Peter Cross - Stop Smoking: 52 Brilliant Ideas for Kicking the Habit for Good

CAREFUL NOW
We hope that you enjoy this book and it gives you lots of ideas and food for thought. We would like to stress that the suggestions we offer ought to be seen as a complement to rather than a replacement for the help and support that you get from your general practitioner. Why not take a copy of this book along to the surgery next time you go, and discuss the ideas with your doctor. We hope you find a way to beat the habit, but we cant be there to stub out the cigarettes every time you experience a moment of weaknessultimately whether you stop smoking for good is up to you. Good luck!

Copyright The Infinite Ideas Company Limited, 2005

The rights of Peter Cross and Clive Hopwood to be identified as the authors of this book have been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and
Patents Act 1988.

First published in 2005 by
The Infinite Ideas Company Limited
36 St Giles
Oxford
OX1 3LD
United Kingdom
www.infideas.com

All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of small passages for the purposes of criticism or review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except under the terms of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP, UK, without the permission in writing of the publisher. Requests to the publisher should be addressed to the Permissions Department, Infinite Ideas Limited, 36 St Giles, Oxford OX1 3LD, UK, or faxed to +44 (0)1865 514777.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 1-904902-44-8

Brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

Designed and typeset by Baseline Arts Ltd, Oxford
Printed by TJ International, Cornwall

Brilliant ideas

Please feel free to smoke while you read this book.

Belonging to a tribe is an important human desire. Other smokers are just the same as us and revel in their status as social pariahs.

What kind of smoker are you? Having some idea of the scale of your problem will help you form a plan of action to beat it. Answer this simple questionnaire to create a profile of you as a smoker.

Its history lesson time. Cue good-looking intellectual waltzing around in front of televisual landscapes (use your imagination). Lets track back through the mists (hazy smoke?) of time and find out how it all started.

Other smokers have given up before you and experts have plotted the phases most of them go through.

Create a picture in your minds eye that puts you off smoking.

One advantage of smoking tobacco is that you are putting something in your mouth that wont be translated into a higher reading next time you step on the scales.

Peer pressure when were young can lead to a (short) life sentence of smoking. What makes us kids think that smoking makes us look older, more good-looking and more likely to get inside somebodys pants?

The ill effects of smoking take a while to become apparent. They sneak up on us. By the time we notice, the habit has given us cunning ways of ignoring them or making excuses. Hasnt it?

A cigarette contains over 400 toxic chemicals. Line up for your deadly dose of poisons and see just what goes inside your body every time you light up.

Growing older is part of life. Smoking gets you there quicker than if you dont.

Someone out there is getting very richat your expenseselling a deadly drug. Take a look at whats in it for the giant multinationals and the governments.

Knowing how tobacco is marketed and sold might not help you give up, but at least you know where those barons are coming from.

Cigarettes are money. Your money. Up in smoke. Taxes, life insurance, you the smoker pay through the nose for your habit. Become ill and the costs spiral. Look closely at the hidden costs of smoking.

You really want to quit, tomorrow. But then theres that little voice in your head reminding you that tomorrow never comes.

Discovering ploys that help you distract yourself from cravings can prevent a relapse.

Fancy doubling your chances of becoming an ex-smoker? Theres scientific proof that nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) does just that.

A short, sharp shock or a phased withdrawal? A case can be made either way.

Discover a drug that effectively curbs cravings and reduces withdrawals.

This is the time the addict in you is going to start getting worried. And the time hell start pulling out his dirtiest tricks. A handy guide to all the subtle games the addict will play on you to get you to give up giving up. Dont be fooled!

Medical science can do miracles these days. So that means I can carry on abusing my body and by the time I need it theyll have come up with some cunning cure. So, can we measure you for your wheelchair now, sir?

The thought of cold turkey ruffles you. Nicotine patches dont cover it. And gum just wont stick. Why not look at some of the alternative methods that may be all you need to quit while youre ahead (and still alive)?

Every day when you wake up, cigarettes are clamouring at the front of queue, crying: FEED ME, BABY! FEED ME! You want it simple? This is it: never smoke your first cigarette of the day again and youve stopped forever.

Some people stop and start again over the years. Although they have times when they dont smoke, at heart they still feel like smokers.

Keep a record of your struggle to give up. It will keep you on track and provide you with a document that you can be proud of.

Lets face itwe are drug addicts. But nicotine, like many other drugs, is not a simple habit to crack. Its a collection of habits, triggered by certain events or actions in our day, each with its own battle to face.

Time for a squint at the statistics. We know that smokings a risky business, but just how does it compare to other life-threatening activities? And how many of them would you volunteer for?

Prince or pauper, millionaire or milkman, smoking ruthlessly slays its users.

Sometimes stopping smoking seems impossible. Its time to remind you that there are smokers out there who have stopped.

Finding the right person to help you quit could be the difference between success and failure.

Youre never alone with a Strand, according to the ad from the 1950s. (The ad became a cult, the brand bombed.) There are almost always people around you when you smoke. What are we doing to them when we blow out our hot air?

Havent got the willpower to go it alone? Joining a group could give you the extra resolve.

Ever wondered why sound health and monetary reasons for quitting dont spur your stopping?

Want a mate to help you quit? Here are some suggestions for your chum to take on board.

Its a dirty habit. Old dog ends, dropped ash, overflowing ashtrays, holes in your jumper. Disgusting, right? Cleaning up your act will cut down on the housework and say goodbye to yellow fingers and teeth.

The rest of the world is ganging up on smokers, refusing to share their space with us. Maybe its time to throw in the towel and join the majority.

Become a single-issue bore; make non-smoking your new addiction. Becoming a nonsmoking guru could be your salvation.

Tobacco smoke stains your teeth. Yes, yes, we know that. You can brush your teeth clean, but you cant brush your lungs clean. Yes, yes, we know that, too. Smoking makes your gums rot away and all your teeth fall out. Really?