Stopping Smoking After 37 Years

I smoked for 37 years from the age of nine. I have tried to quit many times but can say now in hindsight that I never really tried, I just pretended to myself that I was trying. Some times I stopped smoking and had a cigarette less than an hour later but made up an excuse and continued to "try" stopping. I never actually admitted to failing until I was back on my usual 20 or 30 a day.

In January I decided to give it a go again but this time I went to a stop smoking group. This will not work for all people but it did for me so I am happy. Somebody at the group came out with the idea that everyone at the group should get into their heads that the minute you have 1 cigarette then you have failed. I am a naturally competitive person and this really worked in gettting me motivated. I did not want to be the one that failed.

In the group we were given help with products and I chose to use patches and lozenges. I used the patches for 6 weeks and the lozenges for about 12 but do not use either now. There seems to be this perception amongst internet posters that if you use stop smoking products then you didn't do it properly and its far better to stop "cold turkey" Personally I think it's the result that counts not how you get there.

I have now gone almost 8 months without a cigarette and still get the cravings now and again. But I just keep saying to myself "if you have 1 cigarette you have failed".