During the holidays, doctors and staff at the Florida Lung, Asthma and Sleep Specialists become freshly concerned about their patients who have been trying to quit smoking. The holidays can provide challenges bring back the urge to smoke. Let’s take a look at a few mini-cases:
Mike, age 48 is fighting COPD, and he understands how important it is to avoid the cigarettes he has been smoking for 33 years. Coping with holiday traffic is an especially difficult time to stay smoke-free.
Linda, age 54 is struggling with moderate emphysema. She loves all her luncheons and parties, but the cigarettes have been as much a part of her socializing as her Christmas cookies, and she yearns to “treat” herself to a few. Now she knows cigarettes do not treat her health.
Ellen, at 32 is battling early stage lung cancer. She wants her holiday dinner and home hospitality to be perfect for the Mother’s annual visit. Between her three children and her job, she is dealing with a maximum amount of tension. Cigarettes used to be her safety valve for the extra holiday stress.
For Mike, Linda and Ellen and all our lung patients, we know the holidays present an array of holiday smoking temptations. Experts have given us many tips to help smokers understand, “There’s no “holiday magic” to make tobacco urges disappear.”
Light Up Some Hot Tips for Staying Smoke-Free!
There are, we have found some tried-and-true tips have been designed to get your lungs through holiday joy and stress, smoke-free.
1. Hot Tip # 1– Like The Grinch, Your Urges Will Visit Your Holiday: Knowledge is power. If you know the holidays will bring cravings, you can make a plan to deal with them. You can deal with urges if you know they are going to be present.
You might not have smoked in 3 months and suddenly, in the busy excitement of a holiday party, the craving hits you hard. Did you know that the crisis of craving only lasts 3-5 minutes? Use Our Four D Kit, listed below:
The FLASS 4-Step Anti-Smoking Urge Kit: “Remember the Four D’s to get through an urge:”
A. D for Delay!
B. D for Deep breathe!
C. D for Drink water! (No calories and good for you!)
D. Do something else! (Take a walk. Play with a child. Work on a hobby.) Notice we are not encouraging you to eat potato-chips or chocolate cake whenever you crave a cigarette. Don’t swap one health risk for another one.
Hot Tip #2 — Challenge The Smoking Routine! If you can not enjoy certain traditions without the smoking, then change the tradition! For example, “If you tend to smoke while having a cocktail at a holiday party, think about sticking to nonalcoholic drinks this year. Or see if the party could take place at a smoke-free venue.”
Hot Tip #3–Do Not Go Solo! Most people understand how difficult it is to quit smoking.FLASS think your friends and family will give you a boost of support if you let them in on your quest to go smoke-free.
Mike’s brother referred him to an online resource, the “Quitter’s Circle, an online social community and mobile app for people who want to quit smoking…”
There you will find more data, amazing articles, plus a place where a circle of friends can post encouragement.
Ellen has joined Freedom From Smoking®, the flag-ship of all modern tobacco cessation programs. Although Ellen is participating in a group clinic setting, you can also join an online program.
We hope the three hot tips above are helpful to you and your loved ones who are trying to avoid cigarette smoking. Every day we see the ravages smoking can wreck on lung tissue, and we support anyone who is making an effort to avoid smoking this holiday.
At FLASS We know it is not easy to quit, but remember in this case, only the quitters are winners!
