Many smokers find it possible to quit on their own. The growing emphasis on healthful living styles helps such smokers. Most smokers who quit on their own have pictured themselves as people playing an important role in the move toward better health maintenance. They have assumed responsibility for their health.

Some smokers desire better health, but still find it very difficult to quit on their own. You might have encountered similar difficulties. You should know that adults who want to stop smoking sometimes make use of a smoking cessation program. A number of non-profit organizations sponsor stop-smoking groups. If you have previously tried to quit and then slipped back into your old habit, then you might want to consider an adult smoking cessation program. Evidence shows that smokers who join a support group stand a better chance of stopping for good. Fortunately, if you want to be part of a support group, you can choose from among several programs.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) sponsors support groups as part of its Freshstart Programs, Clinics with such programs can be found in 1500 different locations throughout the United States. When a smoker joins one of the ACS sponsored clinics, that smoker can expect to meet regularly with between eight and eighteen other smokers. Each meeting lasts for about two hours. The entire support program lasts four weeks. During that four week period the members of the support group hear talks about the risks of smoking. They also learn about the various ways to learn how to enjoy life without lighting-up on a regular basis.

The American Lung Association also sponsors a smoking cessation program. That program is called “Freedom from Smoking.” Like the ACS program, this Freedom program incorporates use of support groups. Smokers who join one of those support groups are asked to attend eight one to two hour sessions over a period of seven weeks. The support group members in the Freedom Program are asked to keep a personal diary. They also work with a buddy. After smokers choose a “quitting day,” then they are given an ex-smoker who can advise them about how to proceed.

If you want to attend a stop smoking group, you might want to contact any local university with a health department. Often such departments work with the on-campus health services to sponsor a stop smoking support group. Some hospitals that get funding from a faith group offer stop smoking support groups. Hospitals that receive money from the Seventh Day Adventists guide smokers through their Breathe Free Plan. That Plan calls for participation in a four week program.

A few of the smoking cessation programs count on the expected results from their aversion therapy. Aversion therapy uses negative factors to highlight the dangers of a single smoke. Sometimes the smokers who undergo that therapy are asked to take certain drugs. Those drugs cause the smoking of a cigarette to be a very unpleasant experience. During a few types of aversion therapy, smokers like yourself are asked to sit and to have smoke blown in their faces. Sometimes those smokers are asked to inhale very rapidly, so rapidly that they become exhausted.

If you now contemplate putting a stop to your habit, you might recall a prior time when you tried to quit smoking. You might remember how you eventually slipped back into the habit that continues to dictate so much of your life. While you might have a strong desire to quit smoking, you might fail to take the appropriate action. You might find that you can not imagine what life would be like without access to cigarettes. Perhaps you picture the many difficulties that would assail you, should cigarettes not be there to offer some sort of solace. Thoughts of those difficulties sway your actions, more than any motivation to quit smoking.

If you have given serious consideration to ending your smoking habit, you might shrink from whatever you envision as your struggle after quitting smoking. You might fear the symptoms of withdrawal that you can expect once you have abandoned the smoking habit. You might not admit to your nicotine addiction, but you are aware of how your body reacts to the absence of nicotine.

While society has many programs for smokers such as yourself, you need to invest time (and possibly money), if you want to reap the benefits of a stop smoking program. You should realize that your addiction to smoking is greater than any other addiction. Every year 1/3 of smokers like you quit smoking, but only 10% of that number remain among those who can claim nicotine independence.

Maybe you once managed to quit on your own, relying on one or more of the available aids, aids for smokers like yourself who want to kick their habit. If so, then perhaps you can recall the benefits that came to you when you were not intent on either obtaining or enjoying that next cheap cigarettes. Once you have managed to become free of your dependence on nicotine, then you can expect some positive reinforcement. That reinforcement does not come in the form of a reward, but in the form of a long list of benefits.

If you have committed yourself to quitting smoking, you can feel satisfied that your friends and relatives are no longer forced to breathe nicotine-filled air. Once you have decided to stop smoking, you should find that you have quite a bit more spending money. You might also get more done, because you do not feel compelled to spend time obtaining and puffing on a cigarette.

In light of those benefits, the statistics should help to push you into the ranks of the non-smokers. . Statistics indicate that up to 90% of smokers find it possible to quit on their own. You too might now feel ready to throw out your cigarettes and to enjoy a new freedom—freedom from dependence on nicotine.