Costs More To Quit Smoking!

[sarah_ab]

So i can't use the nicotine patch because of my skin, and can't use the gum because of other disorders, so my dr. prescribed me the nicotrol inhaler. WHICH my insurance will not cover... even though I am medically unable to take the other smoking cessation products... so it will cost me $204 a month for the nicotrol inhaler or around $125 a month to just keep smoking!!!

Thats messed up!

I cannot quit cold turkey, the nicotine acts as an anti anxiety agent (NIH studies have shown nicotine is as if not more effective in controlling anxiety than many medications currently prescribed), and if i stop cold turkey i go from anxiety attacks to straight up panic attacks....

[ldatsea]

I used an E-cigarette and was nicotine free within 1 month...been nicotine free for almost two years now.... be careful with them as you can "overdose" and consciously ween your self down using less nicotine refills or cartridges ... for me with in 3 days i could not stand the smell of cigarettes or smoke a real cigarette...

the real trick is you MUST WANT to quit if you dont want to quit you wont....

oh yeah the cost of a E cig after the initial purchase was WAY cheaper than smoking real cigarettes, even tho the brand of E-cig i used said you MUST buy the their refill cartridges i was able to buy liquid nicotine online and refill the cartridges myself and that brought the price per "pack" to less than $0.25 ....

you would have to really check the brand you buy to see if you could do it,

[sarah_ab]

i guess my problem is nicotrol has actual studies done to back it up... 5 e cigarette companies have been sent warning letters by the FDA for false claims etc... and so since nicotrol has been approved and is available by prescription only.. NOT over the counter like the gums and patches.. WHY does my insurance not cover it!!!!!

thats whats so frustrating... and the e cigarette still goes into your lungs, the nicotrol inhaler is absorbed through your salivary glands like the gum.... you don't actually inhale anything into your lungs....

[Diaper273]

It's not that hard. I was up to a pack and half a day and quit cold turkey. At first it's torture, but ultimately your mind can destroy your addiction if you let it.

Even though smoking medication is expensive, in the long run, it will far outweigh the harm of paying for cigarettes and smoking them as well.

You can use the inhaler for a year and it will cost you 2000-3000 dollars. You can smoke for the rest of your life, and if we assumed you were 50, and you lived till 70, that means you will be 29760 dollars in debt.

[ldatsea]

its the same concept just more expensive..... you Inhale water vapor that contains nicotine... wow.... the REALLY bad stuff is the chemicals and vapors from the Burning tobacco and paper....

[Diaper273]

i guess my problem is nicotrol has actual studies done to back it up... 5 e cigarette companies have been sent warning letters by the FDA for false claims etc... and so since nicotrol has been approved and is available by prescription only.. NOT over the counter like the gums and patches.. WHY does my insurance not cover it!!!!!

thats whats so frustrating... and the e cigarette still goes into your lungs, the nicotrol inhaler is absorbed through your salivary glands like the gum.... you don't actually inhale anything into your lungs....

Your insurance won't pay for it because if you get healthier they lose money.

[sarah_ab]

but insurance will pay for other smoking cessation products its just mind boggling! lol...

I'm very glad quitting cold turkey was a piece of cake for you.... its not for me... nicotine has been shown to reduce anxiety and help control other anxiety related conditions and the fact that i have those conditions, so essentially i am going from taking a medication to not having any if i quit cold turkey means i won't just have cravings, but will have anxiety attacks and then full blown panic attacks which are crippling in nature and can last for hours....

so imagine you have controlled your illness through the use of say drinking orange juice 8 times a day... and then someone tells you "you cannot drink orange juice anymore" not only will u have to deal with the psychological addiction of drinking orange juice and all the rituals that are associated with that... because its not just stopping getting orange juice.. its the ritual of having it at certian times, of getting out the glass, and teh bottle, pouring the drink, putting it to your lips, swallowing, smacking your lips, then licking your lips, putting the glass down... then picking it up again... and doing this every morning, at your 9 30 break, directly after eating, at your 1 and 3 o clock breaks, at dinner and before bed... its not just about not getting the orange juice anymore.....

then imagine that without that orange juice all the symptoms of your illness come back.. pounding heart, sweating, blurry vision, shaky body, vomitting, crying, feeling like you are dying.... so now you are dealing with not only withdrawal from something you are physically addicted to, but psychological withdrawla from the ritual act and now all the awful symptoms of your illness.....

its not exacty a piece of cake for everyone... everyone's bodies react different to substances differently...

but my original intent was just say highlight how absurd it is that my insurance will pay for a multitide of smoking cessation products, but when i have documented medical conditions which prevent me form taking those, they won't cover the other kind!!!!!

[ldatsea]

the other benefit to using an E-Cig is there are Two addictions to smoking

1. of course is the nicotine addiction which is a very powerfull addiction

2. the Physical Act of smoking .. i.e holding a cig in your hand ,inhaling (the e cig mimics the feel of a drag on a real cigarettes fairly well ) all of which are given with a e-cig ( the gums and patches do not work for many people for this reason)

even after a year of being smoke free often while doing an activity ....i feel like i am missing something and i think about it and it turns out that i would usually Smoke during that activity.... its very strange.

[LILJIM]

At one time to cut down on my smoking; I bought the candy cigs & would puff on them instead. The act of smoking those did help. But I think they quit even making those. I may try candy canes.

[bbgirlmichelle]

i guess my problem is nicotrol has actual studies done to back it up... 5 e cigarette companies have been sent warning letters by the FDA for false claims etc... and so since nicotrol has been approved and is available by prescription only.. NOT over the counter like the gums and patches.. WHY does my insurance not cover it!!!!!

thats whats so frustrating... and the e cigarette still goes into your lungs, the nicotrol inhaler is absorbed through your salivary glands like the gum.... you don't actually inhale anything into your lungs....

Actually, there have been studies on electronic cigarettes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_cigarette#Health_New_Zealand_Ltd._study

The levels of TSNA's (the compounds that cause cancer in tobacco) were found to be at the same level as what was found in the nicotine patch, magnitudes lower than what is found in a cigarette.

After a lot of personal research, Daddy and I switched over from smoking to using ecigs 2 1/2 years ago and have been smokefree since. We still use nicotine in our ecigs, but we are getting a lot less of the other crap that you get from tobacco smoke. Switching was completely painless, it still feels like you're smoking, but without the horrible side effects like reduced lung capacity, wheezing, coughing...

It now costs us about $30/month for both of us to use ecigs, whereas regular cigs were costing us $600/month for a pack a day each and we feel so much healthier.

[Bettypooh]

Sarah, don't give up the effort

Nicotine is a drug and smoking is an addiction. And just like any drug/addiction how deeply it grips varies a lot from person to person. I have successfully quit smoking 3 times but went back. The first two times were pretty easy after the first few days, partly because I also smoked other stuff back then which gave my lungs something to keep them occupied When I was diagnosed with depression I had quit the da#n ciggies cold turkey two months before and that withdrawal was a large part of what brought on the depression episode which almost killed me. I was actually told by my medical team to start somking again I shouldn't have listened but it's too late for that now. Anything which reduces the amount of nicotine you take in is good for you so here's some tips from friends who managed to quit successfully

Delay your smoking- when you need a ciggie wait one more minute before lighting up. Next week wait two, then three etc. This works well when you are in an environment where you can smoke anytime you want. It's slow enough to reduce the withdrawal but it takes willpower.

Reduce your smoking- Count the ciggies you smoke each day then smoke one less per day. Make it one less per week of withdrawal becomes a problem. Make sure you leave enough to cover the 'important' smokes- the first and last ones and the one after meals. Those should be the last ones to go.

Replace your smoking- I used peppermint candies instead of ciggies when it was a 'habit ciggie' I craved instead of a nicotine dose. Yeah, I got hooked on the candy but even with the weight gain it was better for me than smoking and they make good sugar-free candy now which they didn't way back then.

Halve your smoking- The last half of a ciggie has most of the tar in it because it becomes saturated with tar as you smoke. You'll see this on the filter if you look. When you smoke a ciggie, put it out after half of what you usually smoke and immediately go back to whatever you were doing to help yiou forget about the missed nicotine. If this is too severe a step, then take ine less puff at first till you can get down to nearly none.

Change your habits- a lot of the ciggies you smoke are more of a habit than a need for nicotine. When I sit here at the PC I smoke incessantly. The less time I spend here the less I smoke. If you can reduce youir smoking to those 'essential' ciggies like after eating then you can work on reducing them. Changing your habits is by far the most important part of overcoming any addiction.

Find another outlet for your nervous energy- Smoking is a calmative; a way to lower nervousness. You can get the same results by finding something else to absorb that power. One friend took up knitting and boy did she go but she stopped smoking and that was what mattered. Now she's a non-smoking expert kniter- a very positive outcome from a negative beginning!

Have your partner help you work out a reward system- As you drop away from smoking they surprise you with something special on the condition that you at least maintain the new lower level of smoking they notice. Screw up and they take it all back and never give you that reward ever again. Put the deal in writing and in duplicate and get all your friends to witness it. Read it everytime you go to light up as a reminder of what's on the line for you now. Seeeing all those people who care about you will help give you strength to keep the effort up.

Hypnosis- I had one friend who attended a mass-hypnosis sweminar with his Mom and they both stopped instantly without withdrawal symptoms He eventually went back but his Mom didn't. One-on-one works better but this has a pretty low success rate. That doesn't matter for those who it works for; they have a 100% rate so it's worth a try.

Change to a lower tar-and-nicotine ciggie- Try what your friends smoke till you find one you can get by with. At first you may still want the strongeer smokes at the 'essential' times so keep enough of those with you to cover that. After awhile switch completely and start the lowering process over again.

Use your ciggie as a pacifier- It's the 'placebo effect' at it's best. Just stick the ciggie in and don't light it and go back to what you were doing immediately. I do this a lot at work because there are times when I can't smoke, but I can run around with an unlit ciggie hanging out of my mouth till I can light up. I can usually go another 15 minutes this way without smoking.

Use all of these methods- Mix it up. Switch methods if it becomes too tedious. Nothing matters except that you reduce the nicotine you take in somehow. At some point you'll hardly be smoking compared to now and that is when you go cold turkey. Just as with any drug, smoking is a physical craving that is easier to end when the body is used to having a smaller amount in it. That takes time to occur. While cold turkey is by far the most effective method in the long run, it isn't the only one. Anything which reduces your smoking does you good. Even with all the hype you hear, smoking ocasionally isn't that bad for you. We're talking about no more than 5 a day here, less is better. You actually do your lungs more harm jogging a half hour on a busy road than by smoking a ciggie because of the exhaust funes, dust, and rubber particles from tires you take in! But as always, zero is the best number for bad things so make zero your goal and even if you 'backslide' do not give up on yourself.- just start the process all over again and keep trying.

Bettypooh

[Andy]

Please note that the next few lines are from personal experience . They are definately not the "be it, end all" but give maybe a hint or two.

Almost 5 years ago (in May) I quit smoking cold turkey from almost 50 cggies a day. Most important thing is to find a or the trigger. In my case it was a bad hangover that lasted for almost 2 days. My bud and I partied all night with lots of beer, vodka and jim beam-coke. After waking up I didn`t feel any need for cigarette, in fact I felt very ill with my bad hangover haha. It helped pretty much to get the need for nicotine down. Sometime during the second day I saw the remaining cigarette pack laying around and almost pulled out another cigarette. But then I put it all back and threw it to the bin.

During the first few weeks this lead to funny occasions. For example, one bud offered me a ciggy and I took and hold it till I realized that I didn`t want it at all. Eventually I put it back and earned some laughter but it was worth the effort because I haven`t touched a cigarette since. In fact, I sit there sometimes and laugh out loud on myself because it is just too funny for me when I think about how dumb I was to even start smoking.

Only important thing is to be 100% convinced and having found the personal trigger. I often hear people saying that they were 100% convinced but didn`t make it. Well, in my opinion they missed the last little bit even if it was about 0.0001% only.

One really nice thing that comes back after you have quit is taste. You can definately taste better and so , in my case, the more I regained taste the less I had fast food from McD or BK. I also put on about 25 kg (~50 lbs) but I have got down a huge chunk in the past year again. If I get down 5 to 8 kg more (~ 10 to 16 lbs) I am near ideal weight again (not the bmi bulls). A Chili is not just the either hot spiced or lush meal anymore. A chili does definately have more flavours than just hot pepper.

If you don`t want to put on weight after quitting you have to force yourself to do sports lots and giving sweets a miss more often. Favouring a salad over too much too fat food will help there too.

Good luck with quitting Sarah, it is worth the effort

[Repaid1]

I guess from what I read, nobody is keying on Sarah's problem. Yes she want's to quit smoking but NO she doesn't want to quit the nicotine. So all the stop smoking tips aren't doing her any good. I too vote for the E-Cigs. I bought a brand over 2 years ago too, and it was quite good at providing the nicotine I needed. The filter tips are ajustable in that if you originally smoked a ultra light or a full blown menthol, they make the equivelent filter draw.

I know alot of people that use them now, some are looking like a giant bong thing as they hold more juice and such. Personally I recommend this brand. It carrys more than 5 packs worth of smokes in the size of a standard pack of King cigarettes. The case doubles as a charger, the smokes can be charged from the wall, or your usb port on a computer. The price is pretty cheap even to start, equal to a Carton. And like was mentioned above they can be refilled cheaper, than buying new ones. All around better for your situation. Also this one has built in saftey features that issures you can't overdose by drawing on it too often or it just shuts it self off for certain time periods.

The debate on abosorbed through the mouth or inhaled isn't a issue I don't believe. As was mentioned you are inhaling a water vapor which has the nicotine embedded within, not much harm in that. I truley believe this is your best option. And even if you can't smoke it at your desk which really you should be allowed. You could always go to the bathroom stall, there is no smoke or smell and the exhaled "smoke" just disapates in a instant and doen't carry. Best of luck to you!

The one I got: http://www.blucigs.com/

[timmyc]

I am in the cold turkey camp, or if you can't just reduce what you do smoke, I am not at all in favor of other products, the vapor cigs might be ok.

Insurance is a scam, the so called overhaul didn't go far enough.

[Charlie B]

Sarah, It does suck that your insurance wont pay for the prescription meds for you to quit, and I understand you feel that would be the only effective way for you to quit, My advice would be to bite the bullit and pay for it yourself. In the long run it will be much cheaper then continuing to smoke. It has been only about ten weeks since I quit, but at $8.50 a pack for cigeretts in washington state I have saved hundreds of dollars allready. Quiting smoking is hard, but if you really want to quit you can find a way to do it. I wish you well whatever choice you make!

[sarah_ab]

oh don't worry i'm going to pay for it myself, it just find it sorta absurd that it costs me more to quit smoking cigarettes then it does to keep smoking cigarettes...

and yes the issue is not that i want to stop smoking, but that i want to stop smoking cigarettes, but continue to get the nicotine. So 'cold turkey' isn't even an option because that would stop the nicotine.

In regards to studies about the e cig... sorry i wasn't as specific, i didnt mean a study to measure the amount of nicotine and other substances in the product... i mean studies showing any effectiveness in helping someone quit smoking... as in double blind studies etc.... while the studies for other smoking cessation products do vary in results, the majority show they do help people quit...

i think my problem with the e cig is that they intentionally tell you it is a quitting smoking aid, but have yet to do any research to back up this claim. That and the e cig does expel a water vapor when you exhale... the nicotrol inhaler you expel nothing, because you aren't inhaling water vapor....

but i would use it outside only anyway... but yeah, i'm just gonna suck it up and pay the absurd amount ..... so silly..... my insurance company will pay for like every other kind of stop smoking cessation product except this!

[ldatsea]

not sure i follow your logic on this but do what ever works for you....

[sarah_ab]

what logic?

i want to stop smoking cigarettes, i do not want to stop getting the nicotine.

My insurance will cover both the nicotine patch, and the nicotine gum, but will not cover a nicotine inhaler. I cannot use either the patch or the gum for medical reasons. So, it would cost me more a month for the nicotine inhaler than it would to continue smoking cigarettes. The nicotine inhaler is much healthier than cigarettes, as its the chemicals and other shit in the cigarette that is the most unhealthy for you, not the nicotine/tobacco.

I was just griping about how it would actually cost me more to stop smoking cigarettes lol.

[Repaid1]

I personally have never seen a ad for E-Cigs saying they help you quit per say, in fact just the opposite. They are a alternative to smoking, but so be it. The brand I used says so in their advertisement, but logically you could use them to step down while still smoking at a fraction of the price. Personally I have a machine that makes my smokes for about $1 a pack, and without alot of the additives from store bought smokes. While certainly not perfect, it is a step in the right direction. Actually while I am not advicating this situation, I have done something simular. If I needed money for food or what not and all I had was free meds from my doctor, being Anti-depressants or something simular, if a friend showed me they had been prescribed the same thing but couldn't afford the medicine I would share mine with them. So I guess If your Insurance pays for one, perhaps you could barter for what you really wanted? I have seen ads on craiglist for both of what you mentioned.

[sarah_ab]

I'm just going to suck it up and pay hte money, i found a $35 coupon on the nicotrol website, so that will bring it down to like $170... i can afford that.... its just... shit man... my insurance should pay for it!!!!!

my old insurance apparently didn't cover the inhaler either.... My guess is.... the inhaler actually helps people quit, the gum and patches dont... and i think the gum and patches are owned by the tobacco companies, which in turn are in line with the insurance companies, so they will back a product that will keep you smoking, but not one that wont! lol.... its all about the conspiracy theories!

[babylin]

Sarah perfect princess baby

I tapered off from 3 packs a day to nothing within a month by using a qualified hypnosis therapist, who left me w/o cravings or being bothered by others around me who smoked, among other post-suggestions. Primarily she attacked my self image , will power, and stress levels that seemed to demand nicotine for relief. Hypnosis is an inexpensive therapy that your insurance should pay for and the benefits of learning this process can spill over into other areas of your life. I've saved thousands of $$$$!!

YOU CAN QUIT

Wishing you relief w/o withdrawal.

Happiness Is Wearing Cotton Diapers

[babyterry]

The way I quite was to stop sinking my self but to go out side with the other sinkers this was after cutting down from 60 a ray to 20 over about 6 mouths I cut out 2 cuts a day untill I got down then just stopped but going out with the smokers helped I have now not smoked for 8 months

[diapermanftw]

Could look into Chantix. Its about 130 dollars a month. Still not cheap, but most everyone that starts it quits. Only real side effect I've heard was some odd dreams. You can smoke on it for the first week or so, but it blocks your bodies nicotine paths so the nicotine will stop affecting you.

[Bettypooh]

Chantix is dicey for those with depression or anxiety issues- it can kick you off the edge with little or no warning This is well-known and stated in their literature and they strongly advise against it. Otherwise, yes it seems to work well. Not all insurance will pay for it though Insurance is basically a scam which you can't do without, though a lot of us have to because of the cost. Even if I were a non-smoker, the most basic health policy I can get would cost me 1/4 of my income and it wouldn't cover any of what is mentioned here.

We're behind you all the way Sarah You go girl!

Bettypooh

[sarah_ab]

chantix is an anti psychotic... i there are far more side effects than dicey dreams... i'm not one to subject myself to an antipsychotic....

as for hypnosis... i'm one of those few who can't be hypnotized... really... its been tried by a couple different board certified hypnotherapists... just doesn't work on me... it doesn't work on everyone.

but basically i do not want to stop getting nicotine... i just want to stop smoking cigarettes lol... so No to the cigarettes, YES to the nicotine... so its not about stopping smoking completely for me, its about finding a replacement way to get my nicotine of which patches and gum are not an option.

But i am very glad to hear so many people who have been able to quit.. and knowing how many people are willing to support another member on that path is quite awesome to see!