Toria, good for you and anyone who quits.  Tobacco addiction is just as insidious and strong as any other.

I smoked for 40 years, and tried many times to stop. Finally got on to the Nicotine gum, but became addicted to that for a few years.  One day, I just said, that's it and haven't smoked  or used the gum since...10 years ago.

I smoked for 41 years and started as a kid during wartime ............I remember one day in my office with a fag in my mouth ......one in the ashtray ....and I reached for a third

I woke up to myself and quit cold turkey ...............It was the hardest thing that I have ever done and after 6 moths of pain and anguish I started to improve ...........that was many years ago and the smell of cig smoke is now intolerable to me

My system may not be your system but what ever it is you have to try ...........you may die otherwise

I commend you koko and clay and all who are trying or have quit smoking.The tobacco companies have a lot to answer for---if you give up the smoking addiction they then get you on the nicotine gum and patches ----I have heard of so many have become addicted to these things which are supposed to help!! Clay I think you are very brave going cold turkey--I couldn't do that!! My only other side effect I forgot to mention is some weight gain!!!

".It was the hardest thing that I have ever done "

I had an elderly friend (passed), who, apart from being a heavy smoker, was in his younger years, an alchoholic too.  When I met him, he hadn't drunk fror 30 years, but it took him ten more years to stop smoking.  He said exactly the same as you and I. People who are non smokers really do not understand....and I think it's rotten the way smokers are treated as thogh they are pariahs in society.

So many don't have a clue as to how hard I have heard it said to give up--they say it is harder than other drugs ?

I was a heavy smoker 60 a day ,and I had accupuncture ,I was like a bear with a sore bum for a week       my inspiration for stopping was John Howard I said if hewon the electiom I would never have another ciggy , He did and I havent ..

Three times I tried to edit this and three times the edit failed  first time this happened to me for yonks

 what I wanted to say was the worst bit is not knowing what to do with your hands

i started smoking at 17 when in the army, They were a life saverat certain times, The comfort parcels dropped by plane, contained the most shocking tobacco "Censor" ever made My father told me if I'm going to smoke, smoke a pipe, which I did in my fifties, I thoroughly enjoyed the pipe and could not see myself stopping, When I started in the snooker club, it was a no smoking rule.Which meant not smoking for at least 4 or 5 hours, I was then in my early 80s, after awhile I just stopped smoking altogether.I was lucky, no withdrawel suffering.

As tadpole mentioned what do you do with your hands?

I found doing carpentry was a good. As your mind is occupied as well.

The more people that stop smoking will result in more taxes for us all to pay.

Keep on puffing folks and save us all from being slugged because I myself and the government don't care if you live or die.

My father died at age 66 from emphysema, not a very nice way to die I tell you. My husband and I decided there and then to quit cold turkey which we did and found it very easy. After 10 years we stupidly started smoking again for 5 years. We again went cold turkey (easy again) and haven't smoked now for 14 years and don't miss it one bit. We have two friends who have emphysema, one is on oxygen 24/7 and the other, who is 76, will not quit smoking although he's had quite a few scary moments with his breathing and ended up in hospital a couple of times because of that. We think he's just decided that it's too late now to quit as it won't really help him much....besides the fact that he lost his wife recently and I really think he feels he's got no real reason to live any more.

What really irks me is the fact that they were both warned years ago that they had a touch of emphysema and didn't heed the warnings from doctors. I think that if a person has never seen someone suffering from smoking related disease they just don't comprehend how much they go through and that it will never happen to them.

We're just so glad that we quit when we did.

We are all better for giving up smoking--just ignore the comments of Davey!!

How do you deduce from my statement Toria that I smoke?

Stupid woman

I for one would be delighted if you disappeared in a puff of smoke

What a nasty man you are Davey--to be honest I don't care if you smoke or not!! You will not drag any of us down to your level,so why don't you disappear as Tadpole suggests!!!