10 Tips to Quit Smoking for ADDer’s
IN this post, I am going to talk about the way I quit smoking. It’s a gnarly habit, one I had since I was around 12 or 13. It took a ton of perseverance, and I admit.. even with the gift of time, I still get a craving! I know you are going to start skimming this post looking for your takeaways any minute so here is my quick guide on how I did it…
1. Set a Date – setting a quit date is a way to give yourself space to prepare for quitting. This would include notifying family members and friends, and giving you time to taper into the quit date. Its also just a great way to have a date that is firm in mind for the end of the habit.
2. The WHY – This is vital. Have a good reason to quit. For me, it was to live longer, have more experiences and not spend my last few years in oncology with lung cancer. Make it a real thing and make sure it has weight enough to carry you through the inevitable cravings
3. Smoking Breaks are Actually You Trying to Transitions - I should write a whole blog on this one. Essentially myself and others I have talked to all agreed – we used the cigarette as a transitionary object. Feeling overwhelmed? Smoking provides a perfect way to escape away from the triggering situation and reset. Think of other situations – waking up, getting off work, break at work, driving – all of these things involve transitions – or shifts in situation or circumstance. Smoking is commonly used by us ADDer’s to TRANSITION between activities. This transition could be as simple a move as going from one work task to another (reading emails and then shifting to projects for the day as an example).
For us, then, its vital to look for two things:
a) New Transition Routines - Going from task to task can require the ADHD brain to shift physically. Smoking can provide that. Looking for new ways to transition would be really helpful for you to keep up with the goal of quitting. Some ideas might be – doing a pushup, walking from one room to another, getting a coffee or drink, giving yourself permission to wander on line for a minute or two, reading something, making notes in a journal, going for a walk – anything that can move you between tasks without causing “what should I do” stress
b) Find New Ways to Deal with and Recognize Overwhelm – As an ADHD impacted individual, the world is constantly noisy, stressful and at times unbearable to be in. To help offset this constant overwhelm, I had to find new ways to handle it without stepping outside to “take a minute”. The suggestions above are applicable here – the overwhelm requires a pattern interrupt to disturb. A physical move is helpful – and so is just the idea of just hitting PAUSE on yourself and your emotions for a moment. Put on some relaxing music, think of a happy time in your life – meditate for a minute on something you have accomplished that felt good. Give yourself permission to wander for 10 minutes (please use a timer). Give your brain a break that is deserves.
4. Have Snacks Ready – Smoking can become more about fidgeting and oral fixation then nicotine. Have nuts and other items that are crunchy or require chewing in your car or at your desk. When you want to smoke, go for a snack of your choice to satisfy the oral and hand fidgets.
5. Use Quitting Aids – Don’t be afraid to use quitting aids like patches and gums. They work. Its not the nicotine that causes all the damage, it’s the cigarette. Honestly, according to what I have read – the nicotine is gone from your system in the first 72 hours. The rest is purely mental. Along with over the counter aids, your doctor can prescribe actual medications that have shown to help take off the edge from not smoking. I am not a doctor and cannot provide insight into these medications – so talk to a qualified medical professional about these options and quitting aids. Most healthcare plans offer free resources for quitting smoking.
6. Get Support – By setting a quit date, you can inform your family and friends (especially anyone you live with) what you are trying to accomplish. Let them know in advance that you might be a bit grumpier then usual. Have at least one person you can share with you are having cravings so they can help you work through them. Having encouraging support is vital. Also, make sure anyone else who smokes in the household knows you are quitting and see if you can enlist their participation. If not, then at least advise them and ask them to smoke away from the house for a bit till you can get stronger. There are FREE coaching resources for quitting and on line Nicotine Anonymous meetings that you can utilize to help you get additional support.
7. Prepare - As your quit date approaches, you will need to be prepared. Ensure you have everything you need to get through the first week at least. The less you have to think about something on this list, the better! Have all your snacks, transitionary practices, support and quitting aids ready.
8. Diet/Exercise/Hydration – It makes sense that most who quit also take up an entire lifestyle change. In my experience – this was actually pretty helpful…to an extent. Keeping things simple is critical. Trying to adopt a new slew of habits all at once can also be self – sabotaging. Lets say you also are going to quit sugar at the same time and you “slip” and have a cookie. Well, knowing my brain – that slip would be confirmation of the internal thought that I am “no good” and at that point – I might as well smoke as I am such a failure. See how that pattern could work? …so….
Do – Make sure you have plenty of water on hand at all times
Do – Cut down your caffeine intake as for me – coffee and cigarettes went together like peanut butter and jelly
Do – Exercise – since you are adopting a new way of life, exercise can be an EXCELLENT transitionary activity. I am talking about not just 30 minutes at the gym, I am also talking about taking 10 minutes to walk around the block, quick bursts of physical activity or a 5 minute yoga break. Anything to push past cravings, facilitate transitions, give you greater purpose and shift your ADHD mind.
Do – Also try and reduce any alcohol or recreational marijuana usage. This for me also went well with smoking – so reducing these also helped with triggers and habits
Do – Try and eat cleaner, greasy foods and fast food tends to trigger smoking (at least for me) so finding healthier choices will not only support your body as it detoxes, but also help reduce cravings
9. Be Ok With Weight Gain – Smoking impacts your metabolism which is why when people quit they gain weight. Its not from snacking it’s a natural occurrence from quitting. In fact, I always found it interesting that I smoked for “relief” but in reality, physiologically smoking actually does the opposite to the bottom. Heart rate and blood pressure increases and your body is in a minor stress response as a result. So be OK with gaining some weight. This can be offset somewhat via diet and exercise, but its natural and part of the process of your body’s detox. After about 90 days, your body will re-regulate and with some lifestyle adjustments you can be get back to your goal weight. An extra 5 or 6 pounds is WAY better and easier to deal with then the long term health impacts of smoking
10. Smoking is About Routines – The most powerful weapon I had quitting was using the lead up time to my quit date to investigate and test new routines. Since smoking is such an ingrained, subconscious habit for some – introducing pattern interrupts will greatly help you succeed. For instance, drive a new route to or from work if you smoked in the car. Did you usually smoke after specific activities (eating, sex, working out, visiting family or friends) then find new transitionary routines. Try things on, not everything you attempt will work, don’t be discouraged. Quitting smoking is all about finding new ways to do things so the ADHD brain feels the event has been made new and shiny, opposed to boredom and the habit of addiction.
I really hope this helped you. If you want support, reach out to me. I am here to help you achieve your personal and lifestyle goals. I am not a medical professional so please consult your doctor about quit smoking aids (over the counter and prescription)