If you are thinking about giving up snuff, here are some reasons to help you in your decision.
- It has a positive impact on your health, you have a better chance of staying healthy for a long time.
- You save money because snuff is expensive.
- You don't have to go through withdrawal when you forget to sniff.
- You will have better breath and fresher oral health.
It can be hard at first and you will feel withdrawal after smoking. The craving you feel can be hard but remember that many times it only lasts for a few minutes.
Many people can experience withdrawal symptoms when they quit nicotine. Withdrawal symptoms are at their worst in the first few days, and if you can get through them, it gets easier and easier every week.
Withdrawal symptoms appear as a craving for cigarettes, for example, but they can also affect your mood. You may feel restless, irritable and find it hard to focus.
Tips on the road
It may be useful to think about your behaviour around snus, such as the habits associated with smoking. It's also a good idea to make a plan for how to do this, you can write it down on your phone or just think it up.
When quitting something, it's a good idea to think through different scenarios so you're prepared for how it will feel and at what points it might be extra difficult.
It may also be a good idea to stop with someone else. Then you can support and encourage each other.
Here are some tips to help you on your way:
-Set a date to quit smoking
This will give you time to get used to the idea. The best thing is to quit completely on the date you set. Otherwise, you risk putting it off or dragging it out by trying to smoke less.
-Register your behaviour
Many times we do things out of habit, and that includes snus. Try writing down every cigarette you smoke over a short period of time. It could be time and what you were doing when you smoked. Feel free to fill in how you felt and how your body felt. This is a step towards becoming aware of your habits and perhaps also seeing patterns that need to be broken. The times you smoke out of routine and habit might be the easiest to quit?
-Situations you can avoid
As we wrote a bit on the point above, we do things out of habit and routine, as well as when it comes to smoking. Some people may associate specific situations with their smoking. For example, it could be a party and alcohol or the morning coffee. If possible, it may be a good idea to try to avoid situations where the craving for a cigarette is greater.
-Don't keep cigarettes at home
Once you've made up your mind and set your quit date, make sure you don't have any packs left at home. If you don't have any cigarettes at home, it's also easier to resist the craving when it comes.
-Keep yourself busy
When the cravings come, as they most likely will, it's important to try to keep yourself busy. It's not so much what you do, but that you do something to take your mind off it. It could be almost anything, eating something, brushing your teeth, chewing gum or playing a game on your mobile. Remind yourself that you've stopped and decide not to let the cravings win. You'll get through this.
- Reward yourself!
Overcoming cravings and withdrawal is great and you should be proud of yourself. It can be worth a reward when you manage to keep it up for a while. You might be able to use all the money you've saved because you didn't buy cigarettes.
Many people need to try several times and just because you start again doesn't mean you won't be able to stop. You shouldn't see it as a failure.
You can take new steps and think about what went well the last time you tried and set a new date to quit. You can do it!