Although the number of smokers in the world has drastically decreased in recent years, there are still many people who are addicted to cigarettes, and want to quit. I myself was in this position last year and along with my friend S R Buzzi, we managed to kick our habits and lead a smoke-free life, easily the best decision that I’ve ever made. I knew that quitting cold turkey would be too difficult for me as at the time I was smoking close to 20 cigarettes per day. I looked into the aids available and both my friend and I managed to find success with different aids. If you are looking to go into this new year smoke-free, here are just some o the options which are available to you, in order to help you get over the line.
Nicotine Patches
One of the hardest things about quitting smoking is the withdrawal from nicotine, the addictive substance in each cigarette. In order to help you wean yourself off smoking, or at least off nicotine, you can use small patches which you place on your arm. Starting with a high dose, the patch releases nicotine into the body and then each month you reduce the dosage until month 4, where you go it alone. My buddy used this method with great success and although he still had to work on losing other habits attached to smoking, the patches greatly helped him with the nicotine addiction.
Varenicline
Varenicline is a chemical which is administered in tablet form, with the idea being that your brain is almost trained to despise cigarettes and smoking. This was the method which I used to quit smoking and one year on I have not touched a single cigarette. Beginning with a small dose you take the tablets for a fortnight whilst still smoking, after a fortnight you stop smoking and continue with the tablets for a further 2 and a half months. During those 2 months I did cheat and have a cigarette, but the taste was so vile that I threw to away instantly. If you are worried about your ability to stick to your quit plan, this is the best option as you are given no choice.
Vaping
Vaping has become very popular in recent years and many people have used this method to quit. The idea of vaping is that you inhale nicotine in the form of water vapor, this means that whilst you are still addicted to nicotine, you don’t get the harmful substances which tobacco gives you. Now it is important to remember that you are using this method as a way to quit rather than a substitute, so make sure that you gradually lower your nicotine dosage, across a span of 3 months. This method helps because you still do the action of smoking, without causing yourself all of the terrible damage which cigarettes can have on you.
