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Stop Smoking
January 17, 2008 |
Juan Rodriguez knows how difficult it can be to quit smoking. He’s tried kicking
the habit several times before. But Juan says an important realization has helped
him begin to overcome his addiction. “It was not a game anymore. I wasn’t 17 anymore.
I realized I need to stop for myself, for my body, for my health.” Physicians and
specialists agree that you need to make the commitment to stop smoking for your own personal reasons. Theresa Menocal is an outreach education coordinator for Lee
Cancer Care. She says people who are trying to quit smoking should, “make sure that
they’re making the decision for themselves. Not being influenced by family or friends
or coworkers but that it’s their own decision to quit.” Theresa says different people
have different reasons to kick the habit. “For some people it’s health. For other
people they are worried about their family. They are worried about how their family
sees them. They were tired of being dependent and they wanted to quit for that reason.”
And just like there are many different reasons to quit smoking, there are many treatments
out there to help you kick the habit. “Once they’re ready to quit they should explore
all of their options. Some people can quit cold turkey and that’s perfectly fine
but some people need aids. So maybe they need to talk with their healthcare providers
and figure out do they need to take the patch or Chantix or some other type of medication
to help them stop smoking,” Theresa says.
It’s also better to be gentle with yourself
during the process. The majority of smokers try to quit at least seven times before
they are successful. For more information on medications or support groups that
can help you stop smoking, you can log onto, www.leememorial.org. |
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