Best Method to Stop Smoking: Cold Turkey or Gradual Withdrawal?




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Basically, there are two major methods of  stopping smoking: the “cold turkey” approach when you quit abruptly and do not take another puff anymore (can be recommended for those whose nicotine addiction is still relatively weak) and the method of gradual withdrawal.

Many people opt for the second approach, especially those who have smoked for many years, who consume more than a pack a day, whose nicotine addiction is too strong in order to attempt the abrupt cessation, and those who have already failed, maybe several times, in trying to quit smoking “cold turkey”.

The method of gradual withdrawal is best suited for people who do not want to abruptly change their smoking habits. They can continue smoking, but the trick is to slowly and gradually cut down the number of cigarettes they puff every day. Say, if a smoker is used to consume two packs a day, which are 40 cigarettes, he can start his smoking cessation process by consuming just one cigarette less the next day. He can continue smoking 39 cigarettes a day for about a week, after which one more daily ‘lung rocket” is out. With this approach, the former smoker will become completely smoke-free in about nine months, without any unpleasant symptoms of nicotine withdrawal. The process can be facilitated by reducing the amount of consumed cigarettes at a higher rate, if the smoker tolerates that well, but a faster rate is usually not recommended because it can easily trigger full-blown withdrawal symptoms since the body won’t have enough time to adjust to a reduce intake of nicotine.

Most smoking people will agree that the gradual withdrawal method is a very efficient and comfortable approach to smoking cessation. Remember that the key to success is not to reduce the amount of daily smoked cigarettes too abruptly, but to stretch the whole process for nine plus months so that quitting smoking should come naturally and pain-free.

Darlene Marlow

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Posted on February 9, 2008 
Filed Under How to Quit Smoking

Comments

3 Responses to “Best Method to Stop Smoking: Cold Turkey or Gradual Withdrawal?”

  1. Anonymous Quitter on February 20th, 2008 5:43 am

    Who died and made this Darlene Marlow an expert on nicotine addiction? A smoker cannot “adjust to a reduce intake of nicotine.” It is like saying an alcoholic can be cured by gradually drinking less. You have got to be kidding!

  2. Beth M. on February 21st, 2008 6:34 am

    Actually, you are not right. I am a former smoker and I tried several times to quit “cold turkey”, but it was too hard and I felt so miserable that I started smoking again. 2 years ago my doctor said that I had to quit due to my heart problems. I smoked about a pack a day then. So, I applied “gradual withdrawal”, very slowly, and was able to reduce my smokes to about 10 a day in three months. It required some discipline but I still was “rewarded” by daily smoking. Later, I just sort of lost my interest in smoking. For a while, I was carrying with me a pack with three smokes there, but did not have any desire to puff. So, I am smoke-free now and don’t miss my former addiction at all! But, without this gradual withdrawal method, I’d probably have never succeeded…

  3. iquit coldturkey on August 17th, 2008 11:41 pm

    The author here is mere fiction writer, has no clue how addictions work. This gradual quit crap DOES not work I am yet to come across anyone who truely quit by simply reducing cigrattes at will! I tried this myself, the brain simply will seek out new saturation point for nicotine so 90% of smokers gradually will go to smoke more and not less over the years.

    Atleast my first had experiences - many times at quiting tells me this is load of bull - there is no GRDUAL Quitting, Do it and Do it NOW is the only approach, best you can do is use patch or gum but even then at some point you will have to face it.

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