getting rid of nicotine adiction is arguably not that hard, it would take at most a couple of weeks. What is *really* hard is getting rid of the habit, and above all getting rid of the associations between smoking and some activities (stress reduction, alcohol, post-eating, concentration,...).
I managed to get rid of it several decades ago, never went back. I used a combination of matches and water. Chewing matches helped me to slowly getting rid of the habit of having a cigarette in my mouth. Then, whenever I feeling a strong urge to smoke, I would force myself to drink 75cl of water quickly. It would fill my belly and and therefore alleviate the urge.
The most dangerous moment is after 6 weeks and after 1 year. That's when you feel confident that you're in control and risk relapsing.