There are a number of ways to rescue your nicotine intake once you’ve already begun your journey towards a smoke-free and nicotine-free lifestyle. For the majority of people, reducing nicotine intake is a key aspect of their overall goal to quit smoking. While nicotine itself can be toxic at high levels and is the highly addictive substance that makes tobacco products so dangerous, nicotine itself is not the most harmful aspect of a cigarette.
In order to set yourself up for success and have the best chance at leaving cigarettes, tobacco, and nicotine behind for good, you need to identify all of the factors that contribute to your nicotine intake, make a plan of action to move away from cigarette use with a cessation aid that works for you and your specific needs, and stick to it with regularly set goals, touchpoints, and rewards to help you stay motivated and accountable.
Step 1: Assess Your Intake and Make a Plan
Making a plan and writing down each step with goal dates and rewards can help to keep you on track and incentivised as you work towards a smoke-free and nicotine-free lifestyle. Keeping yourself accountable can be difficult, but laying out a logical plan with small and manageable steps as well as working with a quitting partner or support group can help you stay focused on your goal.
The first part of developing your plan involves taking a deeper look at your intake. What factors influence you to smoke? Why did you start in the first place? Are there deeper issues that need to be addressed like stress, anxiety, or even trauma? What time of day or during which activities do you smoke the most? Do you always smoke in your car? Do you always have a cigarette after you eat? Do you feel the cravings come on when you’re around certain people or situations?
Just like all human behaviours, your addiction to cigarettes does not exist in a vacuum. There are a number of societal, environmental, and psychological dimensions to smoking as a habit that contribute to the addictiveness of cigarettes. You may find that you need to alter other behaviours in your life in order to effectively move away from the patterns, people, and places that lead you to want to smoke.
This is also the best time to ask yourself what the most difficult part of quitting will be. If you feel that you have the willpower to go cold turkey, but the side effects of nicotine withdrawal make you miserable to the point you feel you need the nicotine to function normally, a nicotine replacement method could help you to quickly break the habit while weaning yourself off nicotine. If you feel that the withdrawal symptoms aren’t that bad, but the habitual act of smoking is so ingrained into your daily routine and social interactions, then you may want to consider a type of cessation aid that helps you to reduce your nicotine dependence first while still performing the behaviours associated with smoking so that you can break your physical dependence before addressing the more difficult task of breaking the habit altogether.
Step 2: Find a Cessation Method that Works for You
There are an extensive number of nicotine replacement therapy and smoking cessation options that are designed to help ease withdrawal symptoms. These products are often explicitly geared toward helping you stop smoking by providing your brain with the nicotine that fuels the urge to smoke without having to actually smoke one. Since many nicotine replacement products, like nicotine gum, nicotine lozenges, nicotine nasal sprays, and nicotine patches, can contain large amounts of nicotine, it’s important to follow the product’s instructions for directed use and also to not smoke a cigarette while actively using a nicotine patch or having just taken an ingestible type of nicotine.
If you know that there is a deeper behavioural or even social aspect to your nicotine intake, and nicotine replacement methods just don’t cut it for you, there are still options out there that can help you move away from cigarettes. Nicotine inhalers and vape devices can help provide both the standard nicotine replacement therapy by supplying nicotine without having to inhale cigarette smoke while also mimicking the act of smoking itself.
There’s no right or wrong way to stop smoking and start reducing your nicotine intake, there are only ways that do and do not work for you. Try to stay positive as you try different methods and take note of what specifically did and did not work for you with each one you try.
Step 3: Small Manageable Steps
Once you have found a cessation method that you are comfortable with, that you feel is truly helping you achieve your goal of removing cigarettes from your life and reducing your nicotine intake, all you have to do is stick to your plan. Easier said than done, but you can do it.
Sticking to the plan is arguably the most difficult part of the whole process because it can feel like a very passive endeavour compared to the planning and testing cessation methods phases. This is why it’s important to set regular goals, whether those are monthly, weekly, or even daily is up to you, and be sure to reward yourself for your efforts, even if you haven’t been perfect.
If you are using nicotine replacement therapies to cut the habit of smoking first while keeping the physical nicotine addiction at bay, you will likely start on a higher level of nicotine in whatever product you choose. After you break your habitual addiction, you can start to decrease your nicotine intake by reducing the number of products you use, using them for less time than you normally would, or moving down to a lower nicotine level. Eventually, you should be able to go for longer and longer periods without any nicotine at all until you finally master your cravings and make a clean break from nicotine addiction.
If you are using a cessation aid to mimic the behavioural patterns and sensations of smoking like a nicotine inhaler or vaping device, you can potentially start at a much lower nicotine level and make the move to a zero-nicotine version more quickly before working on reducing the number and length of each use. It may be helpful to break down your use of a vape or other inhalant for cessation into scheduled use times and either reduce the duration of those sessions or work to remove one at a time.
Break the Cycle with STLTH Vapes
STLTH Vape products are designed for adult smokers looking to make the switch and break away from cigarette use. We offer closed-pod vape systems that are filled in Canada, and fully disposable vape systems with high-quality e-liquids designed specifically to offer you the optimal vape experience with every STLTH product.
STLTH disposables are available in two versions: STLTH 3K, a pre-charged, single-use disposable vape device designed for the ultimate flavour experience, and STLTH 5K, a box-style disposable with a massive e-liquid capacity and rechargeable ability so you can enjoy every last drop. The STLTH 5K also features indicator lights to let you know when you’re running low on battery and e-liquid. Both the 3K and 5K disposables are fully draw-activated to offer simplicity to first-time vape users and to protect your device from accidental activation when stored.
STLTH disposable vape pods are pre-filled pods that attach to a rechargeable STLTH battery device with a 470 mAh battery for an all-day charge. Each STLTH Original and STLTH X pod is filled in Canada with proprietary nicotine blends designed exclusively for use in STLTH Original and STLTH X pods. Get exceptional flavour, trusted quality, and user-friendly convenience with the reliability of a rechargeable device and the variety of choice of STLTH’s extensive offering of flavours in STLTH pre-filled disposable vape pods.