h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I've kicked the habit, except for in the pub...
how can I get over this final hurdle?
(please don't tell me to stop going to the pub!)

A friend told me one time that when she was kicking the 'bacci that the pub was the hardest place. She overcame it by sucking on an ice cube every time she got the crave. Apparently as the ice melts it mimics the feeling of drawing back. I think you are very brave, I personally would prefer having an arm sawn off than go without the fags so good luck to you!

I went on a one-day course run by the Allan Carr 'Easy Way to Stop Smoking' people. It cost 60 quid, but as I was spending about £37 a week on smoking, that was a bargain (well, if you stop it is). That was in August 1999, I smoked about 25 a day until that day and not one since. I do not work for Allan Carr's lot, or get any advantage from telling you about them - I would just say it worked for me, and I am a happy non-smoker. Good luck, and don't stop trying.

Nicorrete gum (2mg) seems to be working for me (emoticon for crossed fingers or touching wood?)..also, tell absolutely all of your friends immediately you give up so they don't offer you a cigarette as this is a major hurdle.

As a fellow quitter siad to me once "in the cold light of day smoking is obviously stupid - it's in the warm glow of early evening that you need help".

Oh yeah - a calendar of "how long" so you can strike of the days is quite satisfying. Tonight will be 40 days

Both my parents, my father-in-law and my brother-in-law managed to quit smoking. I don't know how my brother-in-law did it, but it was around the time his wife got pregnant for the second time, so maybe he had the welfare of his kids in mind.

I don't recommend the method used by my father and my father-in-law. Both 'quit' as a result of being in hospital (my dad had pneumonia, my father-in-law had a back injury) and weren't allowed to smoke for the duration. Neither started smoking again after leaving hospital.

My mother, on the other hand, used the 'one day at a time' method. All you do, when you get up in the morning, is say 'I will not smoke today'. Repeat this whenever the craving for a cigarette comes on. One advantage of this method is that you are giving up 'just for today'. Some people I know who have tried to give up have said that the thought of never smoking again is depressing and makes them want to start again. It's a psychological thing.

Try a new pub where they don't know you as a smoker until it becomes easier.
Buy some worry beads or something similar to do with the hand you don't have a drink in.
Put the money you're saving into s pecial fund,first for a week, then for a month at a time. Good luck

The thing about something to do with the hands is a good one. My mum worked out the only time she smoked was when she wasn't doing anything in particular. She couldn't smoke at work 'cos she was a cook, so she only smoked at home or when she went out. When she gave up smoking she started to do a lot of knitting, which took care of the 'home' situation, and deliberately chose the 'no smoking' sections of trains, busses, restaurants, etc.

As for putting money aside, this is something I'm doing as I lose weight - £10 for every pound I lose. I should have at least £500 by the time I finish.

On my way into work this morning I read over a fellow commuter's shoulder (don't you hate people who do that?) that cutting out spicey food cuts down the carving.So stick to herbs and garlic for a bit.

Sorry: "craving" - not "carving". I don't know though Anyway, stick to old-fashioned crisps like cheese and onion