Great American Smoke Out - 6 Days before Quit Date

 

6 Days before Quit Date		Great American Smoke Out TAKE A STEP FOR HEALTH
Action Step	Continue to “break up” your smoking pattern and assess if you might benefit from nicotine replacement therapy or other pharmaceutical aid.
Resources for Quitting Insight for Quitting
Do something that works to break up or “re-wire” your pattern of smoking. Here are some examples: 1) Switch to another brand of cigarette. You can change altogether or alternate your usual brand with one that you like less. 2) Change the location of where you typically smoke. If you smoke outside on your front porch, try smoking in the backyard. 3) Instead of keeping your cigarettes with you all the time, find a place to put them so you have to make an effort to go get them (i.e., in the glove compartment of your vehicle). 4) Switch the times that you smoke - if you smoke before getting in the shower in the morning, smoke afterwards instead. 5) Find a place that you usually smoke in and make smoking “off-limits” there - like in the living room or kitchen. Using pharmaceutical help: as you begin making changes you may want to consider if pharmaceutical help may be right for you.  There are many new options for nicotine replacement that are available without a prescription.  There are also medications that can be prescribed by your healthcare provider.   For a list of options and help with assessing if these resources may be useful for you, go to:  www.coquitline.org
Resources for Quitting	Get inspired to add physical activity into your day - check out CDC's Physical Activity Guide for information about the benefits of physical activity. Included are lots of ideas for incorporating simple actions that can reduce stress, improve health and help you feel a lot better.
Insight for Quitting	Today’s insight is about “wanting to quit” versus “being prepared/ready to quit.” Look at the scale, below and select a number that best represents how you feel about wanting to quit. 1     2  3   4 5 Don't want to at all Want to, but not now  Want to, but have some concerns   Really want to quit Ready to GO! The good news is that your desire (wanting) to quit or change may come and go - and you can still make the change.  Think about it, there are times that you do things you don’t really want to do right now, because you know that there will be a pay off that makes it worth it. So, “wanting” to quit is not the key ingredient to being successful - willingness to move forward may be the key!    Now, imagine you are one point higher on the scale. For example, if you are a three right now, what does a four look like? How would you know you were a four instead of a three? What are you doing, thinking, experiencing at the four that lets you know you have progressed from a three to a four?  (For example, if you know that at a “4” you have let others know that you are planning to make a change, that may be the very next step to help you be ready).  Wanting to is a start, but it doesn’t get you across the finish line.

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Last Modified: Nov 4, 2009 03:12 PM