Most of us, at some point in time, have enjoyed a cigarette or two without thought for our health. Perhaps you are someone who still enjoys smoking. Maybe you are getting annoyed by the increasing amount of anti tobacco legislation being introduced. You may see this legislation as anti freedom or a breach of your human rights. This anger could just be a means of hiding the fact that you are not prepared to admit that you are actually addicted to that little white stick?
People refer to nicotine addiction when they talk about the difficulties involved when you are trying to quit. Nicotine has been proven to be as addictive as heroin or cocaine – it makes you wonder why it is still legal! Nicotine invades every cell in your body from your brain to your blood vessels. It is found in breast milk and crosses freely across the placenta during pregnancy. The pregnant lady does not need to smoke herself for this to happen. Just being in a room used by smokers is sufficient.
Nicotine is extremely addictive – the more you smoke, the higher your tolerance level to this drug becomes. This means that you need to smoke more in order to derive the same pleasure from smoking. Doctors believe that nicotine inhaled via cigarette smoke reaches the brain quicker than intravenous drugs. This chemical interferes with the flow of information between your brain cells, acting in a similar way to some antidepressants. This accounts for some smokers becoming depressed when they quit as their brain craves this side effect of smoking. If you were on actual anti-depressants and suddenly quit, you would have similar side effects.
But nicotine is only one of the 4000 plus chemicals your cigarette contains. Over 10% of these chemicals are known to cause cancer.
It is hard to believe that tobacco companies are legally allowed to produce a product that contains so many carcinogenic compounds. But these chemicals don’t just increase your risk of cancer although 90% of lung cancers are caused by smoking. Smokers are three times more likely to die prematurely than their non smoking companions. They are more likely to become infertile and if they smoke whilst pregnant, or around their pregnant wife, the pregnancy has a higher chance of ending in miscarriage, stillbirth or low weight baby.
Smokers also suffer from some of the most rehabilitating and distressing illness known to man including but not limited to emphysema (leading to a slow very painful death), stroke, heart attack and bronchitis. My grandfather died of emphysema and to this day my abiding memory is him trying to get outside, oxygen tank in tow for one more cigarette. How he didn’t blow both of us up is beyond me. Not even the risk to his 12 year old granddaughter (who was obviously adorable!) was enough to stop him needing that smoke.
Some female smokers will spend fortunes on skin care treatments and cosmetic surgery in their quest to stay young. It is quite ironic that a lot of beautiful models are smokers. Why? As well as destroying your health, smoking also ruins your skin and teeth. You can often tell if somebody is a heavy smoker by the lines around their lips, their yellow teeth and it doesn’t do much for their breath either hence the endless supply of mints and chewing gum!
If you are based in the UK, you would have seen the Department of Health anti smoking ads featuring children saying how scared they are that their parents will die from smoking. The ad goes something along the lines of:
Kid speaking “I am not scared of spiders, I am not scared of bogeymen, I am not scared of water but I am scared my dad/mum is going to die from smoking” and the camera switches from child to adult smoking and back to terror stricken child.
Personally I thought they were great ads but the advertising watchdog ruled that they were too scary for young children. They have now been banned from being shown during the day. The Watchdog people believe kids will be in bed by 7.30 pm so the ads can be shown after this time.
BUT these ads are doing the public a huge service. The children of smokers stand a very real chance of losing their parents before they become adults. Smoking kills – the proof has been there for years.
Not only do their parents risk their own lives but they also risk their kid’s lives if they smoke in their home. Did you know that there are over 400 chemicals in the second hand smoke i.e. the fumes you inhale if someone near you is smoking? Over 85% of these fumes are invisible so blowing away the smoke you see is a waste of time? Most people believe that it is the smoke that smokers exhale that is the most dangerous. This is incorrect. The smoke containing the most poisonous fumes comes from the end of the lit cigarette although I wouldn’t stand around a smoker to argue this point.
If you are a smoker, are your kids constantly having ear infections? Do they suffer chest infections or breathing problems such as asthma? You may think that because you don’t smoke in front of them they won’t be affected. But you are wrong. The fumes from a cigarette hide in your house. The only way of keeping your kids safe is to keep your home a smoke free zone. Ask visitors to smoke outside. If you are a non smoker and somebody lights up near you, ask them to put it out or else move away.
There is no magic pill that will give you 100% guaranteed success. It is not going to be easy but YOU can do it. You will obviously have your own personal reasons for wanting to quit but it may help a little to outline in general terms what you will definitely gain when you stop smoking:
From a medical perspective, the nicotine leaves your body within 48 hours. You might not be feeling great but you should notice your sense of smell and taste returning.
Within 3 months your blood circulation will have improved. Some people complain that they suffer a tingling sensation when they try to quit smoking. They shouldn’t be complaining but rejoicing as this is a sign that their blood is circulating again. As blood carries the nutrients and oxygen we need to survive, you can see why it should be circulating rather than staying stagnant!
Within two years, your chance of having a heart attack would be half that of a smoker.
In ten years after your last cigarette, you have halved your risk of contracting lung cancer than you would have done if you kept smoking.
With the price of cigarettes and the other increased costs associated with being a smoker (higher life cover premiums, health insurance etc), you should be better off financially when you quit.
So you know that you need to give up but how do you do it?
Most smokers have tried at some point to give up smoking – the first three months of quitting are statistically the time when you are most likely to fall back into your habit. If this has happened to you, please don’t give up. You can stop smoking. I did it; you have family and friends that have done it so you know it can be done. All you need is a little extra help, motivation, support or all three.
How can some people quit smoking whilst others try and fail more times than they care to remember. What distinguishes the two groups and which one will you fall into? Smoking is a habit and a habit starts and stops in your brain.
Nobody starts smoking because they enjoy the cigarette. They start because of peer pressure, a desire to be “cool”, to look older. They never start because they enjoy the taste of their first cigarette. Think about it – most of us choked on the smoke when we first tried to inhale.
You need to believe that you can learn how to stop smoking forever. There are various different ways to achieve this goal – the first step must be that you really want to give up. How you get rid of this habit is not as important as the decision to quit. Quitting takes commitment and perseverance. You can use all the tools such as chemical aids, self help, hypnosis, counseling or going cold turkey but you will FAIL unless you are committed to quitting.
The physical “addiction” to nicotine is the easiest to break. It is the physiological and emotional addictions that will be hardest. People who understand this have a higher chance of being successful.
Your personal commitment is the key to successful quitting. If you are giving up cigarettes because your wife or child wants you to you are less likely to be victorious. No amount of nagging or badgering will make a smoker win the battle to quit. Success starts and finishes with the individual who smokes. Most experts believe that you will be more successful in quitting if you believe that you are actually capable of stopping smoking. Some people find it is helpful if they have personal experience of the adverse effects of smoking e.g. a close family member dying from lung cancer. Others find that you need to believe that you will be better off either financially or health-wise by not smoking.
In other words, you the individual need to truly believe and want to stop smoking for reasons that will benefit you. You cannot be nagged into not smoking despite your other half’s best attempts. You and only you can make this work. Family members can offer support but the buck starts and stops with you.
You may need some form of professional support when you give up. As the side effects of smoking are costing health authorities the world over billions every year, they have begun to realise that they will save money by helping smokers to quit. Depending on where you live, you will probably find stop smoking clinics, counseling, support groups and other forms of therapy available either free or at a heavily subsidised rate.
The side effects you may suffer if you quit smoking:
Some people suffer no side effects whilst others become miserable. I believe it depends on your state of mind – if you are determined to quit and ignore all the reports of the awful withdrawal symptoms you may just find that you don’t suffer any. Don’t underestimate the power of your mind.
People are generally afraid of the following:
Weight gain due to being hungry – if it were true that people gained lots of weight when they give up smoking –all smokers would be thin and all non smokers would be fat. This is obviously not the case so put this fear into perspective. Some people will gain weight but it will not be a significant amount. Believe me the risk to your health posed by smoking far outweighs this small gain. You will be able to reduce your risk of gaining weight by following a healthy eating plan which is designed to keep your blood sugars stable. This should prevent you from snacking which would lead to the weight gain.
Lack of concentration – this probably has less to do with any physical addiction to the nicotine and other chemicals found in cigarettes than you think. Smokers who are trying to quit can find it hard to focus on anything other than their “longing” for a cigarette. This is not the same as a lack of concentration. You can deal with the craving by distracting yourself, having a drink of water or try deep breathing.
Increases in stress levels – smokers have been manipulated into believing their cigarette reduces their stress levels. You need to find another healthier way of dealing with stress. It is pointless telling you to relax as being stressed helps keep us alive. It is only when stress becomes overwhelming that problems occur. So take up walking or swimming and exercise those tensions away.
A lot of people will recommend that you try to give up slowly i.e. if you smoke 20 cigarettes a day, you should cut down to 15 or 10 for a while until gradually you will have cut down to five or less a day. Others find using aids such as patches, gum or nasal sprays help them whilst for others the old fashioned cold turkey is the way to go.
We will discuss the pros and cons of each approach later but for now we need to determine what you need to do regardless of the method you are going to use to stop smoking.
You need to make a plan. Never was the old saying – “failing to plan means planning to fail” so true than when applied to those trying to quit. Smoking is a habit as well as a physical addiction so to conquer both you have to know exactly what is ahead of you and plan accordingly.
Preparation
Adopt the Boy Scout motto – be prepared!
Preparation is everything. You will probably need the support of your family and friends to help you to stop. They need to be aware (and will hopefully support) your decision so that they do not put temptation in your path. This is particularly important if they also smoke.
But if you wish to remain private about your intention to quit, that is fine too. I would suggest that you consider signing up to an online forum under an assumed name or making contact with a telephone based stop smoking service so that you have somewhere to go for guidance, help and support if you find your will power is failing.
You should make a list of the reasons why you want to quit smoking. Carry that list around with you so when the temptation to smoke is becoming difficult to deal with, you can look at your list and hopefully find a reason not to smoke.
Make a list of the people, places and activities you associate most with smoking. If for example you always have a drink and a smoke together, you may want to consider giving up alcohol for the first couple of weeks as well. That will give you time to break the association between these two activities.
Draw up your alternate list i.e. a catalogue of new activities that you can take up. These won’t have any association with smoking and you will be able to help offset the craving for your old habit by concentrating on developing skills and perhaps making friends.
You need to pick a day that you are going to stop smoking on. This shouldn’t be today as we want you to have the maximum chance of success. So pick a day a couple of weeks away and try and pick a stress free one. Now, I know it is difficult to pick stress free days in advance, but if you know your mother in law is coming to stay or you have a huge presentation at work – that would not be the ideal time to quit.
So pick the date that suits you best. Work on the basis that you are going to be successful and plan a series of treats that you are going to use as rewards for your progress. For example, you could buy yourself a new book or bag after you have had one complete day not smoking. Work up the rewards getting bigger and better ones as the time goes by. With the price of a packet of cancer sticks these days, you could probably afford a nice holiday after being smoke free for a while.
Before you reach the day you have chosen to quit, you need to know how you are going to support yourself in your goal of becoming a non smoker. Are you going to use nicotine replacement therapy? If so will it be gum, patches or the spray? Perhaps you are going to try using medications. If you have decided to go cold turkey you may want to consider joining a support group or counseling session.
Find out about each method and then make your decision.
Nicotine replacement therapy
Nicotine based stop smoking aids generally come in three types i.e. gum, patches or nasal spray. Supporters of this approach say it makes quitting easier as you help the body slowly cure its addiction to nicotine. These products should only be used under medical supervision and are not suitable for pregnant or breastfeeding women, anybody with severe health problems or recent stroke victims.
Gum
The tissues in your mouth are extremely absorbent so nicotine based gum is often used to help wean heavy smokers off their nicotine habit. You do need to remember that this gum is another source of nicotine which is a highly toxic substance adversely affecting your body. Do not exceed the recommended level of use despite the fact that nicotine gum is available without a prescription. And it is worth bearing in mind that quite a number of ex smokers become addicted to nicotine gum instead. This can cause its own problems as you are only supposed to use the gum for six months.
The gum can cause nausea, mouth sores and irritation of your throat, a racing heartbeat as well as leaving a bad taste in your mouth.
Patch
Nicotine patches are generally only recommended for a period of three to six months to help reduce your withdrawal symptoms. The theory is that this sticker will release low levels of nicotine into your body thus helping you to reduce your dependency on this highly addictive substance. The patches are convenient as you can wear them somewhere inconspicuous so long as they are on the upper part of your body.
Patches can cause skin irritation and sleep problems – speak to your doctor as he may want to reduce the strength of the patch. Studies have shown that patches are not particularly effective in those that smoke less than 10 cigarettes a day. You should never use a patch whilst you are still smoking unless advised to by your doctor.
Nasal Spray
The lining of your nose is one of the most absorbent places in your body so some doctors advocate a nicotine based spray for the initial 3 to 6 month period.
As the above products contain nicotine, side effects are common and include dizziness, insomnia and in the cases of patches, some nasal and throat irritation. People with a history of breathing problems such as Asthma should not use this form of nicotine replacement therapy. It is not particularly suitable for those that suffer from sinusitis or nasal polyps as it can exacerbate both these conditions.
Medication
Some doctors will recommend a prescription anti-depressant as a stop smoking aid. Whilst these drugs do not contain nicotine, they help to reduce the craving for nicotine by releasing chemicals into your brain.
Some newer drugs work by reducing the pleasant effects of the nicotine on your brain so you suffer less from withdrawal symptoms but they also lower your enjoyment of the actual cigarette.
They are sometimes used in conjunction with nicotine replacement therapy as a combination of both treatments has had a higher success rate in those patients who were very heavy smokers.
This type of treatment should only be undertaken if prescribed by a doctor.
Alternative treatments;
Use of alternative medicine is rising in the battle to cure smokers. There is less conclusive evidence that these treatments work as they are not subject to the rigorous testing associated with medical products. But if you already believe in alternative medicine, then one or more of these may be worth a try.
Magnets
The use of magnets to stop smoking is a relatively new practice. These bio-magnets are designed to be worn on your upper left ear, for at least two hours, where they stimulate specific nerve cells. Fans of this treatment claim that it is extremely successful. My view – if you believe strongly enough that something will work, it will. So if you believe in the power of magnets, this treatment may be successful for you.
Hypnosis
Paul McKenna and others like him have helped to make hypnosis more acceptable particularly when it is integrated with Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP). You have the option of using a hypnosis CD, attending a seminar or booking one to one sessions. You should go with whichever option suits you best. It may help some people to be with a room full of other addicts all trying to find a cure. Other people work best in private so would prefer the personal attention of a private consultation.
You need to take care when using a hypnotist. Try and find someone who has a built up a professional reputation being successful at helping other smokers to quit. Beware of charlatans who are more interested in helping you to empty your wallet than to cure your habit. Hypnosis is not the 100% easy cure that some adverts would have you believe but there is too much anecdotal evidence suggesting that it does work to dismiss it out of hand.
Acupuncture
Acupuncture releases endorphins which are the body’s natural feel good hormones. These help to calm nerves and reduce the physiological stress associated with giving up your habit. The fear of the anticipated withdrawal symptoms is often a lot worse than the actual physical symptoms. Acupuncture helps deal with this fear so might prove useful when quitting. Again seek recommendations as not all acupuncturists were created equal!
Herbal medicines
As yet there is no scientific proof that any herbal medicines will help to wean you away from your cigarettes.
Going cold turkey
Surprisingly given its bad reputation, this is one of the most tried and tested ways of giving up the smoking habit. Preparation is key as is the commitment to quit. Depending on the number of cigarettes you smoke and the extent of your addiction you may find you suffer some unpleasant side effects. But a lot of people suffer these effects as they have convinced themselves that they will rather than the actual nicotine withdrawal. It is a bit like the placebo effect in a drugs trial – a lot of patients will find themselves cured when all they have taken is a sugar pill whilst believing they were on a wonder drug.
Let your family and friends know of your decision to quit only if you are 100% certain that they will be supportive of your choice. Most families will be but your smoking buddies may want you to fail – they already know that their numbers are dwindling.
You could consider joining an internet forum or chat room and finding other people to go cold turkey at the same time. Then when you are having a bad moment or a day full of bad moments, you have a support network there to help you get through the tough times.
Alternatively most States now provide telephone quit smoking help lines – studies have shown that you are twice as likely to be successful if you have access to these types of services.
Always talk to your doctor before going cold turkey particularly if you have a preexisting medical condition or you are a very heavy smoker. He may advise that your system would react adversely to the sudden withdrawal of the nicotine and other highly addictive toxins in cigarettes. He may suggest that you would be better off gradually reducing the number of cigarettes you smoke until you eventually end up at zero.
Your doctor will also be up to date on the best services and help available to you in your battle to quit. As we said above, most developed countries now realize that it is actually cheaper to fund non smoking and quit smoking programs then it is to deal with the cost of cancer and similar diseases caused by this addiction. So you may find that you have access to a local support group, telephone consoling etc. Take all the help you can get as you may need it.
If you are in relatively good health, going cold turkey will probably not be as bad as it first sounds. Keep yourself busy but not stressed and you should be fine. Some ex smokers advocate you doing volunteer work on a lung cancer or emphysema ward whilst you are trying to quit. The idea being that if you don’t quit, you could very well end up as the next patient. Having the motivation to beat your habit may just come a little easier after one day on a ward like that described.
Just don’t turn into one of those ex smokers who make it their mission in life to convert every smoker to their new status. It is easier to stay a non smoker, especially in the early days, when you don’t put yourself in temptations path.
Counseling
Counselors work in different ways to help you achieve your status as a non smoker. Some counselors believe that you are more addicted to the “fear” of giving up rather than to the physical nicotine addiction.
What fear? You want to give up because you want to become healthier so where is the anxiety coming from? Well, most smokers are afraid they will suffer some reaction to giving up. They may be afraid that they are going to put on weight (particularly prevalent amongst female smokers), or that they will become anxious or depressed without their cigarettes.
Take care if you are tempted by the” instant easy success with no work on your part” cures for smoking. Whilst it is very possible to give up smoking and thousands of people do every day, it is not simple and it is does take work in the form of will power on your behalf. If it didn’t, the statistics wouldn’t show that almost 70% of smokers want to quit but only between 4% and 7% are successful. Don’t you think if it were easy to quit, these statistics would not be so telling i.e. less than 10% of the people who say they want to quit are successful.
The biggest challenge is not the physical withdrawal from nicotine – if it were that easy then the gums and patches would be 100% effective. No the biggest challenge is the addiction that lives in your brain. People who have smoked for years have unconsciously associated smoking with most every day activities. This is why it is so important to tackle your habits as well as the physical addiction. Earlier we made a list of all places, people and activities that you associate with smoking. Now you need to look at the list and see how you can either change your perception or else avoid these places.
So you have made your plan, selected a date to quit and taken action finding out which method you are going to use to stop smoking forever.
So Q day arrives – what do you do?
Well you are almost guaranteed that today of all days will be the one where you think about nothing other than that cigarette. Why? Are you suddenly craving nicotine? Not really. You have built up some anticipation before this date and it is only natural to now be concentrating on smoking. So again our preparation will help us.
We know that today we do not smoke under any circumstances – not one tiny little puff. And no excuses – you can’t fool yourself and at the moment nobody else matters.
You need to try to focus your thoughts elsewhere. Keep active whether that means going out to play a game of golf, football or any other sport – it will keep your hands busy as well as your mind!
Drink plenty of water and fruit juices but avoid alcohol. You need all the will power you can drum up and drinking alcohol will interfere with it.
You know which situations, people and places are most likely to tempt you to smoke so avoid them, today particularly.
Make sure you have your reward ready and waiting for the clock to strike your first full day as a non smoker This is an ongoing war and you need to congratulate yourself on the little battles you win in order to stay motivated.
Take it hour by hour and then day by day. Countless studies have shown that accomplishing a series of little goals will lead to big success. Setting yourself what appears to be an impossible target i.e. I can’t wait until I am a non smoker for a year will only set yourself on the road to failure. Rather start off with a target of being a non smoker for an hour, half a day, a day, a week, a month etc.
When you first quit, you should help yourself as much as possible by staying away from temptation. Spend time with people who don’t smoke and don’t allow you to smoke in their presence.
As time goes by you may be lulled into a false sense of security believing you are cured. Then a longing for a cigarette will hit you like a brick from the sky. You may even give into your desire. One cigarette won’t necessarily turn you back into a smoker but is it worth the risk? If you do succumb, don’t allow that one smoke to rationalise you becoming a smoker again. There is a huge difference between giving into one craving and suddenly smoking a packet of 20.
If you find yourself being tempted, take out your lists and remind yourself of all the reasons you wanted to quit. Look at what you have achieved and how far you have come. And then get busy until the urge has passed.
Congratulate yourself on your achievements and look forward to the rest of your life as a non smoker!
