Stop Smoking With EASE

There is strong evidence that suggests that people who smoke cigarettes on a regular basis for a long period of time are at an extremely high risk of developing larynx and lung cancer. Researchers are still trying to figure out exactly how it is that smoking causes these types of cancer, as it is not yet understood clearly.

Normal cells that experience damage are able to repair themselves on their own. Sometimes cells are completely removed and then are replaced by the body’s lymph system. This process can start to go wrong, however.

Sometimes new cells begin to grow into odd, unnatural shapes and as a result do not carry out their normal tasks properly. When this unnatural growth becomes a big enough problem that the body cannot handle it, it has officially become cancer.

Many of the substances that are found in cigarette smoke have been proven to be carcinogenic.

When the paper in a cigarette burns, it releases tar. Each cigarette tends to contain between 10 and 14 milligrams of tar. This tar collects in the tiny air filled sacs of the lungs, called alveoli, where oxygen is usually transferred into the blood. The presence of tar in the alveoli irritates the cells and eventually leads to their unnatural growth.

Nitrosamines are another compound and are also present in cigarettes. Hundreds of different studies administered with small mammals have proven that these compounds are also carcinogenic. Nitrosamines such as NNK, NNN, and NAT are all present in cigarette smoke in extremely small amounts, about 56.53 nanograms.

One nanogram is equal to one billionth of one gram. Even though that seems like an extremely insignificant amount of something, even these small amounts can cause problems. Like dogs noses that can detect scents from just a few molecules, some parts of the human body are extremely sensitive. Remember too that these small amounts add up over time and eventually can become serious.

Medical research has found no relation between smoking one or two cigarettes on a daily basis and the development of cancer. It is also true that very few smokers smoke so few cigarettes every day. The truth is that a twenty year smoker who takes in a pack of cigarettes every day has a two to four times higher risk of developing larynx or lung cancer than someone who does not smoke.

By Nathalie Fiset

It is a given fact that smoking brings more harm than good to people. If you’ve finally resolved to stop smoking, good for you! You’ve made the right choice. Use the following tips and suggestions to help you stick true to your word and avoid a relapse.

Know the Ugly Truth about Smoking

Concerned family members and friends have always told you about the bad things that could happen to smokers but you’ve always turned a deaf ear to their words, haven’t you? TV ads and shows also tried giving you the same information but didn’t you turn a blind eye to them? Ignorance is bliss but if you want to quit smoking for good, it’s time to take your head out of the sand. Confront the ugly truth about smoking. Read and watch everything you can about the deadly consequences of smoking - it’s terrifying, but it will also remind you about the rightness of your decision.

Let the Right People Know about Your Resolution

Your most trusted loved ones should definitely know about your resolution. They can help you stick to your word by keeping an eagle eye of your cigarettes. They’ll warn you beforehand and remind you about your promise. They’ll give you praise and encouragement when you need it. A hug may not be scientifically proven to be as potent as any medicine but we can’t deny how good it feels to be hugged when we’re in need of help. You’ll definitely need lots of it when you’re working on eliminating nicotine from your system!

Get Professional Help

Why make it harder for you than you should? Professional help and treatment is available in every corner of the world. Take it! You might not think you don’t need anyone’s help except yours, but you do. Believe it or not but smoking is also a medical problem. Your mind and body has an unreasonable dependency on nicotine and that’s what you’re fighting against. These medical professionals have studied for years to develop the right program that will help smokers get rid of their unwanted habit. You now have the opportunity to work with them. It’s definitely your loss if you refuse their help.

Use Water as a Weapon

Water is incredibly important in any quit-smoking journey. Water detoxifies your body and cravings for nicotine are swept along by the current of harmful substances being flushed out of your body. Drinking lots of water will also help you feel better about yourself and that always count in the battle against nicotine dependency.

Keep a Journal

There will be times that you’ll feel like no one in the world understands what you’re going through, not even your fellow smokers who are also struggling to eliminate smoking from their lives. These are dangerous times and if you waver during these moments, you might end up lighting a stick and doing the worst thing you could do. During these times, a journal might just be the lifeline you need. A journal won’t talk back, will always listen readily and patiently, and allow your feelings to settle down by itself until the moment of crisis has passed.

A journal is also important because it allows you to look back and see how far you’ve grown. Your progress is the best source of comfort and inspiration: it’s proof that you’ve come a long way and if you keep up the good work then quitting smoking might just no longer be a dream but a very possible reality.

Rejoice on How Much You’re Saving

Consider this. How much does a pack of cigarettes cost? How many packs can you consume in a week? Multiply that figure with the number of weeks in a year. That’s how much you spend in one year for smoking alone - a habit that erodes the health of your lungs and later on, damages other parts of your body as well. If you quit smoking, you immediately save the same amount and yes, you definitely deserve to spend some or even all of it to reward yourself.

The resolution to quit smoking is never easy for anyone. It can wreak huge changes on your life or your very own personality. Regardless of this, know that your decision is the right one and if you work hard, you’ll soon have the opportunity to enjoy unimagined rewards because of it.

For more information on hypnosis and better health please visit:

http://www.hypnoharmonie.com/
http://naturalperfectharmony.com/
http://www.a-1hypnosis.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nathalie_Fiset
http://EzineArticles.com/?Stop-Smoking-Resolution&id=1038115

Smokers who want to quit can use products that make the process easier. If you want to be one of the only 6% of smokers who succeed at quitting on their first attempt, using one of these products can help.

Nicotine patches are among the most popular products that make quitting easier. These patches release nicotine in steady, low amounts. The patch releases the nicotine into the skin which later enters the bloodstream.

Like any stop smoking aid, it has its pros and cons.

It can be attached discretely, on the upper arm, on the chest or anywhere else between the neck and waist. A patch has to be replaced about once every 24 hours, though some brands tout a longer period. It can cause skin irritation, but moving the location so the same spot isn’t used more than once every two weeks can minimize the chances.

Nicotine gum is another common method that, like patches, is available without a prescription. But it does require chewing in a careful manner. It should be massaged with the teeth in one spot until a peppery taste is sensed. Then it’s held between the cheek and gum until the taste or tingle disappears. The cycle is repeated every half hour until the gum is used up.

Nicotine lozenges are another common product that functions in a very similar manner. An advantage with this product is that you can control how much nicotine you take in and the results are fast. You can use up to twenty-four of the 2-4 milligram tablets each day. You must use the same procedure as with the nicotine gum. Remember that using these frequently can tire out the jaw muscles. Especially if swallowed accidentally, these lozenges can induce nausea.

Other individuals whose desire it is to quit smoking opt to use a nicotine inhaler. This method lets you decide how much nicotine you want to take it and gives you a feeling similar to that of smoking when you inhale. It also involves the use of your hand like cigarette smoking does. People with COPD or asthma should not use a nicotine inhaler. You should also use caution because it is easy to overdose with this product.

Nasal sprays have similar advantages and drawbacks. They supply nicotine very fast to the bloodstream, but they can cause irritation to the sinus and nasal passages.

Instead of breaking your addiction to nicotine, these products supply the body with it. Although these products may help you to quit, there are nicotine-free methods.

By Nathalie Fiset

Making a resolution to stop smoking can be difficult to do if you have been dependent on smoking for the longest time. In fact, you might have tried to quit many times before, or you might not have gotten past merely making your resolution in the last few years that you have tried. If you are trying one more time to do well on your resolution to stop smoking this New Year, then you might need to ask yourself where you went wrong in the years before in order for you to finally meet your goals this year.

First, ask yourself: were you specific enough about how you wanted to quit? You might have simply said that you wanted to quit smoking, but how? Did you specify a timetable on how fast you could quit smoking and what kind of smoking habits you wanted to let go of? Did you stop smoking cigarettes but went on smoking pipes? Were you still keeping some parts of the habit because you wanted to still feel at home with it and not let it go? You need to be specific about your quitting goals, and simply because this can help you meet your goals better.

Second, ask yourself: why would you want to quit at all? Some people want to simply challenge themselves and see how far they can go without a smoke. Other people do it for their husbands or wives, who have stopped kissing them or have stopped becoming intimate with them because of the foul smoker’s breath. Other people do it for their health, on their respective doctor’s orders, because their lungs, hearts, kidneys, livers, or other organs are failing. Establish a purpose for quitting, and you will be able to find the motivation to quit altogether. By making your quitting purpose-driven, you might be able to stay off smoking as well.

Third, did you enlist the help of people, or did you try to go it on your own? A support group is always helpful, but some people do not recognize its importance. Some people think that they can do everything on their own, when in fact, support groups are actually built to encourage people to stop smoking; peopled by the right individuals, a support group can actually help you quit smoking and can help you think outside the box and look at your problem from different perspectives. This time around, you may want to consider a support group.

Fourth, were you expecting too much of yourself, and were you letting your disappointment get the better of you? Some people will often revert to their old smoking habits when they find themselves disappointed in their lack of progress. They can take a smoke to get rid of the stress of quitting, cheat on their programs because they feel that they can no longer go on with their quitting regimens, or can simply feel overwhelmed.

Fifth, were you rewarding yourself, or did you keep on making sacrifices? A healthy reward would be a trip to the county fair, a day at the mall, or a night out at the movies. Were you rewarding yourself for your efforts, or were you plodding away and feeling sorry for yourself the first time that you tried to quit smoking? Or were you rewarding your efforts by smoking a stick? Be prudent with your rewards, and have some good sense!

Sixth, did you seek medical advice on the quitting regimen? You may have underlying medical conditions that might be affected or worsened by you going cold turkey and quitting too fast. You might need some medication to help you out, and only a doctor can tell you what this medication is. You might have also self-medicated, which can make your situation much worse. If you are trying to quit the second time around, or even the umpteenth time around, make a list of all the medications that you took and check with your doctor.

These are only a few questions that you might want to ask yourself as you go about trying to quit. For more information, talk to a health specialist, or to your physician. Always consult on the best possible way for you to finally quit without damaging your health - or your sanity. When you finally liberate yourself from the addiction and your bad habits, you can finally live easier and breathe freer.

For more information on hypnosis and better health please visit:

http://www.hypnoharmonie.com/
http://naturalperfectharmony.com/
http://www.a-1hypnosis.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nathalie_Fiset
http://EzineArticles.com/?A-Resolution-to-Stop-Smoking-This-New-Year?&id=1038111

By Nathalie Fiset

If you are a long-time smoker and you are hoping to quit smoking this New Year, you have adopted a rather difficult resolution. First of all, you are ridding yourself not only of a habit, but an addiction. You need to recognize smoking as an addiction not only to nicotine, but to the act and comfort of smoking itself. Second of all, you need some degree of medical assistance, depending on how long you have been smoking and what you have been smoking. For some people, the withdrawal from nicotine can be extremely painful, so that they have to check into a facility to avoid returning to their bad habits.

In order for you to stop smoking, there are many things that you have to do. First, you have to recognize that it is not only your problem: your cigarette smoke and your smoking habits affect a lot of people around you, and second-hand smoke does kill. You need to recognize, however, that it is only you who has the power to quit smoking: you cannot rely on anyone to force the decision upon you, and you cannot rely on other people to keep you motivated. This is your health, and you have to take control of it and be in charge. You cannot surrender to the lure of the cigarette and you must not let nicotine enslave you.

Second, you need to determine what it is that you need to quit. As mentioned earlier, you are quitting smoking, but you have to recognize that it is not only a habit that you are letting go of, but a debilitating addiction. Moreover, what kind of smoking are you quitting? Is it just cigarette smoking, or have you also smoked pot, pipes, and other addictive things? By recognizing the exact problem and giving it a definite name, you are giving yourself an easier time solving it.

Third, determine when you are going to quit smoking. Will you go cold turkey and quit smoking immediately? By going cold turkey, you can force yourself into sweats and convulsions if you have been entirely dependent on smoking for the longest time; if you have not been on cigarettes for a long time, then maybe going cold turkey will work for you. On the other hand, if you want to withdraw slowly from smoking, what is your timetable? Will you go from a pack a day to a pack a week, then a pack a month? How fast will your pace be? By outlining your quitting goals, you make it easier for yourself to plan how you will quit, as well as see how far you’ve come since you’ve started trying to quit.

You might also want to limit your smoking: will you go from being a chain smoker to being a social smoker? Or will you smoke only outside your house, then work your way free of smoking eventually? Places have a certain pressure exerted on people who smoke: for instance, cold areas, bars, restaurants, and the presence of other smokers can make potential quitters relent and take up the habit once again. When planning your quitting regimen out, you also need to take note of how often you will smoke, and how much less you want to smoke and where in a certain amount of time.

Are you going to do all this on your own, or will you be going into a rehabilitation program? Although you alone know your body’s capabilities, and you alone are aware of your smoking habits, and what weaknesses would compel you to smoke again, you may need the help of outside forces to keep you clean. For instance, you could enlist the help of concerned friends and family to help you get through your painful withdrawal. You could enroll in a rehabilitation program and consult regularly with your physician. You do not have to do all this alone, and it would pay if you had a good circle of support around you.

These are only a few tips that you might want to follow as you start learning how to quit. Take note of these tips as you start formulating your New Year’s resolution on quitting smoking, and make sure that you recognize your problems and stare them fully in the face. By acknowledging that you have a problem, you have already taken the first step in successfully keeping your New Year’s resolution.

For more information on hypnosis and better health please visit:

http://www.hypnoharmonie.com/
http://naturalperfectharmony.com/
http://www.a-1hypnosis.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nathalie_Fiset
http://EzineArticles.com/?New-Year-Resolution—Stop-Smoking&id=1038109

Heart disease is very serious and over and over we hear how smoking can cause it. But how? How can smoking lead to heart disease? In fact, what exactly is heart disease?

Heart disease is when one of your major arteries that lead from your heart and carry needed oxygen to the blood becomes partially blocked. If the blockage worsens it can lead to a heart attack or a coronary meaning your coronary artery is blocked and the flow in that artery stops. That is why another term for heart disease is coronary artery disease.

Smoking makes a person’s chances of having coronary artery disease or heart disease much greater for a variety of reasons.

Smoking slows the flow of oxygen into the heart which increases your chances of heart disease. The carbon monoxide in cigarette smoke attaches itself to the hemoglobin of the red blood cells. These are the cells that help carry oxygen to the heart.

Nicotine also reduces the amount of oxygen in the blood, while contributing to other conditions that are potentially harmful. It increases blood clotting, which can have a direct effect on the risk of heart attack, as we saw above.

Nicotine also contributes to the clogging of your arteries. Nicotine promotes the formation of fatty deposits on the walls of your arteries. Over time the arteries begin to clog and blood can not flow freely.

Arthrosclerosis is a condition where good cholesterol called HDL (high density lipoprotein) is decreased in the blood which allows for fat deposits to form on the arteries. Smoking greatly encourages and feeds this condition.

There is a reason that heart disease and stroke are often mentioned together when discussing the harmful effects of smoking. With the clogging of arteries brought on by smoking there is an increase in blood pressure as the blood struggles to pass through the constricted arteries. Because of the increased stress on these arteries and the heart, any weak area will most likely rupture. That means that oxygen will not flow to the brain and that leads to a stroke.

Hardening an artery makes it less able to withstand the normal stresses and strains of its function, as well. Remember, a blood vessel is both similar to a hose and different in important ways.

Blood will not flow properly through arteries if there are holes in your arteries. Also, if your blood does not continue to flow freely through your arteries the results are always damaging but can be deadly. Every living tissue in your body is depending on the blood it needs survive and that blood is delivered through the arteries of your heart.

By Nathalie Fiset

If you make the resolution to finally quit smoking this year, congratulations: acknowledging that you have a problem that needs to be solved already means that you have won half the battle. Now, your next challenge is to actually keep that resolution and make sure that you follow through on it. If you are doubtful about your ability to finally stop smoking, take heart! Here are a few tips that you might want to follow as you try to get rid of your habit, which, by the way, is also a debilitating addiction. By quitting smoking, you can make yourself a better person, and perhaps even make everyone else around you breathe a little easier.

Be specific about your quitting goals. Why do you want to quit smoking? Is it for the benefit of your children, or your spouse, or your immediate family? What kind of smoking do you want to quit: smoking a pipe, cigarettes, or illegal drugs? Are you going to take the entire year to get yourself dependent on only a pack a month, or are you going to quit smoking altogether? By being specific about your quitting goals, you are providing yourself a timeline on which to work out your quitting regimen: you have a sense of what you need to do, why you need to do it, how far you have to go, and when you look back on everything, how far you have come from being a smoker to being better.

With this line of thought, you may need to keep a journal. It might sound cheesy, but a journal will help you keep track of your quitting goals and actually encourage you to keep on going with your quitting regimen. You can also turn your journal into a gratitude journal: find five things every day that you are thankful for, and list them down. Give yourself a chance to see the world from a different angle and use your quitting experience to help you look at things from another perspective.

Consult with a doctor or an expert in quitting. Most people make the mistake of doing things on their own and thinking that their bodies are ready for quitting. Your body may undergo extreme withdrawal: it will initiate a physiological response that can range from anything to a pain in your side, to your entire body convulsing as it hungers for tobacco. You will need a doctor to tell you about any underlying medical conditions that might make it difficult for you to quit, or that might require you to go to a rehabilitation center.

Don’t be afraid to take baby steps. You might want to quit immediately and be smoke-free within the next week or so - and you might be tempted to go cold turkey and quit altogether, regardless of the risk. You might be desperate, but try not to be senseless! If your doctor tells you to take baby steps, follow your doctor, and take the baby steps as a chance to reward yourself along the way. If you find yourself living on only a stick a day, or a pack a week, go and treat yourself to the movies. If you find yourself living on only a stick a week, or a pack a month, go and treat yourself to a good buffet restaurant, or to a five-star meal. If you find yourself living on only a stick a month, or a pack a year, go to that ski resort and pamper yourself at a good spa.

Join a support group. There’s nothing like encouragement from like-minded individuals to get you going. By meeting up regularly with people who want to quit, or with people who have already quit smoking, you can find yourself more motivated to keep on going. Hopefully, you won’t find yourself stuck in a support group where people still sneak smokes to each other.

Find your own ways to de-stress! You might be thinking of that oh-so-tempting pack of cigarettes, and that stick - and you might be tempted to regress to your old habits. Don’t let your desperation get the better of you. Instead, engage in a fun activity that will keep your mind not only off smoking, but off the painful process of quitting. Take up an old hobby or get a new one going. Sew, crochet, or knit, or learn how to make a quilt, rug, or different kinds of jewelry. Not only will you enjoy your new hobby, you can sell your things if you make them really well and earn money off your quitting regimen!

Keep trying and keep that resolution well until the end of your years. It may be difficult to finally quit, but you will eventually get around to it - just believe in yourself and know what you want.

For more information on hypnosis and better health please visit:

http://www.hypnoharmonie.com/
http://naturalperfectharmony.com/
http://www.a-1hypnosis.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nathalie_Fiset
http://EzineArticles.com/?Keeping-Your-Stop-Smoking-Resolution-This-Year&id=1038107

YORK, PA, November 13, 2008 - The new Activities Therapist at Clarity way now gives clients a whole new way to explore their recovery. These personalized treatment sessions with take place twice a week.

Helping clients learn how to spend their free time after treatment is essential to preventing a relapse. The Activities Therapist will help clients discover new ways of enjoying their free time. This will prevent them from diverting back to using substances and/or alcohol. This new benefit allows for a much more comprehensive treatment by finding new activities for the client to enjoy in their daily life.

“This addition to our staff is the first of many, as we’re constantly looking for ways to strengthen our treatment programs,” Facility Director, Robin Daniels. “With the addition of these new treatment modalities, we are pioneering the field of addiction treatment and giving clients the tools that they need to succeed in their sobriety.”

Exposing clients to new activities while living a sober lifestyle is essential to preventing a relapse. Activities such as; games, swimming, football, basketball, softball, hiking, biking and kayaking are just some activities the client may participate in with the Activities Therapist.

If you are like most smokers, you have tried to quit smoking by using all of the stop smoking products available. You may even have experienced momentary success, only to find that weeks, months, or years later you picked up the habit again. Fortunately, stop smoking herbs have the safest and most effective quit smoking aids to hit the market.

Nowadays, stop smoking aids continue to flood the market, giving hope to those who have been unsuccessfully trying to quit for years. While many of the products available will help you reduce your cigarette cravings for a period of time, the majority of them are not successful at helping you quit for good. Besides, nicotine gum and nicotine patches just don’t work for every smoker that wants to quit.

Instead of using nicotine, like most other products on the market, stop smoking herbs employ an effective homeopathic formula to remove your desire to smoke. You can break away from the smoking habit immediately using the help of carefully blended herbals which contain natural ingredients that help fight your cravings, and cleanse your system. They imitate the effects of nicotine without putting any of this harmful chemical into your body.

Smokers often find withdrawal to be the hardest thing to deal with when trying to quit. Symptoms such as irritability, insomnia, mental and physical stress, and weight gain can force you to pick up a pack faster than you would normally! Stop smoking herb mimics the effects of nicotine without introducing harmful chemicals into your system, so you can stay relaxed and calm as you quit.

There are so many functions to various types of stop smoking herbs that ward off the smoking habit. For instance, Peppermint which has a relaxing effect on the muscles of the digestive system, combats flatulence, and stimulates the flow of bile and other digestive juices. Garcinia Cambogia which is classified as a citrus and is an excellent appetite suppressant by raises the rate of the metabolism and increasing the rate of burning fat.

Stop smoking herbs offer you an effective, natural alternative to the nicotine-derived products on the market. This method is always safe, and it had proven that 97 percent of users success to stop smoking. They are more effective and safer than any other product on the market.

Writing about this topic, for me at least, is a double edged sword, so please allow me to clearly state my personal opinion on this very controversial matter before I go on:

The moral of the story is that if you think of handling ’slips’, ‘just ones’ or any ‘accidents’ for that matter, you are going to have them. So, don’t plan for slips; you probably won’t allow them. The thought itself is a great morale booster. So, think positive, and cross the bridge when you come to it. On the contrary, planning for moments of weakness demoralizes you quite a bit.

However, it is equally foolish to delude yourself that you cannot go wrong. So, when the slip does happen, chastise yourself until you feel completely guilty. Let the guilt go deep down so that it becomes a loud resisting voice when temptation strikes again. It is for this reason that support groups are recommended. They help you regain strength to overcome such hurdles.

Most importantly, be honest with yourself, especially if you have had more than one ’slip’. Look at the problem straight in the eye; don’t fool yourself that these occasional slips are fine and are just part of the normal quitting process because they aren’t. A slip is a slip and has to be handled as one. Reprimand yourself for a moment’s weakness that leads to hours, if not days, of guilt. Let it sink in deep enough so that it crops up when you feel tempted again.

If you are continually ’slipping’ you are doing yourself more harm than good because the ‘just ones’ are eventually going to turn into what you used to smoke or more. Believe me, it happens every time.

Don’t try to sweep the slips under the carpet. Look them straight in the eye. If you allow them to happen time and again, you will end up smoking more than you used to smoke This is the sad truth, like it or not.

Be strong, stay strong and be Free!

Darren Warmuth