Hi all, well 9 weeks into HRT I have finally plucked up the courage to try to give up smoking as I have read some pretty dire warnings on here and to be honest, I'm not all that keen on the whole 'sudden death' aspect!

Sooo, I have been to my local smoking clinic and they have prescribed me with patches (more patches yay!) and gum. Does the fact that I am still taking in large doses of nicotine carry the same deathy risks or is it something else to do with cigarrettes that cause you to keel over?

It won't be for very long as I'm on a supervised reduction programme and to be honest, I don't think that I have an earthly of just quitting cold turkey, but if it is very risky I may try to reduce more quickly than they are advising.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

I wish you the best of luck.  I have tried everything, including those self help books.  I am stuck as a smoker.

If the patches work, remember don't sneak a smoke.  You can get a heart attack.

Please dont quote me on this cos i could be wrong, but i'm pretty sure the patches are safer cos they haven't got all the toxins in that cigarettes have. I too have taken all the warnings to heart and stopped 24 hours ago but i'm on tablets that i have to take twice a day for the next 9 weeks. Good luck anyway

I quit a long term 2 pack a day habit using the patch.  LONG term, it is certainly safer because of no damage to lungs and fewer toxins.  But short term, I think the nicotine itself has an effect on your arteries and blood flow.  So, that can't be good, long term.   I was not on hormones when I quit and it took me quite a while.  Maybe a year on the patch and occasional gum, but I didn't smoke.  Watch your diet carefully.  I gained a lot of weight as I was a stress smoker, and became a stress eater.  I have lost 30 lbs from my heaviest, but still need 15-20 to go.  Stopping smoking was the hardest thing that I ever did,  here is wishing you luck and the determination to do it.

I wish I could use them

Well, two days (48 hours and 47minutes to be precise.  ) and I'm hanging in there!

Thanks for the advice folks.

P.S al james, I hope that you are doing okay, it's not easy is it?

quiting sucks i quit 11 years ago and still want one  good luck with it

I did it cold turkey (wasnt fun to be around) but the patches sound cool

Quiting DOES Suck...

I quit smoking cigarettes in February and lately I've been giving in to a puff here in there....

DO WHAT YOU CAN TO QUIT!!
I had a estradiol related heart attack in February because i was such a terrible chain smoker... I'm 20 :/.... it was pretty rough

Quote from: JocelynFreiky on August 28, 2010, 10:11:46 AM


I quit smoking cigarettes in February and lately I've been giving in to a puff here in there....

Nooo! Your story was one of my main reasons for stopping! You have far too much life in front of you to have serious heart problems. Keep strong and stay stopped

Take care    Millie xxx

I have tried everything to quit, and nothing has worked.  Gum, patches, lozenges, pills.  Even after having three strokes I can not quit. 

Quote from: JocelynFreiky on August 28, 2010, 10:11:46 AM
Quiting DOES Suck...

I quit smoking cigarettes in February and lately I've been giving in to a puff here in there....

DO WHAT YOU CAN TO QUIT!!
I had a estradiol related heart attack in February because i was such a terrible chain smoker... I'm 20 :/.... it was pretty rough

Quote from: Janet Lynn on August 28, 2010, 01:14:42 PM
I have tried everything to quit, and nothing has worked.  Gum, patches, lozenges, pills.  Even after having three strokes I can not quit. 

These 2 stories were all the reason I needed to finally start quitting.. I'm now down to about 6 a day..

Like most things with smoking, the risks really depend on how much you smoke and for how long. A pack or more a day for a number of years does significantly increase the risks of DVT. The documentation didn't have much to say about the risks to people who smoke dramatically less...i'd imagine they were lower, but still increased over not smoking. if you're finding it hard to quit altogether cutting back is always sensible as a first step.

Quote from: Dee_pntx on August 28, 2010, 01:07:32 PM
Then you have NOT quit smoking. 

You had a heart attack and your on HRT AND still smoking?  Deathwish..

I am not Smoking.
I went From 2 packs a day from since i was 15, to cold turkey in February Immediately after My Heart Attack
and the most i have had since February is maybe 3 or 4 puffs all this in July for Partying reasons

Quote from: MillieB on August 28, 2010, 01:01:52 PM
Nooo! Your story was one of my main reasons for stopping! You have far too much life in front of you to have serious heart problems. Keep strong and stay stopped

Take care    Millie xxx

.

Quote from: kelly_aus on August 28, 2010, 01:44:12 PM
These 2 stories were all the reason I needed to finally start quitting.. I'm now down to about 6 a day..

Do it Sistas!!!!!
Hang in there!!
There is no prejudice with the dangers of mixing smoking and HRT!!

I quit by way of "laser therapy," that was 115 days ago. I was smoking 2+ packs a day. the best thing I have ever done, after quitting drinking.

It's great to be able to sleep the whole night without waking up feeling like Im dying.

Any weight I have added has gone straight to my ass... Which in my case is a good thing.

Best of luck ladies and DONT LIGHT UP...NO MATTER WHAT!!

Mich'

Quote from: JocelynFreiky on August 28, 2010, 10:11:46 AM
Quiting DOES Suck...

I quit smoking cigarettes in February and lately I've been giving in to a puff here in there....

DO WHAT YOU CAN TO QUIT!!
I had a estradiol related heart attack in February because i was such a terrible chain smoker... I'm 20 :/.... it was pretty rough

you can only smoke because you have ->-bleeped-<-s close by,
fat people can't slim if they buy tons of junk food,
alcoholics can't dry out if they have liquor stashes,
don't buy the stuff thats bad for you.

Quote from: lilacwoman on August 30, 2010, 02:13:17 AM
you can only smoke because you have ->-bleeped-<-s close by,
fat people can't slim if they buy tons of junk food,
alcoholics can't dry out if they have liquor stashes,
don't buy the stuff thats bad for you.

Buying the cigarettes, alcohol, or other addictive substance is actually part of the addiction..

I Haven't
I Haven't bought a pack since Feb.
not even for someone else.
The 3 or 4 Puffs I have had since then were Just a quick "post-captain-morgan" taste
I Am not addicted by any means.

I'm not fully convinced that I ever was
because i had quit so easily and never craved
(Considering the Heart-Attack, Maybe thats just what it takes )

"laser". Question.....

It's cold laser. Uses acupuncture on face and hands. The idea is to fake the brain into releasing the dopamine equivalent of having had smoked a cig. These folks claim it stays with you for about three months... Bs it's more like three days.

But those three days where more than enough time to cover the major withdrawal period. That and some exercise, plenty of water and at times a good dose of willpower.

And a few moments here and there of, "God please remove the urge to kill this person!"

Best of luck to you 

I just added E to my HRT three weeks ago and decided that was a good day to quit smoking. It really does suck, I for sure still want to smoke but I know that's never going to go away. As soon as I accepted that the desire to smoke wasn't going to go away it felt easier to ignore it.


But you can do it!

Good luck to you too lilydev

I'm still not smoking, 4 months now yay! But I am still on the lowest dose of nicotine patches, boo!

I'll get there, I'm just a bit slow at everything.