Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community - View Single Post - I QUIT! The quitting smoking support thread.

Pacem · 08-19-2011, 02:03 PM

A big congrats to all the non smoking milestones!

Its been just over a year for me.

I feel alot better. My blood pressure is lower. I can breathe. Still got to lose some weight and i'd feel any better, but thats another problem lol.

I know i'll never smoke again. The only time I was worried, was when I went to Vegas back in March. The smoking bothered me more then anything. Waking up hung over and then walking into a smoke filled Casino sucked balls. It was so easy to not smoke while in Vegas.

Not sure if its been mentioned in this thread, but starting in September the BC government is going to be giving out nicotine patches. What are your guys thoughts on a program like that?

I'm a former smoker and I used the patch unsuccessfully at least 4 different times. The first time I used it, I used the strongest one cause I smoked 10 -15 cigs a day and it said if you smoke more then 10 this is the step for you. After that time I got up to minimum 1 pack a day, and stayed at that level for the remainder of my smoking life. Not going to say that the nicotine patch made me crave nicotine more and then increased how much I smoked, but it was wierd.

I personally think the program is ######ed, and a complete waste of money. The nicotine patches are cheaper then smokes, so if someone truly wants to quit smoking they could just buy the patches and save themselves the money. Thats one of the biggest hurdles for me to wrap my head around. The patch is cheaper then actually smoking. So if someone is a smoker, why are we paying for them to buy the patch? They can spend their cigarette money and buy the cheaper patch.

I also have a tough time understanding why the government is going to spend money on something that has such a low success rate. Its hard to find an exact figure, but those in favour of nicotine replacement therapy say its near 30% success rate after 6 months and on the other end of the spectrum you have those saying less then 10%. I know how many times I tried the patch. I know the different things my friends did. I know how many things my dad and mom tried. The success rate in just my circle of smokers that I know is significantly less then 10%. My dad has done everything but acupuncture, cause he don't like needles. Did the laser, got hypnotised, took a couple different prescriptions, did the gum, the patch, and who knows what else. I got him to read the book and he's been going strong for 8 months now.

Im pretty biased, and dislike the patch very much. I understand the government is attempting to save money by stopping people from smoking. I just feel they are directing their funds to the wrong program. This is the province that hands out free needles and crack pipes tho so why not nicotine.

Am I being stupid? Is it a good program?

08-19-2011, 02:03 PM	#273
Pacem Scoring Winger Join Date: Jun 2009 Exp:	A big congrats to all the non smoking milestones! Its been just over a year for me. I feel alot better. My blood pressure is lower. I can breathe. Still got to lose some weight and i'd feel any better, but thats another problem lol. I know i'll never smoke again. The only time I was worried, was when I went to Vegas back in March. The smoking bothered me more then anything. Waking up hung over and then walking into a smoke filled Casino sucked balls. It was so easy to not smoke while in Vegas. Not sure if its been mentioned in this thread, but starting in September the BC government is going to be giving out nicotine patches. What are your guys thoughts on a program like that? I'm a former smoker and I used the patch unsuccessfully at least 4 different times. The first time I used it, I used the strongest one cause I smoked 10 -15 cigs a day and it said if you smoke more then 10 this is the step for you. After that time I got up to minimum 1 pack a day, and stayed at that level for the remainder of my smoking life. Not going to say that the nicotine patch made me crave nicotine more and then increased how much I smoked, but it was wierd. I personally think the program is ######ed, and a complete waste of money. The nicotine patches are cheaper then smokes, so if someone truly wants to quit smoking they could just buy the patches and save themselves the money. Thats one of the biggest hurdles for me to wrap my head around. The patch is cheaper then actually smoking. So if someone is a smoker, why are we paying for them to buy the patch? They can spend their cigarette money and buy the cheaper patch. I also have a tough time understanding why the government is going to spend money on something that has such a low success rate. Its hard to find an exact figure, but those in favour of nicotine replacement therapy say its near 30% success rate after 6 months and on the other end of the spectrum you have those saying less then 10%. I know how many times I tried the patch. I know the different things my friends did. I know how many things my dad and mom tried. The success rate in just my circle of smokers that I know is significantly less then 10%. My dad has done everything but acupuncture, cause he don't like needles. Did the laser, got hypnotised, took a couple different prescriptions, did the gum, the patch, and who knows what else. I got him to read the book and he's been going strong for 8 months now. Im pretty biased, and dislike the patch very much. I understand the government is attempting to save money by stopping people from smoking. I just feel they are directing their funds to the wrong program. This is the province that hands out free needles and crack pipes tho so why not nicotine. Am I being stupid? Is it a good program?