Hey y’all. I’m 22 and I’ve been smoking for 3 years. After cutting down, I go through a pack roughly every 4 days. I have tried to quit probably close to 20 times now. Some times have been successful (I think 2 months was my longest), and other attempts have failed after merely a few hours.

After trying to quit so many times, I have found ways to cope with the physical withdrawals and some of the mental side effects such as irritation, anxiety, or the voice constantly saying “I want a cigarette so badly.” However, I’ve significantly struggled with some other emotions.

My quit date is coming up on Nov 27th (6 days from now) because I am having surgery and they have asked that I not smoke 24 hours before the procedure. After that, I am staying at my moms house for a few days and she does not know I smoke, so I have decided this is going to be a good time to quit.

Whenever I’ve quit smoking and gotten past the physical withdrawal period, I always start smoking again because I get this weird feeling like I’ve lost a dear friend (the friend being smoking). I really enjoy the sensation and habit of it. I love standing in a circle with my friends during a night out and sharing a cigarette. I feel sad about the idea of not doing it anymore (and yes, I am aware that this is almost fully because it is an addictive substance). So how do I deal with this so I don’t relapse?

Visualization has been helpful for me, and I’m wondering if anyone has tried mantras or something like that to deal with a similar problem. What doesn’t work is reminding myself how bad it is for me. The addiction does not care about that. Any and all advice is welcome. I also want to say you all inspire me every day on this sub. Thanks!