The Quit Smoking Report Ezine

The Quit Smoking Report 01/05/99

Published on the first and third Tuesday of each month

Brought to you by QuitSmoking.com
http://www.quitsmoking.com

In this issue:

<> Letter from the Editor
<> Featured Product: E-Z Quit Smokeless Artificial Cigarette
<> Article: 11 Ways to Keep Your New Year's Resolution to Quit
Smoking
<> A Word From Our Sponsor
<> Smokers' Stories

You can read previous issues of The Quit Smoking Report on our
web site. Just visit: http://www.quitsmoking.com/ezine

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LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Hello again everyone!

Happy Smoke-Free New Year!

This is the year that you'll quit smoking! I hope you've already
made up your mind that 1999 is the year you throw away the
cigarettes forever.

This issue includes an article that many of you may have already
read on the QuitSmoking.com web site. The article bears
repeating, as the tips and strategies can help you quit,
resolutely!

Remember, you can read previous issues of The Quit Smoking
Report on our web site. Just visit:
http://www.quitsmoking.com/ezine

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FEATURED PRODUCT: E-Z Quit Smokeless Artificial Cigarette
http://www.quitsmoking.com/ezquit.htm

THE TWO SIDES OF ADDICTION
You're hearing a lot about nicotine addiction these days.
Withdrawal from a physical addiction to nicotine can be very
uncomfortable, but complete withdrawal can be achieved in a
matter of weeks.

But there's another side to your smoking habit. ORAL ADDICTION.
Keeping a cigarette in your lips. Puffing quickly when you're
nervous. Just holding a cigarette when you pick up the phone, or
a drink. This psychological addiction can undermine the best
intentions. And the best medicine.

You Need E-Z QUIT

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smoking a real cigarette. 100% Safe! No drugs! No nicotine! Safe
to use with Nicotine Patch or Gum! Perfect for all non-smoking
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When you inhale through an E-Z QUIT, the cartridge releases a
flavor that refreshes your mouth and occupies your taste buds.
Through psychological mechanisms it "fools you" into thinking
you are smoking the real thing, and as a result it helps you to
quit smoking. You just inhale through this device whenever you
get the next urge to smoke, and it helps carry you over each
crisis.

The E-Z QUIT artificial cigarette comes with three mint-flavored
cartridge refills that last 45 days. (Each cartridge lasts about
15 days.)

E-Z QUIT is our best seller because it is affordable (just
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smoking.

For more information visit:
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ARTICLE: 11 Ways to Keep Your New Year's Resolution to Quit
Smoking
By Fred H. Kelley

Every year about this time, people begin thinking about the new
year and the changes it will bring. Some people make New Year's
resolutions to lose weight, get a better job, get married, or
simply to get a life. Millions of Americans will also make the
resolution to quit smoking.

Nearly 48 million Americans aged 18 years and older smoke. Of
these, fully 70--nearly 34 million smokers--want to quit,
according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in
Atlanta. This year 1.3 million of these smokers will quit
successfully. Why do tens of millions want to quit but only a
fraction actually succeeds? The answer is that most people just
don't know how to go about quitting.

Follow the 11 simple steps outlined below to assure your quit-
smoking success.

1. Decide Right Now to Believe that You CAN Quit Smoking

Studies of smokers who successfully quit smoking show that one
of the most important traits of a successful quitter is their
belief that they have the ability to quit smoking.

Do you believe that you can quit? If you don't, you will have a
much harder time trying to quit. The best action you can take
right now to start the quitting process is to fix in your mind
the belief that you have the ability to quit smoking. You might
say that you can't change your belief, but you can.

Believing you can quit is so important because your belief will
guide everything you do in your attempt to quit. The way you
think, the research you do, the steps you take, the people you
talk to, the help you seek--all these will be influenced by the
belief you have in your ability to give up cigarettes.

If you don't truly believe you can quit, you'll probably find
yourself saying, "What's one little cigarette? I've got a
headache. I just can't quit like other people." If you believe
you can quit, instead you'll be saying "My head is hurting from
withdrawal, but I can make it through this. I know the headache
and other withdrawal symptoms will go away in a few days. My
life is more important than a stupid cigarette."

Believing shapes everything you do. So does not believing. If
you believe something strongly enough your mind will give you
the correct thoughts to help your body take you in the direction
of your belief.

Can you imagine what life would be like if Thomas Edison hadn't
believed that he could invent the incandescent light bulb? If
Edison had begun his search for the solution without really
believing he could create a light bulb that worked, he would
have quit long before finding the answer. Edison tested more
than 10,000 combinations of materials before finding the right
one to create a light bulb! You must believe that you can quit
smoking, even if it takes 10,000 attempts.

Fixing in your mind a belief that you can quit smoking may sound
impossible if you now believe that you don't have the ability.
Here are some tips to help you change your beliefs:
* Realize that your old belief was founded on old
ideas and circumstances and that your new belief
is based on new information and your newfound desire
to quit smoking now.
* On 3X5 cards, write out several positive statements
about your ability to quit. Read your cards three
times a day: morning, noon and bedtime. Some state-
ments to use: "I believe that I have the ability to
quit smoking," "I am a non-smoker," "I no longer need
cigarettes in my life," "I happily quit smoking," "It's
easy to quit smoking," "I am a powerful, self-directed
person," "I control my own life." Make up some of your
own statements. Make them positive, as if you have al-
ready completed the task.
* Post a sign on your bathroom mirror with one of the above
statements on it.
* Repeat the above statements to yourself, whenever you
have a free moment.
* Use visualization techniques (see Step 7 below) to
visualize yourself mastering your smoking habit and
winning the fight.
* Ask your family and friends to encourage you with
positive statements about your ability to quit smoking
(See Step 5 below).

2. Create a "Quit Plan"

Successful people in all walks of life become successful through
planning. The same is true for smokers who successfully quit
smoking. You must create a plan that you will follow daily, so
that you quit smoking purposefully, not haphazardly.

Put your plan on paper. Write each of these steps in your plan:
a) Study this report and write down how you will mentally
prepare yourself to quit smoking. Don't try to quit
until you feel you are ready.
b) Decide on a specific date that you will quit. Write down
your "quit date." Make sure your quit date comes after
you have completed step "a" above. Also, choose a quit
date that occurs during a relatively low stress time.
Don't try to quit during a stressful time at work or
during the break-up of a relationship, for example.

Quitting on a specific date is preferable to slowly
reducing the number of cigarettes that you smoke. By
going "cold turkey" you won't have to keep track of how
many cigarettes you smoked yesterday and how many you
will smoke today. You will also remove the temptation
to cheat and smoke too many. By using this report to
prepare yourself for your quit date you will be ready
to quit, and going cold turkey won't be so difficult.
c) Write down all the things you will enjoy doing after
you quit smoking (long walks, eating out without being
restricted to the smoking section, taking a vacation
with the money you will save, etc.). This step is very
important, so spend extra time dreaming up your
"smoke-free future."
d) Write down the times and occasions when you are most
likely to smoke. Write down what "triggers" your
desire to smoke (See Step 8 below). You may be
surprised to find that you have organized your day
around smoking.
e) Write down five to ten things you will do instead of
smoking, whenever you feel a cigarette craving coming
on. For example, you might drink a glass of water, go
for a short walk, type a letter, do some filing, call
a friend, read a book, or mow the grass. Plan how you
will distract yourself. Try to distract yourself with
something healthy and/or beneficial. Match the
distractions you've created in this step with the
times and occasions your wrote down in step "d"
above.
f) Write down the names of three people whom you trust to
support your efforts to quit smoking. Contact them
and ask for their support. Make sure you tell them
that you want only positive support. Ask them to call
you each day and give you positive encouragement.
Also, ask them if you can call them if you need help.
g) Write down a list of all the items that you use when
smoking: cigarettes, lighters, matches, ashtrays,
etc. Make notes about where every single item is.
Then on your "quit date" track down each item and
throw them away. Don't forget to clean out your car
and your office at work.
h) Write down a list of rewards that you will give
yourself. Be sure to reward yourself as you go longer
and longer without smoking. For example: End of Day
One -- long, hot bubble bath. End of Week One -- see
a Movie. End of Week Three -- dinner at an exclusive
restaurant. End of Month Two -- take a day off from
work. End of Six Months -- take a weekend getaway.
End of Year One -- take a 7-day vacation. Whenever
possible, write down the specific date that you will
reward yourself. By the way, these rewards won't cost
you much, if anything, because you'll be saving
hundreds of dollars by not smoking!
i) Make an appointment to see your doctor. See Step 6
below.

3. Take Action

You can't win the battle if you don't start the battle. The
problem with too many unmet goals and plans is that no action
was ever taken to start down the road to achieving the goal or
plan. If you created your "Quit Plan" in Step 2 above (you did
create a "Quit Plan", didn't you?) you now have a plan for
quitting. What is step "a" of your Quit Plan? Have you done it
yet? Do it now! You must put your plan into action.

If you ever studied physics in high school you've probably heard
of inertia. Inertia is the characteristic of an object (you)
wanting to maintain its current state. In other words, objects
at rest (doing nothing, not moving) tend to want to stay at
rest. An object in motion tends to want to stay in motion.

Anytime you have to slam on your car's brakes you experience
inertia. When your car slows down rapidly, what happens to you
and your passengers? Your bodies lunge forward before they are
(hopefully) restrained by a seatbelt. If not restrained you
could go right through the windshield. The point is this: if you
begin taking action--even the smallest action--to quit smoking,
you'll start a chain reaction, carrying you forward to the next
step in your quit smoking action plan. Getting started on your
plan is difficult, but once you get started it's hard to stop.
So get started today!

4. Prepare Yourself Mentally

While most of the media attention surrounding the smoking
addiction focuses on chemical addictions to nicotine, you are in
reality "multi-addicted." You are addicted to the feel of the
cigarette in your hand and mouth. You are addicted to the
actions of lighting your cigarette, moving your cigarette up to
your mouth, flicking ashes from the cigarette and holding your
cigarette between your fingers. You've also become addicted to
the visual appeal of cigarettes: the flame, the smoke, even a
dirty ashtray. You're also addicted to the deep inhalations and
exhalations you take as you puff on your cigarettes. You may
have become addicted to smoking buddies at your workplace. All
these stimuli serve to meet some physical, psychological or
emotional need within you.

Part of preparing yourself mentally is understanding, studying
and attacking your addictions. Think about the pleasures you
derive from smoking. Does it make you feel "cool"? Do you get a
lift or relax? Do you need to have something in your mouth or
hands? Do you enjoy breathing deeply when you smoke? Do you feel
a compulsion to head out to socialize with your smoking buddies
every morning at 10:30?

Think through how you feel when you smoke. Are you happy, sad,
soothed, or more alert? The next time you smoke a cigarette,
notice all these things. Jot down your observations, then re-
read them regularly. Study your own addiction so you understand
what you must overcome. As Socrates said, "Know thyself."

5. Get Help and Support from Family and Friends

Sometimes our family and friends can be our worst enemies when
we are attempting something very difficult or "different." If
your family or friends don't smoke, they may not understand your
desire to quit. Nor will they understand the extreme difficulty
of overcoming your addiction.

If your family and friends do smoke, they may have attempted to
quit themselves, but failed. Or they may not want to quit at
all, thereby placing pressure on you not to quit also. Human
nature causes people to try to "hold others back" when someone
close to them begins to move in a direction different from the
norm. If you quit, you will place pressure and the spotlight on
family and friends who are still smoking.

Your challenge will be to let others around you know that you
are doing this for YOU. Let them know that if they will not
encourage you, then they should "keep quiet while you quit." But
by all means encourage others to encourage you.

Ask your family and friends to give you positive encouragement.
Make sure they know that you do not want them to point out your
faults, mistakes and slips. Ask them to praise your victories,
large or small. Ask them to be understanding during the times
that you may be less than friendly or patient. Ask them to be a
part of the solution, not a part of the problem.

DUE TO THE LIMITED SPACE OF THIS EMAIL, THE REMAINDER OF THIS ARTICLE IS AVAILABLE IN TWO WAYS:

1. Follow this link to view the rest of the article on the World
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or

2. Email Autoresponder. You can have a copy of this entire
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The article will be emailed to you within seconds.

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A Word From Our Sponsor:

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rapid transition without the insanity that accompanied earlier
attempts to stop. Here I am, a new woman at the age of 78. The
cough is gone, the insanity is gone, and I feel liberated!" -
Gladys Elson, RN, MS - Dix Hills, NY
For more information visit http://www.easyquit.com

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SMOKERS' STORIES

If you can help these folks with your suggestions please send
them email.

Lynn Howze <Revlch@aol.com> writes:

Dear Fred,
I am an Episcopal priest and I have been smoking since I was in
the 9th grade (l961). I quit for about 2 or 3 years when I was
in seminary during the last 70's but started again when I lost
my job and was faced with bills I couldn't pay along with
churches telling me (over 200 of them) that they wouldn't hire
a woman priest.

On October 11 of this year, I quit again with the help of Zyban.
I did really well for 6 weeks until my husband's job got too
physically stressful and he made the decision to quit his job.
My husband had quit smoking as well on Zyban, but he started up
again when he quit his job. Real smart of both of us. We're now
living on my part-time salary and spending money on cigarettes.
Furthermore, a priest friend of mind said that he would forgive
a $300 debt we have with his church if my husband would quit
smoking (I quit before he did) as well as me.

Tonight we made the decision of quit again. We have one more
pack between us and when that is gone that's it. We have a
month's supply of Zyban samples we got from the doctor. The
Zyban is wonderful for reducing cravings, but it doesn't take
care of the habit. If any of you out there have any suggestions
for curbing the habit part of this effort, please E-mail me. I
have the last two newsletters and will be E-mailing those who
wrote in. Any and all additional support my husband and I can
get will be appreciated.

Lynn Howze Revlch@aol.com

+++

Michelle McCartney <lysistrata@accinternet.com> writes:

I am only twenty-one years, but I have been smoking for the last
6 years. I've tried to quit several times, but only last about a
month before starting back-up. I have also tried several
different methods including the patch. Although none of them
seemed to work before, I am not sure that my heart was in it.

Then two weeks ago, my doctor handed me the results of my
echocardiogram I had done as part of an extensive check-up. When
you see that your 21 and have the heart of a 60 year old, it
gives you a kick in the pants to start taking care of yourself.
Although I am not sure whether smoking had any impact on the
problems I have (I was also very ill when I was 5), I know that
it can't be helping them any. Fortunately, the problems that I
do have should not get any worse anytime soon, but if I keep
smoking there is a chance they might.

This was the wake-up call I think I needed to quit smoking. Now
I just hope that I can go through with it. I have decided to
wait until the New Year to stop because I am a Senior in college
and have finals right now. The other reason I decided to wait is
that in January I will start a new phase in my life. I will
finally have an internship doing what I want to do. Therefore, I
think that as my life changes to accommodate my job, it will
also change to accommodate the fact that I quit. I really hope
it lasts this time.

Michelle

+++

Sheri L. Bragg <shergen@juno.com> writes:

Dear Fred,
I have finally quit for good after 37 years of smoking. I'm so
proud of myself I can hardly stand it as it has been 4 weeks now
with no cigarettes. Over the course of the years I have tried
quitting by hypnosis, patches, gum, then the patches again but
nothing seemed to work for me. It had gotten so bad that in the
morning when I got up I couldn't breath and I had to sit for an
hour before I could do anything, I had a cough that wouldn't let
me sleep, and I was very miserable. And I only smoked one pack a
day.

I finally made up my mind that I have to do something, so when I
took my husband to the doctor I asked the doctor what he would
recommend. He put me on Zyban and I also bought the E-Z Quit
smokeless artificial cigarette to help me with having something
in my mouth and doing something with my hands. I also did a lot
of praying. The first five days after my quit day where very
hard, I was depressed, bitchy, thinking something very valuable
is missing, and I did not want to be around anyone, but then
that sixth day came and I can honestly say I just don't want to
smoke anymore. I can breath so much better and now I can get
right out of bed, jump in the shower and I'm ready for the day
instead of wasting that hour trying to breath.

In short, keep on trying until you find what works for you and
never give up!! Thank you for the great support and information
that we receive from the "Quit Smoking Report".

Sheri

+++

Suzanne Thomsen <pinetop@primenet.com> writes:

I don't know if this will help anyone, but here's my story: I'm
46 years old and I've been waiting for the "right time" to quit
for quite some time and it never seemed to come...I did try
quitting 4 years ago, but only lasted for about a month. I've
used all the help tools, including an anti-anxiety drug. My
parents, my siblings (3 of which successfully quit years ago),
and especially my children constantly berated me every time they
saw me light up. Here's what did it for me:

One night during theThanksgiving weekend, I had a most memorable
dream/nightmare. Now, I don't usually remember my dreams but
this one was vivid! I was in a hospital room, hooked up to every
machine and tube imaginable. It was pretty obvious I was dying.
My children were there at my side...my 10 year old daughter and
my 17 year old son. But instead of crying and trying to comfort
me, they were furious. Almost hateful. Like " how could you have
done this to us!?!"

I remember thinking I'd never see them off to college, never see
them get married, never see my grandchildren, etc. Whenever I
think about smoking now, I think of that dream and my childrens'
anger I need love from them and the best way I can show them how
much I love them is to quit smoking. For good.

Suzanne

====================

Where's your story? I'd sure like to share it with the other
subscribers to this email list. Mailto:fredk@quitsmoking.com

I hope to hear from you!

NEXT ISSUE: January 19

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You can find additional helpful quit smoking tips and
information at http://www.quitsmoking.com/quitinfo.htm

While you're there, take a look at our products page at
http://www.quitsmoking.com/products.htm for some helpful
quit smoking tools.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Until next time, RESOLVE TO QUIT TODAY, AND FOREVER,

Fred Kelley

QuitSmoking.com
Phone: 770-346-9222
Fax: 770-475-5007
Web: http://www.quitsmoking.com
Email: mailto:fredk@quitsmoking.com

To have your email address REMOVED from our list
CLICK HERE TO REMOVE

To have your email address ADDED to our list
CLICK HERE TO ADD

© Copyright 1999 Fred H. Kelley
This email may be freely distributed and forwarded
as long as the entire email remains intact.

DISCLAIMER: I am not a doctor or professional therapist.
The information included in this email is my opinion and the
opinions of the people sending in their comments.
Fred Kelley and QuitSmoking.com make no warranties,
either expressed or implied, about the truth or accuracy of the
contents of The Quit Smoking Report.

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