Self Help

Your Quit Day is one of the most important days of your life, you’ve gotten ready to quit. You’ve thought about it. You understand your smoking habit and you know why you want to quit. You’ve learned many things to help you make it over the next few weeks without smoking. You can do it! You’re well prepared and ready to be smoke- free for life! You’ll be the nonsmoker you want to be.

Don’t be so nervous the day before the big event. However, quitting is a big step, a major change in your life. It’s natural to be worried and nervous. Try to think of yourself as being more geared up and excited than worried and nervous. Get a pen and paper and write down your top 5-10 reasons why your about to quit smoking. Think about why you want to do this. Make sure you are clear on your reasons for quitting.

To make you feel more confident, review your plans now and you’ll realize you really have arranged to make this a success. Ask yourself: How have you done in eliminating the cigarettes associated with your strongest urges? If you’ve done well, your quitting will be a lot easier because those killer cigarettes won’t be half as big an issue as you had feared.

What Creative Alternatives do you have lined up to take the place of cigarettes? What are your Do Power strategies for fighting temptations after you quit? What plans do you have for getting cooperation and encouragement from your friends and family?

Reviewing these questions and answers should make you confident you are prepared. You probably won’t feel giddy or cocky. You still are going to give up something that you’ll really miss and it will be hard. But you should feel determined and well-prepared. This is a good time to remember a key point: Quitting smoking is important and difficult!

You are taking on a big one. So be nice to yourself. Cut yourself some slack. If you can become smoke-free in the next few weeks, you don’t need to do anything else to prove you’re a hero.

1. Plan an easy day for your Quit Date. You may want it to be a busy one, so you have lots of distraction. Or you may want it to be a relaxing one. Regardless, try to make it a day with the fewest demands possible.
2. Remind your family and friends that you’re counting on their cooperation and encouragement in the next week or two. You might want to ask someone you think is really understanding to spend some time hearing you out about your feelings.
3. Don’t forget about rewarding yourself. If you haven’t planned some reward for the first day or two, you should consider it. Rewards aren’t the reason you quit, but they can help show yourself that what you’re doing is important and that it’s worth a little enjoyment.