Becoming Smoke Free: The Benefits and Challenges

Every year, there are millions of people who are looking forward to kicking the smoking habit. This is by far one of the most difficult goals for anyone to achieve. However, what are the different ways that you can use to quit smoking?  This is a question that many smokers ask themselves before they quit. There are several ways to quit smoking but without willpower, the success rates are much lower than what they are if you are ready to stop smoking for good. The success rate of individuals who successfully quit is at around 15-25 %. What are the benefits and challenges of smoking cessation? Here are just a few of the benefits that come with becoming smoke free and the challenges that are associated with it:

Benefits-One of the most important benefits of becoming smoke free is the benefits to your health. Your body will begin to reap the benefits of being smoke free in the first 20 minutes after quitting. These benefits include a decrease in blood pressure, your pulse is not as high as before you stopped smoking, and increased temperature in your hands and feet. Other benefits include carbon monoxide in your blood will decrease to normal levels while the oxygen level in your bloodstream increases and your chances of having a heart attack will decrease. These are not including the benefits of less chances of cancer in the lungs, mouth, throat, kidneys, pancreas, emphysema, and heart disease. These are just some of the important benefits of becoming smoke free. However, there are also many challenges that you will face that will cease over time with becoming smoke free.

Challenges-When a person is trying to quit smoking, there are several challenges that one needs to overcome in order to become successful. One of the main challenges that can get in the way of a soon to be ex smoker is the immense cravings for a cigarette. This could lead to bouts of depression and anxiety for some. Some individuals eat in order to control cravings which can lead to serious weight gain.

Physical cravings such as tightness in your chest, coughing, and sleeplessness occurs during the first month of smoking cessation in most cases. A lot of the time, a few of these cravings do not last very long and are a part of getting fresh air into the lungs instead of cigarette smoke. The sleeplessness occurs because not only are you coughing and having difficulty breathing, you are getting more energy due to the lack of cigarette smoke. Mouth sores have occurred in a small percentage of individuals who have started their smoke free journey. These are just a few of the challenges that we face when becoming smoke free.

There are several ways to help ease the cravings of smoking to help you curb your habit. However, you need to possess the willpower to quit before these can really help you succeed. One way to handle the urges of not smoking a cigarette is to take a deep breath for about 5 minutes. Some also say that drinking small sips of water, which can also assist your body in the removal of nicotine, is another way of curbing these urges. Exercise will allow you to not think about wanting a cigarette and can also prevent weight gain among those who are trying to quit.

There are benefits and challenges that you face when becoming a non smoker. The most important challenge that we have to conquer is our willpower to quit. When we have the willpower to quit, we are setting ourselves up for success.