Looking to quit a nicotine habit? Experts advise that both determination and patience are key.

“You might have already tried to quit three or four times, and it’s not until the fifth or sixth time that you actually do it for good,” said George Ibarra, pulmonary rehab therapist at UCHealth Yampa Valley Medical Center. “I have been doing this for 30 years, and one of the most important things I try to emphasize is patience, patience, patience.”

According to the American Lung Association, smoking is responsible for more than 5,000 annual deaths in Colorado and is the No. 1 cause of preventable death.

”The Steamboat community is very health conscious, but we still see quite a few people who smoke and come to us through pulmonary rehab wanting and needing to stop smoking,” said Ibarra.

Misconceptions

Ibarra said there are several misconceptions when it comes to smoking, with the first being whether it is a habit or addiction.

“It’s more of an addiction, but it starts as a habit,” said Ibarra. “You go out with friends, you start doing it and then you start craving that nicotine and that adrenaline, and it builds up in your body.”

He is also worried by the number of people who have turned to vaping, mistakenly thinking it’s a safer alternative to cigarettes.

“A lot of our young people are vaping, and some of our older folks are doing it too,” he said. “They don’t see the damage that it’s causing their lungs, as the liquid in these e-cigarettes contains dangerous and toxic chemicals.”

Long-term effects of smoking

Smoking can lead to cardiovascular disease, worsening asthma conditions and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD. Studies have also shown it can lead to cancer in the lungs, bladder and pancreas.

COPD is an umbrella term for people with lung diseases who find it difficult to breathe and for whom there are no cures.

Emphysema, a specific type of COPD, is a chronic and progressive disease where air sacs in the lungs have been damaged. These tiny air sacs, also called alveoli, sit at the end of the bronchioles, or air tubes, in the lungs. They serve a crucial function as they expand with oxygen when a person inhales and shrink when the body exhales carbon dioxide.

While healthy alveoli look like tiny sponges, diseased ones develop small holes between one another where inhaled air becomes trapped, making it difficult for people to exhale.

Pulmonary rehabilitation sessions at YVMC can support lung health by teaching participants how to breathe properly, Ibarra said.

When you want to stop smoking

When a person wants to stop smoking, Ibarra stresses:

• Education. People think smoking relieves their stress, but nicotine actually does the opposite as it chronically increases heart rate and blood pressure.
• Options. There are many tools to help patients quit such as nicotine gum, lozenges and patches; inhalers that mimic the sensation of being able to hold something and that contain a small amount of nicotine; and the prescribed medication Bupropion, an anti-depressant. Therapy is also available for people who need more help with the emotional and psychological aspects of quitting smoking.
• Family support. Someone quitting smoking may experience mood swings and/or anxiety and may struggle for several weeks, making it important for family members to step up with support.
• Goals. Ibarra is not a proponent of quitting cold turkey and instead, encourages his patients to have a realistic strategy for winding down their daily number of cigarettes or vaping over several weeks. “We work our way down, which results in a lot more success than just stopping on a dime altogether,” he said.

For those who do give up smoking, the payoff is big, as the longer you go without smoking, the more your risk of developing lung cancer declines. After 15 years, your risk of cancer approaches the level of someone who has never smoked.

There are other more intangible rewards as well.

“I worked with an 85-year-old who finally quit on his sixth time,” said Ibarra. “He wanted to see his great-grandchild and his grandson wouldn’t let him until he quit.”

Mary Gay Broderick writes for UCHealth. She can be reached at marygaybroderick@comcast.net.