Where my ex-smokers at?

[-]

Tndnr82@reddit

I smoked from1987 till a year ago yesterday.

[-]

Tndnr82@reddit

Thanks! I only quit because I got priced out of the market. I miss it terribly, but only millionaires can afford to smoke anymore.

[-]

gcfio@reddit

I quit in 2011 because I refused to pay over $2 a pack. Nc had the cheapest cigs but finally my frugality beat my addiction. I don’t miss it anymore, haven’t for a decade. Hang in there

[-]

I have a neighbor who drives to NC every month, and offered to buy me cartons. Did it for a few months, but it became inconsistent. This was part of my decision. It was half the cost of MD, but still expensive.

[-]

eat-real-chips@reddit

Had my first cigarette when i was 8. 8!!!

My parents both smoked around 40-60 a day, so the house was full of cigarettes, my mom smoked while pregnant and I’d been inhaling second hand smoke since birth.

I was on 10 a day by age 12 and 20 a day by 16. Everyone around me smoked back then, all my friends did.

I gave up completely at 25. It was so hard but I’m so glad I did it. I’m 50 now.

[-]

potato_for_cooking@reddit

What part of the country are you from, or which country, back then anyway? Thats young for smoking normalization.

[-]

eat-real-chips@reddit

UK, born this was early 1980s.

[-]

eat-real-chips@reddit

i was hiding the smoking from my parents until i was 16, which is (was) the legal age to smoke

[-]

frozen_charlotte@reddit

[-]

Hes_anarc2005@reddit

Smoked for about 36 yrs and stopped just over 5 yrs ago at age 51 and became fully aware of how awful I must have smelled to people/partners who didn’t smoke, it’s horrible!

The smell of a cigarette burning doesn’t bother me, it’s when the smoker finishes it and you then get that dirty, ashtray smell. Makes me want to puke.

[-]

Accx4@reddit

I smoked for 26 years. A lot! Started at 14 around 1981. Smoked my last cigarette December 7th 2007. Military gave Chantix out like tic tacs. Took it fir 3 months. Threw up every single day for 3 months. Had esophagus erosions and a hiatal hernia as a reward for my good job. The side effects said "may cause nausea, may cause vomiting" and in my case it did so every day. When I explained that to the gastroenterologist, he said "Ya but not every day"! Needless to say, I have wanted to smoke hundreds and hundreds of times but I'll be damned if I am ever going to take that med ever again!

[-]

Frogman420247@reddit

I started when was 10 weed at 11. I quit cigarettes when i was 23. With weed I might as well be on death row I am not quiting that. I hop on zyn and vapes try to limit my use. Im extremely allergic to stupid so nicotine is a crutch for but saving lives. There's ALOT of stupid put there. In case it helps I quit by rolling 20 shitty joints put them in my cigarettes box. Hit that when I had a craving. Nicotine was out of my system in 3 days. Stayed in my mind for years. Drinking without smoking amd that smoke after a meal was hard to replace. Hope this helps good luck. Where there's a will there's a way. Also I was paying 20$ a carton when it went up. Shit that's an expensive way to die.

[-]

[-]

Think_Palpitation42@reddit

What are the odds?

[-]

pbjfries@reddit

Im terrified of lung cancer from smoking while my body was still growing. I smoked in middle school a bit and in high school. Stopped for two years of college. Started again. Stopped two years. Started again.

Finally quit for good in 2005 using the book “the easy way to stop smoking.”

12/23/2008 I put my last pinch of Copenhagen in between my cheek and gum. Got on a plane from Denver to St Louis. When I touched down I washed my mouth out and haven’t had dip or chew since.

My first was Kodiak at my older brother’s graduation party in May 85.

Outside_Feeling_5818@reddit

You got this!! Wtg

[-]

Master_of_nothin@reddit

Smoked for just about 30 years. Quit about 2-1/2 years ago and still want one. I love catching a bit of second hand smoke now and again. Most of the people I grew up with found some reason to quit. It’s almost gotten to the point where I’m surprised to see smokers

[-]

neurophen@reddit

Exactly this, I moved to nicotine gum and couldn't stop that either. My body craves nicotine. Smoked for 35 years, then did the massive cloud vapes, I know... ok... . Now I have a little vape I don't keep near me so I don't sit with it hanging off my lip all day.

When someone lights up near me though, every time I visualize snatching it right out of their hand and snarfing it down.

Fuck, I miss smoking.

[-]

minimal_spaces@reddit

I quit about 20 years ago now, but I absolutely miss it.

I was stepping out of a shop yesterday and caught a whiff of cigarette smoke from a woman who just walked by. It had just finished raining, so combined with petrichor, it just smelled amazing.

[-]

Majik_Sheff@reddit

A leaky roof is leaky even when it's not raining.

You have the right attitude about addiction. Congrats on keeping away. My mom quit at least 5 different times that I'm aware of before it finally appears to have stuck.

OP can I ask why you won't call yourself an ex-smoker? Is it because there are certain exceptions you're willing to make from time to time? For example, once in a blue moon I'll light one up if I am drinking a coffee and nice and cool outside (Autumn or winter) ❄️

But I don't pick it up again. Or is it just an illusion that I can take it or leave it each time?

[-]

No-Neighborhood8403@reddit

I think it’s normal. 2nd hand smoke sickens me. Especially if it’s the smell of cigarette smoke inside a vehicle. Also passing someone who has the smell on their clothes; and I always have to think to myself “I really used to smell like that?”

[-]

heatherm70@reddit

Same! Toured overseas last summer and was gagging from the never ending second hand smoke everywhere we went.

[-]

51 year old guy here. Smoked from age 18 and quit cold turkey at 37. I've been clean for fifteen years and into regular workouts.

Every time I look back, I can't believe I did that stupid thing to my body.

[-]

Empty_Nestor@reddit (OP)

I hear you!

[-]

RelationshipBig6115@reddit

Started smoking in the early’90s in college and quit cigarettes cold turkey when I was pregnant with my first daughter (she’s now 17). I picked up vaping when my kids were little and quit in April of 2025. I loved vaping but I have not been sick a day since I quit.

[-]

Formal_Plum_2285@reddit

I started smoking at 14. Quit at 44 and never looked back. I’m not addicted. I’m not the least tempted. Quite contrary. Both my dad and I quit from one day to another without any issues. My mom on the other hand, really struggled. She had to use all sorts of nicotine products for a few years probably never came to terms with being without.

[-]

Bookish_Gardener@reddit

I started smoking when I was 13. I could go to the gas station before school and buy a pack of Virgina Slims (my brand at the time) for $1.00 after tax.

I quit in Nov. 2015. Started vaping, using a pen and the juice. I stepped down the nicotine level until I was at zero. I stayed there for a little while, until I realized that it was just a binky at that point, and gave it up completely.

Muscle memory is definitely a thing! I still, to this day, occasionally catch myself wanting to reach for a pack while I'm watching TV, or drinking, or something...lol...and I have zero desire to start back up again

[-]

litloverana@reddit

Read your first paragraph and was like “What?!” - exactly me! Glad you quit all. Still vaping, hoping to get to the stupid binky phase.

[-]

Bookish_Gardener@reddit

Stay with it! I went down in nicotine, then my dad died and I went up again for a bit. I didn't say f-it and go back to smoking, thankfully! I just went back to zero when I was ready and carried on. I really think going slow like that helped minimize the weight gain

[-]

Ilovemytowm@reddit

That was my brand and then I went to the one hundreds to 120s lol.

Never started. I grew up watching my parents try, and fail, to quit.

I smoked off and on from the time I was 16 until 6 years ago. I wasn't usually a heavy user, but I could feel the bad effects on my body.

Now the smell disgusts me, and I won't date anyone who smokes.

[-]

Dick7Powell@reddit

Quit cold turkey 26 years ago. I get COPD-like symptoms now and again for the past two years.

[-]

PugLoversince2003@reddit

I used to smoke. I have not smoked cigarettes for almost 40 years. There are other things that I still smoke.

[-]

Truckerlightning@reddit

Feels like a very GenX thing to have witnessed.

I quit smoking on 11/01/2013 and switched to vaping.

My ex has been smoking since she was 11. She survived ovarian cancer, then small cell lung cancer. Two rounds of chemo, radiation therapy…

She’s healthy as a fucking horse now.

And she STILL smokes.

Not even judging. It just sits with you.

[-]

VermicelliEfficient9@reddit

Smoked from 13-56. I’ll be dodging the bullet for the rest of my life, but boy do I feel great! My wife is on day 2 of no smokes. She thinks that I don’t know but I do, and I silently support her because she’s got to do it alone, that’s her.

[-]

Cutthechitchata-hole@reddit

Im so there i dont remember the last time i smoked a cigarette or hit a nicotine vape

[-]

Ouakha@reddit

Same! And I used to smoke weed almost nightly. Must be around 15 years.

[-]

peepee2tiny@reddit

Started smoking at 15, switched to vaping at 35, quit vaping at 45.

Lapsed smoker here. All told I smoked for over 30 yrs. I still feel nostalgic when someone lights a cigarette.

I started smoking at 15 yrs old - I was up to 2 packs a day in 2014. I switched to vaping and did that for 10 more years. Honestly, I only stopped because I was mad I couldn’t find the flavor I liked after they made on line sales impossible. Yep- I rage quit and I still miss it. But the taste of a cigarette? Oh no, can’t stand it any more. It’s like licking an ashtray.

I started in high school. Hell, we still had smoking areas around campus. With the exception of one aunt and one cousin, everyone in my family smoked, so it was probably an inevitability. The haze of smoke at family gatherings from everyone sitting around chain-smoking is both a fond, and disturbing, memory.

[-]

kaydeeceemee@reddit

Quit almost 8 years ago after smoking for 20+ years. Just didn't feel like smoking any more and quit cold turkey. After 2 weeks of high anxiety i made it through to the other side. My husband, who was a smoker of 40 years watched me do it and then quit himself cold turkey too about 3 weeks after me. We were never big drinkers and had quit that too several years before quitting cigarettes. best things we did for ourselves!

[-]

Kanya_Mkavry@reddit

I started in my early 20s and quit at 34 when I was pregnant. I still like the smell of fresh tobacco smoke, but the price definitely is a factor in not going back. Ahh, cloves...

The set designer/backstage tech in the theater dept in college smoked a pipe. Loved the aroma. RIP Belton.

[-]

Outrageous-Fan-5738@reddit

Hey current smokers, never give up trying to quit!

I finally did it after years of trying everything, patches, gum, Chantix, etc. For me, I switched to vape, then scaled down the nic. After 3 years, I was vaping zero nic. I did that for a year, then my vape broke and I didn't replace it. Feels great 99.9% of the time. I go through a couple Blowpops everyday, lol.

Everyone is different and you just got to find something that works. A lot of was in the mind, I admit. That last time, I was just done with it. Didn't even want to bum smokes from friends that final round.

[-]

Indaliai@reddit

I od'd on nicotine, I think. 30 years ago.

[-]

ZmanEman333@reddit

Right here! Cold turkey quit 7 years ago at the age of 40 started when I was 15 because it’s what the cool kids were doing. Oh I was so cool. 🙃

[-]

Perplexio76@reddit

I was a social smoker in college. I tended to only smoke when drinking. My rationale being that if I was drunk/drinking I wouldn't remember whether or not I enjoyed the experience and would be less apt to get addicted. I tended to smoke cigars and sometimes clove cigarettes. Occasionally, I'd smoke Marlboros and even more rarely, if it was the only thing available, I'd smoke a menthol.

[-]

Ravenloff@reddit

Never smoked despite being surrounded by friends in HS, college, and the military that did. Pot either. I honestly don't know why. However, I took up pipe smoking in my early thirties.

Two years smoke free!

Started originally in 1978.

[-]

Gen_Ecks@reddit

Quit 21 years ago when the kids were little and don’t miss it now. Used to…

[-]

crackersncheeseman@reddit

I've been smoking a pack a day since I was 14 and I'm getting ready too turn 55 this December. I would love too stop smoking though

[-]

Alkash@reddit

Quit in April 2008. Smoked a pack a day, two if I was drinking.

I quit cold turkey myself and it's still hard and have an urge now and then.

In some situations when I want to go out, I purposely search out some hole in the wall dive bars that still allow smoking inside, not as an excuse to smoke myself which I don't... But I get my second hand smoke fix.

20 years now, no regrets. Quit cold-turkey and never looked back.

The smell of cigarettes just disgusts me now, even catching a whiff in the wild aggravates me.

[-]

I was among the last in my friend group to quit. Smoking was a big part of my persona for many years.

Been about 7 years since I quit. I recently told a coworker I used to have a 2 pack a day habit and they said they couldn't picture me as a smoker. It was the best compliment I've had in a while.

[-]

No-Jump-9601@reddit

I smoked in school, probably 85/86, and quit 9 years ago. I was on 20 a day, more if I was out drinking, and had tried to quit a few times but always fell back into it.

Like lots of people have said, I’m not an ex-smoker, I just haven’t had one for a long time. I generally don’t miss a smoke but occasionally I’ll crave one, usually after a meal. I know that if I did have one, I wouldn’t be able to stop at that one, it’s an addiction.

Out of my social circle, most have quit cigarettes, some now vape instead and I can only think of 2 who still smoke.

[-]

Skeptikell1@reddit

I used the pill - champix - if you can’t quit any other way It’s worth a try. I was the worst and it worked for me.

[-]

GameArtHQ@reddit

I started around 1990 and quit around 2003. Went cold turkey. Swapped cigarettes for swedish berries.

[-]

Blackstrider@reddit

Aren't they much harder to light?

[-]

kittyshakedown@reddit

Agreed. I smoked from teens - 40 or so. Not always an all the time smoker but for a long time you could smoke anywhere. In my dorm room, in class buildings, even in some classes in college. (rural area). My husbands high school in the middle of the city allowed you to smoke outside if you were over 16 until his senior year ‘93. Not sure how they came up with the age.

And almost everyone smoked. At least when drinking. You couldn’t see more than a few feet away from all the smoke.

All of that started to change until there was no where to smoke then it became unacceptable to smoke.

My mom is the only person I know, IRL, that still smokes cigarettes. I know people that vape. (Also becoming scarce) When we are out, everywhere she wants to have a smoke seems unacceptable. She still buys cartons of cigarettes at the gas station. I think they order them just for her. lol

I mean, it’s all good. Smoking is disgustingly gross and will kill you in a slow smothering death.

I quit on 4-2-2007.

CandleLeather4638@reddit

Smoked from 1995-2020, quit cold turkey and never looked back. First couple weeks was hell, but it got easier each day after that.

[-]

Conscious_Present_36@reddit

Are we talking about tobacco or my beloved "devil's lettuce?" 😂😂😂

I quit tobacco and nicotine about, umm, maybe 8 years ago? I still can't believe it. I started at age 14 (1983), and had tried to quit so many times. I succeeded for a year, once, and a litter a year another time, but I haven't even been tempted this time. I'm so happy I put that garbage behind me. ❤️

[-]

OnlySezBeautiful@reddit

Smoked from 11 to 38 (11...yeah I'm trash). Started running at 38 so it wasn't a compatible habit. Quit for a decade, but when my dad died early, I caught the "Fuck-its" and started again. They're delicious at first, but then it becomes a gross chore.

[-]

coldbrewedsunshine@reddit

it’s so wild how my brain can be craving free, then then i’m at the gas station buying a pack.

I quit on and off from late teens into my 40s.

I have quit for a year, for 2 years for 5 years and always went back. This is my second 5 year quitting and I don't think that I will go back this time. But every couple of years, while on vacation with my sister who still smokes, I have one or two cigarettes. I'm always ambivalent to the experience but can't quite seem to avoid them altogether.

[-]

VeryPazzo@reddit

Started in 86 and quit cold turkey smoking and alcohol in 98, thinking of going to alcohol in small amounts though

[-]

Befuddled_GenXer@reddit

Fearless-Truth-4348@reddit

Quitting is easy, I’ve done it a thousand times!

[-]

KrazyKatLady1674@reddit

Started at 18, quit the last time at 36, have stayed quit for 15 years come this year. My parents weren't smokers, I had 1 set of grandparents that did. What finally did it for me was my ex husband had a massive stroke at 39 and even after he recovered from the stroke, he went back to smoking. I figured if he didn't want to stick around for our kids then I would. He's still smoking, I'm not, and now I think my kids are.

I'm glad I've quit. I don't miss it anymore. The smell disgusts me and after seeing the cigarette prices the other day at the store, my wallet thanks me too.

[-]

JAFO-@reddit

Started in 82 quit in 2000. I started bike riding gave me the motivation to quit and it was easy, I did stop drinking beer for a month or so. That was when I smoked the most.

[-]

Marsupialize@reddit

I quit maybe 12 years ago, my wife still smokes like a chimney and will never stop

[-]

FlatulousStanko@reddit

I smoked for 28 years, from when I was 14 until I was 42. I quit for a few years here and there throughout, and finally quit on 2019. I still have the urge, but don't think I'll ever do it again. My dad, aunts and uncles, and a couple of cousins all smoked. Many have died of cancer.

[-]

stingertc@reddit

Smoked for almost 20 years quit in 08 haven't gone back

[-]

ughtoooften@reddit

I smoked from about 1984 to 1998. I was dating my now wife who hated it, so, I just made the decision to quit and did. I had tried a few times before but kept falling back into it. The hardest part for me quitting at the time was that I was in an industry where the bulk of the people smoked and I was outside a lot and it was an easy pastime for us. Super glad I quit, I can't imagine still smoking today.

[-]

KyotiKill@reddit

Mom, step-dad and dad were smokers. Tried it once when I was younger, hated it, vowed never to. Then picked it up when I was 25 when I found out my dad had terminal cancer (3 types) in 2003.

Life_of1103@reddit

I started in college and finally quit on December 7, 2024. Woke up one day and decided I didn’t want to be a smoker anymore. Went through the nicotine patch progression and never looked back.

[-]

kaytblue78@reddit

Started smoking regularly around the age of 16-17, gave up in 2000. Pretty sure that back then in the 90’s about 75% of my social circle were smokers! Now definitely most of those are former smokers. Occasionally I miss it, especially in sunshine with a beer, but would never go back, especially now I know I’m asthmatic which I didn’t back then!

[-]

AngryBagOfDeath@reddit

Yep hay my first cigarette when I was around that same age. Had my last cigarette in 2009.

[-]

Sudden_Fix_1144@reddit

20 years since I’ve had one. For the last 15 it’s not even crossed my mind to have one. Can’t stand the damn things.

First year was the hardest, but after that it gets way easier… well for me it did anyway

It's weird to remember always being in a group of people outside of work. We'd travel in packs to go smoke together. Now I don't really see those groups anymore. It's like smoking just became uncool. It's definitely something I'm NOT nostalgic for. I'm glad it's dying off.

[-]

MotherOf4Jedi1Sith@reddit

Quit 18 years ago. Best decision ever!

[-]

I started at 12, was aloud to smoke at 14. Man, what a different time it was. stopped smoking 8 years ago. That and ditching alcohol are the best gifts I have given myself.

[-]

Rain-Plastic@reddit

I ripped through 2 packs a day from ages 16 to 40. 3 packs if I went to a bar that night.

Quit several years ago. The gum and quikmist did the trick.

[-]

ghjm@reddit

I'm an ex smoker, I suppose. I've always been a nonsmoker and never liked cigarettes, but in the heyday of smoking I learned to sort of fake-smoke, not actually drawing the smoke all the way into my lungs like a real smoker did. I did this not because I wanted or enjoyed the cigarettes, but because in those days there were social opportunities that couldn't be accessed any other way. As a nonsmoker you never got to smoke out back with the boss and hear their real opinions. You never got to bum a cigarette off someone out front of the hotel and find out where the secret party was. And so on.

Now that few people smoke, there's no further reason for me to, so I don't. Making me an ex-smoker, assuming you agree I was ever really a smoker in the first place.

[-]

Stefanz454@reddit

Quit in 99 when I was 35 after smoking about a pack a day since I was 15. Both parents smoked on and off and my grandmother. My grandfather dipped Copenhagen snuff.

[-]

-Odi-Et-Amo-@reddit

Quit cold turkey 8 years ago. Only regret was not doing it sooner.

[-]

sorenelf@reddit

Quit smoking 30 years ago. I do use a medi vape at night for pain tho.

[-]

Haunt_Fox@reddit

It'll be 8 years this summer. Quit the easy way by being immobile in hospital for a month. Accepted the patch* and resolved to stick with quitting when I got out. Glad I did.

Right here. Smoked my last (at least for now) one earlier this year. Taking Chantix every day to keep me from buying a pack.

First cigarette at 14.

Last cigarette at 37, almost 15 years ago. Just ran out one day, decided not to do a cigarette run.

God I miss smoking.

[-]

BokChoyJr@reddit

I quit smoking in 2001 after many starts and stops. I don’t miss smoking at all but I do miss a couple of aspects.

I miss the smokers’ clutch at weddings. They were always the really cool people. Mostly, I miss stopping on a nice day, sitting on some steps and taking 7 minutes to just watch the world go by as I enjoyed my cigarette. I don’t really do that anymore.

[-]

IdeasAreBvlletproof@reddit

Yeah the timeout it gave me was definitely part of the addition.

I was a coder and having a ciggie was my most productive thinking time, or a social break, or just time out of the office hurley burley.

Jimmy-the-Knuckle@reddit

Quit 12 years ago after smoking 25.

[-]

Claque-2@reddit

Yeah. It took everything to give up. I can never smoke again.

gif

RevToy@reddit

June will be 9 years tobacco free after smoking for 24 years. Oddly enough the only time I really craved one was after a workout. I used to enjoy running a 5k or 10k and lighting up a smoke at the finishing line.

[-]

D3AD_M3AT@reddit

I was the only smoker in my family, now I'm the only non smokers with my friends.

Still crave for one everyday after 21 years.

[-]

Puzzled-Bonus-3456@reddit

I'm one. I smoked reservation filtered cigars (the brown cigarettes) of different flavours for over 30 years. I moved into a smoke free building and just simply didn't buy them anymore. No issues quitting. No cravings. Don't miss them really.

I have a feeling mainstream cigarette brands have additives to basically mainline the nicotine and keep you addicted while the price goes up.

I never really thought about your take on ex vs addict. It’s interesting though because I do know that I won’t try to smoke a casual social cigarette because I’m afraid of where it might lead. At least I’ve also achieved a state where I’m not really (or rather, very rarely) tempted. Stay healthy, friend

[-]

HandaZuke@reddit

Managed to quit at 29. It was a rough few months.