Giving up smoking - are you ready?
Am I ready to stop smoking?
This may be your first attempt to stop smoking, or you may have had several attempts. Stopping smoking requires willpower, but support and treatment can increase your chance of success.
It’s important to be ready and committed to stop smoking. There may be no perfect time to stop smoking, but it could help to choose a day that is not going to be stressful for you. If you have a significant occasion coming up like exams or an important social event, it may be better to postpone your quit attempt until after that date.
It may also be helpful to think about some of the advantages of stopping smoking, which include:
- reduced risk of serious health problems such as heart disease, lung disease and cancer
- no unpleasant stale tobacco smell on your clothes
- improved breathing and increased energy levels
- improved sense of smell and taste
- cleaner teeth and fresher breath
- more money in your pocket
- protection for other people from harmful second-hand smoke
- less of a likelihood that your children will start smoking
Giving up smoking if you are pregnant or trying to get pregnant
Smoking can reduce both men's and women’s fertility.
Smoking during pregnancy has been linked to miscarriage, bleeding, infections and morning sickness. It can also cause:
- premature birth
- stillbirth
- low birth weight
- cot death
- breathing problems for your baby in the early stages of its life
Can I use nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) if I am pregnant?
Ideally pregnant smokers should try to quit without NRT. If this isn’t successful they can use NRT but if a patch is used, it should be removed overnight.
The risks to your unborn baby are far less than if you continued to smoke.