Living Smoke-Free
Soon after your quit date, parties, bars, and socializing may all tempt you to smoke, sometimes strongly. Your best defense is to be prepared. The tips below can help you cope with those times, so you don’t give in. Remember, urges to smoke are temporary. They’ll pass, even if you don’t smoke.
Prepare to resist temptations
- Think about the situations where you usually get a craving for cigarettes and try to avoid them. For example, avoid drinking alcohol or coffee or being around smokers, if those things tempt you.
- Keep Nicotine Polacrilex Lozenges next to your bed so you’re prepared when you get up. A lot of people get cravings first thing in the morning.
- Keep items near that can help distract you during a craving, such as cinnamon gum, hard candy or relaxing music. Smoking is a “hands-on” habit, so use something to occupy your hands such as a rubber band or a pen.
Keep a journal
- Track your progress as you quit. Write down how many pieces of Nicotine Polacrilex Lozenges you use each day, noting if and when you get a craving. If you slip and have a cigarette, don’t give up. Stop smoking again and get back on the program.
Gather support
- Ask your friends and family to provide encouragement. Think of specific ways they can help you. There may also be support groups in your area for people trying to quit. Call your local chapter of the American Lung Association, American Cancer Society or American Heart Association for further information.
Change your habits
- Create a new routine so you can break the association between your usual habits and cigarettes. If you do encounter a situation where you feel a strong craving, fight it and keep yourself distracted with other activities.
Keep a smoke-free environment
- Throw away ALL cigarettes, ashtrays, matches, and lighters. You don’t need them and you want to make it difficult to go back.
- Now that your house is smoke-free, try to spend most of your time in smoke-free environments.
- Clean clothes or household items that smell of cigarettes. While you’re getting rid of the evidence of cigarettes in the house, do the same for your teeth. Make an appointment to see your dentist and get the tobacco stains cleaned off.
Stay occupied and stay positive
- Keep yourself occupied and stay active to help take your mind off cigarettes. See a movie. Meet up with friends. Take up jogging, swimming, or walking. Do something that makes you laugh and smile. It really helps!
- Don’t let stress get to you. Think pleasant thoughts. Breathe slowly and regularly. Let the stress drain out of you.
- Should you gain weight, don’t worry. Dieting now may weaken your efforts to quit smoking. Eat sensibly, exercise daily, and drink large quantities of water.
- Reward yourself as you succeed with little gifts, which you can earn by overcoming difficult hurdles.
- If you get a craving, command yourself to STOP. Remind yourself how important it is for you to quit. Remind yourself that you can’t have just one.
Calculate your savings
Do the math and see how much you’ll save by not buying cigarettes. Probably well over $1,000 a year. Think of what you can spend it on!
Select the price you pay per pack and the projected years you will not smoke.
Challenges To Watch For
Once you quit smoking, you are likely to experience periodic and sometimes intense temptations to smoke.
Certain situations present special challenges. Some common ones include:
Stress and Upset
When you are feeling stressed or upset, you may think a cigarette will make everything better. It won’t. Find other ways to relax and unwind.
The Blues
You may be especially vulnerable when you feel down or bored. Remember that having a cigarette will just make you feel worse.
Smoking Cues
Seeing cigarettes or watching other people smoke can trigger temptation. Remember that you choose not to smoke anymore.
Alcohol
Drinking and smoking seem to go together. Avoid drinking early in your quit effort as alcoholic beverages may weaken your resolve. Should you drink, do so with non-smokers.
Automactic Slips
Sometimes you may find yourself preparing to smoke without even realizing it. Watch out for those moments when your hand seems to automatically reach for a cigarette, as they can trigger a relapse. If you find this happening, stop and focus on doing something else.
What If You Do Slip And Smoke?
Having a cigarette does not mean the end of your quit effort. Everybody slips at something. The key is to forgive yourself, stop at that one cigarette and continue with your quit efforts. Encourage yourself by treating the last attempt as a learning experience, even a “trial run” for the real thing. Keep in mind what went wrong and led to the slip, so you can avoid it next time.
If you do go back to smoking, certainly don’t throw out your Nicotine Polacrilex Lozenges. Keep them for the next time you’re ready to quit. In fact, research says that even if you are back to smoking regularly the best thing you can do is learn from your efforts and try again.
Refer back to "Starting the Program" and check that you used the Nicotine Polacrilex Lozenges correctly and for the full 12 weeks of the program. When you try again, make sure you use enough lozenges and the right way. That way you’ll be best equipped to deal with the unexpected cravings. Don’t forget, quitting isn’t easy. It takes practice to do anything and quitting smoking is no different.