Please help me help my friend stop smoking

[mimitabby]

Every other time I quit, I looked for an excuse to start back. I begged for an excuse to start back. And I always found one.....
you can't be there when she wakes in the morning and craves that first cigarette; or when she is stuck in a traffic jam and sees so many other smoking in their cars; or when she gets nervous or hyped about something at work..... stress is a sure sign of caving....
.

CC,
that was my husband's biggest trigger too. he would salivate when he saw others lighting up in their cars.

[Pedal Wench]

A few things that worked for me.
1. Twizzlers. At work, I realized that I liked the break that I had to take to go outside to smoke. So, I just took a red licorice Twizzler, went out to the deck and ate my Twizzler. It gave me the same mental break from work, the Twizzler satisfied that oral fixation, and it was a measured serving.
2. Other finger-foods. Baby carrot sticks, sunflower/pumkin seed in the shell and MiniWheats cereal, all helped when sitting at home watching tv.
3. Avoiding triggers. I had to avoid bars, because I couldn't seperate sitting at a bar with a cocktail with smoking a cigarette. I actually still have a problem with that, 10 years after quitting.

Wish her luck, and just bear with her. The mood swings can be pretty wacky.

[Dogmama]

A3. Avoiding triggers. I had to avoid bars, because I couldn't seperate sitting at a bar with a cocktail with smoking a cigarette. I actually still have a problem with that, 10 years after quitting.
Wish her luck, and just bear with her. The mood swings can be pretty wacky.

Ditto that. I quit 20 years ago and had to change many habits that were triggers.

I made a list of ten reasons I wanted to quit. Everytime I thought I had to have one, I'd read my list.

Each time your friend goes through a craving, the next craving will be less intense. Eventually, they'll be gone. One day at a time, one hour at a time.

I heard that nicotine is as addicting as heroin.

[Bikingmomof3]

I quit long ago, cold turkey. I doubt I was a delight to live with. You have received great advice from others on how to help your friend.

One of the best things I did, was to avoid trigger locations, mainly places where others would be smoking. Also, I drank a lot of water. I have no idea if it helped, but having a glass in my hand worked for me.

[Tuckervill]

I helped my son quit by keeping him supplied with nicotine gum and/or patches. It's what he asked for Christmas, and I was only too happy to oblige.

What I don't understand is people who go without all day because they can't smoke at work, and then as soon as they are off, light up like crazy.

Karen