Do you regret giving up a vice?

Almost 19 years ago, I gave up smoking. I honestly enjoyed smoking....everything about it. I loved opening the pack of fresh cigarettes and taking that cigarette out of the pack. Loved tapping it down and lighting it. And that first inhale. OMG, especially the first one of the day. It was the first thing I did in the morning and the last thing I did at night. And I'd get up once or twice during the night just to have a smoke.

And even after 19 years? I miss smoking. God, I miss smoking. Even now. There are days when I would kill for even one cigarette. The only reason I don't smoke that one cigarette is because one wouldn't be enough. Quitting is the hardest thing I think I ever did and I'd go back in a heartbeat. I can't afford to smoke, financially or physically, but man, there are some days when it's all I can do....even now....not to go out and buy a pack of cigarettes.

This morning, for some reason, it really hit me. That urge. Even now. I know how bad they are, I know how smelly they are, I know, I know, I know. But man.................

Is there anything that you've given up that you really miss doing?

(Now if I could just quit eating)

I miss smoking, too. I was not a heavy smoker, more social. Averaged maybe three a day, but way more if I went out with friends. I enjoyed the act as well. Not so much opening the box or packing it, but lighting it, the first puff, the smoke. I liked playing with the smoke. And playing with the ash. I was one of those who'd constantly be spinning the cherry in the tray and tapping. 

But I kept getting sore throats and I absolutely hated the smell. Did nothing good for my teeth. Started to get the yellow fang tooth, from my preferred inhale spot. And they got so expensive. I didn't like the cheap stuff. Tasted horrible. I smoked Marlboro Smooths. They were peppermint flavored menthols. Strength of the Reds. I sometimes miss it, but then I just think of the health risks and I'm good.

I definitely would miss smoking; instead of giving it up (which I tried to do many times, always unsuccessfully), I've been vaping (using an e-cigarette) for four years now. Although it took me several months to find just the right combination of device and nicotine-containing liquid, it's an excellent substitute. I gave up soda (Diet Coke) and alcohol a little over five years ago and have never even thought much about it, so no, I don't miss them.

I got my BF to switch to an e-cig after I quit, because the idea of him quitting seemed impossible. It was supposed to be a mechanism by which he would gradually cut back. Instead, he's getting WAY more nicotine than he did with regular cigarettes and is hopelessly addicted. He never puts anything in the same place twice, so he misplaces it with fair regularity, and he goes into a fit. If it breaks or he runs out of liquid (because he never orders more in time), then it's the same thing. He's in a fit and has to go buy "analogs" as he calls regular cigs now. 

At least it's not unhealthy, costs less, and he doesn't smell. But his level of annoying increased by a solid notch. 

Oh, how your post spoke to me! lt's "only" been 6 years for me and l still crave cigarettes. The worst is some mornings l still wake up and forget that l'm a non-smoker. The PAIN that l experience when l realize l can't have one is similar to grief (not to diminish grief, but the feeling is so similar).

Winchester said:

 
Almost 19 years ago, I gave up smoking. I honestly enjoyed smoking....everything about it. I loved opening the pack of fresh cigarettes and taking that cigarette out of the pack. Loved tapping it down and lighting it. And that first inhale. OMG, especially the first one of the day. It was the first thing I did in the morning and the last thing I did at night. And I'd get up once or twice during the night just to have a smoke.

And even after 19 years? I miss smoking. God, I miss smoking. Even now. There are days when I would kill for even one cigarette. The only reason I don't smoke that one cigarette is because one wouldn't be enough. Quitting is the hardest thing I think I ever did and I'd go back in a heartbeat. I can't afford to smoke, financially or physically, but man, there are some days when it's all I can do....even now....not to go out and buy a pack of cigarettes.

This morning, for some reason, it really hit me. That urge. Even now. I know how bad they are, I know how smelly they are, I know, I know, I know. But man.................

Is there anything that you've given up that you really miss doing?

(Now if I could just quit eating)

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Wow, this could have been written by hubby!  He quit two years ago--he's had three back surgeries and the surgeon told him that part of the reason his spine was so degenerated is his 40 year smoking habit.  So he quit the day of his first surgery.  But he says exactly  the same thing--he sure misses smoking.  

I guess I'm one who doesn't miss smoking at all.  I quit 24 years ago and of course missed it at first but now I can't stand to be around a smoker.  They actually stink, I never realized it until I quit.  Thank goodness restaurants no longer allow smoking.  No one is allowed to smoke in my home or car, the smell actually makes me sick. 

LaRussa said:

I guess I'm one who doesn't miss smoking at all.  I quit 24 years ago and of course missed it at first but now I can't stand to be around a smoker.  They actually stink, I never realized it until I quit.  Thank goodness restaurants no longer allow smoking.  No one is allowed to smoke in my home or car, the smell actually makes me sick. 

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I agree with all of this. I quit smoking in 1978 and never looked back.

LaRussa said:

 
I guess I'm one who doesn't miss smoking at all.  I quit 24 years ago and of course missed it at first but now I can't stand to be around a smoker.  They actually stink, I never realized it until I quit.  Thank goodness restaurants no longer allow smoking.  No one is allowed to smoke in my home or car, the smell actually makes me sick. 

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I quit smoking about four years ago, and I look at smokers differently now. It seems so... uncool. Very much the opposite as it was portrayed in previous decades, and as it seemed when I was a teen. I don't know if it's just my perception or not, but I'm inclined to think it's more of a cultural shift with legislative changes, the anti-smoking campaigns, and the updated knowledge of the health risks. Smoking is just such a waste.

But yea, I agree with you on the smell. I never allowed smoking in my house even when I did smoke. Always outside. And I am really uncomfortable in homes with smokers. My BIL chain smokes, so when I visit my sister, it's an assault on my senses and I invariably leave with a sore throat. 

I still smoke. It is the one thing I have not given up and have never even tried to do. This might sound horrible, but I miss getting high. I have been clean for almost 6 years and I know intellectually that if I do it just once more, I will most likely start up again full time. It has happened in the past.

Some days are worse than others. I have very vivid and intense dreams where I wake up and feel high. It has made me cry because I miss it so much. I wish it were possible to do safely every once in a while, with no health effects, danger or getting sick. But I know better. I was an iv drug user (cocaine and heroin) and the sickest part is the needle obsession. In rehab, they told me this happens because there is so much ritual involved in the process of shooting up and these rituals are preformed several times a day, so it is not uncommon to feel this way. It makes sense, but part of me feels like it is very sick and not normal, in any context. I knew a girl who injected water to satisfy the needle urge and I did it, too, when I first got clean. I try to not dwell on it, because guilt is one of the quickest things to drive someone back to using, but it does bother me. I had to run to the bathroom and throw up when we watched Pulp Fiction a few months ago. And I cried.

I am not in danger of relapsing (no money, it is part of the reason I do not work) and I certainly don't regret getting clean, I just understand exactly what you mean, Winchester. Better than most.

I still cannot believe that I lived that life. Sometimes, it seems like a movie I saw long ago and not real. I rarely talk about it because it is not my life anymore.

I could have written your post as well, Winchester. Every now and then I slip up, but I still just plug along and try not to dwell on it. If I dwell on it, I'll go back to it full time.

LaraLove said:

I got my BF to switch to an e-cig after I quit, because the idea of him quitting seemed impossible. It was supposed to be a mechanism by which he would gradually cut back. Instead, he's getting WAY more nicotine than he did with regular cigarettes and is hopelessly addicted. He never puts anything in the same place twice, so he misplaces it with fair regularity, and he goes into a fit. If it breaks or he runs out of liquid (because he never orders more in time), then it's the same thing. He's in a fit and has to go buy "analogs" as he calls regular cigs now. 

At least it's not unhealthy, costs less, and he doesn't smell. But his level of annoying increased by a solid notch. 

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The nicotine from e-cigarettes isn't absorbed as quickly or as efficiently as that from "analogs". If he's constantly using the e-cig, i.e., "chain vaping", he may not be using a high enough dosage, or his e-cig is hopelessly inefficient - is he using the kind that looks like a cigarette? A lot of people need to use 24 or 36 mg. liquid initially and cut back later. He can get "hardware" advice at http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com It really is advisable to have a couple of spares around and a good stock of liquid to prevent relapses.

jcat said:

The nicotine from e-cigarettes isn't absorbed as quickly or as efficiently as that from "analogs". If he's constantly using the e-cig, i.e., "chain vaping", he may not be using a high enough dosage, or his e-cig is hopelessly inefficient - is he using the kind that looks like a cigarette? A lot of people need to use 24 or 36 mg. liquid initially and cut back later. He can get "hardware" advice at http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com It really is advisable to have a couple of spares around and a good stock of liquid to prevent relapses.

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He doesn't chain vape. He uses the highest level of nicotine I think is available: 48mg. It's the equivalent of an unfiltered cigarette. And his device looks like a power tool. It's chrome handle is wider than a cigar, but then the part he puts in his mouth is black and thin like a cigarette. 

I tried taking a hit from it a couple of years ago. It was like getting punched in the throat with a hot fist.

But yea, he should have a spare, but he paid like $200 for that one. He'd used cheaper ones before and didn't like them. Of course, a cheap backup would be better than a pack of cigs! Something to suggest to him.

He sounds like a hardcore vaper, then. :lol3: Back-ups are really important, though. When you figure the price of "analogs", even a second "mod" at $200 isn't outrageous. I have a whole collection of mods and atomizers (the part that you put in your mouth) around the house and a freezer drawer full of liquid.

I know he has spare atomizers and two sets of batteries. His problem is he drops it. A lot. And forgets to buy liquid. There's really no excuse for that.

I was a consistent smoker for 32 years, varied from one to two packs a day, but other than a few half-hearted attempts to quit, I smoked every day of those 32 years. Like you, Winchester, I enjoyed everything about smoking. One day I found myself with bronchitis, a sinus infection and (this is the part that you will all relate to) an awful, persistent case of RING WORM! I battled all of the above for over a month, still smoking every chance I got! Craziness. Anyway, that perfect storm finally made me put cigarettes down forever. For years after I quit I used to have dreams too, Happybird, but my dreams were like nightmares that I started smoking again. Giving up smoking was so, so hard, I don't ever want to have to do it again. That fear keeps me from even desiring a cigarette because I know, even after all this time, I'm only one puff away from full-blown addiction again. I definitely do not regret giving them up, I just wish I had had the desire, sense, and willpower to do it sooner. 

No, I don't regret giving up my vices.

Since this thread seems to be mostly about smoking, I quit in 1990 and don't regret it at all.  Once or twice a year I get a craving for a cigarette still, but I know that the craving will go away, so I distract myself to get my mind off of it. I know I'm one cigarette away from being a pack-a-day smoker again, so I know I have to resist that rare craving. I guess it's just like being an alcoholic.