Tobacco Talk: Strategies for Quitting

By Joan Rubel
Berkshire AHEC
05:37PM / Wednesday, August 12, 2009

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Dear Tobacco Talk:

My kids are bugging me to quit smoking and I've tried. But, before too long, I was smoking again. I'm discouraged. What am I doing wrong?

Tried to Quit in Adams

 

Dear Tried to Quit:

What are you doing wrong? Nothing! Smoking is a tough addiction to break so don't get down on yourself about it. The average smoker tries to quit six or seven times before quitting for good. Every time you try to quit you learn something new about what triggered the urge to smoke and how you need to adapt your life to become tobacco-free.

Quitting is a process and, along the way, you can learn a lot about yourself. Maybe the first lesson is how to not give up on yourself. Don't give up if you don't master quitting the first or second time and don't let a failed attempt get you blue. You've mastered other important things in your life and you can master tobacco, too. Remember the old maxim? If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. 

What would help make you successful at quitting the next time?  There are four key steps:

■ Make sure you're clear about why you want to quit. Think about how your health will improve if you quit, how glad your family and friends will be and how much money you'll save. You might want to climb steps without becoming winded or be a better role model to your kids or save money to buy a boat. Whatever reason motivates you is a good one.  

■ Make a quit plan. Pick a quit date two to four weeks in the future. Think about the times, places, people or feelings that make you want to smoke. These are your triggers and if you understand them you'll be more able to deal with them. Plan for how you'll deal with cravings and other symptoms of withdrawal. People who use medicine like the patch to deal with cravings are twice as likely to be successful at quitting.

■ Set your plan in motion. Line up your supporters: friends, family and others who you can count on when the going gets tough. Let them know how they can help distract your from cravings or find new ways to deal with stress. Decide if you'll use medicines and make your home and car smoke-free to reduce temptations. Call 1-800-Try-To-Stop (1-800-879-8678) if you'd like advice or ideas from a trained telephone counselor.

■ Learn from your experience. If you start smoking again, don't get down on yourself; quitting is hard. Make changes to your plan, come up with new ways of dealing with the cravings, set a new quit date and try again.  You'll be closer than ever to quitting for good!

So, dear friend of Tobacco Talk, good luck on your next quit attempt. And tell us about your successes. Have you invented a great way to distract yourself from the cravings? Recently, someone told us that she drinks lemon water ... she says it makes the cigarettes taste bad.  

Share your stories and strategies here by posting a comment below — maybe your idea will help someone else quit for good! Or, send your comments to tobaccotalk@berkshireahec.org or call toll free (866) 976-AHEC (2432).

Learn more about quitting smoking at www.makesmokinghistory.org or by contacting me, Joan Rubel, at Berkshire Area Health Education Center.
 
Joan Rubel, coordinator of Berkshire Area Health Education Center's Northern Berkshire Tobacco-Free Community Partnership, helps educate and inform about the high health and economic impact of tobacco. For more information, visit www.berkshireahec.org or contact Joan at jrubel@berkshireahec.org. Tobacco Talk runs monthly.

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