Stop Smoking Kickoff Held This Week

November’s Lung Cancer Awareness Month Activities culminated the third Thursday of the month with the American Cancer Society’s Great American Smokeout. But if you missed this strategic opportunity to start kicking the habit, the staff and volunteers of the region’s ACS office in Wilton want you to know they are there 365 days a year with support and information to help smokers accomplish this potentially life saving and health enhancing goal.

This year, the American Cancer Society and community collaborators in Fairfield and Litchfield Counties focused on getting a strong antismoking message out to young people from elementary school through high school and even onto college campus including Western Connecticut State University in Danbury. Local ACS representatives worked hard developing a variety of health awareness activities surrounding November’s designation of Lung Cancer Awareness Month.

As smoking remains the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, the society focuses on the third Thursday of each November as a day for smokers nationwide to unite in support of one another in giving up the deadly habit.

According to Michelle Wolf, area director of cancer control at the American Cancer Society, 45.4 million Americans are addicted to tobacco; roughly one in four adults and one in five teenagers in the United States are smokers.

In Stamford, a Great American Smokeout Poster Contest encouraged kids in kindergarten through fifth grade to illustrate, “Smoking Stinks Because ___.”

The contest culminated with a mayor’s press conference and distribution of youth awards on November 17 at the government center. Middle and high school students in Greenwich were invited to a smoking prevention program hosted by Teen Smoke Stoppers and organized by the local Cancer Awareness Club.

Children at Roton Middle School in Norwalk participated in a poster contest where winners were to be revealed at city hall, while Norwalk Community College held Great American Smokeout activities at both its East and West campuses.

In Danbury, guest speakers in collaboration with Danbury Hospital visited local schools to talk about smoking and lung cancer, provided literature, and distributed Great American Smokeout tattoos to the children.

Colleges Against Cancer, a newly established student club at WestConn, recruited students for a college-level awareness program also held on November 17 at the downtown Danbury campus.

Torrington Schools distributed nearly 3,000 pamphlets entitled, The Decision is Yours, enclosed with report cards to every middle and high school student in the district this month. The City of Torrington and Torrington schools made smoking cessation a priority for adults as well, including Great American Smokeout information attached to the paychecks of each city employee and all school system employees.

For more information about Danbury outreach and Colleges Against Cancer, WestConn students or parents of students may contact Maureen Gianni at 203-563-1531.

The local offices of the American Cancer Society are also staffing smoking Quitlines, telephone based services that provide information along with one-on-one counseling that has proved to be a most successful tool for those quitting smoking — nearly doubling the chances that a smoker using the service will quit successfully.

For more information contact the American Cancer Society at 866-END-HABIT (866-363-4224), Monday through Thursday, 9:30 am to 7 pm; Friday, 9:30 am to 5 pm; or Saturday, 9 am to noon.

 

How to Stop Smoking

The first step is to make a decision that you want to quit. Also, be sure you know why you are quitting. Is it to improve your health? Save money? Improve your love life? Get a clear picture in your mind of the reason why you want to quit, so you have a clear end goal.

Once you have decided on your method for quitting, and actually quit, you will be tempted to smoke again. You can make staying quit easier if you follow some simple guidelines:

Stay away from other smokers. This may be difficult if you have made some great friends on your smoking breaks. But being around other smokers will tear down your resolve, at least in the beginning of your quit. Stay out of bars and other places where smoking is common.

Discard all your cigarettes, lighters, and ashtrays. Do not leave anything in your environment that might remind you or tempt you to smoke.

Stay out of convenience stores or other places where you commonly purchase cigarettes.

When you have a bad craving for a cigarette take a deep breath, drink some water, go for a short walk, or do something else to distract yourself. Cravings will subside in just a minute or two, whether or not you smoke.

Exercise. The benefits to smokers are tremendous. You will improve your health, and find that quitting is much easier when you are exercising. Exercising can easily relieve stress that you tried to relieve by smoking. Smoking and exercise are not compatible. Let exercise replace smoking in your life.

Plan rewards for yourself. Quitting smoking is a big deal and anyone who does it deserves a big reward. Of course, quitting itself is the biggest reward, but you should also make a list of rewards that you will give yourself when you pass certain milestones. For example, after one week of being smoke-free, you might buy yourself a new CD or movie. After one month, go out to a nice dinner. After six months or a year, take a reward vacation.

Write down the rewards. Put them on your calendar and give yourself a goal to work toward. With all the money you will save by not smoking, you will be able to afford to reward yourself!