How I Quit Smoking and What Tools I Used

I was fifteen when I started to smoke. My friends smoked and my parents smoked so it was inevitable that I should smoke. I found out that I enjoyed smoking and that it relaxed me. In college smoking was the in thing to do in the 1980s so I smoked and when I was in the work force I found out that it also relieved stress. But I also worried about the effects of smoking on my health especially during my late twenties. What effect was this having on my family and friends who did not smoke and finally what effect it was having on my children. This came up when my children started to ask why daddy was going outside all the time. 

The crunch time came when I was informed at the age of 40 that I had type 2 diabetes and that it would improve my chances of living longer. I made up my mind to quit then. But it took me at least a year and a half to finally do it. I tried to quit several times but gave in to temptation or to stress. So I went to talk to my doctor, imagine that, for help. 

He suggested taking Welbutrin and Commit gum or lozenges. He knew how much I smoked and why so he wrote me a prescription for Welbutrin which eases the tension and emotional state when trying to quit. I bought the lozenges at Wal-Mart. I started to take the Welbutrin once a day for a month and I started sucking on lozenges at least eight times a day. Now with the lozenges you have to spit the residue and not swallow since it will upset your stomach and it does contain up to 4 mg of nicotine. 

The first month was pretty rough but I was determined so I kept busy by working more and going to the gym. I also started coin collecting which took my mind off of the smoking. It is wise to stay out of situations which may encourage smoking like going to bars or clubs or drinking. As I went on not smoking I felt better and I did not come down with my normal once a month cold and I felt healthier. I did gain some weight at first and it was twenty pounds exactly but going to the gym helped me to start losing the excess weight.