How to Kick Nicotine

You want to stop using tobacco. Good! You can do it. It will be hard for a while but after you get through it, know that you won't crave it. You will be very glad to quit.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Time off work
• Support from friends

1. 
   Lay around, watch TV, go out, exercise... anything to keep your mind off nicotine.

   Set aside 2 or 3 days in a row where you are not working or going to school. These days off are essential when you try to kick nicotine. You need to be able to not work, not go to school, not have to do anything at all (unless you want to). You need to be free to lay on the couch and watch TV if needed, or go out and watch a movie, or just grit your teeth... anything to get through the cravings and finally kick nicotine.
   
   Note: Do NOT drink alcohol/beer during this time. Your cravings will be amplified and your judgement impaired. You WILL smoke if you drink alcohol.

2. 
   You will feel tense, stressed, time will go by slowly, and you will want to smoke.

   You need to avoid all tobacco use when you want to kick nicotine. This means avoid friends, family, and situations that you would normally smoke/chew around. Use this time to take a break and get grounded. You are going to feel tense, angry, want tobacco, and your toes are going to twitch, your teeth and fists are going to clench. Ignore it. Get through it, the physical withdrawal is over relatively soon when you attempt to kick nictone.
   
   DO NOT DRINK ALCOHOL. YOU WILL USE TOBACCO.

3. 

   Remind yourself that you just need to make it through the first few days and you are finally going to kick nicotine. Time is going to go by VERY slowly. The first 2 days you kick nicotine are going to seem like an eternity. Nicotine withdrawal makes time slow down. It's a common effect called "Time Dilation". These 2 days are going to seem like FOREVER. YOU MUST MAKE IT THROUGH THIS PHASE.
   
   Do not make any excuses for why you need to smoke or dip. Just lay on the couch, eat food, watch TV, play games, listen to music, do ANYTHING... just relax and get through it. You will get through it. Just don't smoke or dip. You must not use any nicotine to get over the physical withdrawal and finally kick nicotine dependence.
   
   DO NOT DRINK ALCOHOL. STILL TOO SOON. YOU WILL CAVE TO YOUR CRAVING.
   
   YOU WILL GET THROUGH IT... KEEP GOING.

4. After the 2nd day time will begin to seem pretty normal again. You will be able to get through the day without giving in to your craving. You WILL still crave tobacco... but it will be manageable. You will be able to ignore it. The next 4 days or so the craving will diminish as you live without nicotine/tobacco in your day.
   
   Nictone products will still sound very good... DO NOT DRINK ALCOHOL. DO NOT USE TOBACCO THINKING YOU ARE THROUGH IT. YOU ARE NOT DONE WITH IT.
   
   Again, do not make any excuses why it's ok to have "just one cigarette." You will immediately be re-addicted and have to start all over. To kick nicotine you can't use nicotine.

5. Be ready. About a week out from your first day kicking nicotine, you will experience EXTREME cravings. Your mouth will drool for nicotine. These cravings will appear out of nowhere. They will seem irresistable. Be ready for them. Have people around who are able to distract you, guide you. Make it through the cravings. These cravings mark the real death of your habit. You have to fight. The cravings will be strong. You will try to make excuses and have "just one puff." This is the last real hard battle as you kick nicotine.
   
   Stay strong.

6. 
   Alcohol triggers cravings. Add it back into your life carefully.

   If you have been able to kick nicotine for a week and have made it through without using any nictone, very good. The odds of success just went up.
   
   You can begin to re-introduce alcohol back into your life at this point. A word of caution: The first few times you drink will trigger powerful cravings for nicotine.
   
   Drinking alcohol will always trigger small nicotine cravings. But as time passes they become weaker and weaker. Eventually you will not notice them.

7. Always be ready for cravings. Even months out from when you first kicked nicotine. Situations can trigger a craving.
   
   Always know that using any tobacco will re-addict you in an instant. DO NOT EVER smoke one cigarette or dip thinking you will be ok or "quit tomorrow". You will crave again just like you did before you quit. Any nicotine consumed means you have to start from scratch... 3 days of slow-time, cravings, tension, gritted teeth and all that fun.

8. Remember what you went through to kick the nicotine. Remember the pain, tension, and slow time. Remember it well...
   
   Because when you want to smoke again, you have to realize you will have to go through it all AGAIN if you take even one drag from that cigarette or mouthful of chew.
   
   It's not worth it.

Tips & Warnings

• 2-3 days of no work/school is very recommended. The first 2-3 days are hard due to time-dilation effects of nicotine withdrawal. Longest 2-3 days you will ever live.
• Be around non-smokers during this time.
• Alcohol will trigger very strong cravings. Avoid it as long as possible. When you consume alcohol the first dozen times make sure you don't have tobacco available.
• Try to avoid being around people who are smoking while you kick nicotine.

[botticelli728]

on 10/11/2009 No-nonsense, tough love approach to a serious problem. 5*