Your How To Quit Smoking Help SiteIt can be tough learning how to quit smoking without some help.

Image via Wikipedia The first 24 hours after you decide to quit smoking are the most difficult however provided you have planned for it you will have had in place all the support and actions that are required to help you to succeed.

This is the beginning of a new life where you will become healthier and be able to achieve more without the need for a crutch to get you through the day.
It is a path to freedom and all the other benefits that come with quitting smoking including more disposable income.

You need to believe that you will quit because your belief will be the cornerstone of your success.

If you created some affirmations in your quit smoking planning then now is the time to make use of them and maintain a positive attitude.

You won’t need to worry about picking up a cigarette because there shouldn’t be any available for you. Hopefully there will not be anyone else in your household who is still smoking as that makes matters a little bit more difficult but even if that is the situation you can succeed because you will realize all the benefits that your actions will bring to you.

You will most likely get cravings for a smoke but you need to understand that cravings are always only a very short term feeling that will go away within minutes.

Don’t be inclined to have a cigarette to get rid of the craving as simply waiting for a few minutes and focusing on something other than cigarettes will have the exact same effect - The cravings will go away.

Soon after you quit the cravings will be at their most frequent. As each day passes the cravings will become less frequent and they will also become less and less intense so once you get through the first day you can be happy in the knowledge that life will become easier.

In those first 24 hours it might seem like you are getting bombarded with cravings for a smoke - one after the other. The more activities you have arranged and the better you have managed your planning whereby there is less chance of any emotional stumbling blocks the easier you will find those first hours.

Image via Wikipedia Most people who smoke have ‘triggers’ that make them want to smoke.

There can be many and varied reasons why people will reach for a smoke in certain situations and when they are feeling particular emotions.

If you can identify what these emotions or events are, that are causing these triggers then that will be one of the first steps towards quitting smoking.

It could be that you feel like smoking when you are feeling down or depressed. This is a very common trigger as smoking can act as a comforting element in a person’s life.

Many people smoke because they are shy or self conscious and smoking gives them something to do to take their mind off their anxiety or nervousness.

Other people will feel like lighting up when they are angry as this will help them to calm down and manage their situation better.

Many people will feel like smoking when they are socializing, partying and drinking and often this is one of the hardest aspects of life to deal with for those who are trying to quit smoking.

Virtually any emotion can be a trigger for someone to feel like smoking and it is necessary to determine what your emotional triggers are if any.

It might be that you don’t have any problems relating to emotional triggers but rather situations that cause you to feel like smoking.

You might feel like smoking when you are listening to music, driving your car or watching the television.

Some people like to have a smoke after a meal or when they are consuming alcohol.

Many people feel like they need a smoke to help them start their day or at the end of the day to help them unwind.

Once again you need to look at the things that trigger your desire to have a smoke and look at an alternative solution that will help you to cope with the situation without the need for a cigarette.

If one alternative doesn’t work for you then try another and keep trying until you find something that is satisfactory.

Sooner or later you will find something that can give you enough satisfaction to not need the cigarette each time such an emotion or situation arises.

Image via Wikipedia It’s a pretty scary thing when you finally realize what you’ve been putting in your body every time you suck on a butt or sit next to someone who does, so quitting that smoking habit is vital to your health and those around you. Unfortunately the tobacco companies have a huge conspiracy of covering up the truth going on.

Vast fortunes are at stake. Untold numbers of deaths as a result. Top corporate executives sit around the boardroom and discuss ways to improve their market share. Their success depends on keeping you smoking and getting people that don’t smoke to start. Of course it’ s all about the maintaining and growing those fortunes.

The tobacco companies have the almost unlimited funds they need to pay on advertising that tricks the mind into thinking it’s cool to suck on a butt til your lips rott. They have the advertising tricks and come up with new ones year after year to keep those customers coughing and drawing in new ones. Their goal is keep you until death helps you finally quit.

I quit smoking in an instant, just by making the choice and I have a very addictive nature, so I know it can be done. So what if I told you that stopping smoking was easy and even you can do it? Smoking is both a body and mind addiction.

I don’t know anyone that actually picks up a cigarette and goes, “ mmmmm, tastes great!” Do you? Of course not. Your body rejects it. It coughs, hacks, spits, and does everything that it can to tell you this is bad stuff. You started because your mind was thinking how cool you will be, how much older it will make you look and your body is obeyed. Now you are addicted.

Everyone starts this way. EVERYONE. You had to use your mind to convince your body or you would reject it. I remember gagging until I turned green and barfed, we all laughed and tried it again. It was much easier the second and even easier the third time.

I find it fascinating that almost all methods of quitting smoking do not take into consideration the mind. And I am sure that is where my friends were failing all the time. There are pills and patches and inhalers and gums. All these programs have a very low success rate.

Doesn’t it make sense to use the very part of you that started the whole thing - Your mind?? Or course it does but it’s also so easy to just say it’s too hard to quit smoking. I now have three friends that have quit smoking because they finally had a reason their mind could handle and today they are smoke free making our guitar jams so much better and we can see each other because there’s no smoke. Well just from the guitars.

Everyone starts to smoke for some sort of motivating reason, mine was to be cool and hang with the cool people. If I gave you a piece of food that was stinky, burned your throat and made you cough and gag, how many pieces would you eat? I don’t think very many, although I have a few friends that just might enjoy it, just kidding. See, it would be unnatural for you to want more.

Smoking is not natural or everyone would be smoking. You cannot grow a cigarette tree in your backyard or a cigarette plant in your garden. They are not natural. Tobacco may be natural but cigarettes are far more than tobacco with an estimated 4000 ingredients added! The list is highly guarded and protected by law as a trade secret. Imagine that. It’s the public’s health and it’s a trade secret. Something isn’t right.

I suppose if the governments banned smoking it would become like pot and you would be buying it under the table in seedy places.

But one thing that is right is the decision to quit smoking. Quitting smoking is the one thing that will immediately improve your life and the life of those around you. When a person realizes that quitting IS a Body and Mind process it makes the process much easier.

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Image via Wikipedia There are many different aids to stop smoking apart from those that are popularly advertised and some of them can be more effective than the patches and products that most people resort to when trying to stop.

Just as there is a lot of money to be made through the sale of cigarettes there is also a lot of money to be made from the sale of products such as nicotine patches, pills and gum to help people to quit smoking.

For this reason there have been many scientific studies that have shown the benefits of such products but similar amounts of money haven’t been spent on research to prove the effectiveness of alternative methods such as acupuncture, aromatherapy, hypnosis and various herbal remedies.

There have however been a lot of surveys done that can show success rates that people have had using these methods.

While none of these methods can make you quit they can help you to quit.

Even hypnosis which is widely regarded as one of the best of the alternative methods of smoking cessation can’t make you quit. It can help you IF you have decided that you want to quit.

Hypnosis can help where there are issues of willpower that have been stopping a person from quitting but unfortunately there is still the problem of the addictive nature of smoking that needs to be addressed.

Acupuncture is another method that has helped a lot of people quit smoking and it does so by helping to release endorphins that counter the negative effects that withdrawal has on a person. Acupuncture is usually used in combination with other methods of quitting smoking and most of these ‘alternative’ methods are best when used as an added support for other methods such as pills, patches and gums.

There are various herbal remedies that have proven to be effective however it is often difficult to be assured of the quality and/or potency of herbal products and as such difficult to make recommendations.

Aromatherapy, Meditation, Imagery - These are other forms of help for the person seeking to stop smoking but more often than not they are only effective when used in combination with other mainstream products.

Image via Wikipedia When it’s your time to quit smoking it’s best to deal with the daily stress in your life first so you don’t have that stress screaming at you to smoke more.

The best way to manage stress is not to let it build up inside you and get out of hand. This may be easier said than done, but it is well worth it. Stress has been associated with diseases such as high blood pressure, obesity, stroke, high cholesterol, migraine headaches, lupus, and more. It is vital for your physical health that you learn to manage your mental and emotional health. Stress management helps you do that.

Family Stress Management

Don’t let family stresses build up. Hold regular family meetings with your household where each family member is allowed to tell the family what is on their mind and what they are feeling stressed over. Maybe your kids’ time is overbooked and they would like to have one less activity to go to during the school year. Maybe your spouse would like to have more quality time alone with you.

Once these feelings are expressed, figure out a way to mediate the differences among family members before they get out of hand.

Workplace Stress Management

Most of us have stressful jobs, but it is important that we discover stress management techniques that help us deal with all that stress. Some workplaces recognize the value of stress management, and they offer programs for dealing with stress, or stress management training. Some workplaces have partnered with a gym or health club to make it easy for employees to work out. Others will reimburse employees for yoga or fitness classes. If such a stress management program does not already exist in your workplace, suggest it.

When stress management in the workplace is recognized as a valid need and created as an employee benefit, productivity goes up and absenteeism and health problems go down.

Financial Stress Management

Money problems are the number one source of stress in a marriage. Don’t stick your head in the sand like an ostrich to avoid your money problems. Deal with them. There are many books, television programs, and web sites that can help you do this. The basic premise is to list all your debts, and the interest rate you owe on each of them. Start paying them off by making more than the minimum monthly payment, starting with the highest interest account. Investigate how you can shift the high interest debt into lower interest debt.

How will you come up with extra money to pay off these accounts? Start now by keeping a diary of every cent you spend. Within a week or so, you will be able to pinpoint how you are spending your discretionary income. Giving up some of those discretionary items will be a sacrifice at first, but the rewards for paying off high interest debt will be worth it.

Image via Wikipedia For many people without the support of friends and family the internet has provided the opportunity to offer the type of support that is often needed when quitting smoking.

These support groups take on many forms and most of them offer free advice and help in the form of forums where people can talk to one another about their experiences and help each other to achieve their goals.

By sharing experiences you can learn how others have handled similar situations that you are faced with and you might learn what you need to know to keep going and quit for good.

You will also be able to see that other people are experiencing the same difficulties that you are with nicotine addiction.

One of the great things about sharing information on these support forums is the fact that many people, even friends and family don’t know how to cope with some of the aspects that can be associated with quitting smoking.

It is not uncommon for people to get grumpy or short tempered when quitting smoking due to the withdrawal from nicotine and this can place additional pressures on relationships that the other party might not understand or be able to cope with.

Rather than reverting back to smoking again the support that is offered on these forums might be all that is needed to get through the most difficult part of the program to quit smoking.

Another benefit of the online support forums is the fact that you can often get the advice that you need at any hour of the day or the night and this can be particularly helpful in times such as the weekend when other support channels are unavailable.

Make sure that you only take advice from people on a forum that is moderated by someone who has sufficient knowledge to ensure that you will be getting correct information.

Image via WikipediaThere are many different aids to stop smoking apart from those that are popularly advertised and some of them can be more effective than the patches and products that most people resort to when trying to stop.

Just as there is a lot of money to be made through the sale of cigarettes there is also a lot of money to be made from the sale of products such as nicotine patches, pills and gum to help people to quit smoking.

For this reason there have been many scientific studies that have shown the benefits of such products but similar amounts of money haven’t been spent on research to prove the effectiveness of alternative methods such as acupuncture, aromatherapy, hypnosis and various herbal remedies.

There have however been a lot of surveys done that can show success rates that people have had using these methods.

While none of these methods can make you quit they can help you to quit.

Even hypnosis which is widely regarded as one of the best of the alternative methods of smoking cessation can’t make you quit. It can help you IF you have decided that you want to quit.

Hypnosis can help where there are issues of willpower that have been stopping a person from quitting but unfortunately there is still the problem of the addictive nature of smoking that needs to be addressed.

Acupuncture is another method that has helped a lot of people quit smoking and it does so by helping to release endorphins that counter the negative effects that withdrawal has on a person. Acupuncture is usually used in combination with other methods of quitting smoking and most of these ‘alternative’ methods are best when used as an added support for other methods such as pills, patches and gums.

There are various herbal remedies that have proven to be effective however it is often difficult to be assured of the quality and/or potency of herbal products and as such difficult to make recommendations.

Aromatherapy, Meditation, Imagery - These are other forms of help for the person seeking to stop smoking but more often than not they are only effective when used in combination with other mainstream products.

Image via WikipediaSome people are of the mistaken belief that using smokeless tobacco will help them to stay healthier than if they were to smoke cigarettes.

While certain problems relating to breathing difficulties that are associated with smoking cigarettes such as emphysema might not be prevalent with people who chew tobacco there are enough other health problems caused by chewing tobacco to warn anyone off this habit.

Surely the increased incidence of mouth cancer, receding gums, bad breath and teeth discoloration will discourage anyone from starting this habit.

If that is not enough then they might like to consider what it would be like to have cancer of the lips, throat and tongue. These are all health problems that are associated with chewing tobacco.

Smokeless tobacco is as addictive as smoking as it is made from the same tobacco plants and contains the very same toxins that create the addiction to cigarettes.

People who stop chewing tobacco get the same withdrawal symptoms as those who quit smoking.

People who chew tobacco do so for the same reasons that others smoke cigarettes. It can be comforting, make them feel good or relaxed. It can even taste good with the sugar and flavors that the manufacturers add.

Some people even think that smokeless tobacco helps them to perform better both physically and mentally. This hasn’t been proven in scientific studies and is a misconception that some people have.

What is of more concern to anyone who is considering smokeless tobacco or is trying to break the habit is the fact that over half of the people that use smokeless tobacco will eventually suffer from Leukoplakia.

Leukoplakia is the condition that is a precursor to mouth cancer and appears as a white sore or plaque in the mouth. This is often mistaken for a callus and is common for people who use smokeless tobacco so while they might not get lung cancer there is always the problem of cancer no matter what form of tobacco use.

The least of the problems you can expect is gum disease and all the associated problems that brings with it.

Image via WikipediaThere are several different types of nicotine patches on the market and they all give very similar results.

They work by releasing a specific amount of nicotine that is absorbed through the skin and into the bloodstream.

The brain receives the message that it is getting the nicotine that the body is craving.

The various brands have patches that come in a variety of strengths and the patch that you will start wearing will be determined by the number of cigarettes you would smoke during the course of a normal day.

As the nicotine is released at all times that the patch is worn some people might need to remove the patch at night as they won’t be used to receiving a supply of nicotine to the body during the hours that they would be sleeping.

Usually there are very few side effects although some people can experience headaches and nausea when they first start wearing the patches. Others might also get stomach upsets and possibly even dizziness although this is usually due to either a dose that is too high or the fact that the reduction of nicotine can cause some withdrawal symptoms.

The biggest problem that most people will have is skin irritations from where the patch is worn particularly if they have sensitive skin.

Patches can be bought over the counter now whereas in the past they were only available on prescription.

They can be quite expensive but this needs to be compared with the cost of cigarettes and also the ongoing expense of continuing to smoke both in the purchase of the cigarettes and the health expenditure than generally follows those who smoke.

People get very good results with nicotine patches and they are responsible for helping many people to break the habit.

Even with the help of the patches you still need to be ready to quit as that will determine your ultimate success or failure.

One word of caution is to never smoke when wearing a nicotine patch as the combination of the two sources of nicotine could cause the levels to reach a danger point in the body.

Image by tigerplish via FlickrThe tobacco companies are masters of marketing.  They will target groups that they want to introduce to smoking by associating smoking with the things that those people will consider to be cool.

They sponsor major music events because they know that there will be impressionable teens at these events and they will associate that brand of cigarettes with the musician and all the glamour that goes with the musical lifestyle.

They create characters that represent the type of person that other people would like to be. An example of this is the Marlboro Man. Even cartoon characters like Joe Camel are targeting people who associate that brand of cigarettes with all that is cool including money, excitement, fun and success.

Tobacco companies paint a picture with their advertising and offer people the dream of being part of that fantasy simply by smoking their cigarettes.

They are obliged by law to display warnings of the health hazards that are caused by smoking but counter them with massive advertising campaigns to overshadow those hazards with illusions of a better life.

Even sports events are sponsored by tobacco companies and when tobacco advertising is banned from specific sports they find loopholes to allow them to continue getting their message across or move on to other areas where they can still influence the same target market.

There is so much tobacco advertising all around us that sometimes we are unaware of how much we are exposed to it.

Even through the use of the motion picture industry, the tobacco companies get the benefit of promoting their products to massive markets when the action hero or other main movie characters are seen to be smoking.

Often the advertising is very subtle but it is always highly effective. Big money is spent on branding so even when the company names aren’t allowed to be advertised due to regulations the branded colors and graphics that are familiar to many people are still to be seen where required to maintain their presence in the marketplace.