day smoker. It was the easiest thing in the world to quit using those patches. If I would have known how easy I would have quit a lot earlier. Even though there are non brands out there I still preferred the Nicoderm brand. They stuck to the skin better and just seemed to dole out the nicotine more evenly. I would put one on as soon as I woke up in the morning and take it off right before bedtime. They can cause weird dreams if you sleep with them. I had no side effects at all with the patches. Smoking was such a habit that I remember going for a cigarette after a meal once early on and thinking, wait a minute I don't even want a cigarette! The cravings were gone. My oldest DD also quit while using the patches and she hasn't had a cigarette in 2 years. She had no side effects from them either. Easiest thing she has ever done she says. Good luck to your DS! I'm sure he will be surprised how great those patches are!

 

[JunieJay]

I quit cold turkey. It was hell for a week, but once it was over, it was over. There was no additional withdrawl from the patch or medication. The patch and medicine to me seemed like prolonging the agony.

 

[FormrCastMbr]

I quit using the patch. I wasn't a heavy smoker but needed a little help. The first week was the hardest...I had to keep busy. I had the cleanest closets in town. I also did not have any negative side affects.

 

[meeskamouska]

I weny onto the American
lung Association website and joined the online support group....it really taught me why I smoke so it was easier to quit!!!

 

[piglet50]

thanks for your help. all good information and i will pass on the web site to him. anyone else? it's good to have different imput.

 

[need_a_Disney_fix]

The state of Iowa just past a $1.00 per pack tax last week that raised the price to $4 per pack. That was the final straw for DH and he has his Nicotrol inhalers ready to go. He is really pissed now and "will not give the Iowa government another nickel to waste away". Hopefully, this time he will do it. Good luck to all who try.

 

[elizke]

I smoked for more than 20 years, and was highly addicted. I used the patch, Zyban, and tootsie roll pops. I started with the patch but switched to Commit lozenges, because it gave me something to do. I knew I needed every weapon I could find, because for me it was war!

Two other things helped me too for those moments when I wanted one really badly. Most helpful was a vision I had conjured up of the future; the absolute worst consequence for me. I pictured me sitting in a chair hooked up to an oxygen tank, with a towel-covered TV table with a full, messy ashtray on it, and the kids as teens coming home from school, too ashamed and embarrassed of me to ever be able to bring friends home. For me that was the worst image. It may be different for someone else. So the "want" would pop in my head, and I would pop that image in my head to counteract it.

The other thing, and I've heard lots of people who've quit also found this helpful, is to take a puff of air, in exactly the same way you would puff on a smoke. Enjoy pulling it in and blowing it out. It really helps. I quit four years ago and still do it sometimes, because I still miss the stupid things.

Good luck to him!

 

[Shugardrawers]

Do not get the patch. Have him go to the doctor and get some Welbutrin.

Then do it under the guidance of a doctor. My dh did this and it worked very well.

I quit cold turkey.

The patch wasn't too successful for me either but I know a lot of people it has worked for. Now the Wellbutrin on the other hand It's the same thing as Zyban. For many people, about 2 to 3 weeks into taking it, they lose the desire for cigarettes. I just put mine out in the middle of it one day, something I never did and realized it just didn't taste good to me anymore. A week later, when my last pack ran out I just didn't buy anymore. That's been a year and a month now. If he really wants to quit he should keep trying methods until he finds one that works for him. Not everything works for everyone. Good luck to him!

 

[mommasita]

Do not get the patch. Have him go to the doctor and get some Welbutrin.

Then do it under the guidance of a doctor. My dh did this and it worked very well.

I quit cold turkey.

I agree. I quite Oct 05 and uses WB, and it worked amazingly. Even helped with the weight gain. I quit using it as soon as I felt secure enough, I would say 2 months in. For me, a smoker of 20 years, it was a miracle worker..

Good luck for Ds

 

[mom2rb]

DH used the patch. He used it about double the time it said to. He has not had a cigarette in 18 months. The first few weeks were hard. I spent one Thanksgiving with him not speaking to me. But now it is over. Tell your son good luck.

 

[MAKmom]

Make sure you get patches that are not stronger then what he is smoking. Very bad to do that.

This might help cigarettes are about $5.00 a pack in PA. 1 pack a day = $2000.00 a year. That is my part of our Disney Trip every year. I quit 4 years ago when I realized this.

 

[Cool-Beans]

When I quit, I was pretty much chain smoking. Pack a day when I worked, two when I didn't. I'd smoked for almost 20 years.

When I finally decided to quit FOR REAL, I went out and bought the patch (Nicoderm). Brought it home, opened the package up, lit a cigarette and started reading the little book. Then I put the cigarette out, opened a patch and stuck it on.

I picked up a little and then it hit me. Time for a cigarette. What to do now?!!! Over the next few days, I cleaned everything in sight, even the cars. I went to the movies a lot, too, because it was a place I had never smoked and took up a lot of time. I think I ate about two big bags of Twizzlers a day, too. Something had to take the place of the cig, especially in the car.

First time I got in the car I kept thinking, "What do people who don't smoke DO in the car?!" I learned - nothing. They just sit there. It gets less boring after a while.

I swear that the first four days are the hardest, and the first day is the hardest of those. It gets easier.

It is hard to see people smoking at first, but once your smell comes back, and you are used to being a non-smoker...you start grossing out at the smell of it. Tell him to just give it time.

I think it helps people who have the patch on to remember than if they smoke now, it isn't just failure or bad, but dangerous. Even if you take the patch off, that stuff is still in your system. You CAN'T smoke.

I know the patch has steps. I never needed the second box.

Good luck to him. I really think that once a person is determined to be a non-smoker, they will be. It is tough, but if you mean it, you'll do it.

 

[piglet50]

thanks everyone for your help and encouragement. he comes home from school this weekend and i will show these to him. contragulations to all of you who quit.

i know this is a hard thing. my dad quit cold turkey after 40 years of smoking - 3 packs a day at the end. he said he ate a lot of hard candy and whistled a lot.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

I used the patch when I quit many years ago. It was truly a miracle for me. I used to smoke almost 2 packs a day. The patch takes the "edge" off enough for you to get through the first few weeks. I know I couldn't quit cold turkey. No one who knew me actually thought I'd be able to quit - but I did! Good luck to your son - make sure you keep encouraging him I know that helped me.

 

[piglet50]

for those who are interested - ds started on the nicoderm patch on saturday. as of today, it is working. he doesn't smell like smoke anymore!!
he intends to keep going. thanks for all of the input. he read the posts and decided to try the patch because of them.

 

[mommasita]

Good for him. It will work, if he wants it to. I honestly belief this is key. You can do it if you are ready..Sounds like he is..Congrats to you both

 

[gris gris]

I actually just started my Chantix prescription on Sunday and the goal is to quit on 4/1. I've quit before using Wellbutrin and it was very easy. But now the doctors are pushing Chantix because it's new. My doctor tells me I'm not physically addicted because I can go days/weeks without having one. For a physical addiction the patch is supposed to work. Also I quit 2 other times, when I got pregnant. It was real easy then because I didn't want to harm them. Now I'm imagining them growing up without me and it scares me out of my mind, so I know I'm ready to quit. I think that's a big part of it, knowing that you're finally ready. Good luck to your son!