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Quit Smoking Now!
By Mary Elise Chavez
Posted July 19th, 2006

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Common Concerns About Quitting

Will I gain weight when I quit?

Probably. Some people gain a few pounds. Other people lose weight. The main reason some people gain weight is because they eat more food as a substitute for smoking. You can avoid gaining weight by watching how much you eat, staying busy and working out. ANOTHER reason people gain weight is because smoking increases your metabolism, with some people as high as a 7% increase, so to maintain that burn, you'll need to replace the smokes with exercise.

How will I feel when I quit?

Awful at first. You may feel irritable and cranky. You may also get angry or upset faster, have trouble concentrating or feel hungrier than usual. You may have headaches and cough more at first (while your lungs are clearing out). All of these can be symptoms of withdrawal from nicotine. Keep in mind that the worst symptoms will be over in a few days. However, you may still have cravings for tobacco. Those cravings have less to do with nicotine addiction and more to do with the habit of smoking.

What About Nicotine Gum or Patches?

These products may help you if you feel like you can’t quit on your own or you have serious withdrawal symptoms. Don’t use the gum or patch without talking to your health care provider first. These products were not designed for young adults and could make you sick if you use them the wrong way. You may need to follow special instructions. If you’re an adult and you want to try nicotine patch products, go ahead, but remember you’re still getting your nicotine and so you are still addicted to it. There are more "natural" approaches to quitting that work.

Smoking and Pregnancy
Do the harmful effects of Smoking reach an unborn baby?

Yes, when the mother smokes, so does the baby. Smokers take in poisons such as nicotine and carbon monoxide (the same gas that comes out of a car's exhaust pipe). These poisons get into the placenta, which is the tissue that connects the mother and the baby before it is born. These poisons keep the unborn baby from getting the food and oxygen needed to grow.

What if I Can’t Quit?

You can quit. Most people try to quit more than once before they succeed. So don’t give up, you may not quit the first time you try. Just don’t go out and buy a whole pack of cigarettes if you think you 'failed'. Candy can be a helpful alternative, especially hard candy that you can suck on, since often the oral fixation of smoking is a key element in why people become so obsessed. Take some time to think about what happened to cause you to slip. Figure out how you’ll handle that situation differently next time. Then try again. You can do it!

Do You Really Want to Quit?

Try following this advice...

1. Don’t try and limit yourself to a certain number of cigarettes a day. Smoking even a few cigarettes a day can hurt your health. If you try to smoke fewer cigarettes, but do not stop completely, soon you’ll be smoking the same amount again.

Smoking low-tar, “low-nicotine cigarettes” usually does little good, either. Because nicotine is so addictive, if you switch to lower-nicotine brands you’ll likely just puff harder, longer, and more often on each cigarette. The only safe choice is to quit completely.

2. Write down why you want to quit. Do you want:

a) To feel in control of you life?
b) To have better health?
c) To set a good example for your children?
d) To protect your family from breathing other people's smoke?

You have to really want to quit smoking as it will be a reflection of the success you will have in quitting. Smokers who live after a heart attack are the most likely to quit for good, because they are very motivated. Find a reason for quitting before you have no choice.

3. Know that it will take effort to quit smoking. Nicotine is habit forming. Half of the battle in quitting is knowing you need to quit. This knowledge will help you be more able to deal with the symptoms of withdrawal that can occur, such as bad moods and really wanting to smoke. There are many ways smokers quit, including using nicotine replacement products (gum and patches), but there is no easy way. Nearly all smokers have some feelings of nicotine withdrawal when they try to quit. Give yourself a month to get over these feelings. Take quitting one day at a time, even one minute at a time whatever you need to succeed.

4. Half of all adult smokers have quit, so you can too. That’s the good news. There are millions of people alive today who have learned to face life without a cigarette. For staying healthy, quitting smoking is the best step you can take.

5. Get help if you need it. Many groups offer written materials, programs, and advice to help smokers quit for good. Your doctor or dentist is also a good source of help and support.

HELPFUL RESOURCES
American Lung Association
CancerNet News
QUITT
The Stop Smoking Center

Special Thanks to: Coolnurse.com

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