GIVING UP SMOKING » quitting smoking

Two Things You Should Avoid if You Want to Successfully Quit Smoking

StopSmokingCoach — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 16:01:40 +0000

Unless you are one of those rare people that claim they can quit cigarettes whenever they want, you have to understand that you need many things to go right if you want to quit smoking successfully. There are couple things that you’ll need to avoid in order to achieve success and it’s crucial you get these things settled before you attempt to quit.

Your first priority is to either stay away or to make understand the people around you that try to pressure you into quitting, that you need them to stop pressuring you because you are readying yourself to quit smoking for good. A smoker can never quit smoking due to outside pressure. No matter how much a parent, spouse, or a partner might push a smoker to quit, it will never happen until the smoker himself or herself develops the will to quit.

Let your family and friends know that you are getting yourself ready to quit smoking and that during this time you do not need additional pressure from anyone. Although they may be well meant, getting nagged on to quit smoking while that’s exactly what you are trying to achieve can become a big source of stress for any smoker trying to quit. Make them understand that nicotine addiction can be as serious as cocaine addiction for many smokers and that your will alone may not be enough to help you quit smoking successfully. Having the mental state that will give you the best shot to quit smoking is of utmost importance and you’ll need the support of those around you to make that happen.

The second thing you must do is to stay away from the people that are of the complete opposite of the example above. These are the people that constantly remind you that you will never be able to quit smoking. They can also be your friends or family members who also happen to smoke that always discourage you from quitting. Misery loves company and believe me smokers hate it when someone else has the will to kick the nasty habit they themselves can’t seem to get rid of. Stay away from these people that want you to fail. Some of these people you might care a whole lot for, but you need to stay away from them during the first month of quitting session.

Some of these negative minded people who also happen to be smokers might be able to picture themselves as non-smokers thanks to you. If you successfully quit smoking, you might be able to inspire those smokers around you to quit as well. I’ve seen many times how one smoker quitting led to bunch of other friends to quit smoking as well. You quitting cigarettes can actually have a much bigger impact than you think and you could be changing lives while you improve your own.

Make sure you follow the two tips above and you will give yourself a much better chance at quitting smoking successfully. Good luck and go nicotine free today.

Chantix – What Are The Dangers

StopSmokingCoach — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 16:55:38 +0000

If you decided to quit smoking, I assure you it was the single most important decision in your life. The next step would be to choose how you will quit and you just might be interested in Chantix. Here’s a short description of Chantix for those of you who are not familiar with this drug. Chantix is basically a non-nicotine pill which is designed to target nicotine receptors in the brain and attach to them. The end result is preventing nicotine reaching the receptors.

In theory and by their own marketing pitch it sounds wonderful, but a mounting number of Chantix lawsuit tell a different story. Some of the side effects disclosed by Pfizer (the maker of Chantix) include, reported changes in behavior, agitation, depressed mood, suicidal thoughts or actions, let me stop there. No matter how rare, a stop smoking aid product’s side effect should not include suicidal thoughts or actions. The act of quitting smoking should improve the quality of life and not worsen it.

Chantix was approved by the FDA in May 2006 and by May 2009 FDA indicated it received reports of 39 Chantix suicides. The sales number of Chantix has been sliding ever since the concerns have been made public.

If you believe you need help quitting smoking, there are many other quit smoking aids on the market and I would seriously advice you to go with the alternatives. If you don’t want to add anything into your system, you can also try hypnotherapy or acupuncture.

I like to compare the act of smoking as committing a slow suicide, as you can see I am that much against smoking cigarettes. But If I had to choose between chancing with a cigarette vs. a drug that could possibly give me suicidal thoughts, I’d always go with the cigarette. Be wise, choose another path, and always choose to improve your health.

Giving Up Smoking – An Impossible Task for Me

StopSmokingCoach — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 10:52:09 +0000

Giving Up Smoking

Giving up smoking is extremely difficult for anyone who’s smoked for a prolonged period of time. Dependency to nicotine grows over the period of your addiction and the years that pass by turn you into a junkie. I don’t use the word “junkie” lightly, but that’s essentially what you become as you regularly have panic attacks when cigarettes are not readily available to you. Giving up smoking may seem like an impossible task, but I can give you a few tips that will go a long way in helping you kick the habit.

Do you have extra packs of cigarettes stashed in your house? You may even keep extra packs in your car and you are most likely very mindful of how low you are running on cigarettes. If this is you then it’s seriously a good time to give up smoking. This is basically addiction running your life and the sign that you have completely lost control over your nicotine craving. You should not need scary statistic to convince yourself to at least entertain the thought of giving up smoking.

It’s completely normal to feel uncertain and uneasy about the thought of giving up smoking. In fact, you are better off cutting yourself some slack and expect to fail on your first try. It is my experience that people who’ve smoked less than 2 years tend to quit fairly easy. As for those who’ve smoked over 2 years, some studies suggest more than 70 percent failing on their first try.

The sooner you quit the better of course, but you have to concentrate more on the quitting part than the when. It may as well take you several tries to give up smoking and it may even take you a year or two to quit for good, but if you quit for good, that’s all that matters really.

The truth is the initial shock that you feel the first time you try giving up smoking gets less and less intense as you try to quit again and again. A big part of giving up smoking is psychological, the more you know what to expect, the better you will cope with the stress of nicotine withdrawal. So in an essence, a failure in giving up smoking is only a step forward to ultimately quitting for good rather than a flat out failure.

The key is on giving it a try, just try quitting smoking. You may give up in just one hour or in one day, that’s OK because you’ve tried. That first step is very important, you can talk all you want about how much you’d like to quit but ultimately only actions count. Persistence will eventually pay off and you will be nicotine free as long as you are willing to take actions. Giving up smoking is all about persistence.

Continue with Giving Up Smoking – Finding The Motivation

Stop Smoking Signs

StopSmokingCoach — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 15:52:20 +0000

Quitting smoking can be such a challenge that generally, smokers see all the signs that scream quit, and yet they can’t seem to even fathom with the idea of skipping the next fix. Perhaps laying these facts wide open for your viewing pleasure should help you step closer in becoming cigarette free.

•Shortness of breath, you can never seem to have a full breath of air. It just feels like you can’t fill that last 20percent of your lung.

•Persistent cough that at times is uncontrollable.

•Frequent headaches.

•Depression, you start to hate yourself for no reason.

•Suffer frequently from sore throats as cigarette smokes irritate the throat lining.

•Erratic pattern of breathing is a serious stop smoking sign and you should see a doctor as soon as soon as possible.

•Fatigue, when you can hardly remember the last time you were energetic.

•Jogging 5minutes or less is a challenge. Diminished lung capacity should be taken very seriously.

•Choking on your own mucus while you sleep, you should seriously consider quitting if a garbage can next to your bed is a must.

•Revolting morning breath, there are morning breaths, and then there are “morning breathes”.

•You are well convinced that cancer will one day take you out. If smoking often reminds you of death, cancer, and all the scary things associated with it, perhaps it’s a clear sign that you should give up smoking.

More often than not, we can prevent illnesses and other complications if we’d only listen to our body. Unfortunately, often we are well aware that our body is trying to communicate with us but we just ignore it. At some point your body will stop communicating and you’ll start to get sick. Start listening to your body and mind. Take action. You know it’s time to quit smoking. Learn about the Benefits of Quitting Smoking Here.

Get The Naysayers Out Of The Way

StopSmokingCoach — Sat, 30 May 2009 05:39:07 +0000

One of the most important things you have to do before quitting smoking is alienating the naysayers. Some people are just born with negative bones in their body and they never seem to have anything nice to say about anyone. But they are rare breeds and the ones that you really need to avoid are the pessimists in your life.

We all have that uncle who likes to poop on everyone’s party and that cousin who criticizes every one of your achievements. Unfortunately some of these people are very dear to us no matter how irritating they may be. Obviously you can’t alienate these people forever, but it’s important to keep them out of your life temporarily or at least don’t let them know that you are in the process of quitting smoking. You walk a very fine line when you first stop smoking. Little things will trigger relapse and there’s nothing worse than hearing discouraging words from people who should be cheering you on.

Ideally we would all love to have family members who can be around every time we need someone to talk to. But we know that’s not possible and we also know it’s not because our families don’t care. So we can’t control the sort of support we get from our family members, but we can control who we spend time with and where we spend time at.

Many things in our lives are out of the realms of our control. So the things that we can control to some degree, we have to make sure we manage them in ways that are beneficial to our lives. So how about skipping the next family barbeque? You can go back to the way things were as soon as you take control of your nicotine addiction. That’s really easier than you think as nicotine withdrawal symptoms generally last only up to two weeks. The rest is all mental and if you had the fortitude to stay cigarette free for two weeks, you have what it takes to stay free from it for life.

Positive reinforcement is the key and you can’t expect to quit smoking if you let the naysayers discourage you. As Robert Collier once said, “All power is from within and therefore under our control”. Take charge and stop smoking away your life. Continue with “50-50 Chance of Survival”.

Quit Smoking with Nicotine Patch

StopSmokingCoach — Wed, 27 May 2009 22:44:02 +0000

Nicotine patch is another form of Nicotine Replacement Therapy. It is a transdermal patch, which is basically a patch that adheres to the skin to deliver nicotine through the skin and into the bloodstream.

If this is your first try at quitting smoking, I would generally suggest you try quitting cold turkey. Nicotine patches and other stop smoking products I feel comfortable recommending to people who’ve tried and failed in their previous attempt or attempts in quitting smoking. The only exceptions on first time quitters would be those who are long-term smokers, heavy smokers, or people who are self-aware that they are not particularly patient people.

Nicotine patches much like nicotine gums deliver controlled amount of nicotine to your system to help you deal with the withdrawal symptoms associated with smoking cessation. The release of nicotine in a less intense and slower pace than cigarette allows the user to gradually wean nicotine dependency until the patches are completely inessential. Most patches are worn up to 24 hours, making everyday use very convenient.

It comes in three strengths, the 21mg, the 14mg, and the 7mg. The 21mg is recommended for those who smoke more than 10 cigarettes per day and the 14mg is recommended for those who smoke fewer than 10 cigarettes per day. The 7mg is the dosage that will finish the quit smoking program. The quit smoking program should last 8-10 weeks and you may lower the dosage depending on the strength you choose.

Generally the financial cost of nicotine patches should compare favorably to the cost of most cigarettes. It could be a different story for the light smokers, but you have to understand once you quit smoking you no longer need to purchase additional nicotine patches. The alternative is to keep smoking your life away.

There are few things you should know before using nicotine patches. On some occasions users may experience irregular heartbeats or palpitations, if so discontinue the use. Speak to a doctor if you experience skin redness for more than four days or if your skin swells. Nausea, vomiting, dizziness and weakness may also show as side effects. With that said, the side effects of nicotine patches are mild unlike Chantix which is reported to cause suicidal thoughts. I’m going off topic here a little, but I would never recommend Chantix to anyone. Nicotine patches are studied as a way of treating schizophrenia and it’s also found to be efficient in reducing post-surgical pain. They are used in other good ways and not just for quitting smoking.

Some 3 percent of nicotine patch users become dependent on the patch. By stopping smoking you no longer subject yourself to cigarette smokes that contain carcinogens known to cause cancer. But the effects on the long term use nicotine patches aren’t clear. It is generally recommended to end the therapy in 4 to 6 months at the least.

As with any stop smoking advice we at Giving Up Smoking provide for our readers, we cannot stress enough of the fact that you are the key to giving up smoking. All the stop smoking aid products are meant to help you through your cigarette free journey. They are useless unless you are onboard with the program. With that said, use all the tools available to your advantage and kick the habit for good. All our staffs at www.givingup-smoking.com wish you the best of luck. Continue with “How To Stay Thin After Quitting Cigarettes”.

Do I Really Want to Quit Smoking?

StopSmokingCoach — Mon, 25 May 2009 05:58:23 +0000

Ask yourself this question, do I really want to quit smoking? You should have the answer to this question first and foremost if you truly want to quit smoking. There is a difference between “having to quit” and “wanting to quit”. Being pushed by your wife or anyone you care for to quit smoking won’t get you anywhere. You will hide your continuing addiction and keep smoking until inevitably everyone you know find out you were lying.

Giving up smoking is an enormous challenge for majority of smokers. You need to find something very important to you and allow yourself to make a connection to your smoking habit. Think for a minute, there’s nothing that you do that is not affected in some way by your smoking habit. You need that connection and there are quite few places you can look for them.

If you are a parent you have an infallible responsibility to your children. For the rest of you, all you need is to remind yourself of the people you love, and that should be simply enough reason to quit. For those of you who are health conscious, drinking decaffeinated coffee and eating organic vegetables will not prevent the diseases that overcome so many smokers. Recent WHO reports state that over 5 million people die each year from illnesses or diseases attributed to tobacco use. For those of you who are struggling financially, imagine being able to earn an extra $1000 to $3000 doing nothing. Yes! Doing nothing! Does it sound too good to be true? Well there is a catch, all you have to do is from doing the act of smoking to not doing it and that’s it.

Cigarettes are now roughly $6.50 a pack and in many states you are paying $7 to $8 per pack. If you smoke a pack a day, that comes out to be $2372.50 per year. For those of you who smoke 2 packs a day, it is a whopping $4745! What can you do with all that money? How about that trip you always wanted to take? Pay off that credit card debt maybe? The truth is, weather you smoke a pack or two packs per day. The money you are spending on your addiction could be used in many self improving manners.

I can write for a month and come up with hundreds of reasons for you to quit smoking. But ultimately, the reason to quit smoking has to be something that touches you in a personal manner. Speak to your loved ones or give yourself a day of self reflection. When you find it, it will be far more effective in combating your addiction than any other quit smoking aids ever devised. Good luck friends. Continue with “Get The Naysayers Out Of The Way” and “How to quit smoking”.

Quit Smoking With Nicotine Gum

StopSmokingCoach — Sun, 24 May 2009 00:12:51 +0000

The Nicotine Gum is a type of chewing gum that works in the form of Nicotine Replacement Therapy. Nicotine gum provides nicotine to your system at a controlled and slower pace than cigarettes.

Nicotine gums are conveniently available at pharmacies over the counter and they are not sold to people underage.

Nicotine gums use the bloodstream as a delivery system, making access via the tissue in the mouth. Nicotine gums are safe because while they provide nicotine to fight the craving, it does it without the dangerous carcinogens found in cigarette smokes.

The less intense pace of nicotine distribution allows for a gradual withdrawal from nicotine dependency. Eventually you’ll need fewer and fewer pieces of nicotine gum until you no longer need it. Nicotine gum also gives the user the control to use it whenever the intense craving kicks in.

You can choose from two strengths of nicotine gums, the 4mg and the 2mg. The 4mg is intended for the use of heavier smokers and the 2mg for the lighter smokers. Instruction may vary by brand, please seek professional help for further instruction.

Side effects include hiccups and irritation of throat muscles by accidental swallowing of large amounts of nicotine. Prolonged used of nicotine gum was suspected of causing gum disease but recent studies found no connection between the use of nicotine gum and oral health. Always be sure to read the instruction carefully and seek professional help for additional information.

The taste of these gums are not particularly refreshing. You are chewing a nicotine gum after all. But you’ll be glad to hear that many brands offer different flavors making it a more pleasant experience.

You should stop smoking completely before you start using nicotine gums. Generally you can use 1 gum per hour, some brands may allow an extra gum when intense craving kicks in. It’s normal to feel slight tingling feeling in the mouth, just stop chewing when you feel it or when you notice a peppery taste. Park the nicotine gum until the peppery taste or tingling is almost gone and chew again. The gum should last you up to half an hour. For best result, please complete the program as intended by the manufacture of your choice. You will not stop smoking with nicotine gums alone, you have to do your part as well. But it is a very powerful tool to fight off nicotine craving in an effective manner to help you through the withdrawal symptoms. Continue with “Quit Smoking With Nicotine Patch”.

Continue with Quit Smoking with Nicotine Patch.

Quit Smoking Methods Quick List

StopSmokingCoach — Sat, 23 May 2009 18:18:29 +0000

Here are some of the popular Quit Smoking Methods;

*Cold Turkey

*Nicotine replacement therapy (e.g. Pills, Nicotine Gum, Nicotine Patch, Nicotine Inhaler, Nasal Spray)

*Non-Nicotine Medication (Helps reduce craving but does not contain nicotine, Zyban, Chantix)

*Stop smoking injections (e.g. Blocks nicotine receptors in your brain)

*Stop smoking hypnosis (Subconsciously build negativity towards smoking)

*Stop smoking laser (intended to take care of the physical aspects of the addiction)

*Stop smoking acupuncture (intended to reduce craving and withdrawal symptoms)

*Stop smoking books, CDs, MP3s (Self hypnosis, Encouragement)

From a Smoker Who Wishes to Quit

HVin — Sat, 23 May 2009 00:57:59 +0000

A cousin of mine once approached me as I was smoking in the back yard and told me, “Hans, you do realize that smoking is bad for your health.” Being the older person in this conversation I turned to him and said in a rather serious manner, “You do realize that asking me to stop smoking is bad for your health!”

I personally do know the cons of smoking. I used to be an EMT for the Fire Department of New York. I have had my share of calls where a patient’s Oxygen bottle is about empty and the patient is unable to walk to the next room to get another bottle. This is all because He has been smoking almost all his life and He admits that if it wasn’t for his illness he would still be smoking. At the same time I have seen people sitting outside their stoop with an Oxygen mask in one hand and a lit cigarette on the other. Seeing that just makes me shake my head and keep driving.

I have three older sisters. We have known about smoking since we were very young. My father was a smoker and my grandfather also. I was never really curious about it just because I saw my father and grandfather doing it. I was more against the fact that it hurt my eyes whenever I am close to them and they are smoking. For the longest time I cannot seem to fathom why they would smoke. Was it to look cool or maybe to show stature with peers? It was a question in the back of my mind to which I can never really ask my father nor my grandfather. It probably is attributed to my upbringing of never questioning your elders, but still that question lingered.

In September 2001, I was deployed to the trade center and worked there consecutive days. With all the commotion the death in the air, the 24 hour days it seemed not to faze me at that point. Months after, while relaxing with friends, my curiosity got the best of me and asked for a cigarette. Yes, it was a huge turnaround. 25 years of not smoking and here I was asking for a smoke. It became and excuse I suppose to start smoking or as a good friend of mine said an emotional outlet for stress endured from work and having a family and such.

It was not as bad as it is now. Back then a pack would last me a whole week. The only time I really would be smoking is when I am at work doing midnight shifts. It helped me not only to stay up, but in some ways I tend to believe it helped with my stress. This pack a week habit continued on for years. A pack eventually was not enough a week. It became two a week up until I had some marital problems that is when it got worse, much worse. The first few weeks of my problems I was smoking two packs a day give and take.

I hid it from family, although they can smell it off me. It was an unconscious decision that somehow it how it will lead them to believe that I was not smoking or even if I am they would respect the fact that I know that they do know, but I would not be as bold to smoke in front of them. It’s a bit confusing I know, but with my family and our background it made some sense.

The two packs a day only lasted for a few weeks, but the smoking never ceased then. I do average a less than a pack a day on a good day and every time I would have a rough conversation with my ex wife it would increase for that day, but that was about it.

Now this article is about quitting smoking and so far all I have done is talk about my experience on how I started and my excuses for smoking. I think it is easier to approach a problem when you know the root of it and that is why I, up until now have been talking about my road to smoking.

A few months ago I was on the phone with my oldest son who is eight. He asked me why I started smoking or why I was smoking. I told him my reasons and I told him that I truly hope that he does not follow my footsteps when it came to this vice. In return he said to me “No I will not smoke. I wanted to know what happened so I know what to do so I will not start smoking.” Those are his exact words and it made me proud that it came from my son who is only eight. Deep inside I said to my self that if this is not a sign to stop smoking I do not know what is.

Reasons for smoking as I have discussed is mostly psychological to start with. Smoke long enough and it becomes more of an addiction then a dependency. As with so many things that we ingest our body copes with it and becomes used to the fact that it is part of our regular regiment. Quitting smoking is another story. Stopping is all mental. One has to basically overpower the will to smoke, the body’s urge for nicotine.

It is difficult to say the least, also the fact that almost anywhere you look you see someone smoking makes it even harder. Even as the government and some establishments are doing what they can to try to get people to cease smoking there is still a rather large number of our population that smokes.