I read this article from Star Smolik and I thought it would be really helpful to smokers who thought of going cold turkey. It is being reproduced here without any change.
Many people prefer to quit smoking “cold turkey”. This means to suddenly stop smoking cigarettes without gradually reducing your intake or using anti-smoking aids to help you. These people believe that cold turkey is the most effective way to quit smoking because it represents a true break from the cigarettes and nicotine. The WhyQuit education foundation suggests that 90% of ex-smokers quit cold turkey.
But is it right for you?
It takes a certain type of person to quit smoking cold turkey and if you are not that type of person, you may be setting yourself up for failure. If you have the following things, you may be ready to quit smoking cold turkey.
Are you ready?
Really ready? It takes a certain amount of willpower to quit smoking cold turkey and if you are only quitting because your office-mates pressured you into it, your chances of success are not very high. Make sure that you know your reasons and that they are the right ones. This way, when you start to feel that you want a cigarette, you can remind yourself of your reasons for quitting.
Do you have support?
When you want to quit smoking, you really need to have a good support system in place. It’s more difficult to quit if you are by yourself or if your friends are trying to talk you out of it. Friends and family that still smoke may give you a hard time when you try to quit smoking. This is because they feel badly that they are not able to quit. Make sure that you have someone to talk to about quitting and a group of people that supports your decision.
Do you have a plan? It may surprise you that it’s important to have a plan to quit smoking, but it’s true. Think ahead about what you will do when you want a cigarette or when you are with a group of people that smokes. Think about your triggers and what you can do. Everybody has different things in their lives that may make them want to smoke again. When you know ahead of time what you will do in certain situations, it makes it easier for you to overcome them.
If you think you do not fall under this category, you might want to check out these ebooks/programs:
Quick Smoking Today
Hypnosis To Change Your Life by Steve G Jones.
Quit Smoking Painlessly Now.
Smoking is a very social activity and it’s hard to quit smoking when your friends still smoke.
Here are some tips to quit smoking while others around you still smoke:
1. Why did you want to quit?
When you know the “why”, the “how” will be easier. Remember your reasons and make them strong. A feeling that you should quit is not good enough. There should be an opportunity cost if you don’t stop. For example, if you remind yourself enough that passive smoking is dangerous for your 2-month baby i, you will probably think twice to light up.
2. Have new friends
I’m not asking you to avoid your smoking friends. However, it will be good if you spend more time with non-smokers. The first few days and weeks of quitting smoking are the hardest, so if you avoid smokers during this time, you will have a higher chance of success. Tell your smoker-friends honestly, I bet you that most of them will understand even though they don’t think you will be successfully. Don’t worry, no offense will be felt if these smokers are truly your friend. Hey, who knows, they might join in too.
3. Meet people at smoke-free zones only
Plan to have your social gathering in smoke free environments. Many places now have laws preventing smokers from smoking indoors and even in specific outdoor areas like outdoor bazaars, children playground, cafes, etc. Even you want to light up, you will think twice for being frown on or being issued a ticket.
4. Empower yourself with Positive Thoughts and Words
Keep reminding yourself the good things that will fall in place once you successfully quit smoking. Talk to yourself about the negatives of smoking when you see other people doing it. Use empowering words and think only positive thoughts.
Smokers who could not count on the support of their friends and family when they attempt to quit smoking need a lot more help.
Additional Reading:
Quick Smoking Today
Hypnosis To Change Your Life by Steve G Jones.
Depression, anxiety and smoking may prohibit bone growth and development in girls during adolescence.
Nearly 40-50% pf bone mass or density is attained in girls during adolescence. Failure to obtain maximal bone density during this phrase leaves “a deficit in the hone bone.” This is said by Dr Lorah D Dorn of the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine in Ohio. The consequences are bone vulnerability or osteoporosis. Dr Lorah and a team of researcher observed a significant association between higher level of depressive symptoms and lower total body bone mineral content.
Additional Read: Hypnosis To Change Your Life by Steve G Jones.
Women from 27 to 44 years who smoke are twice as likely to develop pre-menstrual syndrome (PM) over the next 2 years, especially hormonally related symptoms like backaches, bloating, breast tenderness and acne.
According to Dr Elizabeth Bertone-Johnson of the University of Massachusetts in Amherst and her colleagues, smoking increases the risk of moderate to severe PMS and provides another reason for women especially adolescents and young women, not to smoke.
Smoking has been shown to affect levels of several different hormones and the handful of studies looking into PMS and smoking have suggested that women with the syndrome are more likely to be smokers.
These researchers looked at a subset of women who were PMS-free during the first 2 years of the study, comparing 1057 who did go on to develop PMS to 1968 who did not.
The women who were current smokers were 2.1 times more likely than non smokers to report PMS within 2 -4 years. Women who picked up smoking at a tender age had their risk increases. Dr Bertone- Johnson said,
“Previous studies suggested that smoking may alter levels of oestrogen, progesterone, testosterone and other hormones, many of which may be involved in the development of PMS.”
“Some studies have found that smokers have shorter and more irregular menstrual cycles than non-smokers”
“Smoking may also lower levels of vitamin D in the body, which also may increase a woman’s risk of developing PMS”.
Additional Reading: Quit Smoking Painlessly Now.
Ever since I have quit smoking, I had never look back. However, I know many cannot go through the cold turkey period. It was tough mentally, emotionally and physically. Many people prefer to quit smoking painlessly, and there are many ways. One of the methods that has growing popularity is the laser method.
I recently read Izrul Fizal‘s article and have reproduced here for the benefits of the community here. Note how he stressed that the method will NOT stop your smoking habit but reduced the addiction. It means you are still in command, you are still in the driving seat to decide if you can actually quit smoking!
Ever wondered how the process of quit smoking laser treatment works? If you are a hardcore smoker and would like to quit smoking fast and effectively, you should consider using quit smoking laser treatment. This treatment is relatively new method and works almost the same as acupuncture which is to apply pressure to certain energy point to reduce your addiction of smoking.
Quit smoking laser treatment works by applying laser to the center of nerves system that will reduce or permanently stop your smoking addiction. This is very important because many people who really want to stop smoking are having difficulties to stop their bad addiction. If the addiction is less, then you have taken the first step to finally quit smoking.
You cannot rely on quit smoking laser treatment so much because like mentioned earlier, it will not totally remove your smoking habit but rather than reduce your addiction. However, you can take other necessary steps to quit smoking much easier once you have run through the process of treatment. You should consider to use quit smoking patches and join a community who wish to quit their smoking habit to further achieve a good result. You can also ask your doctor some advice on how to stop smoking as well and nobody can deny a doctor’s advice.
Study has shown that quit smoking laser treatment may not help you that much to because most people do not have a strong desire to stop smoking in the first place. It is up to you to really obtain the good result. The technology is there only to help you by making it a lot easier. Smoking is a very bad habit and bad habit usually die hard.
Several factors you need to consider before going with the quit smoking laser treatment. The cost is slightly expensive than any other method and the result is not guaranteed. However, some health insurance will cover the cost of your treatment so you better check out with your insurance company to reduce your cost. Also, you need to combine whatever method to help you quit smoking with the treatment so you can get a much positive result.
Source: Quit Smoking Laser Treatment – Does it Work?
What can stop an entire country stop smoking for a month? From the recent example in China, it is evident. The Olympics Games
The first smoke-free Olympic Games were in Barcelona in 1992. Obviously, the organisers of Beijing’s Games wanted to keep that tradition.
With 1 in 3 people smoking in China, the middle kingdom is the world’s most enthusiastic smoking nation. It was unthinkable that these smokers will stop smoking just because there was a smoking ban during the Olympics period. However, kudos to the Chinese government, there was no smoking in schools, hospitals or government offices, as well as at all 37 Olympic sites, including indoor and outside stadiums, training facilities and the Olympic village. Hotels, restaurants and bars face a partial ban, with smoking and no-smoking areas required. At least, the key areas in Beijing were smoke free.
The State Tobacco Monopoly Administration reckons 1 in 4 of the country’s 1.3 billion people smoke regularly, including 50 million teenage smokers, of which 15 millions are underage smokers. With one quarter of it’s population light up regularly, the Healthy Ministry’s statistics showed that one million Chinese die of smoking-related illnesses every year. The World Health Organisation reckons that the figure will jump to 2.2 million annually by 2020 if the current smoking rates remain unchanged. Passive smoking also killed 100,000 Chinese annually as the victim fell prey to diseased associated with smoking.
The late supreme leader Deng Xiaoping must be the most famous smoker in China. It was said that he smoked non stop during his meetings with Margaret Thatcher to decide Hong Kong’s fate. If the leaders in China do not stop smoking, have worries that a smoking ban will create chaos, have concerns that the strong cigarette industry will stop contributing tax dollars because of such a ban, we can expect smoke get in our eyes whenever we were in the middle kingdom.
Source: China brings in smoking ban ahead of Olympics
Some countries tried to scare people into quitting smoking by putting gory impages, including of diseased organs, on cigarette packs. Singapore, for example, has included a miscarried foetus in 2006; a move that ws followed by campaigns on television. Did these tried and tested formula works?
Surveys by health officials in these countries said it will convince more smokers to light up less and prompt more calls to quit-smoking hotlines.
However, smokers when interviewed disclosed that they were immune to such hard hitting tactics. After a while, they don’t see the images on the pack. The images are no longer shocking because everyone became desensitized. This is the same concept of not been frightened when you watched a horror movie for the 2nd or 3rd time.
The only thing that can make smokers to smoke less is to hit at their pockets. Increasing cigarette price should be the most effective way to curtain a habit.
