According to the National Cancer Institute, smoking harms almost every organ in the body, causes many diseases and diminishes a person's overall health. These facts give many smokers the motivation and desire to quit smoking, but quitting can be difficult. Although no approach to smoking cessation will work for everyone, learning about the various ways to stop smoking can allow smokers to choose a method they think will work best for them.
Smoking-Cessation Aids
For many people, smoking-cessation aids help control the physical side of the smoking addiction.
Nicotine replacement products include patches, gums and lozenges. These products are available in many drugstores and supermarkets and do not require a prescription. Nicotine nasal sprays and inhalers are also available with a prescription. These products help a person stop smoking by delivering measured doses of nicotine. This makes the physical nicotine withdrawal symptoms less intense. The National Cancer Institute explains that it is less harmful to receive nicotine from these products than from cigarettes, and that these products can be quite useful at helping a person stop smoking.
The prescription medications bupropion SR (sold under the brand name Zyban) and varenicline (sold under the brand name Chantix) are available through prescription. The National Cancer Institute explains that bupropion works by reducing nicotine withdrawal symptoms and cravings, while varenicline works to relieve nicotine withdrawal symptoms and blocks the effects of nicotine if a person resumes smoking. Discuss potential risks and side effects with your doctor before taking these medications. Both buproprion and varenicline carry an FDA black box warning for being associated with serious mental health problems.
Behavior Modification
It's essential for smokers to lose the habit of picking up a cigarette. Identifying and changing the environmental and physical triggers that cause smokers to light up is crucial. BecomeAnEx.org recommends practicing the act of separating the cigarette from these triggers. To do so, wait for progressively longer amounts of time after the trigger occurs before lighting a cigarette. For example, people who always light up as soon as they wake up will instead wait 10 minutes before having a cigarette. Once they master that, they will wait an hour. They gradually keep extending the time until they no longer associate waking up with the need to reach for a cigarette. Some people find that substituting something else in place of the cigarette, such as candy or gum, can also help change their habit.
Stop Smoking Support Programs
When you stop smoking, a support system can be very helpful. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) explains that smokers have a much better chance of successfully quitting when they use a smoking-cessation program. Many different types of programs are available.
Programs available through the telephone are just as effective as face-to-face counseling programs, says the NIH, and are frequently available nights and weekends in addition to daytime hours. Organizations such as the National Cancer Institute, American Lung Association and American Cancer Society offer smoking cessation hotlines, but state governments, local hospitals, doctor offices and many employers also run similar telephone programs.
For those desiring in-person support, smoking cessation support groups and educational programs are also available in most areas. Support groups, like Nicotine Anonymous, offer a venue to talk about the addiction with a group of like-minded peers. Smoking cessation education programs, on the other hand, typically offer counseling sessions and educational materials about the smoking cessation process, and are usually run by counselors trained in smoking cessation. Information about local smoking cessation support groups and educational programs can often be found through health insurance companies, employers, hospitals, health care providers and local government health department offices. People may also call the local chapter of the American Cancer Association or American Lung Association for more information on programs in their area.
