Ex-smoker encourages ‘smokeout’

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Becky J. LaRaia
  • 43rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs
POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. (AFPN) --  A 46-year-old health assistant technician decided to get a jump on the Nov. 18 Great American Smokeout when she took part in a tobacco cessation program. She said she went into the program expecting a challenge.

A 30-year veteran of smoking, Debra Wolfe said she was watching a family tradition of smoking extend itself. Her father had just undergone triple-bypass heart surgery and was rapidly deteriorating from his past cigarette use, her own cholesterol was on the rise, and now her son and daughter were plotting a similar future by picking up the habit in their teens.

Ms. Wolfe made the commitment to stop smoking in September when she started the month-long program at the health and wellness center here.

The class brings smokers and smokeless tobacco users together to learn behavior modification, stress management, fitness, nutrition and relapse-prevention techniques.

Ms. Wolfe said the best part about the class was being able to interact with other users. Participants are evaluated by their primary care managers and then prescribed Zyban and Nicoderm patches to help decrease the cravings.

“The first day was the hardest,” she said, “but it wasn’t a week or two that I was over that and focused on something else.”

During the classes, participants are also taught about the effects of smoking. Learning all of the “disgusting” chemicals that actually go into a cigarette was what Ms. Wolfe called an “eye opener.”

She had tried to quit once before about four years earlier. She said the biggest difference this time was making a commitment to herself.

“You’ve got to have your own reasons for quitting,” she said. “You can’t quit because your boss or spouse wants you to.”

Ms. Wolfe said preparing for the class is vital for success.

“I know a lot of people come because of the medication, but it’s not a magic pill. Tobacco is very addictive; you have to know that it is (psychologically) and physically addictive.”

She said preparing to quit may mean cutting back before the class or changing a routine. She prepared for the class by limiting her smoking while at work.

Ms. Wolfe works at the center and was familiar with the challenges of quitting before she began the program.

“I was very surprised at how easy it was for me to quit,” she said.

She said she is not going to say that she is never going to relapse “but I know I can do it now. I just really encourage people to do it, and to be ready to do it when they come (to the class),” Ms. Wolfe said. “Make a commitment to yourself, and you will succeed.”

People all across America will also take advantage of the American Cancer Society’s yearly challenge to stop smoking Nov. 18 as part of the Great American Smokeout. This is an annual event that is meant to encourage smokers to quit for at least one day -- preferably longer.