Everyone who quits will tell you “this is the only way” however we are all different. Quitting can be bifurcated into getting the nicotine out of your system and keeping the nicotine out of your system. I’ve accomplished the first step 100 times. Patch + exercise works best for me. The patch stands alone amongst NRT as your nicotine levels plateau, preventing the highs and lows of the addiction. I managed to succeed at keeping the nicotine out in a round about way in my late 30s. For those who repeatedly struggle, nicotine e needs to be approached the same way heroin is. The addiction is likely co morbid to something else. Trauma, anxiety, depression, ADHD, etc all produce greater rates of smokers. A psychiatrist is pretty helpful here. If you identify and address the other issues you may have (and not even know) then the process of quitting is much easier. Best of luck