Best ways to quit smoking. Smoking negatively affects nearly every organ in the body, including the lungs, bladder, mouth, throat, kidneys, pancreas and heart. Both firsthand and secondhand cigarette smoke can cause cancer, emphysema and pneumonia. It even contributes to heart disease, according to an article on Americanheart.org. You already know you should quit, but nicotine is addictive, and the habit of puffing on a cigarette is a tough one to break. Once you decide to break the smoking habit, you'll need to come up with a plan and stick with it.
Choose a Quit Smoking Day
Set a date that isn't too far off to quit smoking. This may be any day, including a special occasion. Mark it on your calendar and let your loved ones know your plans. Ask them to be supportive of your decision and to refrain from smoking around you.
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Nicotine Replacement Therapy
A variety of nicotine replacement therapy methods is available, including gum, patches, inhalers, sprays and lozenges. These therapies provide you with nicotine, without the other harmful chemicals from cigarettes, enabling you to concentrate on the emotional addition. Once you are able to get past the habit of smoking, you can focus fully on ridding yourself of the nicotine addiction.
Cut Back
One method recommended by the Mayo Clinic staff is to start by cutting back the number of cigarettes you smoke each day. Wait as long as possible after you wake up before you light your first one, then only smoke half of the cigarette. Stop buying cartons of cigarettes; instead, buy them one pack at a time.
List Alternatives
Make a list of alternative activities to do when you feel like lighting up a cigarette. Some of the things you might have on your list include drinking a glass of water, run around the block, clean a room or chew gum.
Substitute Work Break Activities
When you're at work, find something to do during the times you'd normally take a smoke break. This may include something work related, or it can be a phone call to someone you love.
Acupuncture
Some people are able to quit smoking with the help of an acupuncturist, according to an article on the Reader's Digest website. Ather Ali, a naturopathic physician involved in a research fellowship at the Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center in Connecticut for the National Institutes of Health, claims that needles placed in the ears may help control cravings for cigarettes.
Know the Triggers
Keep a journal of times when you smoke, anything that makes you think about smoking, and the intensity of the craving. Once you know the triggers, come up with a way to prevent those triggers from occurring in the future. If you can't stop the causes, prepare alternatives methods of dealing with them, such as deep breathing exercises.
Pay Yourself
Put money into a piggy bank or jar for each pack of cigarettes you don't purchase each day or week. Set a monetary goal to reward yourself with a vacation, piece of furniture or big night out with someone special.
