INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Many people start thinking about turning over a new leaf as the New Year approaches and mull resolutions.
Many people who smoke make a pact to quit, but quitting is not easy because breaking the addiction is an hourly process. It also is a daily process.
For heavy smokers, it can be grueling and frazzling, but rewarding in the end.
Still, support systems, similar to programs like Alcoholic Anonymous, are out there for people willing to take that first step to a smoke free life.
In Indian River County, these smoking cessation support programs are offered nearly continually all year long. Each program lasts six weeks.
Programs once cost upwards of $100. Now, they are free and paid for with money from the historic tobacco settlement of the late 1990s in which Florida received $11.3 billion.
Participants also don’t have to stop after the six weeks. Many may find the support system necessary to continue to live smoke free.
The key is making a commitment and walking through the door, says Rebecca Abbott, a respiratory therapist at the Indian River Medical Center who is also a facilitator of classes offered at the hospital.
Abbott is still working out the details of a winter class at the hospital to begin in late January or in February with the hope of catching smokers who have made a resolution to live a life smoke free in the year 2012.
Those interested can check with the hospital in another week or so by calling 772-567-4311.
Two programs set to begin in January:
- The Indian River County Health Department, 1900 27th St., program starts Jan. 12 and runs for six consecutive Thursdays. Programs start at 5:30 p.m. and run about an hour. For information, call 794-7400 during normal business hours.
- The Treasure Coast Community Health Center – Oslo, 1545 9th St., program starts Jan. 17 and runs for six consecutive Tuesdays. Programs start at 5:30 p.m. and run about an hour. For information, call 772-257- 8224 Ext. 309.
The programs are part of the Quit Smoking Now statewide tobacco cessation initiative sponsored by the Florida Area Health Education Centers Network.
The program offers support and educational tools. Some people may also want nicotine replacement therapy like gum, patches and lozenges.
To register for the programs and to determine eligibility for free nicotine replacement therapy, call 877-819-2357.
Others have also done hypnotism as a supplement to the program and some people may want to discuss beforehand with their doctors the various medications out there as a supplement to the smoking cessation support program, Abbott said.
When Abbott leads a six-week program, the last thing she does is stand and lecture on why smoking is bad.
“Everyone already knows,” she says.
She will guide participants toward a smoke-free life by offering advice and tools to truly kick the habit.
Classes begin much in the same way that most support groups work, with participants introducing themselves and explaining why they want to quit.
Class members then talk about a quit date, which is generally the third week of the class.
Participants are then paired up with a buddy, kind of like an AA sponsor, although in this case, it’s someone going through the same struggles of addiction as the participant.
Phone numbers and e-mails are exchanged.
During the second week of Abbott’s class, the group discusses why participants smoke, perceived barriers to quitting and the benefits of quitting.
When the third week rolls around – the quitting week – Abbott says she offers more classes during that week for those smokers who crave the extra support.
Because cigarettes are so addictive, the first days and weeks can be a battle.
That is why during this third week, Abbott and others who facilitate the programs talk about coping with withdrawal and the symptoms of recovery.
“I know it is tough. It is a minute-by- minute process; an hour-by-hour; a day-by-day,” she says.
The key lesson, she says, is for participants to know and understand the notion of: “I made it through the day; tomorrow will take care of itself.”
The remaining weeks after Week 3 are about preventing relapse and discussing triggers that can go well beyond old habits like having a cigarette while driving, or while having coffee.
It can be personal.
Much like the vows that participants take with other addiction programs like AA, Abbott says in her classes what is said personally during the program’s discussions are not to be discussed outside the class.
Week Six is the highlight and Abbott does it up big.
Over the years she has been collecting mortarboard caps and graduation gowns for her classes.
Successful participants are given the attire for the ceremony and they are awarded with a certificate.
“I am in the best (position) ever. I love my job. I am just very blessed, I must admit,” said Abbott of helping people free themselves from the shackles of their addictions. “If you are thinking about quitting, if nothing else, just walk through that door and then you are going to know that we – all of us – are on your side.”
She said that out of a class of about 20 that 15 will stick it out for all six sessions.
She knows she will lose a handful after the first class – those who think that perhaps all she had to do was wave a magic wand or offer them a pill to make them smoke free.
Of the 15 that stick it out, about 10 quit for good.
“It’s not easy that is why we try and offer any help and encouragement for people to get everything in place,” she says. “And even if it is just one person, well, you know you have done a major thing for that person.”
For those who don’t make it the first go-around and continue to smoke after Week 3, she encourages them to stick with the remaining weeks of the program and then start another program, which is generally not far off in the future.
“I think it works because we offer great support,” she says.
She also encourages graduates to stay in touch and call or come to a session should they feel like they may want to slip back into their old smoking ways.
“It‘s kind of like AA or Weight Watchers,” she says. “When you don’t have anyone checking in or checking up on you sometimes people say to themselves, “Oh, who cares?’ Well, we care.”
One young man who works at a high-end beachfront restaurant and successfully completed the smoking cessation program, she says, calls her every now and then and sets up times to come to her programs so that he can share tips and offer advice to the participants.
“It’s like he is so grateful and he wants to pay it forward,” Abbott said.