How to Stop Smoking
If you follow our guidelines you will be much more likely to accomplish your goal of stopping smoking.
1. Don’t try and cut down how many cigarettes you smoke.
Even if you only smoke 3 cigarettes a day you are still damaging your long term health. Studies have shown that if you simply try and cut down the number of cigarettes you smoke each day, you are more than likely to end up back at your original amount within a month.
Many people also try and change to “low tar” style cigarettes – again, this is not a good approach to stopping smoking. Nicotine is addictive – people who switch to low nicotine cigarettes just end up smoking more of them and ingesting the same quantity of the harmful substances they were originally.
2. List the reasons for wanting to quit.
You may find it helps to write down all the reasons why you want to quit – pin this up somewhere you will see it daily to keep you on track to stop the habit.
Some example reasons:
- Have a healthier lifestyle
- Be a good role-model to your children/relatives
- Protect your co-workers or family from inhaling your 2nd hand smoke
- Keeping your clothing/house/workplace smelling fresh
- Saving money
You should read your list out loud at least once a day – keeping your reasons to quit fresh in your head will make you far more likely to stick to it.
3. 50% of smokers over 18 years old have already quit – you can join them.
There are literally millions of people alive today who now live their day to day lives without the need to poison their lungs. If all of these people can quit, you can join them with a little will power.
4. It will take effort to stop smoking.
A major step in the battle to stop smoking is knowing you need to quit in the first place. If you are already reading this you are on the road to redemption. There are many ways to quit smoking, including nicotine patches, nicotine gum and hypnotherapy. Almost all smokers experience nicotine withdrawal when they attempt to quit – this is natural and is just your body purging itself of the poison you have put in it. Just try and take it one day at a time, and before you know it you will no longer be thinking of cigarettes.
5. Help is available
There are plenty online resources available to you – please use them if you feel it will help you. You should also contact your local doctor for confidential advice.