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When you're ready to quit, we're ready to help. Positive Impact for Florida Residents Research shows smokers who use the QuitLine are four times more likely to quit than if they try to quit on their own. Here are some practical tips that have worked for ex-smokers who understand just how hard it is to quit:
Remember it is natural and normal to feel anxiety anytime you make a significant life change. Make an appointment with your healthcare provider. Your doctor can recommend medications that will help you through the process of quitting. Call the Florida Tobacco Quit-For-Life Line. Make a plan and set a quit date. Give yourself some time to prepare before launching into your quit attempt. Make a list of all your reasons for quitting and put this list where you will see it often. Think about reasons you smoke or chew, including routines that trigger tobacco use, and brainstorm how to change those routines and avoid cues that prompt you to light up or dip. Mark your quit date on your calendar and get mentally prepared. Plan ahead for temptation. It's inevitable. Get support. Tell your friends and family that you are going to quit smoking. If they smoke, ask them not to smoke around you or to quit with you. Clear the decks. Get rid of the tings that remind you of smoking. Throw away all cigarettes, lighters and ashtrays. Remove all evidence of smoking from your life. Clean your car interior and launder all of your clothes to remove the smell of tobacco smoke. Write down the reasons you are quitting and review them to serve as a reminder why you think quitting is worthwhile. Keep busy on your quit day. Change your routine. Plan a full day with enjoyable activities. Avoid alcohol because it can weaken your resolve. At the end of the day, do something (other than smoking) to celebrate. Change your typical daily routine in as many ways as possible. Take a new route to work, drink tea instead of coffee, and have a lunch in the conference room rather than at your desk. Eat frequent small meals. This will stabilize your blood sugar levels and keep your mouth and hands busy. Replace cigarettes with alternatives like gum, cinnamon sticks, suckers, toothpicks or low-calorie snacks like carrots, celery and apple wedges. Start an exercise program. Taking a walk, doing aerobics and kickboxing or playing sports can take your mind off urges and remind you that quitting helps improve your lung capacity and overall health. Exercise especially when you are angry, stressed or bored. Keep your hands busy. Carry a stress ball or a doodle pad. Dangle the financial carrot. Give yourself a financial incentive to quit by putting the money you would have spent on tobacco products in a glass jar. For pack-a-day smokers, this can be $1,500 a year or more? Watch your savings - and you resolve - grow. Make an appointment with the dentist to have your teeth cleaned. Be proactive about spending time with non-smokers and/or ex-smokers. |
