I chainsmoked for about 13 years but haven't had a cigarette since Jan 1 2009 (the only new years resolution I've ever managed to keep). Before that I'd quit for a few days, sometimes even a few weeks but would always return to smoking.

All it came down to (for me) was will power. I know that's not the magical trick you were hoping for, but it's true. It takes a moment of being honest with yourself and really asking yourself why you behave this way. I began to see smoking as pathetic and sad, ultimately destructive. It's an embarrassing addiction that basically tells everyone around you "I have little concern for my health". They say it takes 21 days to form a habit -- after a month I found I had almost no craving for a cigarette, and when someone would walk by who was smoking it no longer smelled appealing.. instead it smelled like something foreign and toxic. I didn't smell tobacco, just the chemicals.. it was (and still to this day is) a stomach turning smell that most smokers can't fathom, which is why many seem to think nonsmokers are being dramatic when they try to avoid smokers.

The most surprising part is how much better I felt once I quit. I always felt kind of groggy and 'blah' as a smoker, like something was always kind of weighing me down in some weird way. I think cigarettes are so insanely stupid and unhealthy, but the widespread acceptance has most addicts minimizing just how fucked up the addiction really is. Good lucky quitting!

Move out of Oregon. The smoking here is ridiculous. And it's part of the reason our health insurance is so much.

I'Anon, Assisse gave you great advice from first hand knowledge. I hope you take it. I think you must be serious. Good Luck!

A friend of mine quit smoking by being too broke to buy a pack of smokes for a week, going cold turkey and not looking back.

So just spend down to having absolutely no money left in your bank account.

Jesus. Try Him. Even if you don't know Him.

My stepfather went to a hypnotist specializing in smoking cessation. I was highly skeptical (as is my wont). He'd smoked for decades, but he quit after the hypnotism sessions and it lasted for two years. (He's only started again because he might be dying of cancer...we'll soon find out...and he's stressed out/doesn't care).

Forget about Jesus, I happen to know He turned straw into tobacco and got all of Galilee hooked.

Ibogaine.

The American Lung Association had this two-booklet set called "Freedom From Smoking". I did all the homework, and that helped me quit. Then I started again. Then I did all the homework again and quit again. Repeated this a few times and was finally through. That was about 20 years ago. I believe they still have similar materials, though they may be mostly online now.

Good for you: you will succeed.

Suck it up.
Don't be a quitter !!

Once you admit smoking is an enemy and not a friend in
time of stress, or to keep you from gaining weight or a good
tool for being social and all the other lies no doubt
promulgated by the tobacco industry your at third base.
Count your smokes. Allow yourself only 10 a day and less
and less. Don't smoke in the house, winter is here, that will
help. We're all pulling for you. See you at Home Plate

i have the same problem

I was only able to quit after repeated attempts BUT it got easier and easier. It sounds like a no-brainer but do the old "pros and cons" list: the cons (as you seem to realize) greatly outweigh the benefits. Another personal "trick" was to embrace the craving and visualize the negative feelings of withdrawal as the actual biochemical process (look online) going on in my brain. Also, to think, "There are smokers and non-smokers in the world; I am now a nonsmoker" helped. Finally, unlike the commenter above, I had to accept that I miss cigarettes and always will crave them, especially when drinking.

I had finally had enough, and picked New Years Eve as my target date. I smoked cigarettes until midnight then threw the rest down the toilet. I have never smoked since. That was Jan 1, 1980. I had a pack a day habit and had tried and failed to cut down. I'm nothing special in the willpower department either. But we all have to determine what we want to make happen for ourselves. Smoke up until midnight on New Years. Then say goodbye to them and don't look back.

I was able to quit when my kid was born. Wasn't going to have smoke residue in my clothes while I held the baby. Plus needed to keep myself healthy for the fam. Not everyone is about to have a baby of course, but maybe some other life event coming up? Use it as a threshold to just drop it altogether.

Before that though, I cut way down on the number per day. I knew it was a nasty unprofessional habit, and many of my friends didn't appreciate it. So I stopped smoking at work. Never smoked in the morning, because why would I start the day smelling (and feeling) like crap? So then I was just smoking in the evening after work. It was much easier then to say "okay, I'll have two this evening." And then one. And then you are close to your goal.

Also, if you are going out, bring the exact amount you want to smoke. Bring two or three cigarettes, then cut down to one.

And also start limiting where you smoke. Don't smoke in the car, don't smoke indoors.

The result of all these limits is that you start to smoke less and less, and then it is easier to step off the ride.

Good luck! Don't feel weak and ashamed. Nicotine is very very addictive.

I definitely second the strategy of very slowly cutting back like Blabby mentioned. That's what worked for me. I started at around 10 a day before I really got serious about the idea of quitting (going up way more if something was stressing me out), but was able to ween myself gradually over maybe six months, to the point where I was smoking one or two a day. I guess sometimes you just have to rip the bandaid off, but for me gently pulling it off was what worked.

Good luck.

I haven't been quit for very long but this is the most certain I've felt, after 27 years a smoker. My doctor prescribed Buproprion (Zyban) and it's been great. Last cigarette was Oct. 19. I tried Chantix 5 years ago and was very negatively affected by that. I've also used an online support group on about.com. I know that sounds cheesy but it's a huge group of people going through the same thing. A bunch of online cheerleaders can't hurt. I've even gotten pretty drunk recently with no desire to smoke, at all. Finally, if you do slip up, don't take is a failure but a minor setback. Learn about the myriad negative effects of smoking (on your health, mentality, finances, friends/family) and don't ever give up on yourself. This is absolutely the best thing a smoker can do for themselves. You'll never regret the cigarettes you didn't smoke.