Despite the dangers of smoking, many people continue to discount the unanimous warnings of health care professionals and puff away – often to the detriment of their health.
The truth is it’s hard to stop smoking even though you may know it’s bad for you. You may even have told yourself that it’s impossible to stop smoking. The statistics on smoking are frightening. Did you know that 80% of smokers start before the age of 21? Or that one in five high school seniors smoke on a daily basis and 70% have tried cigarettes at least once? And the scariest statistic of all? – 3000 teenagers start smoking each day!
The good news is that while the rates at which people start smoking are not decreasing, the number of people quitting smoking each year are. If you are thinking of joining the ranks of these smoke-free individuals and have decided that it’s time top choose health and stop smoking, read on to find out ways in which you can make giving up the bad stuff a little easier on yourself (and your family!)
People smoke for many different reasons including stress relief, life problems, peer pressure, family background or parental modeling or a personality that ends towards high-risk behaviors but whatever the reason the important thing now is to understand the reasons why you wish to STOP!
Start by making a list of all the negative aspects of smoking including those on your health, budget and non-smoking family members and pets. It might look something like this:
* Increased cancer, cardiovascular and respiratory disease (among many others including impotence in men and low birth weights in women who smoke while pregnant)
* Less money to save or spend on the things you need or enjoy
* Negative effects on those around you, including on their health
* Increased environmental pollution and damage
Next concentrate on the positive aspects that will come into play if you stop smoking:
* Increased fitness and decreased disease risk
* Extra money to save or spend
* A healthier family or pets
* Decreased damage to the environment
Right, now let’s get down to the nitty gritty and learn some methods that will help you stop smoking and stick to it.
The Pre-Preparation Phase to Stop Smoking
If you want to stop smoking you need to prepare yourself for it before you actually do it. This is because about 80% of smokers try and fail one or more times before they eventually succeed and 95% will have at least three or four failed attempts. The good news is that you are more likely to succeed if you have tried and failed before.
At this point you probably feel like quitting and continuing to smoke all at the same time. This is a fairly common phenomenon amongst smokers seeking to quit. The crux of the matter is one of indulgence vs. restraint and the inevitable fear of discomfort, stress and some weight gain as you give up this nasty habit forever.
You may also feel that if you fail to stop smoking you are branded as a hopeless nicotine addict forever. You and your family will need to be patient and prepare for the highs and lows of transforming yourself into a committed non-smoker.
The Readiness to Change Concept
Four stages to stop smoking have been identified in the process of change by Prochaska and Diclemente and these are:
1) The Precontemplation Stage
- Here you are not yet ready to consider any kind of change. You are not ready to quit.
2) The Contemplation Stage
- In this stage you are willing to at least consider change at some stage in the future.
3) The Action Stage
- At this point you are ready to work on changing immediately. You are ready to stop smoking.
4) The Maintenance Stage
- Now you want to work on making the change stick.
Any kind of motivation should be tailored to your readiness to change or it is likely to be unsuccessful. So it is no use throwing your cigarettes in the trash if you are in stage one or two – you aren’t ready and will likely be fishing them out from amongst the milk cartons and used tissues!
If you feel you are truly ready to stop smoking and have navigated through stage one and two of the change continuum here’s how to get started on smoking emancipation:
The Action Stage
There are many methods that can be used to stop smoking for example:
* Cold Turkey method * Nicotine Replacement Methods (Patch, Gum, Nasal Spray) * Behavioral Methods * Cognitive Therapy Method * Other Methods and adjuncts (acupuncture, hypnosis, medications) * Factors for relapse while in the process of quitting * Predictors of successful quitting
We will discuss some of these in the following paragraphs:
Cold turkey method to Stop Smoking
Many ‘self-changers’ prefer this method – there is no use of gum, nasal spray or any other artificial interference. You simply stop smoking. There are usually strong motivational factors involved in this for of quitting, such as illness, pregnancy or religious aims.
Nicotine replacement therapy
The nicotine in cigarettes is replaced with nicotine absorbed through 1) the skin by a transdermal nicotine patch, 2) the nasal mucosa through a nicotine nasal spray or 3) the buccal mucosa by means of nicotine chewing gum).
Clinical trials have proved that this form of nicotine replacement is safe and effective in the reduction of cravings and withdrawal symptoms like weight gain. They may have some side effects like local skin irritations or insomnia and nightmares.
If you decide to use the patch to stop smoking you can’t EVER smoke while wearing it as you can actually overdose on nicotine and have a stroke or heart attack.
Behavioral Therapy To Assist You in Stop Smoking
This form of therapy involves looking at your environment for factors that may cause you to smoke such as ashtrays, matches etc. The idea is to make smoking hard to do by avoiding situations and feelings like socializing with other smokers or smoking after meals and drinks. You also need to measure and monitor your behavior to see what makes you want to smoke.
Next you are encouraged to find ways to defer or deter smoking for example:
Delaying Tactics:
-Waiting an ever increasing time period before having a smoke and writing it down when you do or deciding to stop smoking for one day only.
Fading Techniques:
- Using the patch, gum or lowering the tar/nicotine content in the cigarettes you smoke to lower your nicotine requirements step-by-step. You will also inhale for shorter periods or change your brand to a less appealing one will make smoking less pleasurable and help you to stop smoking.
Behavior Substitution:
* Carrot sticks * gum, cereal * toothpicks * exercise
Aversive Conditioning:
- One way to stop smoking is by visualizing negative consequences like physical or mental health problems, causing harm to others, encountering social disapproval, labeling oneself an addict or slave, thinking of smoking as a suicide equivalent etc.
- Contingency contracting: This may be deciding to reach a goal of short term abstinence and if not money gets sent to your worst enemy.
-Positive reinforcement
This is a concept based on pairing a positive thought or behavior with the desired behavior such as:
* Focusing on the goal * Focusing on personal rewards * Focusing on social rewards
Cognitive therapy techniques
The goal of cognitive therapy techniques is to help you stop smoking by taking personal responsibility for your thoughts, for changing them and for any negative the beliefs about the barriers to success, as well as identifying irrational thought patterns or beliefs.
However you decide to stop smoking it may be a little rough going, at least at first. You might want to use a combination of the above methods until you find one that alleviates your cravings sufficiently to make a success of your choice. Good health, more money and less stress due to a nasty habit are surely reasons enough to stop smoking today! Good luck!