I've been smoking for 14 years, have managed to quit on a few occasions, the best run being 3 months.

Smoking is disgusting, it leaves a foul taste in the mouth, a foul smell on hair/clothes/skin, not to mention expensive. Having said all that, it's bloody difficult to quit, after 14 years of habit. It's not the random smoking that's hard to let go, it's the times that you habitually light up like clockwork, after a meal, while watching tv, walking to the shops, first thing upon waking up, etc.

Quitting is top on my to-do list this year, each time I finish a pack I tell myself not to buy another, that that was it. This lasts about a day before I give in and pop down to the shops (weak, I know).

My dad, who had been smoking 2 packs a day for about 30 years, announced one fine day about 8 years ago, that he was quitting. He hasn't smoked a single stick since then. Absolutely amazing.

I asked him how he did it. His reply was simple - "Just don't do it. Patches, replacement sweets, blah blah, they're all rubbish. Only you can tell yourself what to do, I told myself to quit. I did."

I'm working towards the same. Soldier on Koura!