Quit Smoking Support - Nicotine Replacement And Behavioral Therapies

[sheri bates]

Nicotine is a strongly reinforcing drug to all people in general and,
thus, can become highly addictive in a short period of time.
Additionally, nicotine is a highly toxic substance that is potentially
fatal when taking 60mg or more of the drug. However, it is difficult
to overdose on nicotine, which is why the long lasting effects of this
drug are of more concern to the population and is why the desire to
quit has become more prevalent. Perhaps you have heard the statement
credited to Mark Twain: "Quitting smoking is easy; I've done it many
times." Undeniably, the success at quitting smoking does become easier
after previous tries however, this does not mean that you can't be
successful at it on your first try. Furthermore, quitting smoking is
essentially a difficult thing to succeed at without a helping hand.
Therefore, I will provide you with my support and knowledge regarding
the two most successful methods to quit smoking.
Behavioral Treatment Programs
The effectiveness of treatments varies greatly among different people.
Nevertheless, there are some methods that simply deliver the desired
results at a much higher frequency. One such treatment requires the
use of behavioral programs providing quit smoking support. Behavioral
programs have evolved a great deal throughout the years. It used to be
that people would be involved in ongoing, direct, weekly contact with
a personal clinician or clinical staffs. Most of the therapy was
centered around the notion of overcoming "high-risk" situations where
the chances of smoking became almost certain. Today, these programs
have expanded from their original form in order to provide quit
smoking support via direct contact with clinical staff, over the
phone, or even through the use of computers. Furthermore, these
behavioral programs supply patients with coping strategies to use
during high-risk situations of smoking, methods to apply in their
everyday lives to wane off the habit of smoking, as well as providing
smokers valuable techniques to monitor their behavior.
Nicotine Replacement Programs
Furthermore, there is one other successful method for helping you quit
smoking; this involves the use of nicotine replacement therapies.
Although behavioral programs are an efficient means of helping people
quit smoking, alone they result in a majority relapse after
approximately six months of therapy. This is due to the intense
cravings an abstainer of smoking will most likely undergo when
returning to a comfortable state of mind in their proper environment.
For this reason, it is helpful to the patient to introduce some form
of nicotine replacement therapy in their on going battle to quit
smoking. There have been many studies conducted that show that
nicotine replacement therapies increase the chances of quitting by a
factor of two, when compared to a placebo. The most common forms of
nicotine replacement therapy are the nicotine patch and the nicotine
gum. However, there are other forms of nicotine replacement that are
more effective.
Combining Both
Nicotine is a strongly reinforcing drug, and the best way to quit
smoking is by combining both the behavioral treatment and the nicotine
replacement treatment. This is due to the fact that behavioral
treatment programs help balance nicotine replacement therapy by
addressing aspects of smoking behavior that nicotine release cannot.
Moreover, behavioral programs offer methods of coping and relaxation
that help curve the psychological aspect of cravings. For instance,
behavioral programs can provide you with ways to cope with the social
pressures of smoking, the influence of stress on smoking, and as well
as coping with environmental cues that may
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