Send the Dear John letter to Smoking!

It IS totally possible to quit smoking. Don’t be intimidated about it either. There are some great tips for quitting smoking that will help you on the road to freedom from nicotine. Also, take heart, the worst of the physical withdrawal symptoms will be over within the first 2 weeks of quitting.

Since nicotine is a very strong and addictive drug, some find that using the nicotine gum or the patches very helpful to sort of ease them into the process of quitting. They release small amounts of nicotine into your system to slowly wean you off of it. You can save money by using the generic brands of these products, there are even prescription drugs that can help – if you want to go that route. There are lots of different things that can assist you in kicking this addictive habit for good.You will be healthier and so will your heart.

Let’s talk about other quit smoking tips that will help.

• Your body is going to be working really hard to expel all of the toxins during the withdrawal process. You’ll want to make sure you start taking extra vitamin C and other multivitamins. You will also want to eat a very nutritional diet. Keep small bags of bite-size vegetables, fruit, cheese and nuts. Carrot sticks and celery with some low-fat ranch dressing will help. Pineapple chunks, strawberries, blueberries and melons will also help to satisfy your sweet tooth and are so much healthier than candy. There is a certain oral fixation about smoking that causes some people to eat a lot and gain weight when trying to quit- this is especially helpful to try and avoid that.
• Drink lots of water. This will help to flush residual toxins from the smoking out of your body a little more quickly. It will also aid in not giving in to so many cravings for unhealthy foods. Keeping yourself well-hydrated will keep you feeling better in general. Be sure to keep things with you, like some hard candy and healthy drinks around. You might even keep cinnamon sticks or straws to chew on.
• Get plenty of sleep. It can be very taxing on your body kicking the nicotine habit. You can even do some deep breathing exercises …part of why smokers crave smoking has to do with the deep breathing they do while smoking. Nicotine is actually a stimulant, but many smokers say smoking relaxes them, most of this has to do with the deep breathing they engage in while smoking. If you will do the deep breathing exercises regularly, they will help to relax you and also help to address the cravings and urges to smoke. 
• You will want to make sure to surround yourself with a group of “cheerleaders” and friends that will support and help you on your endeavor. Places you used to go, people you used to hang around may need to change a little. You want to try and have a plan to circumvent “triggers” that would make you want to smoke. So, for instance if you used to smoke on your breaks or lunches at work, find a new cool little past-time or hobby, something positive that you enjoy to replace smoking. Be patient with yourself, everyone is different and some of these suggestions may work more effectively than others for you.
• Remember the body has amazing regenerative powers, it’s very forgiving and you can totally turn around a lot of the damage that smoking can do. After a while you’ll be amazed at how much better you feel and I will just bet your immune system will get a super big dose of power too. Have a game plan in place to ensure your success.

Remember, kicking this habit is going to improve the quality of your life and will certainly help you live longer and you can get discounts on your health and life insurance. So many benefits to going ahead and putting down those smokes today!