Quit Smoking Timeline

Most smokers I know want to know how long it will take them to quit smoking and what their quit smoking timeline should look like. And to be honest is all depends on the approach and method you use as a smoker.

But firstly I think that it is a pretty good idea to think of a quit smoking timeline. Mostly because you can see beforehand where you should be in X amount of time. And you'll be able to track your progress over that time and you can see and compare if you are where you should be, and make adjustments and changes if you are not.

But our quit smoking timeline will not be the same as everyone elses. For example, if you go on a nicotine patch or gum course, your quit smoking timeline could be as long as a year! And studies have shown that only about 8% of smokers using patches and gums and the like, succeeed at stopping smoking!

If you use will power, your quit smoking timeline could be as long as several years! Because studies have shown that the average smoker using the will power method alone will have six or seven failed attempts before they manage to stop smoking. That is a long timeline!

For the different types of drugs available your timeline can vary betwen four weeks to twelve weeks, and a lot of those drugs fail or serisously hinder your body or have such bad side effects on your body and mind that most smokers end up giving up on them and return to smoking.

In my opinion the ideal quit smoking timeline should be spread accross three to four weeks. In each week you should have set goals and tasks to complete.

For example, in week one you should be looking at what it is that makes you smoke, not just nicotine by the way. There are habits, phsycological reliance (smoking to relieve stress, help concentrate etc.), routines, boredom and because you enjoy it, these are just a few. You can do this by actively making a note of everything that makes you smoke, on a daily basis.

In week one you should also work on ways to break these reasons for smoking, and you need to find alternate sources of stress relief, pleasure and confidence builders.

Then in week two of your quit smoking timeline you should look at how you can prevent weight gain, withdrawal symptoms and cravings. Preventing these things is very, very acheivable and can be done by any and all smokers.

Towards the end of week two and middle of week three you should actually set your stop smoking date. And what are you going to do in the last week?

This is one of the most ignored areas of stopping smoking. You need to ensure you stay stopped. How do you do this?

Well, you actively ensure that you are putting into practice all the things you planned in weeks one and two. You need to ensure that you continue to enjoy life and find alternate sources f pleasure. What's the point in stopping smoking if you are going to be miserable?!!

You also need to ensure that nothing reminds you to smoke and you disassociate everything you do from smoking. Once you have done this for a week or so you will have successfully stopped smoking.

When your quit smoking timeline is down on paper then you can go ahead and get working, and you can check up on your progress.

Stopping smoking will not happen in a day, it takes a few weeks of acurate and careful planning. The you should put those plans into action and stick to them.

Once you have been through a week or so ensuring you don't want to smoke and you stay stopped then you can really tell people, that you have stopped smoking.

Your quit smoking timeline is a plan for stopping smoking, and it will help you more than you could ever imagine.