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Tips for Quitting

Commit to just one easy, healthy action today. A few examples are:

Set a Date

Make “Tobacco Quit Day” a reality by decideng when you’ll quit tobacco and mark it on your calendar.

Making your intention to quit official helps you prepare for the transition and also helps you put your plan into action. Sharing your planned quit date with friends and family—through Facebook, for example—can help you feel accountable and rally support, too.

Start building your quit plan!

Why Quit?

Remind yourself why you want to quit.

Make a list of several reasons you want to quit tobacco. Get more specific than “it’s bad for me.” Think of things like “no more stinky clothes,” “breathing easier,” and “stop coughing.”

If you want to be a successful quitter, you’ll need motivation. Keep this list handy and refer to it often—before, during, and after you quit—for motivation to stick with it.

Move Instead

Get active when you feel like using tobacco.

Every time you feel like reaching for tobacco, do something physical instead. Take a ten-minute walk around the office, take the dog for a walk, or do some gentle stretching.

Replacing an unhealthy habit with a healthy one can help shake up your patterns and make quitting easier. Plus, exercise can help ease nicotine cravings and keep weight gain to a minimum as you say goodbye to tobacco for good.

The Four-Minute Mark

Give tobacco cravings time to subside.

When you feel like using tobacco today, wait four minutes before you act on it. (Set a timer if you have to).

Tobacco cravings can seem so strong, yet they’re usually short—only lasting about three minutes or so. Many people find that if they wait it out, the craving is weaker and easier to ignore. And let’s face it, that craving will pass whether you light up or not.

Avoid All Tobacco Products

Thinking about simply switching to a different tobacco product? Think again. All tobacco products contain harmful chemicals and poisons that are just as addicting as regular cigarettes. E-cigs are also dangerous!

Prepare to quit!

Decrease Accessibility

Remove cigarettes or other tobacco products from your home and car. This decreases accessibility and can help you avoid breaking a smoke free streak.