Quitting smoking: 10 strategies to resist tobacco cravings

Tobacco cravings can put on you down when you are trying to stop. Use these guidelines to lower and resist cravings.

By Mayo Clinic Staff

For most tobacco customers, tobacco cravings or urges to smoke can be strong. But you are not at the mercy of these cravings.

When an urge to use tobacco strikes, recall that although it could be rigorous, it will almost certainly move inside of five to 10 minutes regardless of whether or not you smoke a cigarette or choose a dip of chewing tobacco. Every time you resist a tobacco craving, you are a person stage closer to halting tobacco use for good.

Here are 10 strategies to aid you resist the urge to smoke or use tobacco when a tobacco craving strikes.

1.Try nicotine alternative treatment

Talk to your health practitioner about nicotine alternative treatment. The choices include things like:

  • Prescription nicotine in a nasal spray or inhaler
  • In excess of-the-counter nicotine patches, gum and lozenges
  • Prescription non-nicotine stop-smoking drugs these types of as bupropion (Zyban) and varenicline (Chantix)

Short-performing nicotine alternative therapies — these types of as nicotine gum, lozenges, nasal sprays or inhalers — can aid you conquer rigorous cravings. These short-performing therapies are usually protected to use in mix with prolonged-performing nicotine patches or a person of the non-nicotine drugs.

Electronic cigarettes have had a whole lot of interest lately as an alternative to smoking classic cigarettes. Even so, much more scientific tests are essential to ascertain the performance of electronic cigarettes for smoking cessation and the prolonged-phrase safety of these gadgets.

two.Keep away from triggers

Urges for tobacco are likely to be strongest in the conditions where you smoked or chewed tobacco most normally, these types of as at get-togethers or bars, or although sensation pressured or sipping coffee. Determine your trigger conditions and have a approach in place to keep away from them completely or get via them with out using tobacco.

You should not set by yourself up for a smoking relapse. If you ordinarily smoked although you talked on the cellular phone, for instance, continue to keep a pen and paper nearby to occupy by yourself with doodling alternatively than smoking.

3.Hold off

If you experience like you are going to give in to your tobacco craving, inform by yourself that you must initial wait 10 much more minutes — and then do a little something to distract by yourself for that time period of time. Try going to a public, smoke-cost-free zone. These very simple methods could be sufficient to derail your tobacco craving.

4.Chew on it

Give your mouth a little something to do to combat a tobacco craving. Chew on sugarless gum or hard candy, or munch on uncooked carrots, celery, nuts or sunflower seeds — a little something crunchy and satisfying.

five.You should not have ‘just one’

You may possibly be tempted to have just a person cigarette to satisfy a tobacco craving. But you should not idiot by yourself into believing that you can stop there. Much more normally than not, possessing just a person leads to another— and you could conclude up using tobacco yet again.

six.Get actual physical

Bodily activity can aid distract you from tobacco cravings and lower their depth. Even short burst of actual physical activity — these types of as functioning up and down the stairs a number of occasions — can make a tobacco craving go absent. Get out for a stroll or jog.

If you are caught at household or the office environment, check out squats, deep knee bends, pushups, functioning in place, or walking up and down a set of stairs. If actual physical activity doesn’t curiosity you, check out prayer, needlework, woodwork or journaling. Or do chores for distraction, these types of as vacuuming or submitting paperwork.

seven.Exercise relaxation tactics

Smoking could have been your way to offer with strain. Resisting a tobacco craving can by itself be nerve-racking. Just take the edge off strain by practising relaxation tactics, these types of as deep-respiration physical exercises, muscle mass relaxation, yoga, visualization, massage or listening to calming songs.

eight.Contact for reinforcements

Contact base with a loved ones member, friend or assist group member for aid in your exertion to resist a tobacco craving. Chat on the cellular phone, go for a stroll together, share a number of laughs, or get together to commiserate about your cravings. A cost-free telephone stop line — 800-Stop-NOW (800-784-8669) — supplies assist and counseling

9.Go on-line for assist

Be a part of an on-line stop-smoking application. Or study a quitter’s website and put up encouraging thoughts for someone else who may possibly be struggling with tobacco cravings. Discover from how some others have taken care of their tobacco cravings.

10.Remind by yourself of the gains

Compose down or say out loud the good reasons you want to stop smoking and resist tobacco cravings. These may possibly include things like:

  • Emotion better
  • Getting healthier
  • Sparing your beloved types from secondhand smoke
  • Conserving income

Remember, trying a little something to beat the urge is always better than accomplishing almost nothing. And every time you resist a tobacco craving, you are a person stage closer to getting entirely tobacco-cost-free.