Smoking skills. How to quit smoking for good?

Smoking causes a range of cancers, as well as heart disease, stroke and emphysema in Australia. However, it takes a smoker an average of five to ten attempts to successfully quit smoking. But with good strategies and perseverance, giving up should be an attainable goal for everyone.

Why is it so hard?

When you try to quit smoking, you’re not just fighting one addiction – but actually doing battle with three. According to Dr White, there are three distinct and separate parts to our craving for cigarettes: a nicotine addiction, an emotional addiction, and a habitual addiction.

The emotional addiction, however, is much harder to break. This is the reason why most people continue to smoke, and it can be extremely complex. We use cigarettes for many reasons: to reward ourselves, to console ourselves when things are going badly, to calm ourselves down, to take time out.

Set yourself a date

Follow a course will help to discipline yourself. QUIT organisation can suggest numerous strategies that have helped Victorian smokers to give up. A call to Quitline [on 13 7848] can offer a great start to your quitting journey, “For the cost of a local call, you can double your chances of success.” QUIT also offers free personalised online coaching and a free text messaging service to help you keep on track.

Side effects

When you give up, you’ll inevitably suffer from some of the side effects of abruptly stopping nicotine – including irritability, frustration, restlessness, and difficulties in concentrating.

During this critical phase, it’s worth considering one of the many ‘nicotine replacement products’ that deliver nicotine to your bloodstream in an ever-decreasing supply. As well as highly effective nicotine patches (some of which are discounted under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme), other products that can help include nicotine gum, lozenges, inhalators and mouth sprays.

Change routines, change habits

If you habitually have a cigarette at morning tea, take your morning tea in a place where you’re not permitted to smoke. Instead of having an after-work smoke, take a square of dark chocolate is much better for you – as a few extra calories are a small price to pay for kicking the habit.

Finding healthy ways to cope without a cigarette is one of the keys to staying smoke free.

Changing your emotional addiction

The first step to tackling your emotional addiction is to become aware of your emotional triggers and work out how else you can deal with these moments. Some things to consider:

If you use smoking to escape demanding social moments, is there another way you can do this?

If you like time alone, is there another way to engineer it? This is a good time to enlist the help of friends and family.

If you reward yourself for a job well done, what else tickles your fancy?

If family, work or traffic seem to be a cause, what other ways can you handle these situations without a cigarette?

Never give up giving up

Don’t despair if you’ve tried to kick the habit several times. What you’re trying to do is very hard. And remember: the rewards of success will be amazing.

The other great benefit, of course, will be to your self-esteem – knowing that you’ve won the battle against one of the world’s most addictive adversaries. There are now more former smokers than current smokers – hundreds of thousands of Aussies have quit, and you can too!

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Would you like to inspire others to quit smoking? Add a comment below and share your story.