Withdrawal symptoms exist because the problem is still there. The use of drugs, medication and nicotine replacement products such as patches, nicorettes, inhalers or lozenges is often ineffective because you're not really dealing with the actual issue: the addiction and its related habits. So it's like putting a bandage on a broken leg.
To quit smoking this way is both stressful and hard to achieve. Relying on willpower is not efficient, forces you to compensate the habit (often by eating, thus putting on weight) and there's a strong tendency to relapse. Fortunately, there are other ways.
You need to reprogram your subconscious so that it can be free of the addiction and all of the habits associated with smoking that are often deeply rooted.
Hypnotherapy is a good technique for this, but even easier is EFT, which is what I used. I had one single session with an excellent therapist over Skype and just followed his simple instructions afterwards. Amazingly, I experienced no stress. I kicked off the habit so easily that even during the first week, cigarettes were hardly on my mind. I didn't snack or drink to compensate, nor chew gum, toothpicks or anything else. I didn't feel nervous and was not unpleasant to those around me. In fact, the person I lived with was a heavy smoker and she continued to smoke as usual, right next to me, even in the car. It did not affect me and I never smoked or even wished to smoke again!
Today, I am a non-smoker and what's more: no longer addicted to smoking.