Stoptober Success: A Guide For Pharmacists
Stoptober Success: A Guide For Pharmacists. If pharmacists help smokers stop smoking for 28 days they are 5 times more likely to quit for good. Let Pharmacist diary open it’s pages on Smoking Cessation. Read on you might find a thing or two useful.
Nicotine is a psychoactive drug that is highly addictive. Withdrawal symptoms includes sleep disturbances, depressed mood, restlessness, urge to smoke etc. Most of these symptoms typically last 2-4 weeks.
Support Available
There are various services available to support individuals willing to stop lighting up. They range from online support to community groups. To name a few.
- NHS Smokefree App: It offers daily support and motivation.
- Local Stop Smoking Service: Individuals are four times more likely to quit just by being open and talking about it.
- Emergence Helpline: They help individuals breakdown feelings/emotions.
Match Individuals with Treatments?
An appropriate treatment can be provided after establishing the level of nicotine dependence. The easiest and reliable method to measure dependence is to ask: ‘How soon after waking do you smoke the first cigarette of the day?’ If a person smokes within 30 minutes of waking, they are a highly dependent smoker and would benefit from more intensive smoking cessation treatment and a higher dose of Nicotine replacement.
Recommendation: A patch which releases a steady supply of nicotine into your system throughout the day and then a fast acting form such as a gum.
Preventing Relapse
Discuss possible situations that leads to relapse and how to cope in such situations. Signpost to local community smoking cessation services. Highlight the importance of fast acting Nicotine replacement chewing gum and spray.
No Comments