Amanda Cox began smoking in high school to fit in with an older crowd. When she was 16, her mother discovered cigarettes in her purse. So she stopped keeping packs with her or would bum from friends.
By college, Cox was a "casual smoker." Her junior year, she re-evaluated her priorities and called it quits.
"I felt sick every time I was smoking and never really enjoyed it anyway. My lungs hurt. My throat hurt," said Cox, 27, a substance abuse prevention specialist with Employee and Family Resources.
Fortunately, she was able to quit - cold turkey.
"I made a decision and I stuck with it," she said.
For others, quitting takes more effort - sometimes up to seven attempts before success, said Micki Sandquist, executive director of the American Lung Association in Iowa.
Whether smokers use medication, support groups or other methods to quit, they'll see the impact quickly, she said. The heart rate drops within 20 minutes of a smoker's last cigarette and within two weeks, lung function improves and the risk of heart disease decreases.
Combining counseling with medicine or products increases the chances of success. Many programs are offered via phone or internet for privacy and convenience, Sandquist adds.
"Everybody is different on how they are successful in quitting. That's why we provide many different options to help people and provide them with resources they need," she said.
The lung association offers these tips to help smokers quit:
- Set a firm quit date.
- Throw away all tobacco products, ashtrays and lighters.
- Stock up on low-calorie snacks and sugar-free gum and mints.
- Anticipate risky situations.
- Practice deep breathing.
- Consider nicotine replacement therapy - the patch, gum or lozenge.
- Create a support system.
Cox advises that smokers not be afraid to ask for help.
"Know that it's going to be hard at first, but it gets easier," she said.
She also warns that many of the casual smokers she knew are now regular smokers.
"Once addiction grabs hold of you, it's a tight grip. It's hard to let go of that," she said.
Quitting resources suggested by the American Lung Association:
- Quitter in You. www.QuitterInYou.org
- American Lung Association HelpLine. (800) 586-4872 or www.lungusa.org/about-us/lung-helpline.html
- Freedom From Smoking Online. www.ffsonline.org
- Quitline Iowa. (800) 784-8669 or www.quitlineiowa.org
- Primary Health Care, Inc. Free counseling and a 12-week supply of medications in the Des Moines area and Marshalltown. (515) 248-1500 or www.phcinc.net
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