Smoking is one of the very worst things you can do to your body, both for your internal health and your physical appearance. If you’re a smoker, you’re not alone – 3,000 teenagers start smoking each day, according to the American Cancer Society. I talk about the many reasons why one shouldn’t smoke on page 193 of Body Drama, but here are a few tips for quitting for anyone who has unfortunately picked up the habit already.

Tips for Quitting Smoking

1) Get Support. Quitting smoking is difficult to do alone, especially if you have friends who smoke. See if one of your smoker friends is interested in quitting with you so that you can be accountable to each other. If none of your friends want to quit smoking with you, ask one of your friends who does not smoke to hold you accountable by asking you each day about how you feel and the progress you’ve made. Also, when you’re trying to quit, hang out with your non-smoking friends more, especially in the beginning stages. It’s much easier to crush cravings if you aren’t surrounded by temptation!
2) Call Before You Cave. We’re not perfect, so our attempts to better ourselves aren’t always going to go perfectly, either. It’s perfectly natural to want to cave in to cravings when you’re trying to quit smoking, but always try to reach out to someone before you reach for a cigarette. Oftentimes, you can relieve a lot of the anxiety and stress that you think a cigarette would relieve just by talking. If you feel uncomfortable talking with your quit buddy or other friends, call the American Cancer Society’s toll-free Quitline at 1-877-YES-QUIT anytime to speak to someone anonymously and to receive a free kit to help you curb cravings.
3) Talk to Your Doctor. Not only is it important to tell your doctor (or your school nurse) about your smoking history so she can best take care of your needs, because your doctor should know a lot about your level of physical fitness and what medications you are on, your doctor can also talk with you about best options for your journey towards being smoke-free. Sometimes, over-the-counter or prescription smoking cessation (the fancy word for stopping) aids may be recommended by your doctor.
4) Keep Your Mouth Busy. Find out what works best for you to keep your mouth busy when you get the urge to smoke – gum, ice, and hard candy are popular choices. By the time the flavor is gone or the ice melts, the craving will hopefully leave, too.
5) Get Back on the Bandwagon. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again! If you go three days without smoking and then slip up and smoke after an argument with your mom wrecks your nerves, don’t give up and start chain smoking again! Be proud of the small victories, like making it three days without smoking in the first place. Get right back into the swing of things and keep on working hard towards your goal of being smoke-free.

Check out the American Cancer Society’s Guide to Quitting Smoking for more reasons why to quit, tips on how to quit, and support to help you quit.

Good Luck! I know you can do it!

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