How To Quit Smoking (Besides a Juul)
**Medical Disclaimer: The information in this article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. All content in this article is for general information purposes only and you are encouraged to confirm any information from this article with other sources, and review information with your physician.
It is already March, and you’ve most likely abandoned all of your plans for “a better you” this year.
Moving to Paris and finding that new-found freedom you didn’t get in your parents' home is amazing, but with this freedom, we can't help but fall victim to the French customs of staying up late, drinking wine, and worst of all: smoking.
Fox recently reported, “3.6 million youth who use e-cigarettes are now vulnerable to long-term nicotine addiction.” Robin Koval, Truth Initiative president and CEO, tells Fox this is likely due to the most popular vaporizing company across millennials, the Juul. But how exactly do we go about treating our nicotine addictions? Peacock Plume consulted a pharmacist, a meditation healer, the App Store, and a hypnotherapist to advise how to best help AUP students find a solution to quit smoking.
Matthew Fraser, a professor at AUP said when he arrived in Paris in 1980, he realized smoking was a good way to fit in, and find a social life in Parisian culture. He says, “I picked up smoking as an affectation that helped me nonchalantly blend into the ambient culture […] When I quit it was precisely the moment when I felt confident enough in Paris to no longer need cigarettes as a social affectation to fit in.” Fraser now wonders if his students also picked up the habit to fit in with Parisian culture like he once did.
It’s hard socializing in Paris when you're the only person sitting in the bar and all your friends are outside smoking, it’s also super lonely. This is a perfect example of how social smoking arises, and this is where many of us completely fail at being “of sound body and mind,” and instead find ourselves adapting to the majority. Smoking in Paris almost seems unavoidable. Fernanda Sapiña, a student at AUP said, “I started smoking because I wanted to look cool […] I socially smoked every weekend until I noticed I couldn’t stop anymore […] It had become a part of my routine. Coffee and a cigarette, lunch and then a cigarette, beers and a cigarette.”
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention research suggests the nicotine may be as addictive as heroin, cocaine, or alcohol and nearly 7 out of 10 smokers reported they wanted to quit.
Here are some of your best options according to a pharmacist, the Apple App Store, a meditation guru, and a hypnotherapist:
Pharmacy:
Price: € 5- € 25
Murielle Tregouet, a pharmacist in the 6th arrondissement pharmacy in Paris recommends (in agreement with James Prochaska and Carlo DiClemente) a series of steps before quitting smoking.
First Step:
The Intention. The moment you realize you want to stop.
Second Step:
The Decision. Stopping to make a strategy.
Third Step:
Action. This signifies the moment where you actively engage in changes and decide to stop smoking.
Fourth Step:
The Execution. The phase during which you come face to face with the dependencies of your addiction but must find a way to overcome.
Fifth Step:
The Relapse. This is apart of the process and has to be expected, you must restart until you lose your unhealthy dependency.
To further assist you through these steps, Murielle recommends: Essential oils, nicotine patches, nicotine breath strips, a nicotine inhaler, a nicotine mouth spray and in extreme cases, they recommend Bupropion (anxiety medication prescribed by your doctor). These products, in accordance with the correct mindset, can aid in smoothly releasing you of your nicotine addiction.
For further information, you can visit Murielle’s pharmacy where a pharmacist can further assist you and English speakers are welcome. Pharmacie Stanislas 7, rue Notre Dame des Champs 75006.
75006 Paris
Apps:
Price: Free
We use apps for most of our daily duties, getting food, getting from point a to point b, and even meeting new people (wink wink). So try these free apps (because spending extra money only stresses you out and leaves you craving a cigarette) :
Kwit is an app that tracks your quitting time down to the minute as well as money saved and provides helpful tips to avoid smoking.
Kwit App Screenshots; Source: Apple App Store
Smoke Free advertises themselves as the “world's most successful stop smoking app” claiming they’ve helped more people quit smoking than any other app. With this app, you can track your smoke-free time, gain achievement badges and track your health improvements like pulse rate, oxygen levels, and carbon monoxide levels.
Smoke Free App Screenshot; Source: Apple App Store
This Is Quitting is an online forum for a community of smokers alike all trying to quit smoking and all struggling to get through the day without a cigarette. Signing in with your school email address gives you the opportunity to get paid to give your feedback. Unfortunately, AUP is not a recognized affiliate.
This Is Quitting App Screenshot; Source: Apple App Store
Meditation: Free
Most of these apps give motivational pep talks spouting “relaxation” so Susy Scheflin, meditation and sound healer, also known as The Copper Vessel on Instagram tells Plume, “I had made many healthy changes in my life, but cigarettes remained a vice that I struggled to let go off.” Susy realized that in her busy life, smoking was a way for her to step back and take a deep breath. She said she made an “unwavering inner decision that smoking was no longer an option”. When craving arose she began to turn to breath. Susy says, “a simple breath changed everything”.
Susy recommends the Box Breath to students looking to quit smoking: Inhale through your nose for 3 counts, hold in for 3 counts, and exhale through your nose for 3 counts. Continue for 2 to 3 minutes. The box breath can help relax and "reset" ones breathing, and is great to alleviate stress.Since taking up the box breath Susy says she feels more energized and times she needs to pause and catch her breath are fewer and farther in between.
Hypnotherapy:
Price: $495- $695
+ $100 gift certificate for Plume Readers
Hypnotherapy is the new craze amongst smokers looking to quit and has been proven to help most. Hypnotherapy can help calm your desire to smoke through accessing the subconscious mind. Michele Guzy, internationally known as the mind coach and certified clinical hypnotherapist, tells Plume, “hypnotherapy is a behavior modification counseling that provides a powerful and effective means of creating lifestyle changes. It is a holistic approach of total sensory communication between the mind and body”. Michele Guzy has a 90% success rate with her “stop quitting program” and is offering Peacock Plume readers a $100 gift certificate for the program. Michele is located in Los Angeles however private sessions are available over zoom for international clients. You can contact Michele for a free 30-minute consultation at michele@themindcoach.com or call (818) 446-6463.
Every smoker has their triggers; waking up, stress, coffee, and even worrying about quitting smoking makes you want to smoke.
If you're one of those people who has quit 20 times only to start again, there’s loads of support and solutions that are easily accessible to help you end your cigarette habit.
