To carry on giving up smoking  and never put one of those disgusting, addictive, foul smelling, cancerous things in my mouth ever again.

There I’ve said it. Do you know how much it means to me and anybody else who manages to stop smoking to be able to say that and know that this time you really mean it? When you watch TV programmes like the X Factor or Strictly Come Dancing the contestestants always seem to say that winning means the world to them. Well in the real world stopping smoking truly can mean the world to you when you have smoked for many years.

I started when I was 14, it was easy to buy separates from corner shops and then graduate to packs of 5 Park Drive if you got some extra spending money or had a pal to share the cost with. Back then in the 60s it was cool to smoke, the height of sophistication if you were an impressionable teenager. We just didn’t know the health risks that went hand in hand with looking sophisticated to our peers.

Then the health risks became known but when you are addicted your needs overcome what is good for you. It is hard to stop smoking, very hard for most of us nicotine addicts. Every now and then you try to stop but more often than not you weaken and start smoking again. You create a pattern until eventually you manage to break that pattern and stop – that is if you don’t die from smoking related illnesses first.

I will be ending the old and starting the new year as a non smoker and that will be for the first time in 40 years. I won’t have a smokers cough or get out of breath while I am partying. Those who I give a new years hug or kiss to will smell Opium perfume on me and not be repulsed by the disgusting ashtray smell. I won’t have to go outside in the cold with the other outcasts who share the horrible habit and I can brag about how much money I have saved.

Very important to me and the main reason that I stopped back in May is a massive improvement in my circulation. Last winter I suffered from a lot of excruciating pain in my fingers from Reynards disease. At times it was frightening because there was no circulation in my fingers and it was difficult to get my fingers warm enough to get the blood flowing again.

As I work in a shop that sells chilled and frozen products I couldn’t always keep my fingers warm and they and my livelihood were at risk. Now that I don’t smoke those problems have lessened to such an extent that it is just an occasional minor nuisance now. Sometimes it was too painful to use my computer keyboard but now there isn’t a problem.

For those of you who despair of ever giving up smoking my story is proof that eventually you can stop. With my weak willpower it took a lot of attempts using different methods to stop but eventually I found the way that works best for me and that was electronic cigarettes. I used them to gradually get rid of my nicotine addiction and I don’t smoke anything now – nor am I addicted to anything.

One of the things that I did to help myself was to build a blog and keep an online diary. Knowing that other people would be watching how I did strengthened my resolve and my diary will always be there to stop me from slipping.

To learn more about how I stopped smoking with the help of electronic cigarettes visit smokersstop.co.uk

If you want to stop smoking and need some support check out our stop smoking forum but please don’t spam it with crap

Patronising people like him really bug me and for at least 10 seconds the friendship is over! Okay I’m not that shallow but why do so many non smokers believe that stopping smoking is easy and especially for those of us who have smoked for many years?

I will allow that it is easier to stop smoking now than it ever was but it still isn’t easy. There you are struggling to stop and wanting to slap all of those who tell you that you need more willpower grrr. You need to buy some cigarettes just to stop exploding and injuring a section of the human race.

Unless you are super human it isn’t about willpower for most of us. It’s about making the decision to quit smoking and taking one day at a time. If you don’t think that you can go cold turkey then forget the superhuman willpower stuff and seek out a stop smoking aid and if that isn’t helping try another and another until you find what is right for you.

There are plenty of choices out there: nicotine patches, nicotine gum, hypnotism, laser therapy, acupuncture, audio tapes, tablets and even  electronic cigarettes. As you can see there is absolutely no need to torture yourself and those around you with horrible withdrawal symptoms unless you are that way inclined!

Other friends who bug me order me not to start smoking again. The pointless conversation usually goes something like this:

“How are you doing with the stopping smoking?” or “Are you still not smoking?”

“Fine” or “Yes” I reply while wanting to throttle my friend for reminding me.

“Good – don’t you dare start again, you know how bad smoking is for you”

‘Of course I dare start again you fool’ I think while I force a smile knowing that my friend is well meaning.

The point that I’m making here is that I want to forget about smoking for as much of the day as possible and asking for progress reports really does not help those who are trying to stop.

On the other hand if somebody who has stopped offers information such as how long it’s been since they had a cigarette then praise them. Tell them how well you think they are doing, ask them something intelligent like “Do you feel better for it?” or “How much have you saved?” Make them feel good, not annoyed enough to go out and buy a pack.

The worst type of friends an ex smoker can have are those who offer them cigarettes.

“Go on, take it. One won’t do any harm”

Yes it will be harmful. One leads to another and ex smoker becomes a smoker again. You don’t want that – or do you?

At least this type of friend can be avoided to a certain extent if you live in a country where smoking is now banned in public places. You can dodge going outside with them or into an area where smoking is allowed.

Giving up smoking is easier nowadays with the smoking bans and more aids, but it becomes harder if those around you don’t help. Addiction to nicotine is harder to break than any other type of addiction and you need all of the help that you can get.

Are you struggling to stop smoking? I was but not any more. Just click on giving up smoking to follow my progress, or visit the stop smoking forum. Grab yourself a free copy of How To Stop Smoking Forever

Despite more awareness the amount of cigarettes bought in Britain last year was over 47 billion. As each cigarette contains over 4,000 chemicals and at least 40 of those chemicals can cause cancer that’s like 47 billion health hits being fired at us Brits every year and we pay for the privilege!

To be fair the UK government have ramped up it’s anti smoking campaign. In 2008 the cigarette companies were made to add graphic images of throat cancer and rotting lungs and teeth to cigarette packets. A year earlier the legal age for buying tobacco products was raised from 16 to 18.

There is now a voluntary scheme in place for shops where anybody who doesn’t look 25 has to show the correct id when buying age related products like cigarettes.

Smoking is on the decrease but even so it is still the biggest killer and over 106,000 people in the UK died last year due to smoking. It isn’t just smokers whose health suffers from the effects of smoking tobacco, anybody who breathes in the smoke from tobacco is at risk.

Frightening isn’t it? We pay to risk our lives and the lives of those around us by partaking in what is really an unpleasant habit that tastes nasty and smells disgusting.

What I have noticed in recent years is that we don’t offer our cigarettes around as much. Years ago whenever you were in any sort of social environment you offered your cigarettes or cigars to those around you and they did the same. You could end up smoking several different brands and with a cough or sore throat from switching about, but offering cigs out was the done thing.

Now if you are in an area that it is acceptable to smoke the likelihood of being offered even a roll up is lower, perhaps because smokers have been made to feel uncomfortable about their habit.

I don’t think that smokers smoke in front of children as much nowadays. I look around at my family and neighbours and most of them now go outside the home away from their kids to smoke.

Apart from being more aware of the damage that can be done to children’s health youngsters are also being made aware of the harm that smoking tobacco causes and are joining in the chorus of disapproval. Children tell their parents off for smoking, children are frightened that they may lose their parent or parent because of smoking tobacco products.

As I said at the beginning of this article, I really do wish that the smoking bans had happened years ago then maybe I wouldn’t have damaged my health by smoking cigarettes for nigh on 40 years.

Hopefully I have quit smoking in time to reclaim my health and the 10 years lifespan that I was losing as a long term smoker. Sometimes I feel angry that I have been able to easily buy something that is the world’s top cause of preventable death and it is still easily available.

Instead of dwelling on that I am celebrating the fact that I have stopped smoking after years of trying to give up smoking. I feel healthier, my bank balance is healthier and those around me are healthier – that’s a result!

Are you struggling to stop smoking? I was but not any more. Just click on giving up smoking to follow my progress, or visit the stop smoking forum. Grab yourself a free copy of How To Stop Smoking Forever

The evil looks quickly turned to interest and I heard comments like ‘I’ve heard of them’, ‘they are supposed to be good’ and was asked by an elderly lady who looked as if she thought it was a wind up ‘What are they?”

I showed them my e cig as I replied ”This is a battery, atomiser and a nicotine cartridge. Although the cartridges contain nicotine they do not contain the 4,000 plus harmful chemicals that cigarettes contain. The smoke that you see is just  harmless vapour  not second hand tobacco smoke”.

An elderly couple were the most interested, they asked me if electronic cigarettes really were safe to smoke. My  reply was “As far as I’m aware they are and without the tar and chemicals they have got to be much safer than the effects of smoking normal cigarettes”.

“Aren’t they just as addictive?” a young man asked.

“Yes” I replied, “but I am using them the same way that I would use nicotine patches to wean myself off tobacco”.

I went on to explain that you can get nicotine cartridges in different strengths just like nicotine patches and that this way of quitting smoking was working for me. I told them that after several weeks of no cigarettes I felt fitter and healthier and that I was using the electronic cigarette less and less because I had mainly lost the habit while I was dealing with the addiction.

“Where can you buy them from?” Several of those around me wanted to know and when I told them the Internet lost some interest, but then I could hear them working a way round it with comments like “We can go on the computer at the library”, “…mobile goes on the Internet”.

The amount of interest was amazing and especially from the older end. I’ve seen that before when I’ve been out and about with my e-cigarette. What I think is that after smoking for many years they are getting more and more symptoms of just why tobacco cigarettes are bad for them and that’s frightening. Like me they have probably tried to stop smoking and failed many times and the possibility of a new way that might help them is bound to be of interest to them.

However, no matter how much interest there is a sticking point. As always I was asked how much e-cigs are while I was waiting for the train.

Prices vary, but I paid £50 for my starter pack and 25 extra cartridges – enough to last me for at least 6 weeks. After that there is only the much lower cost of cartridges or refill fluid. I’m personally saving over £20 every week.

As I saw my train approaching and fellow travellers interest waining I asked myself  “What price health?”.

Are you struggling to stop smoking? I was but not any more. Just click on giving up smoking to follow my progress, or visit the stop smoking forum. Grab yourself a free copy of How To Stop Smoking Forever

Electronic cigarettes are healthier than smoking tobacco, can help you to stop smoking, they save you money. Claims made by e-cigarette companies and users but are they true or false?

Smoking Facts

I found out that normal cigarettes contain over 4,000 chemicals and to my horror approximately 40 that are cancerous and that is a proven fact.

Electric cigarettes contain Nicotine, Propylene Glycol, Water and Flavourings – a bit less than 4,000 chemicals don’t you think!!

I’m already addicted to nicotine so I can’t see that e cigs are more harmful in that respect. Propylene glycol is used to deliver vapourised nicotine and according to Wikipedia is used amongst other things as a moisturiser in medicines, cosmetics, food, toothpaste, mouth wash, and tobacco products. If propylene glycol is so widely used in those other products then it shouldn’t be harmful. Water shouldn’t hurt anybody and flavourings – most of our food contains flavourings.

Looking at those facts and unless electronic cigarettes contain substances that we don’t know about then I can’t see them being anywhere near as harmful as tobacco products. I’m no doctor or scientist, but having scoured the Internet the objections to e cigarettes don’t seem to be about what they contain, more that they are addictive and that young non smokers may turn to them because of different flavours available including chocolate and cherry.

I can see that point and really can’t see why flavours beyond the normal were introduced, except for profit of course.

Giving Up Smoking

I’ve tried many times and in different ways, the most successful was with nicotine patches but obviously as with over 80% who try to stop smoking with patches or gum they didn’t provide a permanent cessation of my nicotine addiction. Whether electronic cigarettes help me to stop permanently or not I don’t know and won’t for at least another year or two.

What I do know is that with patches you have a constant flow of nicotine into your body, some brands even recommend that you use them 24/7. I never smoked 24/7 and was never comfortable that nicotine was being constantly released into my body. With e cigarettes I have more control over my intake and like patches can gradually reduce the nicotine strength until I am smoking no nicotine vapour.

Healthy Or Not

Do I think that electronic cigarettes are healthier? Absolutely, I feel better in myself and although I’ve only been smoking e ciggies for a couple of weeks even after a short time I have noticed a difference in my breathing. I walk up a long steep hill every day – usually slowly and out of breath. Not now, I walk up there quicker and my breathing is easier.

I lay on my back and slept last night for the first time in years. Usually I lay on my side because the strange noises that my chest was making when I laid on my back not only kept me awake but also was frightening.

I stopped waking up coughing a few days ago.

Money Saving

There are claims of saving 80% of the cost of smoking normal cigarettes. I don’t think that’s strictly true. The initial outlay for a starter kit generally containing an atomiser, 2 batteries, charger and 5 or 6 cartridges can vary from about £20 to £100. Some companies claim that 1 nicotine cartridge is equivalent to 20 cigarettes – others say 6. I am finding that the brand I am using is probably about 10 cigarettes per cartridge.

An additional cost that isn’t mentioned on some of the sites selling e-cigs is that atomisers need changing fairly regularly and that you should have a spare one. Even so I estimate the saving that I am making to be at least 50% in money and perhaps far more in health.

I am not a law breaker, but if my government ban e cigarettes as some countries have I would have to strongly consider breaking the law rather than risk of going back to tobacco and certain deteriorating health.

Are you struggling to stop smoking? I was but not any more. Just click on giving up smoking to follow my progress, or visit the stop smoking forum. Grab yourself a free copy of How To Stop Smoking Forever

Dangers of Smoking

On average it takes nicotine about 7 seconds to reach the brain once inhaled, as it is absorbed very quickly in the human body. The half life in the human body is about 2 hours, but this all depends on various factors including how high the dose was, how much was inhaled, how many cigarettes were smoked, or if tobacco was chewed. Usually the chewing tobacco or snuff that is held in the mouth is of a much higher potency than cigarettes.

Smoking is highly dangerous on many levels. First of all it is synthesized in the liver and this causes a lot of strain to the organ, especially if you are a heavy smoker. The blood brain barrier is quickly crossed when you smoke which means that it affects the babies of women that are pregnant if they light up. Similarly, people who are even around a smoker are affected by secondary smoke, because even though the nicotine is burned off, the smoke still contains enough of the chemical in its vaporous form. The drug causes various neurotransmitters in the central nervous system and the brain to function at higher levels, which causes the relaxation effect that gets so many people addicted, and through the stimulation of certain of these receptors adrenaline through an influx of calcium which it binds to is released into the blood stream which causes high blood pressure, increased heart rate, and a rise in blood glucose levels.

Tips for Quitting the Habit

If you want to stop your high blood pressure and high glucose levels before it is too late and you end up suffering from a heart attack or stroke, as well as develop diabetes and more, then you need to stop smoking. Aside from the illnesses that you can develop, smoking has also been linked to various cancers, and other diseases. To stop smoking you must first of all have the willpower and the desire. Once you want to stop, it becomes a whole lot easier. Many people use patches to quit, and some go under hypnotherapy, whilst others just go cold turkey. The best method of quitting will be dependent on the extent of your habit, but if you really want to get healthy, you should try any or all of them.

Are you struggling to stop smoking? I was but not any more. Just click on giving up smoking to find out how I stopped after 40 years of addiction. Grab yourself a free copy of How To Stop Smoking Forever

Stopping smoking is a challenge and as with any challenge in life you’ve got to give yourself the best shot at not failing. I think that mindset plays a large part in whether you are going to succeed or not.

Some people suddenly decide that they are going to stop there and then and they do. Others set a date for their big quit smoking day, or think about it for a while and prepare themselves. The 2 most popular new years resolutions are either to stop smoking or lose weight and most of us break our resolutions so it’s no wonder there are so many of us still smoking. Every week Monday is the set day for many people to start dieting or stop smoking, that only really works if you have prepared yourself.

Preparation can make a big difference in helping you to control your withdrawel symptoms and temptations in the early days of your attempt. First of all you should make a list of why you want to stop smoking, study that list and you will see that you have a lot of good reasons for quitting. Tell yourself that yes you can end your addiction, that you are in control of your life and not the tobacco companies.

Stopping smoking is a life changing experience and to succeed you need to be ready for your change in life style. It’s a good idea to remove all traces of smoking from your home. Banish lighters and ash trays to the darkest corners of your cupboards and drawers if you cannot bring yourself to throw them away. Throw the last of your cigarettes out during the evening before you quit. I know that some people manage to keep a pack of cigs and still stop but to me that is unnecessary torture and increases the chances of you starting again.

Ideally you shouldn’t smoke inside your home for a while before your big stop day. Let the horrible smell dissipate and the fresh air in. Make your home a no smoking zone before and after stopping.

Ask your friends and family for help. Ask the non smokers not to lecture you and tell you that you had better not start again – that is like a red rag to a bull to me. Ask the smokers not to smoke in your home and to never offer you a cigarette. Smokers offering those who are trying to quit cigarettes is one of the main reasons for starting again.

Unless you are very brave and going cold turkey make sure that you have your stop smoking aids ready. Those aids could be one or a mixture of:

Nicotine Patches

Nicotine Gum

Inhalator

Self-Hypnotism DVD/ Video/ Audio/ mp3

Motivational Courses

Books/ Ebooks

Electronic Cigarettes

Stop Smoking Cash Cans

Laser Therapy

Microtabs

Lozenges

Stop Smoking Diary

You can even set up a blog and or forum to help yourself and others. Mutual encouragement can be a powerful form of motivation to stop and stay stopped.

Lay in a few treats for yourself. Weight gain is often a worry with smoking cessation, but having plenty of low calorie, low fat treats to nibble the cravings away helps.

Finally think about your reasons for giving up smoking regularly and especially if your resolve begins to weaken. Remind yourself just what harm they are doing to your body and your life and tell yourself and the world that yes you can stop smoking.

Are you struggling to stop smoking? I was but not any more. Just click on giving up smoking to follow my progress, or visit the stop smoking forum. Grab yourself a free copy of How To Stop Smoking Forever

Stopping smoking makes me put on weight

Absolute BS. Nobody has ever put on weight simply because they have stopped smoking. How do I know that? Because I’ve been there. Sometimes I have put weight on, sometimes I haven’t but each time has been different. What happens is that you automatically try to substitute the craving for nicotine with something tasty like chocolate or boiled sweets and that is what puts weight on you.

If you need substitutes try low fat, low calorie substitutes like grapes, oranges, Tic Tacs or carrots. If you really can’t manage without chocolate or boiled sweets use the money that you are saving on cigarettes to pay for membership at a gym and work the calories off. Or get yourself a Wii Fit like I have! Whatever you do exercise will help to keep the weight off and to make you healthier. The bottom line is that tobacco products are more likely to kill you than a few pounds weight gain so forget vanity right now.

My husband/wife/partner smokes

OK it’s a tough one when somebody that you live with continues to smoke when you are trying to quit. It’s far easier if they don’t smoke or if they decide to stop with you, but if they care about you they should be happy to help you. One way that they can help is to go outside to smoke and keep your home smoke free.

Apart from keeping temptation out of your way, if you have children they shouldn’t be smoking in the home anyway for the sake of the children’s health. Smoking outside also keeps your home cleaner, less smelly, doesn’t need decorating as often and your partner will find that he or she smokes less and saves some money too because they haven’t got the convenience of just being able to light up where ever they are.

In fact banning smoking from the home, or just having one room where you can smoke can help you to cut back on smoking and lead up to stopping.

My grandparents smoked and they lived until they were in their 90s

Your grandparents aren’t you and statistically they were darned lucky to live so long as smokers. Truth be told I used to say the same about one of my grandmas, conveniently forgetting that this shriveled up relative of mine who always seemed to have a Capstain full strength dangling from her lips could rarely get a sentence out without coughing. In fact that image of her in my head is my only memory of her and that’s sad.

I’m going to stop smoking on Monday not today

Monday comes and goes and you have either forgotten your promise or you decide that you will wait until the following Monday. Or you might even manage an hour or two without a cig before you change your mind.

I can stop anytime

Thats what some smokers say but when challenged they will say that they don’t want to yet, or that they will stop after Christmas, the new year, their holiday, sometime never. Truth is the desire to quit needs to be stronger than your addiction and that is when you will stop and not just any time.

I’m waiting until after the summer because everybody is getting duty frees for me and I’m saving money

You would save even more if you quit altogether!

I smoke roll ups/ a pipe and they are not as bad for you

They are still killers no matter how you smoke tobacco.

I get too stressed and that’s bad for me

That isn’t stress it’s the nicotine addiction and craving. There are lots of products on the market today to help reduce the craving and withdrawal symptoms: nicotine gum, nicotine patches, inhalators, books, hypnotism, subconscious learning cds, tablets, fake cigarettes and even a Wii game to help you to stop smoking.

I’m sure there are many more excuses for not stopping smoking, but there are far more good reasons for giving up smoking and the main one is your health and the health of everybody around you.

Are you struggling to stop smoking? I was but not any more. Just click on stop smoking to follow my progress. Grab yourself a free copy of How To Stop Smoking Forever

So I had to admit to myself that it was time for me to sort myself out and do something about stopping. Having so many failed attempts behind me I knew that it was time to try something different – if you are thinking ‘willpower’ forget it. I haven’t got enough of that and why should I put myself and those around me through the torture of withdrawel symptoms when you don’t need to.

I’ve read a few articles over recent months about electronic cigarettes and became interested enough to search out genuine reviews and comments on forums.  You will find a lot of false reviews on the internet from people selling a product, you can usually tell that they have probably never seen the product never mind tried it. Forums are good to get genuine feedback and opinions so that’s where I always look.

The feedback about electronic cigarettes is pretty good out there, though there do seem to be some issues from anti smoking groups. They reckon that e cigs are just as addictive as tobacco products and maybe they are, but they are still healthier.

With e cigarettes you get nicotine cartridges without the tar and harmful chemicals that you get in normal cigarettes. An atomiser and a battery. Put them all together and you get a cigarette like those in the picture above.

I’m pretty pleased with them so far. I have stopped smoking tobacco and I don’t have the withdrawel symptoms that I’ve had with previous stop smoking attempts. My aim is to wean myself off the addiction by gradually lowering the strength of the cartridges at a comfortable pace.

It’s the same principal as nicotine patches but I control how often I introduce the nicotine to my body and how much. With patches you are introducing nicotine all of the time. Some brands tell you to leave them on for 24 hours. I just wouldn’t do that, I don’t smoke 24/7. I once forgot to take a patch off when I went to bed and I felt lousy the next morning, my mouth was very dry and I was coughing a lot.

Are you struggling to stop smoking? I was but not any more. Just click on giving up smoking to follow my progress, or visit the stop smoking forum. Grab yourself a free copy of How To Stop Smoking Forever