How can I quit smoking?

Smoking is a primary risk factors for cardiovascular disease. If you smoke, quit now. Check with your doctor, health plan, a local hospital or clinic to find a program to help you quit. Or check out resources on the Internet for guidance and support. In general, smokers increase their ability to quit for good if they follow these steps:
Step 1. Get ready to quit. • Set a quit date and mark it on your calendar. •Throw away all of your cigarettes and ashtrays. •Write down your reasons for quitting and keep your list where visible. • Think about what did and did not work when you tried to quit before.
Step 2. Round up support. • Ask your family, friends and coworkers for support, and ask them not to smoke around you or leave cigarettes out. •Tell your doctor about your decision and ask for help. • Get counseling. Studies show that the more counseling, the better the success when trying to quit.
Step 3: Learn new skills and behaviors. • Break the pattern. Over the first few weeks after you quit, change your normal routines. • If you feel the urge to light up, distract yourself by taking a walk, playing cards or doing something with your hands. •Reduce stress. Relax in a hot bath. Take a nap. Read a book. • Drink plenty of water.
Step 4: Check out medicines to help you quit. Talk with your health care provider about whether you should try medicines designed to help smokers quit and handle cravings. (It is important to check with your doctor because not all products are safe for everyone.) Among the products are: • Gum, hard candies, patches and other products containing a small amount of nicotine •Products with nicotine, such as nicotine inhalers and nasal sprays •Medications that do not contain nicotine but work to reduce cravings for it
Step 5: Avoid tempting situations. •Steer clear of places where others are smoking. •Avoid beer, wine and other alcoholic drinks. •Do not worry if you gain weight. Eat a healthy diet, stay active, and keeping your focus on quitting smoking. •If you feel down or depressed, do something good for YOU. Take time to treat yourself. Many people succumb to temptation and have a cigarette during the first months after quitting. Do not be too hard on yourself if you slip. Keep your eye on the goal to quit and start back at Step 1.

The most effective plan to quit smoking is one that is personally tailored to your specific unique needs. An easy 6 step approach can help you to START your stop smoking plan.

S = Set a quit date. Let everyone you know what that date is and stick to it!

T = Tell family, friends, and co-workers that you plan to quit. It is much easier to quit with a large support group.

A = Anticipate and plan for the challenges you'll face while quitting. Take time to understand why and when you smoke, what your triggers are for smoking and how much you smoke. Many people smoke with meals, alcohol or socially with friends. Try to anticipate these settings and have an alternative plan that does not involve cigarettes.

R = Remove cigarettes and other tobacco products from your home, car, and work. Try replacing these products with a list of all the reasons why you are quitting whether it be for your own health, the health of others, or just to have whiter teeth!

T = Talk to your health care provider about getting help to quit. There are a large number of resources and treatment approaches to aid you in your stop smoking plan.

The good news is that it’s never too late to START your stop smoking plan. If you stop smoking, you’ll improve your health and reduce your long-term risks – and you’ll see immediate benefits, some within just a few hours! And the benefits don’t stop there - Within several years your stroke and heart disease risk can equal that of a non-smoker’s and your risk of cancer will be dramatically reduced as well.

Nicotine gum and patches, as well as other medications, can help. But in reality, it's not the body that gives us the hard time when it comes to kicking the habit. It only takes a couple of days for your body to free itself from nicotine. It's the old habits that die hard. A drink just isn't right without a smoke. What the hell are you supposed to do after finishing a meal? The morning just can't start right without that first drag.

I'll bet you're lighting up right now, just from the stress of thinking about thinking about quitting. So here's my secret weapon, how I've been able to go 20 years without smoking a cigarette. I'm not now, nor will I ever be, an ex-smoker. I'm a smoker who for two decades has chosen not to smoke. Does that sound like semantics to you? Maybe so. But it's worked for me. Back when I was a pack-a-day guy, the thought of never, ever, ever smoking again was simply too much to bear. So finally I set my mind like this: I'm stopping (not quitting) for now only. I fully reserve the right to start smoking again at any time in the future. Well, for me anyway, that didn't seem too bad. I wasn't committing myself to something forever. And so I went a week. And then another week. Soon it was a month. Then a year. Then three years. Then five. Then a decade. And so on. It made it easier for me. I hope it might work for you, too.

Smokers who want to quit can choose from a variety of tools that double or triple their chances of succeeding. The best approach uses medication to quell cravings for nicotine along with some sort of support or counseling to break the patterns that make a smoker reach for a cigarette. In the meantime, a few tips may help:

• Know the enemy. List all the hazards of smoking. Then write down why you want to quit.
• Make a date. Pick a date to quit and prepare yourself by figuring out how you will deal with cravings. The day before, throw away all cigarettes, ashtrays, and lighters -- anything that may tempt you.
• Talk with your doctor. Smoking changes the way your body processes some medications, so talk with your doctor about how to manage doses. Ask about nicotine replacement (available as patches, gum, and inhalers) and bupropion (Wellbutrin, Zyban) to ease cravings. In May 2006, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved varenicline (Chantix) for smoking cessation. Varenicline packs a one-two punch: by binding to the same receptors in the brain as nicotine, it can help ease withdrawal symptoms and also make smoking less pleasurable if you do slip up and resume smoking.
• Avoid temptation. Avoid smoke-filled bars and social situations that may tempt you until you feel stronger in your resolve.
• Find alternatives. Start exercising or find ways to relax.
• Keep trying. If you don't succeed on your first try, try again. It usually takes several attempts to quit smoking completely.

Talk to your VA health care provider about help with quitting smoking, including getting medication to improve your chances of quitting and a referral to a VA smoking cessation clinic. You may be prescribed  nicotine replacement therapy, such as the nicotine patch or gum, or other medications to help reduce your cravings.

Quitting smoking may be one of the hardest things to do, but it may have just gotten easier. In this video, Dr. Robin Miller reveals the promising results of a study linking text messaging with smoking cessation.

Use natural medications in addition to the excellent lifestyle strategies from Dr. Oz and the American Dental Association.

Start with a natural product to reduce your addiction to nicotine, then with a natural product to clear the tar out of your lungs. Once you enjoy breathing pure clear air, you will not want to go back to smoking again.

Smoking Withdrawal by Natra-bio is a combination of homeopathic medicines designed to reduce your cravings for nicotine. These medicines are safe, effective, non-habit-forming, and approved by the FDA as over-the-counter drugs. They do not contain any nicotine. This blend will set you back all of $5 and is definitely worth a try.

Then use Smokers’ Cleanse by Renew Life to clear the tar out of your lungs so you can breathe again. And of course follow the excellent lifestyle strategies in the previous answers.

If these methods don’t work, try hypnosis. It has worked for a lot of people I know.

There are several steps you can take to begin quitting smoking.

• Make a personal commitment, and take a pledge to stop smoking.
• Set a quit date. If you're starting today, count ahead 31 days, and make day 32 your quit date. Put it on the calendar. Put it on all your calendars.
• Think of three reasons you want to quit smoking. Write them on a card carry that card with you as a reminder.
• Start walking. Walking 30 minutes a day, every day, can help you quit. It will prove you have the discipline to stick with a plan; it will help keep weight off when you do stop smoking; and it will help curb cravings.
• See if your insurance plan covers quit-smoking efforts. More and more insurance plans are offering some level of coverage for quit-smoking efforts. Find out what questions to ask your insurance company.
• Schedule a checkup. Quitting smoking is physically and mentally stressful, so make sure you have no conditions that might interfere with the tools, techniques, and medications suggested by doctors.
• Talk to your doctor about prescriptions that may help you stop smoking.

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There are a number of ways to quit smoking, including quitting on your own, joining a smoking cessation group, or using a nicotine-substitution product. Although these heavily promoted products -- which include nicotine patches, gums, and nasal sprays -- can help to allay the physical symptoms of nicotine withdrawal, they sustain the body's dependence on nicotine. In fact, most people who quit successfully do so without such products.

If you are struggling with nicotine cravings, you may want to ask your doctor about bupropion, an antidepressant, which at low doses can help override the urge to smoke. In addition to the physical addiction to nicotine, the psychological addiction can be even more challenging to overcome. So behavior modification techniques, counseling, and support groups can be important tools in ensuring your success. If you don't succeed at first, try again. It usually takes several attempts to quit smoking for good.