Around 21 percent of Americans over the age of 18 are smokers, notes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, despite the warnings to quit. Since smoking can cause heart disease, stroke and a myriad of cancers, it seems as though that would be enough for you to quit cold turkey. Unfortunately, the hold that nicotine has on your body can make it nearly impossible to stop without help. By considering the various interventions available for smoking, you can choose the one that's right for you in your effort to stop.
Stop Smoking Aids
Stop smoking aids such as lozenges, mints, gums and patches can help you wean your body off of the addictive effects of nicotine. Sometimes the fear of withdrawal symptoms can make you anxious about quitting, so using such products, which contain smaller amounts of nicotine, can help you gradually stop smoking to avoid some of those withdrawal symptoms. When you begin using stop smoking aids, you start with the highest level of nicotine. Then, after a few weeks, you start a lower dose of nicotine, and so on, until your body has been weaned.
Self Help
If you prefer to keep your addiction to cigarettes private, self help can lead you on the path to being nicotine-free. Self help intervention requires a high degree of self control and goal-setting skills. Typically, when helping yourself, you create a realistic goal of when you want to be done with smoking cigarettes, and you employ certain methods to help you stop, such as cutting down to a certain number of cigarettes per day, or posting reminders around your home. Engaging friends and family members can help you stay responsible to your goals, notes HelpGuide.org.
Counseling and Advice
Talking to your doctor, a psychologist or another member of the medical community can help you get the right facts about smoking and what it might do to your health. By talking to your health care provider, you'll get the right information and feasible ways to stop smoking on your own. The American Academy of Family Physicians cites medical counseling as a way to get consistent and good quality advice about quitting. Your physician can also help you track your success so you're able to quit with the right guidance.
Prescription Medications
In the event that you can't quit on your own or while using over the counter stop smoking aids, your doctor may prescribe prescription drugs that can help you quit. Prescription drug Chantix stimulates the release of dopamine from the brain in order to prevent psychological withdrawal symptoms, notes the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. The drug also has side effects such as vivid dreams and even thoughts of suicide, so you must use it only with careful supervision by your health care provider.
