From what I have seen personally, cutting back seems to have a better success rate than quitting cold turkey. Having said that, I know of two people who simply stopped one day and never smoked again. I also know of a strange case where someone would smoke like a chimney for one year, abstain for one year, smoke for one year, and on and on. Every New Year's Eve he would switch. It was the weirdest smoking habit I have ever seen.
im also trying to quit with a slow pace
I was a "confirmed" smoker for over sixteen years. I swore I would rather die ten years early then live those ten years without a cigarette. Anytime I did try to quit, it was a terrible experience and I was a neurotic mess. Eventually, I did want to quit and I tried everything. I was so depressed when nothing worked, then I found a book at my local Barnes and Nobel. It is by a man named Allen Carr and the book is called "The Easy Way to Quit Smoking." The book (believe it or not, it's up to you) has a 95% quit smoking rate, and I am happy to say I am one of them. But here's the kicker, I have had ZERO withdrawal issues since reading it. Probably the BEST investment I ever made. All the crap you hear about patches and aids and cold turkey etc etc is all bs (sorry). :) Nicotine is a drug, but the withdrawal effects are so minimal that you don't notice them physically (this is a scientific fact). The problem is we as humans have been brain washed to believe it is giving up something when in fact, stopping smoking isn't giving up anything. I feel better now than I have in years and I know with 100% certainty I will never have another cigarette again. I am a non smoker again, and I will stay this way for the rest of my life. :)
Good luck with getting free from the "little monster". I do hope you'll read the book, I've yet to meet anyone who has read it and not stopped smoking easily and happily :)
I had more or less the same experience as BluCrystal. Four healthy babies. So the advice is -- if you can't quit, cut back to a level that is minimally toxic.
Thank you for the advice. I'm still trying to quit just going to cut down slowly. :)
Great job on trying to quit! :) Here's the thing: the stress of quitting, or trying to even can put stress on the baby. I was told by my doctors (four pregnancies) to only smoke when I absolutely had to, which turned out to be about 5 a day. All of my children are healthy. I am not advocating smoking while pregnant here. This is simply what I know about it. - Blu