I came "this" close

[TheFlyinJ]

I smoked my last cigarette at least a month and a half ago. Granted, I never smoked more than 3-4 in a day and I never regularly bought packs (I'd buy one, it would last a week or so, then I'd go weeks without buying a pack by just bumming one now and then). Since I stopped smoking any analogues I have not had any bad symptoms or nicotine widthdrawls. I regularly vape no nic but I have ordered a low strength flavor (8mg) to try. For the last 2-3 weeks, everyday I still think of buying a pack to "try" and see if I can keep a pack around just so I can have one now and then. I was down in the states yesterday/today and was excited to try an American brand (light or ultra light only) but when I saw the prices in NY (Marlboros at 9.90 + tax) I couldn't bring myself to buy the cigarettes. A combination of being too cheap, not wanting a whole pack, and the whole "I've come this far, why .... it up now" kept me from buying them. I looked at the cigarette packs on display at least 6 or 7 times over the 2 days and even went into the duty-free shop to check out the brands on my way across the border. Call me a fiend but I just had cigarettes on my mind this whole trip.

I managed to get out of the US without buying any cigarettes and am now back home in the land of equally expensive cigarettes (Ontario prices are about as high as those in NY).

I don't know why I am still interested in cigarettes after 1.5 months. It is the curiosity to try a new brand that keeps me thinking about them rather than "I want to smoke again". Cigs are disgusting and dangerous things and here I am thinking I'll treat them like a new beer I want to try

 

[FreakyStylie]

Urges can be tough, and it doesn't matter how much you used to smoke. There are a lot of other things in cigarettes that can addict you besides the nicotine, and I've done some research which showed that there are a lot of different things that can "trigger" you to want a cigarette. Heck, they put ammonia in cigarettes, and there was a member who posted that she would get really crabby when cleaning.

Keep focused on whatever goal you set, but also set realistic goals, otherwise you can stage your own demise. Being such a light smoker, your situation is particularly sticky because you didn't smoke just out of habit, you smoked when you wanted to, or felt you needed to. There are alcoholics who only drink on New Year's Eve, and they can't not drink then because they are compelled to by their, albeit only one day a year, addiction.

If your interest is only an interest, you might do well finding a small hobby that would redirect your mind onto other thoughts. Just a suggestion anyway . . . I had to reorganize my schedule a little when I first started vaping because I found that my life actually revolved around smoking. Breaking the chain helped me to break my addiction.

 

[Balcon Group]

You are probably still interested because they have been a staple part of your life. Like any habit that takes a period of time to develop, it also takes a good period to break the habit. Your interest will be there, but with self-will and determination, I know you can succeed. Keep chuggin!

 

[MrSmith99]

TheFlyinJ:
I smoked for thirty years and my lungs are probably as black as coal. I will most likely suffer some illness as result of my stupidity. I watched my grandfather die of throat cancer, and my poor father suffered for two years as he literally suffocated to death from emphysema. Both were heavy smokers.

The next time you want a cigarette I want you to picture this image in your mind:
A man is lying in a hospital bed. He is hooked up to an oxygen machine because his lungs no longer have the capacity to process enough air for him to breath. He is very skinny because without enough oxygen the body begins to wither away. Muscle cells usually die first because they need so much oxygen So the man is also very weak. With muscle loss also comes the inability to swallow. He has had a very hard time eating for a long time, so,now a feeding tube has been inserted into his stomach. It helps very little and he is still losing weight. Seeing that he is bedridden there are also the obligatory catheters and such to eliminate waste.
The doctors know they can't do much for him so they just keep him doped up on morphine. He is simply a shell of the man he used to be, just skin and bones, a living skeleton. His mind is still there, until the last day, but his lungs have failed and now the body is simply shutting down. Meanwhile, the family is gathered around him crying knowing that he doesn't have long to live.

Of course, that image isn't near as pretty as the image of the Marlborough Man riding his horse on the open range. But it goes with the product just as well.

 

[throatkick]

If I smoked that little I would probably have forgotten about them.

 

[stretchpants]

My sister smokes 1 before bed.Her Dr. has never told her to quit.But that one cig is as addictive as my 2 packs were and it can be just as difficult to get over.
I smoked for 44 years and I'm sure my lungs aren't pretty.I quit smoking the day I got my first e-cig and I haven't looked back. For me it's better than smoking ever was. I can now smoke (vape) chocolate.Talk about an incentive to quit.Who doesn't want to smoke chocolate?