How to Quit Smoking
A Guide to Kicking the Habit for Good
Why quitting can seem so hard
Learn to recognize & reduce hidden stress
Smoking tobacco is both a psychological habit and a
physical addiction. The act of smoking is ingrained as a daily ritual
and, at the same time, the nicotine from cigarettes provides a
temporary, and addictive, high. Eliminating that regular fix of nicotine
will cause your body to experience physical withdrawal symptoms and
cravings. To successfully quit smoking, you’ll need to address both the
habit and the addiction by changing your behavior and dealing with
nicotine withdrawal symptoms.
Relieving unpleasant and overwhelming feelings without cigarettes
Managing unpleasant feelings such as stress,
depression, loneliness, fear, and anxiety are some of the most common
reasons why adults smoke. When you have a bad day, it can seem like
cigarettes are your only friend. Smoking can temporarily make feelings
such as sadness, stress, anxiety, depression, and boredom evaporate into
thin air. As much comfort as cigarettes provide, though, it’s important
to remember that there are healthier (and more effective) ways to keep
unpleasant feelings in check. These may include exercising, meditating,
using sensory relaxation strategies, and practicing simple breathing
exercises.
For many people, an important aspect of quitting smoking is to find alternate ways
to handle these difficult feelings without smoking. Even when cigarettes are no longer
a part of your life, the painful and unpleasant feelings that may have prompted you
to smoke in the past will still remain. So, it’s worth spending some time thinking
about the different ways you intend to deal with stressful situations and the daily
irritations that would normally have you reaching for a cigarette.
Ways to create your personal stop smoking plan
Designing your personal game plan
Tailoring a personal game plan to your specific
needs and desires can be a big help. List the reasons why you want to
quit and then keep copies of the list in the places where you’d normally
keep your cigarettes, such as in your jacket, purse, or car. Your
reasons for quitting smoking might include:
- I will feel healthier and have more energy, whiter teeth, and fresher breath.
- I will lower my risk for cancer, heart attacks, strokes, early death, cataracts, and skin wrinkling.
- I will make myself and my partner, friends, and family proud of me.
- I will no longer expose my children and others to the dangers of my second-hand smoke.
- I will have a healthier baby (If you or your partner is pregnant).
- I will have more money to spend.
- I won't have to worry: "When will I get to smoke next?"
Source: Smokefree.gov Online Quit Guide
Questions to ask yourself
To successfully detach from smoking, you will need
to identify and address your smoking habits, the true nature of your
dependency, and the techniques that work for you. These types of
questions can help:
- Do you feel the need to smoke at every meal?
- Are you more of a social smoker?
- Is it a very bad addiction (more than a pack a day)? Or would a simple nicotine patch do the job?
- Is your cigarette smoking linked to other addictions, such as alcohol or gambling?
- Are you open to hypnotherapy and/or acupuncture?
- Are you someone who is open to talking about your addiction with a therapist or counselor?
- Are you interested in getting into a fitness program?
Take the time to think of what kind of smoker you
are, which moments of your life call for a cigarette, and why. This will
help you to identify which tips, techniques or therapies may be most
beneficial for you.
Start your stop smoking plan with START
S = Set a quit date.
T = Tell family, friends, and co-workers that you plan to quit.
A = Anticipate and plan for the challenges you'll face while quitting.
R = Remove cigarettes and other tobacco products from your home, car, and work.
T = Talk to your doctor about getting help to quit.
How to quit smoking and manage cravings
After quitting, you may feel dizzy, restless, or even
have strong headaches because you’re lacking the immediate release of
sugar that comes from nicotine. You may also have a bigger appetite.
These sugar-related cravings should only last a few days until your body
adjusts so keep your sugar levels a bit higher than usual on those days
by drinking plenty of juice (unless you’re a diabetic). It will help
prevent the craving symptoms and help your body re-adjust back to
normal.
Tips for managing other cigarette cravings
Cravings associated with meals
For some smokers, ending a meal means lighting up,
and the prospect of giving that up may appear daunting. TIP: replace
that moment after a meal with something such as a piece of fruit, a
(healthy) dessert, a square of chocolate, or a stick of gum.
Alcohol and cigarettes
Many people have a habit of smoking when they have
an alcoholic drink. TIP: try non-alcoholic drinks, or try drinking only
in places where smoking inside is prohibited. Or try snacking on nuts
and chips, or chewing on a straw or cocktail stick.
Cravings associated with social smoking
When friends, family, and co-workers smoke around
you, it is doubly difficult to quit or avoid relapse. TIP: Your social
circles need to know that you are changing your habits so talk about
your decision to quit. Let them know they won’t be able to smoke when
you’re in the car with them or taking a coffee break together.
In your workplace, don’t take all your coffee breaks
with smokers only, do something else instead, or find non-smokers to
have your breaks with.
Additional tips to deal with cravings and withdrawal symptoms
- Stay active: Keep yourself distracted and occupied, go for walks.
- Keep your hands/fingers busy: Squeeze balls, pencils, or paper clips are good substitutes to satisfy that need for tactile stimulation.
- Keep your mind busy: Read a book or magazine, listen to some music you love.
- Find an oral substitute: Keep other things around to pop in your mouth when you’re craving a cigarette.
- Good choices include mints, hard candy, carrot or celery sticks, gum, and sunflower seeds.
- Drink lots of water: Flushing toxins from your body minimizes withdrawal symptoms and helps cravings pass faster.
Keep a craving journal
For the first week or so of quitting, make entries
into a log book to monitor your daily progress. Note the moments in your
life when you crave a cigarette as these are your triggers to smoking.
Are there certain people or environments that trigger your cravings? If
you smoke, how does it make you feel? Jot down some other things you can
do to feel the same way. Later, when you’re having a bad day, you’ll be
able to look back at the comments you wrote in week one to get
perspective on how far you’ve come.
Get support from others
Let your friends and family in on your plan to quit
smoking and tell them you need their support and encouragement to
stop. Look for a quit buddy who wants to stop smoking as well. You can
help each other get through the rough times.
Keep the pounds off
Weight gain is a common concern when quitting
smoking. While it’s true that many smokers put on weight when they stop
smoking, the gain is usually small, on average 3-5 pounds. Weight gain
occurs because the oral gratification of smoking is replaced by the
self-soothing mechanism of eating. To maintain a healthy weight, it’s
important to find other, healthy ways to deal with stress and other
unpleasant feelings rather than mindless eating
. Eating a healthy diet and staying active can help you maintain your current weight.
Manage changes in mood
Mood changes are common after quitting smoking as a
result of nicotine withdrawal. They will be especially pronounced if
you have been using cigarettes to manage your moods and relieve stress,
depression, or anxiety, for example. After quitting, you may be more
irritable, frustrated, restless, angry, or despondent than usual. You
may also experience headaches, trouble sleeping, and difficulty in
concentrating. However, these changes usually get better in 1 or 2 weeks
as the toxins are flushed from your body and you find other, healthy
ways to manage your moods. Let your friends and family know that you
won’t be your usual self and ask for their understanding.
Finding the resources and support to quit smoking
There are many different methods that have successfully helped people to quit smoking, including:
- Quitting smoking cold turkey.
- Systematically decreasing the number of cigarettes you smoke.
- Reducing your intake of nicotine gradually over time.
- Using nicotine replacement therapy or non-nicotine medications to reduce withdrawal symptoms.
- Utilizing nicotine support groups.
- Trying hypnosis, acupuncture, or counseling using cognitive behavioral techniques.
You may be successful with the first method you try.
More likely, you’ll have to try a number of different methods or a
combination of treatments to find the ones that work best for you.
Medication therapy
Smoking cessation medications can ease withdrawal
symptoms and reduce cravings, and are most effective when used as part
of a comprehensive stop smoking program monitored by your physician.
Talk to your doctor about your options and whether an anti-smoking
medication is right for you. U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
approved options are:
Nicotine Replacement Therapy
Nicotine replacement therapy involves "replacing"
cigarettes with other nicotine substitutes, such as nicotine gum or a
nicotine patch. It works by delivering small and steady doses of
nicotine into the body to relieve some of the withdrawal symptoms
without the tars and poisonous gases found in cigarettes. This type of
treatment helps smokers focus on breaking their psychological addiction
and makes it easier to concentrate on learning new behaviors and coping
skills.
Non-Nicotine Medication
These medications help you stop smoking by reducing
cravings and withdrawal symptoms without the use of nicotine.
Medications such as bupropion (Zyban) and varenicline (Chantix) are
intended for short-term use only.
Non-medication therapies
There are several things you can do to stop smoking
that don’t involve nicotine replacement therapy or prescription
medications: Ask your doctor for a referral or see Resources and
References below for help finding qualified professionals in each area.
Hypnosis
A popular option that has produced good results.
Forget anything you may have seen from stage hypnotists, hypnosis works
by getting you into a deeply relaxed state where you are open to
suggestions that strengthen your resolve to quit smoking and increase
your negative feelings toward cigarettes.
Acupuncture
One of the oldest known medical techniques,
acupuncture is believed to work by triggering the release of endorphins
(natural pain relievers) that allow the body to relax. As a smoking
cessation aid, acupuncture can be helpful in managing smoking
withdrawal symptoms.
Behavioral Therapy
Nicotine addiction is related to the habitual
behaviors (the “rituals”) involved in smoking. Behavior therapy focuses
on learning new coping skills and breaking those habits.
Motivational Therapies
Self-help books and websites can provide a number of
ways to motivate yourself to quit smoking. One well known example is
calculating the monetary savings. Some people have been able to find the
motivation to quit just by calculating how much money they will save.
It may be enough to pay for a summer vacation.
Helping a family member quit smoking
It’s important to remember that you cannot make a
friend or loved one quit smoking; the decision has to be theirs. But if
they do make the decision to stop smoking, you can offer support and
encouragement and try to ease the stress of quitting. Investigate the
different treatment options available and talk them through with the
smoker; just be careful never to preach or judge. You can also help a
smoker overcome cravings by pursuing other activities with him or her,
and by keeping smoking substitutes, such as gum and candy, on hand.
If a loved one slips or relapses, don’t make them
feel guilty. Congratulate them on the time they went without smoking and
encourage them to try again. Most smokers require several attempts to
successfully quit for good.
Parents of teen smokers
Most smokers try their first cigarette around the
age of 11, and many are addicted by the time they turn 14. This can be
worrying parents or guardians, but it’s important to appreciate the
unique challenges and peer pressure teens face when it comes to
quitting smoking. While the decision to quit has to come from the teen
smoker him- or herself, there are still plenty of ways for you to help.
Tips for parents of teen smokers
- Try to avoid threats and ultimatums. Find out
why your teen is smoking; he or she may want to be accepted by a peer
group, or want your attention. Talk about what changes can be made in
his or her life to help them stop smoking.
- Be patient and supportive as your child goes through the quitting process.
- Set a good example for your kids by not smoking yourself. Parents who smoke are more likely to have children who smoke.
- Know if your children have friends that smoke. Talk with your kids about ways to refuse a cigarette.
- Explain the health dangers, as well as the
unpleasant physical aspects of smoking (such as bad breath, discolored
teeth and nails).
- Establish a smoke-free policy in your home. Don't allow anyone to smoke indoors at any time.
Source: American Lung Association
Smokeless or spit tobacco is NOT a healthy alternative to smoking
Smokeless tobacco, otherwise known as spit tobacco,
is not a safe alternative to smoking cigarettes. It contains the same
addictive chemical, nicotine, contained in cigarettes. In fact, the
amount of nicotine absorbed from smokeless tobacco can be 3 to 4 times
the amount delivered by a cigarette.
What to do if you relapse
Quitting smoking didn’t work, now what?
Having a small setback doesn’t mean you’re a smoker again. Most people
try to quit smoking several times before they kick the habit for good. Identify the
triggers or trouble spots you ran into and learn from your mistakes.
- You’re not a failure if you slip up. It doesn't mean you can't quit for good.
- Don’t let a slip become a mudslide. Throw out the rest of the pack. It's important to get back on the non-smoking track now.
- Look back at your quit log and feel good about the time you went without smoking.
- Find the trigger. Exactly what was it that made
you smoke again? Decide how you will cope with that issue the next time
it comes up.
- Learn from your experience. What has been most helpful? What didn’t work?
- Are you using a medicine to help you quit? Call
your doctor if you start smoking again. Some medicines cannot be used if
you are smoking at the same time.
