I'm trying to quit...again. I'm on Chantix and it's helping, I've done other things that have me terrified at the moment but I just can't give up the urge to go and buy a pack.

If you are a former smoker, how did you quit? How did you deal with the cravings? What did you do with your hands? How did you get your mind off of smoking? How are you now?

I quit on Super Bowl Sunday, 1985. I had a horrible sore throat and it hurt to swallow, much less smoke. I thought, I wonder how long I can stay off cigarettes? The answer is 29 years and counting. It wasn't easy when the sore throat cleared up. Habits were hard to break. Everything I did with a cigarette in my hand had to be relearned. This was back in the day when you could still smoke at your desk at work. Driving, out to dinner, out to a bar, watching tv, you name it. It hits you like a ton of bricks how often you reach for a cigarette. Mine was cold turkey from about two packs a day at age 23. I started in high school. My high school actually had a smoking lounge for students. I had never really tried to cut back or quit before then, but I was getting winded on stairs, etc., and it wasn't all from my weight. Once I quit, it only took a few weeks to begin to see the benefits. My sense of smell came back, things tasted better. I don't recall a big weight gain, but I was already obese. I had dreams occasionally for years that I had sneaked a cigarette. I'd wake up sweating. One thing I know is that quitting cigarettes was a cakewalk compared to quitting overeating. I've done both in my life and the food was much harder. I'm proud of being smoke free and now on a journey to healthy weight as well. You can do it. Think of the years added to your life the moment you quit. You will have a cleaner car, a cleaner home, your coat won't smell. If you can change your eating, you can do this. Good luck.

I used the Patches. When I started, I was putting them on every few hours. When I got the urge, I would go for a walk instead of going out to the smoking area. It helped.

As time progressed, the time between new patches increased and instead of buying the smaller ones, I kept buying the bigger ones and cutting them with a scissors being careful to leave the protective liner on and not touch the "sticky" part. It was a struggle, but I was able to beat it.

I quit on November 21, 2001. I became a full fledged smoker when I was 18 and away at college. I smoked around a pack a day, give or take, until I was 25 when I got a sore throat and laryngitis. I quit for around 2 years, but started back up right before I turned 28, and smoked a lot until I was 31. I quit for a bunch of reasons. I always told myself that I didn't want to still be smoking when I turned 30. I had started to really feel the effects in my chest, and I was sick of waking up in the morning and feeling like crap. I decided to quit, and of course, smoked the last one in my pack and never bought another pack.

I wasn't physically addicted. I wasn't the kind of smoker that craved one first thing in the morning. I smoked a lot at night after work, and when I was out drinking with friends. I mostly gave up drinking after I turned 30. It took another year to give up my cigarettes. I associated smoking with fun and good times, and being young. I had to get my mind to disassociate smoking with those memories. I had tried quitting several times before, but it finally stuck because I was 100% ready. I also stopped hanging out with smokers. That made it a lot easier. I wasn't tempted by others. My boyfriend, at the time, was also a non smoker. The only bad thing that happened was that I gained around 20 pounds. Smoking curbed my appetite. You have the lap band, so you should be fine!

Good luck! I know it isn't easy. Chew lots of gum. Think of how healthy you will be, and how much better you will feel...and smell. Smokers smell gross!

I cannot say that I am a former smoker. Sincerely I have smoked hardly 9-10 cigarette only. That too, about a year ago. I thought that smoking was kind off cool, but I really cannot stand it. Smoking is bad. It might seem okay, but when you take that in your fingers and when the smoke goes down in your body, all it do is harm.

Fair Warning, this is a long post. But, it's worth the read.

The September before I had my band (band was in June 2013), my wife and I were...ya know ...when suddenly my head started pounding so hard that my 18 years of medical experience started screaming "Thar she blows!" (that's referring to a blood vessel, y'all). Needless to say, I was done for the night. I'm a seasoned firefighter, and I've NEVER been more scared than I was that night. EVER

Afterwards, I was standing out on the back deck, stressed out, and....smoking a cigarette. I looked down at it, said out loud "You're a f**king idiot", and pitched it into the grass. That was the last one I had. I dumped the rest into the toilet. I thought about my wife, my two little boys, my two not so little daughters, and cried. My blood pressure was through the roof, and I knew why. The next day, I stopped by the fire station and had one of my buddies check my pressure. 186/106, 40 years old.

By the end of the day, I was taking blood pressure medicine. I started looking for anything I could to help me quit, that wasn't the patch, or gum, or eCig. It never made sense to me to use nicotine to quit my nicotine addiction. I stumbled upon Allen Carr's Easy Way to Quit Smoking. http://www.allencarr.com I bought the audiobook and listened to it everywhere I drove. This guy was a 4+ pack a day smoker and quit cold. I won't dive into his methodology, but can tell you that between his book, and me keeping my family in my thoughts, it worked.

The true test came one week later. If you know anything about firefighters, you know we are a tight knit brotherhood. One of my Fire Captains died in the line of duty. In picture #2, that's me on the left. I'm in the honor guard, and had to stand at attention next to his casket, while his 11 year old son, Nicolas, wailed. Easily one of the worst days of my life. I wanted a cigarette SO BAD. But, I decided that I can't willingly do that to my family. I had to be strong for myself and my family. I am now a non-smoker.

9 months later, I had lapband surgery so that I can take care of the other problem that will surely shorten my life. 2 months after I had the band, I stopped taking blood pressure medicine. I no longer need it. Sometimes it just takes a life changing experience to put a foot in your a$$. If my experience helps you or anyone else, then glory be. But, you have to take inventory of what or who is important to you, and YOU make a conscious decision. Don't quit because someone wants you to, do it for yourself, or it will never happen. I don't judge anyone for using Chantix, Nicorette, etc. But, I personally do not believe in them. Not anymore. Go buy Allen Carr's book. He recommends that you read through his book completely before putting down the cigarettes. I had already stopped. But, every time I felt a craving, I had the audio book on my phone, and I hit play. He got me through it. Good luck.

Anyone who needs some encouragement or wants more info on how I got through it, you're welcome to PM me.