Breaking The Habit

Dear Friend,

Today is the Great American Smoke Out. It was started in Monticello in in the 1970's. I have always heard of it, but I never knew until today that it had a local connection.

The rules are pretty simple. All you have to do is kick the habit for 24 hours. Even if you don't quit for good, you can at least say you gave it a shot.

Non-smokers can get in on it by "adopting" a smoker for a day. I think the ideal person to "adopt" a smoker would be someone who used to smoke themselves. That person can help the smoker by re-directing that "I NEED TO SMOKE" feeling into something else like taking a walk or eating a healthy snack. It's kind of like how the 12-step recovery programs work. When someone new joins, they find someone to be their sponsor. When they feel like drinking, they just have to contact their sponsor who talks it over with them and hopefully talks them out of wanting to take that first sip.

See if you can find someone today that can help you out, or help someone out that is looking to quit smoking. You never know. It may begin a new habit for you.

Take care,

Jen