Stop Smoking
Stopping smoking is one of the best things you can do and there’s no better time than now to stop!
We know how hard it is but, with our help, you’re four times more likely to do it.
75% of people who’ve used our service have become smoke-free – it’s never too late to decide to stop smoking.
If you want to be smoke-free, we can help you commit to one of the best changes you will ever make to your life...
Discover our programme:
If you’re ready to begin your smoke-free journey, you don’t need to do it alone. With our help and support you’re 4 times more likely to succeed!
During your 12-week programme, you’ll work one-to-one with a specialist stop-smoking coach, face to face or over the phone, with extra support through our handy Best-You app.
When you stop smoking, you’ll feel the benefits straight away
Even if you think you don't have any side effects, when you stop you will notice the difference and ex-smokers tell us that they feel better straight away. Day-to-day, smoking can leave you short of breath and you might have trouble sleeping. Smoking long-term causes more harm - it can lead to high blood pressure and is linked to heart disease, cancer and strokes.
When you stop smoking, you’ll feel the benefits straight away. Find out more here
We can help you with NRT (nicotine replacement therapy). It’s free if you don’t pay for your prescriptions and less than £30 for a twelve-week course if you do the pre-payment scheme.
NRT is a licensed medicine and there are very few risks from using it. It can help you to manage your cravings and is far less harmful than smoking. For example, a slow release patch can help you manage the background craving and a fast-acting patch can help when you feel that sudden urge to smoke. Other NRT products can help you become smoke free too – such as gum, lozenges, nasal sprays, inhalators and e-cigarettes. We will advise you on the most suitable product(s) for you.
In the UK, E-cigarettes are closely regulated for safety and quality.
E-cigarettes don’t produce tar or carbon monoxide, two of the most harmful elements in tobacco smoke.
The liquid and vapour in E-cigarettes do contain some potentially harmful chemicals but at much lower levels.
Watch this video to find out more about e-cigarettes
E-cig friendly service
We will give you one-to-one behavioural support to stop smoking if you choose to use an e-cig to help you stop. The only criteria is that you have to be smoking tobacco at the start to get support from our coaches.
Unlike NRT, we can’t offer you free E-cig products as part of our service.
Help to manage your cravings
Cravings can hit you at lots of different times. If you can manage your cravings, you’ll be much more likely to succeed in stopping smoking. Cravings happen because your body is missing the nicotine it’s used to. Cravings are normal, and you CAN manage them.
Try these tips:
- Prep a bag of apple slices to pick at to distract you from the craving
- One of our clients drank a pint of water every time he wanted a cigarette.
Top Tips for Success
We know that cravings can hit you at lots of different times. If you can manage your cravings, you’ll be much more likely to succeed in stopping smoking. Cravings happen because your body is missing the nicotine it’s used to - sometimes they are in sudden bursts and sometimes they may be in the back of your mind over a longer period of time. We can help you to manage your cravings but here's a few helpful tips to get you started...
- Recognise the craving signs
- Jump into some exercise
- Distract yourself with a quick task
- Go to a smoke-free zone
- Drink a glass of water
Smoking at home – a risk to your loved ones
If you smoke at home, the smoke you breathe out can also harm the people who live with you. When they breathe in your cigarette smoke, they are more at risk of getting the illnesses caused by smoking and are four times more likely to develop lung cancer.
Babies and children who breathe in your smoke are more likely to get chest infections, meningitis and a cough that won’t easily go away. If they have asthma, their symptoms will get worse.
Babies who breathe in your smoke are more at risk of cot death and an ear infection called glue ear. If you or someone in your household smokes, you should smoke outside
