So it has been 17 days and I am really happy about this new life, but I don't fully understand why some people who don't smoke 'professionally' still enjoy or crave cigarettes in certain situations.

I was talking to someone who said that if they were standing on a balcony on a warm summer day abroad they would crave a cigarette. Also people who 'need' to smoke when they are in social situations like drinking with friends.

However, the idea that cigs are an illusion and add nothing to any experience has really helped me get this far, so I don't want to creep back into this idea that certain conditions are deprived of something without one as I think I would return to doing it full time.

So what exactly is happening in the mind when people who do not smoke everyday romanticise these moments if all the nicotine is out of their body? What is happening in the brain to make it seem awesome? What is being satisfied?

I haven't smoked in four days. I felt great, energetic, motivated and healthy. I truly thought that I could do it this time. Then I went on a date with someone that smoked and I ended up smoking with them. I bought a pack of cigarettes afterwards by convincing myself that it's going to be a cheat day and that I will stop again the next day.

That's where I am right now. I feel so stupid and like I destroyed my progress & lost my momentum. How do you deal with those kinds of setbacks and how did you gain motivation to stop? I really don't want to start smoking regularly again.

I have very bad anxiety now because of work related stuff and I'm so close to buying a pack, I don't know how to handle this. This is day 32 and the first time I have major anxiety issues and I'm losing it fr

I didn't do hookah everyday at first. It was most likely a thing to do socially while being with friends in lounges. Then I took a year off here and there since I was also pregnant two times. I am 27 now and I really want to stop smoking and I am so scared of lung cancer. I always think I am going to die tomorrow and not live for my babies. I try so bad to quit but I can't. I don't even want to get a lung scan because it scares me so much that they will find something. I am dealing with really bad health anxiety. Please help.

Just got out of bed, its been 5 days since i stopped smoking, though its not my first run, i have stopped for over 6 months in 2023. The only thing that scares me is, I’m going on a vacation with my girlfriend and the urge to party drink and smoke comes up, then there is the urge to light up especially after sex. My question would be to the OGs who quit & found some way to manage it or substitute it with. Ps. Please don’t suggest weed, cannabis. I’m trying to cut all forms of smoking.

Passed 13 days today, also big win. I went out with a buddy with whome I always smoke. But today we didn't smoke and discussed about how cravings work and how to control emotions sometimes. Although he was not quitting but ge smoke very rarely like once in a month when we have drinks.

I'm nine years sober. I also deal with depression and anxiety, though they are usually pretty well controlled with meds, exercise etc. When I tried to quit smoking a few weeks ago, I felt super anxious (really more like scared - my heart was racing like I was watching a horror movie!) and very irritable and like I wanted to cry all the time, and I ended up going back to smoking because I was concerned about my sobriety - for the first time in a long time, I was seriously tempted to drink, just to get rid of those awful feelings.

I'm tentatively planning to try again. I plan to use the nicotine gum this time; I used a quit-smoking app before that said I only needed to prepare psychologically and then go cold turkey, but even though I felt psychologically ready, I think the physical withdrawal just amped up those feelings of anxiety and upset, so this time I'm planning to use the dang gum too. But. I'm really concerned about my sobriety still. Would love to hear advice and encouragement from anyone who's been down this road. I don't want to endanger my sobriety but I really, really want to quit smoking!

I cold turkey quit for 72 hours but it made me incredibly ill & feel like I was going crazy. So then I started on nicotine patches.

Since then I’ve had on and off bouts of EXTREME anxiety, and the past few days I am feeling so terribly exhausted all the time, depressed, weak, and my throat feels so tight. It feels like every day I wake up my throat feels worse. Is this normal? I’m mostly worried about my throat because it feels so tight- no difficulty breathing though- and was wondering if anyone could tell me roughly how long these symptoms will last…

It been 5 weeks and I'm still so angry. Everyday im having fights with my family members and people on the road. I'm like a walking TNT. I want to smoke to be calm again but I don't want to smoke. After over 22 years im done with cigarettes. I don't want them controlling me anymore but is there a solution for this anger? I tried sports, videos games and other daily things and it didn't help at all, as soon as I'm done with whatever Im doing I will be back to being on the verge of shooting someone.

Quit booze and cigs, day 5 and over all I’m ok. Locked my self up at home this whole week to get through the withdrawals. The dreams are kicking my ass now that I can finally sleep. It’s like I’m reliving every break up, every fuck up and every fear all in one dream each night. I hate it.

I smoked cigarettes from time to time for 5 years and then I switched to vaping (3-4 years). I tried quitting cold turkey and only lasted 1-2 days without vaping. It was bad.

Now im trying nicotine patches, currently on 21mg + nicotine chewing gum. I haven’t vaped in 2 weeks. But now im just worried that once im done with the patches I will go back to vaping.

ARE THERE PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO SUCCESSFULLY QUIT AFTER NICOTINE PATCHES?

Honestly, I don’t mind even getting addicted to the patches, I just don’t want to inhale nicotine anymore. But ofc I want to be free of nicotine in the ideal world.

My husband quit cigarettes 3 days ago and I don't know this grouchy, angry, depressed man. He's been yelling at me over every little thing and it's so unlike him. I tried to stock up on candy, gum, anything to help but he has no interest in any of it. He's been in bed all day and refuses to talk. Any suggestions?

So I stopped smoking for about 5 months from August 2024 to around the first of January. I smoked for around 11 years. I was feeling so proud of myself and like I would never go back. I had a pretty major argument with my partner that lasted literally weeks and the second day of arguing I went to the gas station and relapsed.. almost every night for the past week, I have been getting rid of the rest of them and feel motivated to stop. It’s up to a pack a day again :( I make it almost a day not smoking, and end up going back to the gas station.. I feel like a zombie with no control whatsoever. I’m crying over them. Just looking for some encouragement, or past experiences yall have. Feeling really confused about myself.

I’m exhausted but not sleepy at all. My kids are going to wake me up early in the morning, and I won’t get enough sleep, which will make me nervous and irritated. But I just can’t be bothered to go to bed—my brain is still fully awake and focused. How do I switch off?

I quit smoking four days ago. It’s not my first attempt, but I’ve never had trouble falling asleep before.

I am almost at 2 weeks without cigarettes. I did zens for about 3/4 days until I ran out at work. Omw home, I bought a pack of zen, but I told myself to wait until after I ate. Then I told myself to wait until I was ready to go to sleep, then wait until the morning, etc. But I just kept doing this and the longer it went on, the more I wanted to keep it going. I'm now at almost 2 weeks no cigarettes and over a week no nicotine at all. Its so crazy, because I didn't plan it, it just kinda happened. I just started a new job and I have been getting more and more behind financially. It has been stressing me out so much, and I ran out of money until my first paycheck(a couple more days, and I'm making twice as much as I used to, so I won't be struggling much longer) so I'm gonna be late on rent, and I ran out of weed, which I've been leaning on to help with the withdrawals. I was so stressed out last night, I had to go for a walk to distract myself. I brought a cig and lighter with me (my roommate smokes.) I didn't plan on smoking, I just wanted to prove to myself that I wouldn't fold even if it would be easy to light up. I ended up crying, but I called my girlfriend to distract me and I ended up going back home with an unsmoked cigarette behind my ear. I crushed it and said " you don't control me anymore." I'm sorry that was so long winded, but I've been a lurker on here for a long time, and I've had many failed attempts at smoking, but this time feels completely different, it's like something just clicked in my mind. Anyways, it'll be 2 weeks on Monday and I will NOT smoke with you today.

So I smoked for 20 years then managed to quit by vaping. Now I've been vaping 5 years. How done quit vaping? It does feel impossible. Anyone else out there ?

So I got off work this morning, wife texted me she’s sick and wanted some treats, so I decided to stop at a gas station that I always stop at. Most of the clerks recognize me, so when I go to the till they already have a deck of smokes ready for me.

Well today was no different, except I was able to quite proudly say, no thanks, I quit smoking, don’t need those. Clerk game me a thumbs up and I left with treats for my wife, and no cigarettes for me.

You can do it, believe in yourself!!!!

I smoked a pack a day for about 18 years and decided to quit 3 months ago. I was already dealing with panic attacks before quitting, so I thought quitting would be a positive step not just for my physical health but also my mental health.

I’ve read in a lot of places that quitting smoking can actually improve mental health over time, but honestly, I’ve been experiencing crippling anxiety since I quit. It’s been 3 months, and it still feels overwhelming.

Has anyone else gone through this? Does it get better eventually? I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences.

I was wondering if one cigarette will add to my withdrawal symptoms only symptom I have left is I can't sleep. Kind of in a good way I smoked that one cigarette because it tasted nasty not as good as before and I coughed it wasn't what I thought it would be it was just pure nasty but all I smoked was one and never again.

Ps After the smoke It make me drowsy u fell asleep for 2 hrs than woke up weird it made me tired

i don't know if this thought is an illusion or a legit thought, but for me quitting it completely doesn't make much sense to me and smoking ocassionally like few times in a month, is still fine cause if we talk about the harm it causes even for few cigarettes in a month, is much lesser than the pollution we go through in this modern world, like the vehicle smoke, and many other things in out diet, i feel like these things causes us more than ocassional smoking like few times in a month, i am on 32 still going strong, but i might smoke in future but yes ocassionally and never regularly

Hello,

I am a vaper, been vaping 5mg disposables continuously throughout the day for around 2 years. I bought a patch labelled as 21mg thinking this would help ween myself off.

Immediately after putting it on I felt incredibly lightheaded and strange, then nauseous and very sick. I’ve taken the patch off after roughly 10-15 minutes. Is this a bad move? I am still feeling lightheaded and sick, I believe the patch must have been too strong for me. Will there be any bad effects for removing it so soon after when it already deposited what must have been a high dosage of nicotine?

Thank you.

I quit smoking 2 weeks ago and since I have been having crazy insomnia and vivid dreams. I easily fall asleep (at night), but can't stay asleep - often I already wake up after 2 hours and manage to sleep "some" more though.

Started on day one not sleeping throughout the night- waking up many times. Since then it just got worse and now im at point where im quite tired since I haven't had sufficient sleep for 2 weeks. When does this get better?

On a positive note; my cardio have gone up a lot, lifts going up and started eating way more healthier! I am just tired..

I (24f) quit vaping 2 weeks ago cold turkey after vaping pretty regularly, only quitting for a few weeks at a time here and there, since 2018. Since quitting, i have been a monster. I cry at least once a day, I’m mad at everything, I can’t get a grip and my depression hasn’t been this bad since covid. I’m genuinely considering getting a vape even just for the weekend to be my old extroverted happy self again just for a little while. Does anyone have experience with this? I keep seeing that “it’ll get better” but I am so sick of being such a bummer, I miss being happy.

edit: I drove to the vape shop to pick one up only to discover I didn’t have my wallet (of course). I want to take it at as a sign but it also feels like a sick joke since I was already crying

Hi everyone!

A non-smoker here. I read a book mentioned in the title and in it it's often stated that nicotine addicts while in withdrawal feel more insecure, less self-confident, and unable to cope. I'm trying to be more understanding and supportive for some smokers in my surroundings therefore I really want to understand how they feel.

Is this really how some people feel while in withdrawal? If so, how does that reflect on your life? Does that mean it's harder for you to focus on more difficult tasks at work/school? Does it make you less brave in some way?

Either way, I wish all of you an easy quit!!! 

P.s. This book I mentioned is great! I know it helped many others with their nicotine addiction.

It really does. I know it's not. I know it's been done of course. But honestly don't know how you lot manage it. I can barely get through day one. I can usually only manage a few hours tops.

Can I get advice from anyone who quit cold turkey? Anyone can chime in but i just cant use the patch or gums. Inhaler isn't really doing it for me either.. How did you stick to the quit date you planned and not push it to tonight/tomorrow/just this pack? Did you cut out other habits in the process? Like not so healthy snacks and coffee? Did you wake up the first morning on autopilot and forget you were supposed to be quitting?

I've read Allen Carrs book. It helped for about a week a few years ago but I've since re-read it twice but didn't stick. Should I try again?

I really want this. I cant deal with the pains anymore.

Also, big congrats to everyone that's getting through this! It's a tough task for sure.

Congratulations!

We all have something to celebrate! We will not be smoking for the next 24 hours! What are you using to cope with cravings? How many days smoke free are you? Please discuss your progress and feelings in the comments!

Discord Group: As a reminder, meetings are held on the discord group: Monday through Friday at 5-6pm EST. An additional meeting will begin at 10am EST starting 9/18/2023. Invite Link

More meetings will be added in the future to support more time zones.

Lwt's goo

This is more of a philosophical thought process, a theory I intuitively arrived at. Maybe someone who has thought about or read something similar could help me reach a conclusion.

I’m a 29-year-old woman. I’ve been smoking since I was 14.

Around age 24, I started noticing that smoking had become something my mind was simply used to. I would sometimes smoke unconsciously, for example, lying down writing with my laptop in my lap, and lighting a cigarette without thinking. That’s when I first started asking myself why I do it.

In December 2023 I tried to quit for the first time. I made it to one month in December 2024 but relapsed on New Year’s Eve.

Each time I’ve tried to quit, I’ve become more conscious of the habit. I believe quitting has a lot to do with understanding why we smoke and how we feel doing it in the first place. Alan Carr’s “not another puff” approach felt a bit too aggressive for me—it placed an extra burden on my mental health, triggering feelings of anxiety, guilt, and shame.

Instead, I find it easier to think of smoking as a choice—deciding when, where and how I do it. Smoking one cigarette after a fun day out, standing on my balcony with good posture, feels completely different from smoking during a five-minute work break with my phone in one hand and a cigarette in the other.

Maybe this kind of awareness—being fully present in the habit—could help reframe it. Instead of forbidding myself, I allow it with full consciousness. In those moments, I notice my heartbeat rising, nicotine altering my mood, and my brain reacting to the “high.”

From there, I can find deeper, more logical reasons to quit. The desire to quit starts coming from a place of real understanding rather than just repeating, “I have to quit because it’s unhealthy, dangerous, or bad for me.” That kind of thinking often lead me to blame toward myself and others.

Does this approach make any sense? Are there opinions for or against this way of thinking?

Feel a bit anxious, it is getting easier to deal with. And i cant fucking think clearly, and follow a routine and sleep and feel rested. Im hyped

Also quiting tobacco. Day 1 on that

The withdrawal isnt terrible, but the anxiety/acidic stomach and complete lack of apetite, is really frustrating.

Ill just eat my yogurt and stomach friendly foods, and keep working on all the hobbies I left unattended while being a pothead.

Stay strong babes, you got this <3