If you are a nonsmoker, good for you. Don’t start. If you are a smoker, hopefully you are ready to quit or at least thinking about it. I’m sure we’ve all heard it before but let’s just say it again, “Smoking is bad for you!”

Great, now that we have that established, let’s get to it. You know you should quit and you really do want to quit but you just can’t seem to do it on your own. Perhaps you’ve already tried but couldn’t do it.
Lucky for you, there are many available options to help you quit. You can obviously start by calling your doctor and making an appointment.

1. Most doctors will probably be thrilled that you are coming in to talk about smoking cessation.  Obviously it is essential that you are in the right mind set and that you are ready and committed to quitting.  If you aren’t completely willing or ready to give up the cigarettes, chances are you’ll not succeed, regardless of the method used.
2. Let the doctor know how much you smoke and for how long you’ve been smoking.  You may also want to tell the doctor if you have previously tried to quit, whether or not you used anything to help you, and what worked or didn’t work.
3. The doctor will likely ask about all these things before discussing the various treatment options with you.
4. There are a number of options for you if you have not been able to simply quit on will power alone.  These include nicotine gum, patch, lozenges, and oral medications.  The oral medications are Wellbutrin or Buspar and Chantix.  You should discuss with your doctor about the risks and benefits of each of these options.  Some patients will also try cognitive behavioral or alternative approaches.  This might include seeing a behavioral therapist or hypnotherapist.
5. Whatever you and your doctor decide to choose, don’t forget that you’ll need to follow up with the doctor.  Don’t just leave with a prescription assuming that will be enough.  You’ll want to go back and check in with the doctor.  Is the smoking cessation technique working for you?  Are you getting side effects from the medications?  Should you change the treatment plan?  You’ll want to go over these with your doctor.
6. Talk to your doctor about potential barriers.  Get referrals to additional resources that you can access outside of seeing the doctor.
7. Don’t try to quit smoking and lose weight at the same time.  It would be very hard and probably more stressful than need be.  I usually advise people to start with only one because you’re more likely to fail at both if try doing both at the same time.
8. Keep in mind that there is a huge psychological component to smoking.  It is not simply a physiological addiction to nicotine.  You’ll want to address the psychological component of the addictive habit in order to increase your chance of success.

It takes most people 7-8 tries before they are successful with smoking cessation.  So, don’t lose heart if you are not able to quit the first or second time.

Tags: Smoking, Smoking cessation