Managing smoking

Distractions

Distractions are helpful when quitting smoking because they can help you manage cravings and nicotine withdrawal symptoms by shifting focus away from the urge to smoke and towards other activities or thoughts.

For a 5-minute distraction, watch this video on a hydraulic press – you will be surprised. Or take your mind of smoking by trying to find Wally.


Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT)

Nicotine Replacement Therapy helps manage cravings and withdrawal symptoms, making it easier to break the habit and ultimately quit smoking altogether. You may use patches as well as nicotine gum, lozenges or mouth spray, known as combination therapy, together with behavioural strategies can increase your odds of quitting. 
For more information check out this NRT guide and speak to your doctor or pharmacist. 

If you are feeling a bit sick when using your oral NRT, you might be swallowing too much nicotine. Watch these videos on how to use the gum and lozenges correctly.

How to quit 

We suggest taking a step-by-step approach to building your quit plan. Walk through each of the stages to get a full picture of what it takes to quit, learn why you smoke in the first place, and then develop a method that is suits you and your lifestyle.

Coping strategies

Did you know many people find coping with quitting tricky? Getting through life can be tough sometimes as well. We’ve put together some ideas, some are about how to cope with cravings, but some are for when you’re finding things tough. It’s often really helpful to practice these when you’re feeling ok, so that you’ve got them ready to go when things get difficult.

Cravings

It is hard to avoid all cues that may urge you to smoke. Learning how to deal with cues takes time and practice. So, when cravings hit, it’s important to have a plan in place to beat that urge to smoke or vape. You could try some mindful eating; practice urge surfing or one of the other techniques suggested in the resources.
 

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