hey, my mom is wanting to quit smoking and i was just wondering if the patch or that chewing gum actually worked? thanks! *********************************************** 03-26-03, 07:39 AM Sherasi SourCherry, sometimes these things work, sometimes they don't. It is really dependent on how addicted the person is, how much they want to quit and the way that they go about quitting. I wish her good luck.. it is a hard road she is about to take.
03-26-03, 08:28 AM twinhearts I quit by using the patch. It was still very hard. You have to be determined to quit. I have tried to quit cold turkey and using the gum but neither worked. When I started on the patch, I was determined to quit for good. I didn't like the effect smoking had on my body. That and a week before, one of my sons took a butt out of the can(I only smoked outside and put the butts in a coffee can) and put it to his lips and said, look mom just like you. He said he couldn't wait until he was old enough to smoke just like me. That did it. I set a quit date, got the patches, and followed through. I wish your mom luck! It's hard but not impossible!
Twinhearts
03-26-03, 10:03 AM Elexina Quitting any addiction is very very difficult and what works best depends on each person, their body chemistry, the level of their addiction, and so forth. Some people can enjoy their last cigarette, put them down and be done with them. For others, it's not so easy. For some, the patch works better and for others it's the gum. When my father quit, he tried the gum for a while but said it tasted so godawful he couldn't deal with it. That, and it was so hard to get it out of the package that he practically needed a cigarette for the stress of unwrapping a piece of gum! He had more success with the patch. From the commercials, I would recommend the 'step down' patch, whichever that one is. You know, 'the power to calm, the power to comfort, the power to quit,' that one.
She might want to consider talking to her doctor. Chances are, he or she has had a lot of patients that have quit smoking, perhaps he could give her some pointers. Plus, there are websites and 800 numbers for support and advice.
Above all, though, she has to WANT to quit. Without the will to do it, she'll never really be successful at it. She has to have the determination to do it.
Tell your mother that I wish her the best of luck with this!
03-26-03, 03:20 PM honilov I wish your mom luck in trying to quit. The patch didn't help my husband quit. When he tried it, he also got really nervous. It was probably because he is such a heavy smoker. He smokes almost 3 packs a day. He never tried the gum.
03-28-03, 05:27 PM Sourcherry37 thanks everyone for the adivice, it really helped. Smile
03-28-03, 10:39 PM Johnny Velo I wonder if the people who make the cigarettes also make the gum and patch. Then they would get your money both ways. Now, I quit cold turkey after smoking 4 packs a day for 35 years. I had two days of mild discomfort. This was 14 years ago. Camels unfiltered, you know, the MACHO cigarrete. Now, my wife quit 6 years ago, but didn't really want to quit (so she told me). She got on the gum, really expensive, and stayed on the gum for 6 years. A month ago, she said, John, I'm getting off Nicorette. She went to bubble gum and is doing very well. So, there's no set answer to quitting. It all depends upon YOUR desire to quit. My opinion only. Good luck for your Mom.
03-30-03, 02:01 AM Wildflower63 No, not for long term. They are effective short term. They have the placebo effect. It's all in your head. You have to want to quit. Those are the only true success stories you will hear.
03-30-03, 02:15 PM Ewood27 I quit last year after nearly 50 years, smoking one pack a day. I had tried before using just patches, but failed because I missed the rasping sensation in my throat from inhaling.
This time I used stepdown patches to take care of my nicotine addiction, plus an inhalator (dummy cigarette with cartridges of mainly menthol) to give the throat rasp. It was easier than I feared, but still needed some willpower at times.
Sadly I lowered my guard after eight months and went back to smoking when something got up my nose. Now I'm ten days into doing it all again the same way - successfully so far.
Once she's a week or two into quitting she won't want to throw it all away, but at the same time one slip into having another cigarette is not necessarily total failure. I wish her every success.
When I quit last year it was through a group, some of whom used the gum. They didn't like it and switched to another method. They said it burned their mouths.
04-03-03, 01:44 PM aminator2002 I have tried nearly all the methods and don't like any of them. The gum gives me a sore throat. The patch causes me to get a heinous rash. Zyban pills make me feel depressed (ironic eh?).
As far as killing the craving they all worked fantastic, but I couldn't deal with the side effects. Zyban was really good because it made me not want to smoke at all. Same with the patch.
Right now I'm just trying to cut back so that when I quit a month from now it won't be quite as painful. I don't plan to use any of the crutches... cold turkey for me this time.
04-04-03, 02:15 AM Ewood27 Aminator, maybe you should try another make of patch. Others in my group had skin rashes but all but one found relief from changing brand. Here in UK we have Nicorette and Niquitin as the main manufacturers. It's the adhesive that can cause reactions. You can also use different areas of skin - back of shoulders, front, anywhere on trunk and upper arm that's not unsightly and where the patch is not held away from the skin by hair.
You also need the right patches. If your first action on waking is to light up, then you need 24-hour patches. If you would normally wait half an hour or more before the first cigarette, you need 16-hour patches which are removed before sleep. I found my sleep pattern suffering this time until I realised I was leaving a 16-hour patch on for 24 hours (last time around I was on 24-hour patches).
However you go about it, I wish you all success - and 'all' includes me!
04-07-03, 12:55 AM Tree See if this helps.. Quit Smoking
This message has been edited. Last edited by: DorianGreyed,
