Job Discussion Forums

beefer · Joined: 10 Feb 2006 Posts: 238 Location: java

i quit smoking 2 weeks ago. i used to smoke 1 pack a day and was a smoker for about 14 years. heres the point to this post..... since quitting, i have yet to experience any of the nasty side effects that are normally associated with the quitting process. i'm serious i have had no side effects at all. can anyone tell me if they have experienced the same thing? or am i jumping the gun here and should expect some heavy coughing/ hacking and headaches in the next few days / weeks to come. i was always told that the first 3- 4 days were the worst....but all my days were/ have been the same ..... nothing......yet?

ezekiel · Joined: 24 Oct 2005 Posts: 79 Location: Indonesia

Well done beefer good on you! I quit over a month ago but I didn't smoke nearly as many sticks as you did! I was down to about 5 a day when I stopped, so I probably wasn't going to get really bad coughing or the like anyway. But I had been smoking for 15 years and pro-actively in my teens and twenties (and not just tobacco!) so I was kind of dreading the nicotine withdrawal and the psychological struggle but it's been pretty easy so far, too!
That side all depends on your motivation of course..I bought a shed-load of expensive Nicorette gum in Malaysia about 2 years ago and it never helped (most of it is still in the boxes!) and now I've quit just like that! The arrival of my baby son has really helped me to WANT to stop, too!

I can smell and taste things much better, my body feels healthier and due to increased heart and lung function my intimate relationship with my wife is, let's say, 'more fulfilling' (not it's not a myth!)

check this out:
http://www.uams.edu/coph/Tobacco/GuidetoquittingSmoking.pdf
I find the section about "When smokers quit - what are the benefits over time" very encouraging.

I hope you don't get a bad cough and headache..don't let the symptoms change your mind, mate. They can't be worse than chewing, patching or spraying a load of nicotine & chemicals into your body (or worse than the long-term consequences of smoking).

Well done again!

beefer · Joined: 10 Feb 2006 Posts: 238 Location: java

Llamalicious · Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2007 3:09 am Post subject:

Quitter.

beefer · Joined: 10 Feb 2006 Posts: 238 Location: java

quadruped

Llamalicious · Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2007 5:30 am Post subject:

Well, walking on all fours as I do makes it difficult to smoke and do anything else at the same time. I think I deserve respect for not giving up.

Winners never quit, quitters never wi- hack hack haaaarrkkkhhh

Sorry, where was I?

mulutmubesar · Joined: 23 May 2007 Posts: 23 Location: Sri Lanka

[quote="beeferwhat you said here reminded me of a few things.

1. smell -- i haven't noticed if i smell things any better but i can say that the smells coming out of me are worse. just ask my wife. obviously, i think its amusing and hillarious that my gas could be so bad but i can honestly say it has gotten much worse...so bad that my wife is trying to get me to start smoking again.

2. taste -- yeah, this has been a strange thing to deal with. almost like learning what you can and can't eat all over again. i use to get everything "pedas"....can't do that anymore... i was actually starting to enjoy durian too........ not anymore

[/quote]

What youve said might be your own side effects. Strange though, you are still lucky for not experiencing the common symptoms. Aside from many quit smoking products, study guides, etc, still a lot of quitters suffer so much. Impaired sense of taste? maybe your taste buds are more sensitive now,and you cant take pedas or durians anymore. The long term effect would be weight gain, because you might have a sudden increase of appetite,especially for sugary foods. If you dont have this most hated problem by many( getting fat) then, you are lucky, indeed.

ezekiel · Joined: 24 Oct 2005 Posts: 79 Location: Indonesia

Yeah, mulutmubesar, good point..I've found I tend to snack more heartily which is pretty dangerous during the couple of hours in the office prior to lessons..with a good Mie place and supermarket on our block (and newly arrived Mega hamburger and hotdog stall, too!) we are not short of tasty treats for comfort eating..
Now, excuse me, while I eat this pie!

Llamalicious · Posted: Wed Jul 18, 2007 6:58 am Post subject:

ezekiel · Joined: 24 Oct 2005 Posts: 79 Location: Indonesia

Hahaha! nice one Llama! Laughing

ezekiel · Joined: 24 Oct 2005 Posts: 79 Location: Indonesia

speaking of 'aroused'..I checked out Llamas

Llama - A Ruminant, an even-toed animal that regurgitates and masticates its food after swallowing. The majority of ruminants have four nipples; they usually have sweat glands only on the muzzle and between the toes...ahh, sweet!

Llamalicious · Posted: Thu Jul 19, 2007 8:51 am Post subject:

@ Ezekiel

If you're that hot for it, you can listen to a llama's "orgle," the mating call referred to in my sig, here: http://www.llamapaedia.com/gifs/orgle.aiff

But I fear I am dragging this thread miles off-topic, so...

I was doing quite a good job of cutting down - my deal was that I wouldn't smoke during the day, then I moved to only smoking after dark on the weekend.

I was doing ok too. I'm not going to pretend I never broke my rules, but I was steadily decreasing my intake.

Then I changed job to a school affiliated with one of Indonesia's biggest cigarette manufacturers. Everyone smokes loads. Now I do too.

Pathetic, no?

ezekiel · Joined: 24 Oct 2005 Posts: 79 Location: Indonesia

Hello...after saying that I have not, coming up to 7 weeks, experienced a quit-smoking cough, the last few days have been a bit rough, especially after excercise and in the morning, and made worse by a bout of flu..it's all positive though and won't put me off..

What's worse is that I took a drive with my family to the kampung and on top of family members asking me if I had cigarettes and sending me to the shop to buy cigarettes for them, after lunch they all sat round and smoked them in front of me Smile

..I made a symbolic gesture of resolve by giving my precious Zippo lighter to my 'Pak Tua'; he was, of course delighted which me feel better (but I still wanted a Sampoerna!)

Roll on 2 months.

Salam

Llama, that sound is so wrong! And they do that when they're horny??!
Back on topic how (and why) is your school affiliated with a cigarette manufacturing company??

Llamalicious · Posted: Sun Jul 22, 2007 5:51 pm Post subject:

Well, any large company in Indonesia has to give a proportion of its earnings to "the greater good." (aka CSR)

Seeing as how my company does away with thousands of "customers" a year, we need to pretend to be responsible. This invovles training teachers and refurbishing schools, apparently.

Cynics would say it's just a transparent excuse to get our logo into schools. But I'm no cynic. No, siree Bob.