Hi Lizzy -- I know the idea of quitting smoking can seem daunting. My surgeon required 2 months smoke-free before surgery. I had been a 2-pack a day smoker, had smoked 37 years. I was SCARED. I wasn't even sure I could do it. But I had said for years I wanted to quit, and here was the best incentive in the world: preparing for a surgery that I considered necessary to get back some quality of life I'd lost so much of in the last few years.
So I decided to start my quit four months before surgery, figuring the stress of quitting would be far behind me by the time the stress of the surgery itself started up. So January 31st at 2 a.m. I smoked my last cigarette and went to bed. I woke up February 1st a nonsmoker. And guess what! It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be! The first 72 hours are the toughest as you detox from the nicotine, but once through that you just have to concentrate on never having another puff. I found great support and information on quitting at
WhyQuit - the Internet's leading cold turkey quit smoking resource which was invaluable to me. The better educated you are, the easier the quit becomes. I also read a book called "The Easy Way to Stop Smoking" by Allen Carr. It makes quitting smoking sooooo much easier! Well it did for me anyway.
I just want to caution you not to try to quit using patches, gum or lozenges. All of those things have nicotine in them, and while they may seem to ease you into not smoking, all they're really doing is prolonging the physical withdrawal symptoms from nicotine, like pulling a bandaid off verrrrrrrry slowly. Also, if you're still on any of those nicotine replacement therapies (patches, gum or lozenges) then when the surgeon's office tests you for nicotine you'll come out positive. And trust me, they do test. They tested me. And if you test positive they'll pull you out of rotation and you'll have to wait a few more months til you test negative for nicotine.
There are really good reasons they want you smoke free before surgery, and most have to do with healing properly. And after you've had the surgery, putting all those toxins into your new little pouch can cause all kinds of bad things to happen. Not worth the risk.
But don't be afraid of quitting. It's worth it. I felt better just from doing that. And now that I've had the surgery I'm going to start feeling better and better as I get healthier. It's all good!
Jody