Smoking
Stop Smoking: Butt Our For Good
By
Apr 28, 2004, 14:15

Your Concerns about Quitting
It is normal to have concerns or worries about quitting smoking. For instance, many people worry about the “withdrawal symptoms.” Keep the following things in mind: Most cravings and urges usually only last for a few minutes and then they pass. Urges to smoke may be more related to changes in your normal daily routines (e.g., you may usually smoke with friends before school and now this has changed). It will take some time to get used to these changes but with time, it can happen. Also, it is important to keep in mind that there are products that you can get from your doctor or pharmacist to help with possible withdrawal symptoms, such as the nicotine patch, nicorette gum, or Zyban.

Weight gain is another common concern about quitting. Not all people who quit smoking gain weight. About 20 percent of people do not gain any weight and for those who do, it is usually only minimal (about 5 pounds). Increasing your exercise and choosing healthy snacks instead of cigarettes will help prevent much weight gain. Also, the health benefits of quitting smoking are much greater than the health risks of possibly putting on a few pounds.

Another frequent concern people have about quitting is handling stress. Their fear is that because smoking helps them to decrease their stress, once they quit, their stress will increase. However, over time, your stress level should decrease since quitting smoking helps to decrease your heart rate, improves sleep, and helps your body to use oxygen. Also, there are many ways to handle stress rather than smoking, such as trying to relax your muscles while listening to your favorite music, taking deep and slow breaths, visualizing your favorite place such as a sandy beach, and going out with friends. See Stress Management for more information.

People also often have a fear of failure when thinking about quitting smoking. They worry that they will not be able to quit and that others will think they are a failure. However, just by trying to quit, you are a winner. Each time you try, you will learn more about yourself and people will view you as courageous for even trying.

Deciding to Quit
When you decide you might want to quit smoking, the first thing to do is write down your reasons for smoking and for quitting. For instance, you may smoke because it reduces stress, and it is a social activity that you and your friends who smoke can do together. On the other side, you may want to quit because it is expensive, unhealthy, or because of what your family and friends who do not smoke may think about your smoking, and the affect of your smoking on others and environment. 

Although you may already be well aware of these reasons, it is very important that you write them down. Writing them down will help you to really think about them and will give you motivation to help you while quitting and for staying smoke-free. The next step to quitting smoking is to prepare yourself for quitting, which requires a bit of planning on your part. 

Preparing to Quit Smoking
Part of preparing to quit smoking is to try to understand why you smoke, find alternatives to smoking, making a commitment to quit smoking, and practicing quitting. In terms of why people smoke, a lot of people smoke because of the nicotine addiction. Some people may smoke because they feel it reduces stress or because of influences in their life. To better understand why you smoke, you might want to keep a log or diary of when you smoke, who you were with at the time you were smoking and what you were doing and the reason for smoking (e.g., to wake up in the morning). This will help you to understand certain patterns in your smoking, which in turn will help you to quit.

Alternatives to Smoking
When you are trying to quit smoking, it is a good idea to try to gradually adopt more healthy behaviours and coping strategies in place of smoking. Coping strategies include:

• Doing more physical activities such as walking to school or after a meal, casual sports, gardening, cooking, riding a bicycle to school or work.

• Adopt more healthy eating habits such as eating low-fat snacks such as carrot sticks and well-balanced meals.

• Learn how to manage your stress levels. Some ideas might include taking a hot bath, going for a walk, reading a book or playing on the computer, talking with friends, and listening to your favorite music. See Stress Management for more tips on managing your stress.

How to Resist the Urges to Smoke
First, it is important to learn what your triggers are and to try to “disarm” them the best you can. For instance triggers might include, drinking coffee or beer, socializing with friends or at parties, breaks at lunch or at school, after meals, in the morning right after one wakes up, and while watching television. It is important to know the places and activities that give you the urge to smoke and avoid those places, even if it means making changes to your daily routines and schedules. Support from friends can be very helpful. Make sure you tell those closest to you that you are quitting smoking so that they can help by giving you the support that you may need. Also, practice new ways to handle your stress by adopting more healthy activities in your life. 

It is important to throw away your cigarettes once you decide to smoke and to get rid of any reminders of smoking such as your ashtray or lighters etc. If you decide to reduce your smoking before quitting smoking entirely, keep a smoking diary and attach it to your pack of cigarettes to serve as a reminder. Also, you can try to change your smoking habits by keeping your cigarettes in a different place, smoking with the opposite hand, limiting your smoking to certain places, or try to delay having a cigarette by a minute or two. You can switch to a brand of cigarettes that you do not like, or distract yourself by sucking on ice cubes or drinking ice water or by chewing on carrot or celery sticks. 

Lastly, when you are feeling stressed and doubting your decision to quit smoking, review your reasons for smoking and take the time to notice how much better you are feeling and the positive effects of quitting smoking on your overall health and well-being.

For help quitting smoking contact the
Teen Health Centre at (519)253-8481

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