Quit Tobacco: Report Card — Health Heroes

Jay Roney, Training Officer, DAJD

I was a smoker for 33 years. In ten years, I had tried to quit smoking about 8 times.

I at one point was trying the patch and the medication at the same time, which did not work.

So the last time I decided to try to quit (over three years ago) I talked to several persons on the matter. One thing I did find out was that while on the patch I was okay. But about 6 weeks later when I was not on the patch I started to get heavy cravings.

Then here comes the reasoning that always comes to mind: “Well, one cigarette won't hurt.” Yes it will.

When I decided to quit I dropped that from my vocabulary. One will hurt. Each time I made myself believe that I would soon be buying cartons of cigarettes. Also what one person from the county (thanks Miss Taylor) suggested is that I should use each level of patch for 3 weeks instead of 2.

And this time I quit with a good friend. Like he said, we were both too pigheaded to be the first one who admitted “I didn't make it.”

Another tool that really helped me out a lot was the words from a doctor. He said “if you get a craving and you smoke a cigarette, the craving will go away. If you get a craving and you don't smoke a cigarette, the craving will go away.”

So with all this vast knowledge and help, it has been 3 1/2 years that I have been a non smoker. That is good I think from smoking for 33 years since I was 13.