Smoking cessation is also known as “quitting cold turkey,” and before the advent of Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT), it was the only way to quit. Nicotine only takes about 72 hours to be cleansed from the body, and this is typically when withdrawal symptoms are the worst. After that, it takes about a week for the body to learn how to regulate its blood sugar levels again; thus, any urges a smoker experiences after about a week are almost purely psychological. Smoking cessation techniques target the psychological addiction associated with smoking cigarettes, including:

1. Using a prop to replace hand and mouth actions when you want a cigarette. Use a carrot or a pencil, or chew gum or a hard candy to combat smoking urges.
2. Doing a relaxing activity. When the urge to smoke becomes strong, find something to do that you find very relaxing, like taking a hot shower, doing breathing exercises, or listening to music.
3. Using the support of friends and family. Reach out to your friends and family to help you through difficult times.
4. Avoiding your triggers. Whatever activities you used to do while smoking, avoid them at all costs, including drinking caffeine or alcohol. If a certain situation makes you want a cigarette, try a change of scenery.

Another effective way to quit smoking is to join a smoking cessation program. Web-based programs are built to help you customize your very own stop smoking program by educating you on all the strategies and methods of quitting smoking and by connecting you with real people who will take the time to support you during the most difficult times after you stop smoking.

Quit Smoking or Don’t Pay!

There are many programs out there and they vary widely in cost, resources, and usability. The Quit Smoking Critic is a website that takes the top four smoking cessation programs and compares them objectively, giving you an effective review of each so that you can compare what features of each program will potentially help you the most to quit smoking.

A smoking cessation program is potentially the best option for people who have unsuccessfully tried quitting smoking using Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) such as patches, gum, or pills. There still exists considerable debate regarding NRT and its effectiveness, with many smoking cessation program proponents pointing out the relatively low success rate of people who use NRT products (although that success rate is double the rate for those who try to quit smoking cold turkey, it’s about the same as the success rate for those who use a smoking cessation program). Before you quit smoking, explore all of the options available to you and try several different methods if you do not succeed initially. Ultimately, you must resolve to never take another puff again for your smoking cessation resolution to work, and every program out there, from NRTs to hypnosis, requires that you decide to quit for good before you take any additional steps.