Gum, Patches, Hypnosis: Tips To Help You Quit

by Melody B. Henry

If you are a smoker, you have undoubtedly tried several times to quit the habit. But, for some, this struggle seems to be a little more difficult than for others. Fortunately, there are a variety of methods available to help you win the fight. The important part is finding the one that is right for you.

Using Gum to Quit Smoking

Nicotine gum is a form of nicotine replacement that works quickly by getting into the bloodstream through the mucous membrane in your mouth. It can be purchased without a prescription and comes in strengths of 2 mg and 4 mg.

It is important when using nicotine gum to follow the included directions carefully. You should chew the gum until you notice a peppery taste, and then let it set against your cheek for a while. You should alternate between chewing it and putting it against your cheek for about 20-30 minutes. Certain foods and drinks, however, can affect how well the nicotine is absorbed by your system. Therefore, you should avoid eating certain foods and drinks that are acidic, such as juices, coffee, and soft drinks, for 15 minutes before and after you use the nicotine gum.

If you are a heavy smoker who smokes a pack or more per day, if you smoke within 30 minutes after getting up, or if you have trouble refraining from smoking in areas where it is restricted, you should probably start with 4 mg. You should not, however, use more than 20 pieces of nicotine gum per day. In addition, you should only use nicotine gum for 1 to 3 months and for no longer than 6 months. You should work toward gradually decreasing the amount of gum you chew.

People with sensitive skin often prefer gum over a nicotine patch. Gum also allows you to better control the amount of nicotine you ingest when compared to the patch. This is because you only chew the gum when you need it or you can create a fixed schedule every day. In fact, recent data has shown that scheduled doses of nicotine gum are more effective than using it "as needed."

Possible side effects of nicotine gum include: throat irritation, bad taste, hiccups, mouth ulcers, jaw discomfort, nausea, and a racing heartbeat. Problems with the jaw and stomach are usually caused by using the gum improperly, such as chewing too rapidly or swallowing nicotine.

Using the Patch to Quit Smoking

A nicotine patch will provide you with small measured doses of nicotine through your skin throughout the day. Switching to different patches over time gradually lowers the doses, until you are finally weaned from nicotine. Nicotine patches can be purchased without a prescription and there are several different strengths available.

The 16 hour patch is recommended for those who are light to medium smokers. This patch is less likely to cause side effects such as sleep problems, a racing heartbeat, headache, and skin irritation. This patch does not, however, deliver nicotine during the night. Therefore, it will not help you with withdrawal symptoms early in the morning.

The 24 hour patch also provides a steady dose of nicotine at all times, thereby helping with morning withdrawal symptoms. More side effects, however, are associated with the 24 hour patch, such as skin irritation and disrupted sleep patterns.

Most smokers start with the full-strength patch, which delivers 15 to 22 mg of nicotine, for four weeks. They then move to a weaker patch of 5 to 14 mg for another four weeks. The patch itself is applied in the morning to a dry, clean area on the body that does not contain much hair. The location should be below the neck, but above the waist. While the FDA has recommended using the patch for 3-5 months, some studies have shown 8 weeks to be just as effective.

Side effects of the patch are often caused by the brand of the patch, the dose of nicotine, skin sensitivity, how the patch is applied, and how long the patch is used. Common side effects associated with the nicotine patch include dizziness, skin irritation, racing heartbeat, headache, sleep problems, vomiting, nausea, muscle aches and stiffness. If any of these occur, you should try switching to a different brand, using a lower dose patch, or using a different form of nicotine replacement. If you are having problems sleeping, give it a few days to see if it improves. If not, switch to a lower dosage.

Using Hypnosis to Quit Smoking

Hypnosis is a form of therapy during which a trained hypnotherapist puts you into a trancelike state. While in this state, you are more open to suggestion. Sometimes, hypnosis is done in addition to other remedies you may be utilizing, but it can also be used alone. On occasion, this form of treatment can be effective in as little as one session.

There are no potential side effects of hypnosis. There is, however, very little research proving if it really works or why it works. Critics of this form of therapy say the hypnosis itself doesn't work; rather it is the patient's strong belief in the system that makes it effective. But, of course, it really doesn't matter why it works if it does help you stop smoking.

About the Author

Brought up with a parent who smoked, Ms Henry has secondhand smoke-related health problems.As a result, she is passionate about helping parents put children before cigarettes. For her free newsletter go to http://www.theparentsquitsmokingsite.com

The Stop Smoking Injection: Why Not Take Your Shot?

by Judy Wellsworth

You can chew gum; you can wear a patch; you can suck on a lozenge, or swallow some pills or have acupuncture, hypnotherapy, or a laser treatment. You can even be incredibly brave and decide to go cold turkey. You, in other words, can approach the challenge of giving up you cigarettes in a variety of ways, and perhaps you already have.

If you are one of the millions of people desperate to stop smoking for whom nothing else has worked, you may be a candidate for the stop smoking injection, which uses two FDA-approved anticholinergic drugs, scopolamine and atarax, to block nicotine cravings.

How The Stop Smoking Injection Works Your smoking habit has caused your brain to develop extra nerve endings--and the longer you have smoked, the more of them you have--which produce an excess of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine while you smoke and for a brief period after you quit.

If the nerves producing the acetylcholine are blocked, they will not be able to signal your brain and body that nicotine withdrawal has begun. The concept is similar to having an anesthetic before you get stitches; pain messages are from the nerve endings in your skin to you brain simply do not get through.

The stop smoking injection will reduce, or completely eliminate, physical symptoms of nicotine withdrawal during the first twenty-four to forty-eight hours after you quit, when they are at their most severe. By taking a stop smoking injection, you can spare yourself any or all of gastrointestinal disturbances, nausea, headache, lowered heart rate and blood pressure, increased irritability, fatigue, nervousness, and an inability to concentrate.

Because it will take you body three to four days to completely rid itself of all traces of nicotine, and up to fourteen days for the acetylcholine concentration in your brain to return to normal levels, the stop smoking injection must be supplemented with oral medication and a scopolamine patch, similar to the nicotine patches used to help people quit smoking.

The medication and patch will be of lower strength than the stop smoking injection, but are adequate to block the acetylcholine-producing nerves while your body adjusts to nicotine withdrawal.

Shortcomings Of The Stop Smoking Injection Critics of the stop smoking injection say that, in spite of its high success rate in helping people get through the physical aspects of nicotine withdrawal, does nothing to help a smoker understand the psychological reasons for his or her addiction several clinics offering the stop smoking injection also have follow-up interactive programs in behavior modification.

One study has shown the stop smoking injection, without behavioral modification therapy, has an initial success rate approaching 90%, with 40% of those who used it still nicotine-free after one year. The stop smoking injection, because it uses FDA-approved medicines, may be covered as a medical treatment by your health insurance provider.

About the Author
You can also find more info on Stop Smoking Patch and Stop Smoking Pill. Stopsmokingaidsguide.com is a comprehensive resource to know smoking & how to get it off.

Activities to Ease You Through the Quitting Smoking Process

Many of us are accustomed to having daily smoking breaks—times of the day when we would, without fail, grab our packs and our lighters and head to an open window! Oftentimes we would look to our cigarette breaks as a chance to get away from the stresses of work or just to have a quiet moment to ourselves.Just because you have given up cigarettes doesn't mean that you can’t enjoy breaks. But now, instead of lighting up, substitute new, healthier alternatives that will give you a similar sense of calm and relaxation.

Here are some of my favorites:

Meditate
Meditation can be a wonderful way to gain control of your mind, especially when it’s racing with thoughts of how much you miss smoking and cigarettes. It’s incredibly easy to do and can be done anywhere, without any equipment except your own body

Simply sit on the floor in any comfortable position (such as cross-legged). Close your eyes. Attune your ears to the sounds around you, whether it’s the noise of the street or the voices of your office colleagues. Now shift focus so that you are listening to the sounds of your breath and your own body. At the same time, concentrate on a mental image that gives you a sense of peace, such as a candle flame, a tree, or cloud. Try to keep your focus centered for at least 10 minutes at a time.

Listen to Music
Music is such an amazing distraction. It’s so easy to get lost in a familiar melody, or to be transported by a new song that really speaks to you in some way. In fact, music has an effect on
the brain that may be similar to chemical substances—but it’s all totally natural, of course!

A great tip is to substitute daily music breaks for what used to be your daily smoking breaks. Instead of going outside to puff away, put on a soothing CD or turn the radio on a channel you love. You can use your i-Pod if you’re at work, or play it out loud if you’re at home. The distraction will keep your mind off cigarettes, and the music will give your body its much-needed dose of relaxation.

Go for a Walk
Don’t just sit in your office or your living room thinking about how much you wish you had a cigarette right now. Instead, get up and put your body in motion. The physical stimulation will start endorphins coursing through your body. If you can take a stroll outside, do so—pay attention to the sounds of the birds, cars passing by, the color of the flowers in bloom, and so on. The point of this exercise is to get yourself “out of your mind,” focusing on external things in order to beat the urge to smoke.

Develop New Interest
Try developing new interests or hobbies like gardening or painting. Such things would keep your mind off that urge to smoke. All of us have a certain measure of creativity that often remains untapped. It would be a wonderful thing if you could try working on that creativity. Join a dance class or a drama class. Or you could try learning a new skill like pottery or clay modeling. Try to involve yourself with other people. Do same social work, or try helping out at the local volunteer organizations.

Change your lifestyle by changing your routine. Go swimming, try working out or going to the gym. Be active. Got something you wanted to do but never had the time to do it? NOW is the time. As you distract yourself by changing your lifestyle and developing new interests, you will be amazed at how easy it is to quit smoking!

Such activities make us appreciate the meaning of life in a better way and we will stop to think twice before we waste away this life at the end of a cigarette.

For additional information as well as other articles to help you quit smoking please visit the web site below. You may use this article provided that it is used in it's entirety, including this resource box.

Copyright 2005 http://free-stop-smoking-guide.com/

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Conquering The Smoking Habit

Most smokers sincerely want to quit. They know cigarettes threaten their health, set a bad example for their children, annoy their acquaintances and cost an inordinate amount of money.

Nobody can force a smoker to quit. It's something each person has to decide for himself, and will require a personal commitment by the smoker. What kind of smoker are you? What do you get out of smoking? What does it do for you? It is important to identify what you use smoking for and what kind of satisfaction you feel that you are getting from smoking.

Many smokers use the cigarette as a kind of crutch in moments of stress or discomfort, and on occasion it may work; the cigarette is sometimes used as a tranquilizer. But the heavy smoker, the person who tries to handle severe personal problems by smoking heavily all day long, is apt to discover that cigarettes do not help him deal with his problems effectively.

When it comes to quitting, this kind of smoker may find it easy to stop when everything is going well, but may be tempted to start again in a time of crisis. Physical exertion, eating, drinking, or social activity in moderation may serve as useful substitutes for cigarettes, even in times of tension. The choice of a substitute depends on what will achieve the same effects without having any appreciable risk.

Once a smoker understands his own smoking behavior, he will be able to cope more successfully and select the best quitting approaches for himself and the type of life-style he leads.

Because smoking is a form of addiction, 80 percent of smoker who quit usually experience some withdrawal symptoms. These may include headache, light-headedness, nausea, diarrhea, and chest pains. Psychological symptoms, such as anxiety, short-term depression, and inability to concentrate, may also appear. The main psychological symptom is increased irritability. People become so irritable, in fact, that they say they feel "like killing somebody." Yet there is no evidence that quitting smoking leads to physical violence.

Some people seem to lose all their energy and drive, wanting only to sleep. Others react in exactly the opposite way, becoming so over energized they can't find enough activity to burn off their excess energy. For instance, one woman said she cleaned out all her closets completely and was ready to go next door to start on her neighbor's. Both these extremes, however, eventually level off. The symptoms may be intense for two or three days, but within 10 to 14 days after quitting, most subside. The truth is that after people quit smoking, they have more energy, they generally will need less sleep, and feel better about themselves.

Quitting smoking not only extends the ex-smoker's life, but adds new happiness and meaning to one's current life. Most smokers state that immediately after they quit smoking, they start noticing dramatic differences in their overall health and vitality.

Quitting is beneficial at any age, no matter how long a person has been smoking. The mortality ratio of ex-smoker decreases after quitting. If the patient quits before a serious disease has developed, his body may eventually be able to restore itself almost completely.

About the Author

Jay Harris of IMI Concepts. Visit his website http://www.imiconcepts.com/directory.html

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Quit Smoking: Five Tips To Help You!

by Melody B. Henry

As anyone who smokes or has ever smoked knows, smoking is extremely addictive. Besides having to deal with the physical addiction to nicotine, smokers also have to deal with a social component: unlike most other addictive drugs, smoking is entirely legal and in many cases socially acceptable. Quitting smoking is difficult, and requires persistence and willpower. Here are 5 tips to quit smoking.

Prepare Yourself Many attempts to quit smoking fail because people don't adequately prepare themselves for the task at hand. You will be undertaking a major change in your lifestyle and habits, and you have to be ready for it. To ensure a better chance at success, you have to be ready to quit smoking. You have to reach a point where you truly and deeply want to quit - if you are at all hesitant about the idea there's a good chance your attempt to quit will fail.

Before you actually attempt to stop smoking, try and make as many changes to your smoking habits as possible. Much of the addiction to smoking has to do with routines and habits, so even small changes can make a big difference when trying to break the habit.

Try things like switching to a brand of cigarettes you don't particularly like. Also try and change the times of day that you smoke, or smoke with your other hand.

Make a rule for yourself that you can't do anything else like read or use the computer - while you are smoking. This will make you much more aware of what exactly you are doing when you smoke, which is easy to avoid if you incorporate smoking into other activities you enjoy.

Basically, you should be trying to truly mess up your smoking habits as preparation to quitting smoking. By taking steps to try and make the experience stranger, you replicate how a non-smoker feels. Remember, after all, that there was a time in your life when you didn't smoke, and the act of smoking seemed strange and uncomfortable.

About the Author

Brought up with a parent who smoked, Ms Henry has secondhand smoke-related health problems.As a result, she is passionate about helping parents put children before cigarettes. For her free newsletter go to http://www.theparentsquitsmokingsite.com