Cigarette smoking is quickly becoming a huge problem in our nation. It is estimated that more than 40 million people smoke in the United States as of 2014 (1).Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United States, accounting for more than 480,000 deaths every year, or one of every five deaths (2). Most people who smoke, like myself, would like to quit but have trouble overcoming the habit and the addiction. For my 30 day challenge I am going to stop smoking cigarettes, cold turkey.
I picked up smoking at the age of 22 when I joined the Army. It all started off as a casual cigarette here or there while I was drinking with the other soldiers in the barracks. Before I knew it I was buying my own pack everyday. My habit became worse while I was deployed to Afghanistan. Most of the men in my platoon were using tobacco of some form or another. Being behind the wheel of a truck most of the time, I started using smokeless tobacco during combat patrols because we were not allowed to smoke inside of the vehicles. When I returned to the United States I started smoking again. I have quit multiple times and start back up again each time. This time I am going to quit permanently.
I have decided that the first step to quitting is wanting to quit. Not just trying to quit, but actually wanting to make a change for the better in my life. The most important part of this being mindset. If I start with the thought that I can and will accomplish the task at hand, I will accomplish it. I know this is not going to be an easy task. The physical addiction will only last three days but it is the mental addiction and the habit that is hard to break. I am used to smoking a cigarette when I wake up in the morning, after a meal, while driving, before I go to bed, it will be these habitual times that I smoke that will be the hardest to give up.
The next step would be to set a date for when to stop. When deciding when to quit it is recommended to pick a date that is within the current month. If picking a time that is too far out, most people will rationalize their choice to smoke and will continue to do so. Setting a date will help give me a better sense of my addiction coming to an end. Each day after that is just one day closer to my goal of being nicotine free. My current date to quit on will be the 26th of September 2016.
My third undertaking will be to distance myself from other smokers. This is going to be the hardest step of all. I live with my older brother and one roommate who are both smokers. Many of my friends also smoke. The key to this will be getting out of the house more and being active. Going on hikes, walking my brother’s dog, getting up into the mountains, playing disc golf, all of these will help me achieve my goal by being away from the temptation and also keeping my mind off of it by being engaged in a productive activities.
Most smokers quit with the use of smoking cessation aids. These can include gums, patches, lozenges, and nicotine vaporizers. My plan, though, is to stop cold turkey. Quitting cold turkey is a term used to describe the abrupt and complete cessation of taking a drug to which one is addicted. I have stopped this way before and it seems to be easier for me to give them up completely as to using cessation products. I have noticed through friends and stories online that when using those products to quit most people just replace cigarettes with the new nicotine product. This is something that I do not want to happen. I am going to give up nicotine completely, once and for all.
Smoking is a habit. Like most habits it is easily picked up but difficult to stop. My goal at the end of this 30 days is to be completely nicotine free. Feeling better,breathing easier, and not having a smoker’s cough will be an added bonus to not having such a bad habit.
2.U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2014 [accessed 2016 Mar 14].
It's been just over 36 hours since I had my last cigarette. 36 hours of craving. 36 hours of being irritable. 36 hours of stomach aches. All things that are happening while I kick the nicotine habit. I found a TED Talks video that goes into detail about the long term costs and health effects that smoking has on the world. It really got me thinking about what it could mean for me to quit smoking. On average I'll live ten years longer than if I kept smoking. I'll save upwards of $210 each month. I won't have that horrible smell on me all the time. The reasons to stop just keep getting better and better.
