Quitting Smoking

Tobacco cravings or the urge to smoke can be quite intense, but that doesn't mean that you can't stop using this product. This section of the article will focus on ways that can help you quit smoking, or at least help you resist the powerful urges to smoke.

Nicotine replacement therapy

Options for nicotine replacement products include:

• An inhaler or nasal spray that needs a prescription.
• Over-the-counter lozenges, gums or patches can help with overcoming cravings.
• Non-nicotine prescription medications such as bupropion and varenicline.

Chewing

Keeping your mouth busy, by chewing sugar-free hard candy or gum for example, helps to fight the cravings for tobacco products. You can also chew on foods that are low in calories such as celery, carrot, sunflower seeds or nuts.

Avoid triggers

The strongest urge to smoke or use tobacco products occurs at places such as bars or parties, when drinking coffee or alcohol or while feeling stressed. It helps to identify these triggers so that you can either avoid them or have a plan to get through the scenario without using tobacco products.

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Avoid having 'just one more'

Having just one cigarette results in your body getting stimulated with nicotine again. One become two, and two becomes the whole pack before you even realize it.

Delay

When you're busy experiencing a craving for tobacco products, try telling yourself to hold off for another 10 minutes or find something else to occupy your time with. This helps enough to get you through that craving episode and your body will want to carry on with other activities.

Incorporate relaxation techniques

Smoking is a coping mechanism for stress in most cases, so why not try swapping this for a more healthy alternative? Incorporating relaxation techniques such as massage therapy, yoga, meditation, listening to calming music and deep-breathing exercises help to reduce stress levels and thereby reduce cravings for cigarettes.

Become physically active

Just like relaxation techniques, physical activities can help reduce stress levels and distract you from tobacco cravings. You don't have to go and get a gym membership because even short bursts of physical activity such as running in place, doing push-ups and squats and running up and down stairs a few times can help. If physical exertion is not for you, then even performing activities such as needle-work or wood-work at home to keep you busy works as well.

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Try getting support online

Try joining an online stop-smoking programme or read blogs from ex-smokers mentioning their journeys to quitting tobacco products. Reading messages from people you can relate to helps to motivate you to stop smoking.

Phone a friend

Phoning a friend, support member from a group or family member helps to talk about your craving and receive support so that you don't go back to smoking. It helps to get into a conversation with another person going through the same issue so that you realize that what you're doing is for your benefit.

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Remind yourself of the benefits

Speaking of realizing that what you're doing is for your benefit, quitting smoking improves a person's mortality rate immeasurably. Since smoking leads to cardiovascular diseases and complications, as well as certain cancers, there is definitely no benefit to using tobacco products. It helps to write down the benefits of quitting smoking and then repeating them to yourself. This helps to reinforce the message.

Benefits of quitting smoking include:

• Getting healthier and improving your quality of life.
• Feeling better by breathing easier and not having a morning cough, for example.
• Sparing your loved ones from secondhand smoke, which causes health-related issues too.
• Saving money