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How to give up smoking
(Tips that might help you quit)
The single biggest thing a smoker can do to attain a long, healthy life is to stop smoking.
Of course you know smoking is dangerous. But you probably find it pleasurable, and the nicotine gives you a buzz and may have you addicted. Perhaps smoking calms you or helps your concentration. You may love its social side or the chance to slip away for a few minutes now and then. You might have your own, personal reasons why you smoke. But think of what you could gain if you quit.
The benefits of giving up
After the cravings are over,
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you’ll feel fitter and better than you have for a while, with more energy
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your family and friends will be less worried about you
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you’ll look and smell better
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you’ll be saving a lot of money (try adding up how much you spend each year – it might surprise you)
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and giving up smoking might well give your confidence a boost.
Above all, your body will quickly start recovering and you’ll have a longer, healthier life.
What you might not realise about smoking
It’s clear that scary warnings on packets don’t work all that well! Smokers all know about the risk of dying from cancers and heart disease, but still they smoke. That’s why we prefer to concentrate on the many positive benefits of giving up.
Here, though, are a few things we suspect some smokers may not be aware of:
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The risk from smoking is substantial even with a single cigarette a day. Cutting down the number of cigarettes you smoke is certainly worth doing, but you won’t be safe until you give up completely.
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Cigarette smoke doesn’t just affect your lungs. The chemicals in it are quickly carried throughout your whole body. Smokers are more likely than non-smokers to go blind, for example, or to have a leg amputated.
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Some smokers rationalise the risk by thinking “I don’t mind losing a few years of old age”. But this isn’t an accurate picture of what happens. The damage and disease caused by smoke can be similar to what people associate with old age. What smoking actually takes away are some of the healthy years in the middle of your life.
What you can do
Many people find giving up is easier in a group. It can help you to share the difficulties and triumph with a set of like-minded people. Smoking clinics are very supportive, with professionals who have seen all the problems before and know what to do. They may also have access to some of the newer medicines or one-to-one counselling.
If the idea of a group doesn’t appeal, it is entirely possible to give up on your own. Vast numbers of people have done so successfully.
You’ll need to do some planning before you start, and our book can help you with this. For example, you need to think about why you smoke and where you do it and then come up with strategies to replace these needs and situations. Slipping back into smoking again is always a possibility, so plan in advance how you would cope. Don’t be afraid to tell others you are giving up – you may need their support. Importantly, think how you are going to reward yourself for stopping.
Most smokers get withdrawal symptoms; they feel rotten for a while when they first give up. This is due to the nicotine in cigarettes, so get some type of nicotine replacement from your doctor or chemist.
Then carefully choose a good time to stop. Rid yourself of all your cigarettes – even the secret fall-back supply.
The very best of luck. It will be worth it.
What our book covers
We explain clearly how tobacco smoke damages your body – without the usual propaganda – but we don’t dwell on this. Instead, we look at the benefits of giving up, and then provide a lot of practical advice and tips.
In particular, we help you think about and then plan how you will give up, including overcoming the cravings, providing yourself with incentives, enlisting support, finding alternatives to the enjoyable aspects of smoking, and much more.
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Next: reasons to keep living
Selected references for the book