Staying Quit

If you’re reading this, you must really be on a roll! Good for you.

Quick—What’s the one sure-fire “magic bullet” to staying quit?

Trick question. There is no magic bullet. Success when you quit smoking or chewing tobacco requires both willpower and hard work. You’ve made it this far in the quitting process because you worked hard, avoided urges, bounced back from slip-ups, and took on the challenge to do something good for yourself and for the people you care about.

During the first few days, weeks, and months after you quit, you might slip and use tobacco. Should you just give up? Should you quit quitting? No! A setback doesn’t mean you’ve failed. It just means you’re human. You can still quit smoking or chewing tobacco…and stay quit for life.

Most people who start smoking or chewing tobacco again do so under stress or peer pressure. So it never hurts to think through in advance how to handle difficult situations that test your ability to stay quit.

People who are successful at quitting tobacco are the ones who learn from each attempt and keep quitting until they stay quit. If you do use tobacco after you’ve decided to quit, forgive yourself and quit again. For most people, quitting takes more than one try. The more you try, the greater your chances of quitting smoking or chewing tobacco for good.

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