Matt Colaluca, PA-C Belgrade Regional Health Center

Quitter A La Mode

1. Whip up some Knowledge. Learn what exactly smoking does to your body. Find out health consequences such as increased risk of lung cancer. Discover how addiction works. As a quitter, you are working against your brain! That is not easy at all, so medication can be a huge help in overcoming that challenge. When you are ready to quit, you can talk to your doctor about aids that might make smoking cessation easier. And do not be afraid to try a number of different medications until you find one that works best for you!
2. Mix with some Planning. Any quitting effort involves a plan. In addition to finding helpful resources, it is important to take the time and learn what your triggers are, and have plans to address them. That way, once you pick your quit date, you already have some strategies, which you can then refine as you go along.
3. Add Support to above mixture. In addition to letting friends and family members know what you are doing, you can contact different agencies for advice, support and help. Quitting does not need to be done alone. Here are some free resources: 
   • The Maine Tobacco Helpline (1-800-207-1230) provides free, confidential support for quitters and smokers considering quitting.
     
     
   • http://www.becomeanex.org/ is an online support site for quitters. Users can create a login to track their progress.
4. Finally, stir in Perseverance. Quitting smoking is hard. It often takes people 8-11 attempts to quit for good. Therefore, treat a quit as a learning experience. If you fall off of the wagon, you can learn from that attempt and try something different on your next quit. 

After all ingredients are well mixed, continue adding a little bit of each as needed to remain a successful quitter!

http://www.becomeanex.org/
http://www.tobaccofreemaine.org/quit_tobacco/how_to_quit.php
https://www.thenatc.org/Default.aspx

Belgrade Regional Health Center is a practice of HealthReach Community Health Centers, a system of eleven federally qualified health centers in Central and Western Maine. Dedicated providers deliver first-class health care to citizens in over 80 rural communities. To ensure access for everyone, HealthReach accepts major insurances as well as Medicare and MaineCare. In addition, uninsured and underinsured patients have access to an Affordable Care Program and assistance with applications for other programs that help with health care and medication costs. A private, non-profit organization celebrating 35 years of providing health care, HealthReach is funded by patient fees, grants and individual donations.