As the New Year approaches, many people are starting to think about making healthy resolutions, including quitting smoking.  Deciding you want to quit smoking is the first step in actually quitting, and planning ahead is essential for making your resolution a success.  The American Lung Association provides a number of strategies to help you prepare for and accomplish your goal to quit smoking:

• Make a list:  Come up with a list of reasons why you want to quit smoking.  It might include improving your own health, reducing your disease risk, or simply being a healthy role model for your children.
• Identify obstacles:  Consider any people or situations that may get in the way of your goal.  Have you relapsed before when trying to quit?  What were the reasons?  Will you encounter them again?  Do you have a plan to overcome them?
• Be prepared:  You may experience changes in the way you feel while you are trying to quit.  These changes can be due to withdrawal from nicotine and include things like increased appetite, restlessness, problems sleeping, irritability and headaches.
• Create an escape route:  There will be times when you feel tempted to smoke.  Try to come up with situations where you might be tempted, and have a plan in place ahead of time to manage each situation.
• Set a date:  Think about a good time to quit—when you aren’t under stress or around the holidays.  Choose a specific “quit date,” preferably a day of the week when you typically smoke less.
• Join a program:  Joining a stop-smoking program will give you ideas on how to quit and stay quit, and will provide an opportunity to meet others who want to quit smoking.  There are many stop-smoking programs, ranging from group sessions to do-it-yourself manuals and videos.  The type of program you choose should fit your individual personality.
• Get support:  Find out which of your friends, family members, and co-workers are supportive of your goal to quit smoking.  These are some of the same people who will certainly be part of your “escape routes” when temptation hits!

Even if you follow all of the suggestions above, remember that “practice makes perfect.”  Not everyone can make a permanent change the first time they try to stop smoking.  The important thing is to stay focused on your resolution to quit.  All of the information and experience you gather along your smoking cessation journey stays with you as you continue working toward your goal.

Written by:
Ann Henderson, RD, LDN
Registered Dietitian

 

Sources:
www.lungusa.org
www.cancer.org