I decided to quit smoking for financial reasons and because my husband really wanted me to stop. I have tried to quit several times before using different products but I knew I was ready to quit because I felt motivated. This time, I quit with (our sister service) Smoke Free County Durham. Since quitting, my breathing has improved and I have saved a lot of money which I have put away for a holiday next year. The biggest benefit I have found since quitting is that my husband no longer tells me to stop and is proud of me. Tips I would give to others to help them quit is, to get support and medication from a stop smoking advisor as the praise I received was great.

Quitting smoking is something I have tried many times over the years. I have had a lot to think about with my health and I keep asking myself if this ‘little stick’ is worth it. I have smoked since a young age so know quitting is always going to be a hard habit to give up. I have had fantastic support from my advisor, all the advice and ongoing patience to get me where I need to be has been great. I am determined to be a non-smoker.

I started smoking again around 2 years ago. I have stopped before, my longest quit was 15 years. I think commitment is the hardest thing when giving up smoking – it’s too easy to go back to it but this time I had my health to consider. I used patches which were great for me, they just slotted into my daily routine. I have managed to save a bit of money which I have put towards my trike – before I could not justify the money to do that because I was smoking. My best advice was to ‘give it a chance’ and to ‘keep going’. I always hated dirty ashtrays and now I don’t have to clean my own anymore.