How to Begin

Knowing why you want to quit smoking is an important step in the quit process but, like many other things in life, there are positive and negative things associated with quitting smoking.

When it comes to stopping smoking, many smokers think of thenegative things about smoking (like bad breath) and the positivethings about quitting (like saving money). Using the reasons to quit document , write down your reasons both for smoking and for not smoking in the two columns. They will remind you of why you're giving up smoking and, hopefully, help you to stay on the road to quitting.

However, soon after quitting, you may realize that there are some good things about smoking that you miss (like smoke breaks at work) and bad things that come with quitting (like staying away from friends who smoke). Writing these down and thinking of thinking of ways to deal with them will help you stay on track.

Thinking things through and planning ahead of time will also put you in a better position to deal with the mind games you may play with yourself and help you avoid slips and return to smoking.

Keep this list where you can see it and look back at it often. Add new items that come up as you progress through your quit attempt. Be sure to come up with ways to deal with things that cause the urge to smoke or things that may cause you to slip or return to smoking.