I was recently diagnosed with hodgkins lymphoma and sometime in the near future I'll be meeting with an oncologist and starting treatment. I want to quit smoking to help my situation, but I don't know the best way to go about it. Quitting cold turkey would obviously be a good idea, but I honestly don't think I'm capable of doing that. I've used patches successfully before, but it took a matter of months to quit that way. I'm not very familiar with nicotine gum, prescription stop-smoking aids, or anything else that may be out there. I'd like to quit a.s.a.p. to avoid becoming sicker during treatment. I'm also concerned about interactions between a stop-smoking aid and chemo/radiation therapy, if my method of quitting did need to take place while I was being treated. Any suggestions or info would mean a lot...

Ask the oncologist office what they would suggest..here are some links on Hodgkins and some books for info...Stay AHEAD of any nausea with the anti-nausea pills (if given to you). Once you are nauseous, you won't even want to look at a pill.

Adult Hodgkins

http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_4_1X_What_is_Hodgkins_disease_20.asp

http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/CRI_2_3x.asp?rnav=cridg&dt=20

http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/hodgkinslymphoma

http://www.leukemia-lymphoma.org/all_page?item_id=7085

http://www.leukemia-lymphoma.org/all_page?item_id=8312

http://www.nci.nih.gov/cancertopics/types/hodgkinslymphoma

3 books on disease symptoms and treatments

you could also get these books on ebay or amazon or a half price book store. (last two are very similar)..
1.Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine
2.Handbook of Diseases (Lippencott)
3.Professional Guide to Diseases (Springhouse)

Like what brand of the patch works best. Does the gum work? Do the perscriptions work best?

I used the patches and was successful. The cheaper brand of the patches have the same ingredients as the name band so you can save a few bucks. Good luck!

I have several things I need to do and am not sure which order or the best way to do it. I need to do the following
Loose 50 lbs
Quit smoking
Quit taking Effexor.
I am not sure in which order I should do this. I KNOW quiting Effexor will be a long process. I have done this before and it took months. (Like 6)
For quiting smoking, I will be doing it cold turkey. I will not be using any of the quit smoking aids. (for financial reasons)
Does anyone have any advice for me as to the order I should work on this.
Thanks so much!!
Effexor dosage is 75 mg.
Thanks

go for losing weight first of all, maybe being a fitness fanatic will help you quit one of the other two, whatever you do, make sure you take medical advice first and do it safely
best of luck xxxx

Hi there,
I have been trying to quit for a while but have had some success with a 'cut down and quit' approach. Every time I feel like having a cigarette I get up and do something else as soon as the craving starts. I will have a glass of water, put a load of washing on, wash my face or ANYTHING in general to keep my hands busy. Doing it this way I am able to abstain from having one for up to three hours at a time. It is really hard to go cold turkey as there are certain receptors in your brain that go crazy when you don't deliver their precious nicotine. If you slowly cut out half your cigs a day over one week then the next week you do the same again and so on and so on. I myself am now down to about 6 - 8 a day and that is coming down from a pack of 50's a day!!! Good luck and keep in touch to let me know how you go. Also remember to kee calm and even just chew normal gum to get the saliva going in your mouth. Deep breaths are the key and saying "I can do this, you are my enemy (to the cigs), I don't need you controlling my life....." something to that effect.
Cheers!!!

I just started using Chantix yesterday. I'll tell ya, I'm still smoking as usual today. For those who have tried Chantix, how were you after your first week?
Yeah, I smoke about a pack a day. I've tried patches and gum. I'm giving this a try, but if the side effects prove to be too much, I will try something else.
Agreed. I didn't sleep worth a crap last night. Maybe a tylenol PM will assist in that.

It's good. The reports on it's causing suicidal tendencies might reveal something deeper in the person that may need to get therapy for which alot of people who have mild mental health problems neglect looking into. But the first day I slept 15 hours. whew. the next day everything went back to normal. I would hate to think that this desiese people put on their lips and suck on to smoke which is going to kill you anyway wouldn't make people at least try it . after a couple of days I didn't have any cravings for a cigg. I just lit up due to habit. but i'm on day 10 and it's going great. I could hold a cigg in my hand when I want to first lite up and for like two days now I just stick it in my ear and wait like two hours before I actually light up that morning cigg because the craveing is not there anymore and since my target day is less then a week away I am sure I'll dump those stinky ciggs and see things brighter . Belive me.. when you quit you're going to know just how horrible it smells on people on clothes in cars and just walking by a smoker if you get a wiff of it will make you vomit. This is my fifth try and this is the best. Nicotene gums and patches just give you a nice overdose of nicotene at a premium. for that just smoke twice as much to save money for the same cause. Goodluck man. Heck you don't really need luck with chantix. I am sure you can do it.

You have decided for whatever reason that it's now the right time in your life for you to quit smoking.

So you now sit around and try and decide precisely how you're going to start. You know the deep within you are in for a long hard road, but simultaneously, you truly want to stop for good. The concept of giving up several times is not tasty to you, so you are left with the job of creating a plan of attack which will work, and work best. You are probably going to find this much tougher than anything more you've ever tried to do in your life, and for excellent reasons. The amount of people who fail at attempting to give up smoking every year is amazing. While millions try to give up, there are still others who are beginning to smoke. Wherever you look there are smokers who are unintentionally tantalizing you to smoke again as well which makes it even tougher for yourself. Attempting to overcome these challenges is essential, because without having the ability to overcome these issues you'll be fully unable to give up for good. Beginning with a great plan is critical and this starts with deciding precisely why you wish to stop smoking. The rationale actually doesn't matter, but you have to know your reason. What is important is you also should believe strongly in your reason, if you just pull the reason some other person has give up that you don't trust in your experience attempting to give up will be intensely rocky and full of issues. What you'll need to do is spend a huge period of time making an attempt to truthfully decide why you wish to give up smoking so you have a reason. Once your reason is selected, the remainder of the method should be far easier to handle. What you don't always find straight away clear is having a sound excuse to give up can function as a massive incentive factor. If you're just giving up to give up, you are likely to slide up on your goals, cheat and fall into smoking extremely quickly. The rest of the jobs like making a schedule, and even attempting to find the supportive direction of buddies and family will all be an easy breeze.

You're going to need to work energetically to maintain your commitment. This suggests attempting to avoid places and eventualities where you'll get tempted to smoke. This means avoid the smoking areas of restaurants and bars, no going to tobacco stores, and actually clearing the cigarettes out of your home. If you can find somebody to help give up who has an interest in giving up themselves you'll have a massive advantage. While not everybody does great with the chum system, it's a useful tool to use as you can hold one another responsible. This level of liability can be quite beneficial in making sure you're truly working to give up for good. So many folk work to stop smoking and only finish up beginning up again once it gets troublesome.

A buddy who is also attempting to give up can act as a fantastic way to truly avoid the temptation since neither of you'll wish to slip up first.

Use this to your benefit and watch your success grow while your fitness improves and cigarettes become a thing of the past.

Technorati Tags: quit smoking programs, quit smoking success

hi hallettjames..

as a matter of fact,most states have a quit line.. phone 1-800-QUIT NOW the often have counselors, as well as free aids.. if your state is not among those participating, try your local health department, good luck there is simply no wrong way to quit..

also there is free suppport online with daily meetings available..

the good news is that i now have been quit for over 5 years.. i quit trying to quit alone, and joined a support group.. i attend nicotine anonymous meetings both locally and on line.. on line voice meetings are he as close as your computer, and you can attend while still smoking, before actually attempting a quit.. however you decide to quit good luck, there is simply no wrong way to quit!!

Nicotine Anonymous is a Non-Profit 12 Step Fellowship of men and women helping each other live nicotine-free lives. Nicotine Anonymous welcomes all those seeking freedom from nicotine addiction, including those using cessation programs and nicotine withdrawal aids. The primary purpose of Nicotine Anonymous is to help all those who would like to cease using tobacco and nicotine products in any form. The Fellowship offers group support and recovery using the 12 Steps as adapted from Alcoholics Anonymous to achieve abstinence from nicotine.

All I seem to hear about is why people should pack up smoking. Well if that is the case, why do the Government not make all Quit Smoking Aids FREE from Pharmacies. Junkies can get Needles Free, Why Not Patches/Gum for Smokers.
I Live in London, Uk
To TOECEE where do you Live??? Not Free at my Doctors I asked.

I was a smoker, started when I was 11- and married at 16, the moment the DR said I was preggers, as I walked out of the DR office, I dump my cigaretts in the garbage can!
stay quit foir nine months.... all on my own, it is a mind thing, anything you set your mind to do, you can do it.
I will admit though some things are more difficult for some others, like I cant seem to loose weight for the life of me! but I drop them smokes like a hot potato!
I want to add, I would goi back to smoking each time I had my baby- (had 3 of them) and when my baby daughter was 2- she picked up a pencil and was pretending to smoke- I said right then NO MORE.
That has been almost 17 years ago.
and I have not had a single smoke.

Nicotine supplements like gum and patches are not helpful when taking Chantix, which attaches to the nicotine receptors in the brain. The medication essentially tricks the brain into thinking you already have the nicotine in your system, which decreases the craving for smoking. So nicotine supplements generally won't make a difference in how you feel and could cause some nausea. Most of my patients that have taken Chantix are able to quit after about 1 week and most are successful in quitting completely if they take it for the recommended 6 months. Good luck.

Have you personally quit smoking cigarettes or known someone who has? If so, what if any quit smoking aids did they use to help them and in what manner were they used? I want to try my 4th attempt at quiting smoking and all input and advice would be greatly appreciated.

I had tried to quit smoking for about 5 years or so. The patches worked, but only for a few days or so. The only thing that ever worked for me was the new pill Chantix. It works by turning off the nicotine receptors in the brain. I didn't even have the cravings for a cigarrete. The only thing that gave me trouble was the habbit of the motion of smoking. What helped me with that was suckers. Good luck. By the way, these pills are not covered by most insurance and costed me about $130 a month.