Don't Quit Smoking! Immediately
Smoking is bad for you. It causes diseases and even death. So why does it seem so difficult to quit smoking? If the habit has been bothering you for a long time, let these five ways to kick the habit shock you into quitting now!
1. Start by quitting one cigarette at a time
2. Put up a picture of yourself with your favorite nicotine addict and what they did to you, like stealing your money or making your life hell
3. Make an appointment with yourself on when/if/when-not-to-quit day
4. Talk about why you're quitting for three hours with someone, anyone
5. Remove all cigarettes from the premises, including other people's and your own.
5 Tips to Kick the Habit
1. Start by quitting one cigarette at a time. If you start to quit all at once, you will fall into depression or regret over past smoking habits. By reducing cigarettes a day or week at a time, starting by putting off the smoking of just one cigarette per day, it makes the process seem manageable, and not as painful as it could be. Don't chose Saturday, it's too tempting to have fun with friends or family during the long weekend which will be an easy excuse to "light up," choose a Tuesday or Wednesday instead.
2. Put up a picture of yourself with your favorite nicotine addict and what they did to you, like stealing your money or making your life hell. Pin the picture up where you will see it every day, in front of the bathroom mirror, on the wall in the kitchen, in a conference room at work where everyone can see it. Show other recovering addicts how much easier it is to quit when you have experienced the pain first hand.
3. Make an appointment with yourself on when/if/when-not-to-quit day. Everyone's body is different and every person's needs are different so there's no one-size-fits all approach to quitting smoking. Have a weekly appointment with yourself on when/if/when-not-to-quit day which may be every Monday, Thursday or another day that you choose to meet yourself – but make it clear to everyone else that this is when you decide to quit or not. It's important that you don't set it for New Year's Day as most people will want to celebrate the new year by lighting up a cigarette. Don't go with "next week," that's too easy.
4. Talk about why you're quitting for three hours with someone, anyone. If you were addicted to alcohol, you'd go to an AA meeting and "share" with people who can help you through the rough times and celebrate your successes. If you are addicted to nicotine, that's exactly what you need to do too. Go online, talk about it on Facebook, in chat rooms or over the telephone. Tell everyone why it is so important for you to quit immediately and what your schedule is for doing so – if they're interested in helping they will be sure to ask how they can help (or not).
5. Remove all cigarettes from the premises, including other people's and your own. Once you have quit cold-turkey, it's important to straighten up your "smoking area." Remove all cigarettes from the house – even from others. And if you must smoke outside, go outside.
6. The rest of your life is not over provided you don't start smoking again for the next 20 years or so. Friends, family and co-workers will be sorry to see you go but they will do their best to help with the transition to a healthier lifestyle once you've quit for good.
The American Cancer Society has a terrific website at www.cancer.org . Click on "Get the Facts" and then "Quitting Smoking" to learn more about the different ways to quit.
What do you think? Do you have a good way to quit smoking that didn't make this list? Share with us in comments below!
Don't Quit Smoking: The Good, Bad and Ugly Part 3 [Don't Quit Smoking] If you would like to leave a comment, please login or register here. (It's free!) Comments will be approved before showing up.
The rest of your life is not over provided you don't start smoking again for the next 20 years or so. Friends, family and co-workers will be sorry to see you go but they will do their best to help with the transition to a healthier lifestyle once you've quit for good.
The American Cancer Society has a terrific website at www.cancer.org . Click on "Get the Facts" and then "Quitting Smoking" to learn more about the different ways to quit.
What do you think? Do you have a good way to quit smoking that didn't make this list? Share with us in comments below!
Don't Quit Smoking: The Good, Bad and Ugly Part 2 [Don't Quit Smoking] If you would like to leave a comment, please login or register here. (It's free!) Comments will be approved before showing up.
The rest of your life is not over provided you don't start smoking again for the next 20 years or so. Friends, family and co-workers will be sorry to see you go but they will do their best to help with the transition to a healthier lifestyle once you've quit for good.
The American Cancer Society has a terrific website at www.cancer.org . Click on "Get the Facts" and then "Quitting Smoking" to learn more about the different ways to quit.
What do you think? Do you have a good way to quit smoking that didn't make this list? Share with us in comments below!
Don't Quit Smoking: The Good, Bad and Ugly Part 1 [Don't Quit Smoking] If you would like to leave a comment, please login or register here. (It's free!) Comments will be approved before showing up.
The rest of your life is not over provided you don't start smoking again for the next 20 years or so. Friends, family and co-workers will be sorry to see you go but they will do their best to help with the transition to a healthier lifestyle once you've quit for good.
The American Cancer Society has a terrific website at www.cancer.org . Click on "Get the Facts" and then "Quitting Smoking" to learn more about the different ways to quit.
What do you think? Do you have a good way to quit smoking that didn't make this list? Share with us in comments below!
It's coming up on 4-20 again folks, time for another column about smoking. As always, I love feedback so please leave comments below if you agree or disagree with me or if you have any ideas for future columns! Photo by kurtacos (Flickr). If you would like to leave a comment, please login or register here. (It's free!) Comments will be approved before showing up.
Conclusion: Smoking is not good for your health. If you are a smoker, it is imperative that you get help. While quitting may be challenging for some, it is by no means impossible and smokers who quit during their 30s or 40s will likely live longer lives than those who don't. Stop smoking today!
A couple of weeks ago I wrote a piece titled " 5 Tips to Help You Quit Smoking ," which generated a lot of interesting feedback from readers. So I'm writing another column with some follow-up information on what to do when you really just can't quit cold turkey!
5 Tips to Help You Quit Smoking [ Don't Quit Smoking ] If you would like to leave a comment, please login or register here.