Julian was a late smoker, starting smoking when he was 38. He would smoke intermittently, going into repeating cycles of stopping smoking then relapsing during a weak moment. Unsurprisingly in the last couple of years, Julian admitted that he was going through a stressful period in his life and would turn to cigarettes as a way to cope, resulting in more smoking. Feeling like being in a trapped maze, Julian said:
“I used smoking as a psychological crutch but I knew I had to stop when I found myself needing to open a second cigarette packet in one day.”
Deep down Julian knew that smoking was providing him with no genuine crutch or pleasure, they simply kept him addicted.
Fortunately it had been picked up by his local health service that Julian was a smoker, and as a consequence he received a transformational phone call from the Targeted Lung Health team who passed his phone number onto us with his consent. One of our expert health improvement practitioners, Camilla, gave him a call and, like an epiphany, this phone call went on to change his life forever.
Camilla provided Julian with specialised, one-to-one ongoing support, offering encouragement and understanding of the nicotine addiction process. Together they developed a personalised quit plan that included a quit date, strategies to cope with cravings, withdrawal symptoms, how to manage triggers, and much, much more..
To further help Julian on his path to freedom and beyond Camilla talked through all the nicotine replacement products available. Of all the options Julian decided to quit smoking by switching to vaping. Camilla arranged for Julian to collect a free vaping kit with 5 weeks supply of vaping fluid to get him started. Julian said:
“Initially, I was a bit sceptical about vaping, I didn’t think it would be adequate enough to stop me smoking, but I was pleasantly surprised. I really got on with vaping. It mimicked the behaviour of smoking and gave me something to do with my hands. It’s also a pleasant thing to use; it tastes nicer, and people can’t smell it on my breath. Instead of having a cigarette break, I’ll have a ‘vape break’ and when I’m stressed it gives me the nicotine hit I need.”
Along with enjoying the freedom of his smoke free life, he is also enjoying significant health benefits:
“When I was smoking I would wheeze whenever I did activity and I would cough all the time. I also had a horrible feeling of phlegm at the back of my throat. All of that has now completely gone and my chest feels a lot clearer.”
Julian is confident he will never smoke again, regardless of what highs or lows may befall him in future:
“I can absolutely say that I will never go back to smoking. I am going to keep going with the vape and reduce the nicotine strength over time.”