HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2001-01-17, Page 10Breathing easier
After successfully completing the X Smokers program,
Lynda McAdam, left, and Donna Govier of Blyth are able to
enjoy a walk in the fresh air.
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A Tradition of Results
PAGE 10. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2001.
Blyth women find breath without cigarettes
By Janice Becker
Citizen staff
It is with great excitement and
enthusiasm that Donna Govier and
Lynda McAdam of Blyth tell of their
wonderful achievement.
"It has been 40 days," ...without
smoking that is.
The Quit Smoking 2001 Contest is
offsing smokers in Huron County a
chance to kick the habit and win
great prizes. The province-wide
contest will help prepare smokers to
stop smoking by March 1 and remain
smoke free for at least the entire
month of March.
"It's not easy to quit smoking,"
says Kim Ross, Co-chair of the
Coalition for a Smoke-Free Huron
Perth. "It helps if you are mentally
prepared and you have supports in
place for when the going gets tough."
The contest is structured to help
people prepare for and quit smoking
by March 1. That gives them about
six weeks to work through the stages
that lead to successful quitting, line
up a non-smoking buddy for support
and learn about local resources to
help them quit.
Ross says a smoker who wants to
quit should begin by thinking about
why they smoke, why they want to
quit and how they will cope with the
urges and pressures to smoke after
they have quit. Contest participants
are required to enlist the help of a
non-smoking buddy. who will give
them support along the way. These
buddies are eligible to win cash
prizes.
"The ways of quitting are as varied
as the people who smoke," says
Ross. "We do know that all smoters
go through five stages to being
smoke free — having no thought of
quitting, thinking about quitting,
getting ready to quit, quitting and
becoming and remaining smoke free.
The goal of this contest is to provide
incentives to help smokers move to
Govier and McAdam both took
part in an X Smokers class held at
Walton Inn late last year.
McAdam's daughter attended a
course four years ago," said Govier,
" and is still successful. So when
Lynda said she wanted to go, she
encouraged me to go too because we
spend a lot of time together."
the quitting stage, and then give them
the supports to help them quit."
The Quit Smoking 2001 Contest is
open to all Ontario residents who are
daily smokers and are 19 years of
age or older. Entries must be
received by midnight Feb. 28, and
smokers must quit smoking by
March 1 and remain smoke free until
March 31 to qualify for the contest
prize draws.
Prizes are a Caribbean cruise for
two, one of seven RCA DVD players
and a set of his and her watches.
"Everyone who enters the contest
and quits — even it it's only for a
month — comes out a winner,
whether or not their name is selected
in the draws," says Ross.
For more information about the
Calling 1-877-513-5333 may be
the first step towards saving a life.
Launched last April, the Smokers'
Helpline is just one aid smokers
or those in the process of quitting,
can use to prevent the addic-
tion of cigarettes from ending their
lives.
According to the Canadian Cancer
Society, smoking-related illnesses
will claim the lives of half those who
smoke, a total of almost one million
Ontarians.
During National Non-Smoking
Week, Jan 15-21, and in particular on
Weedless Wednesday, smokers may
take up the challenge to quit.
To support the difficult
undertaking, the Cancer Society's
The pair agreed it would be
difficult for both of them if only one
quit smoking.
In order to hold a class in the area,
McAdam had to get at least 10
people to agree to participate. "It
only took two or three days," she
said. Several of her family members
attended as well as other local
residents.
Once organized, the two spent
several weeks attending group
meetings and learning the techniques
of X Smokers' founder Peter
Lambert.
Both say the program is about
learning how to change habits and
attitudes to stop smoking. It is not
about taking a drug or using other
forms of nicotine.
"It teaches you what to do to cut
down," says Govier. "The group
support helps. We met every
Sunday." .
Both note the importance of
continued contact with group
members as well as Lambert.
"He is always there for support.
He stands by you," says McAdam.
"He is available by e-mail, or
phone."
Of the 11 people who began the
program, nine succeeded, says
Govier. "The 10th one is
working on it with Lambert's help
and I don't think the other one was
really ready."
Smokers of more than a pack a day
for 37 years (McAdam) and 42 years
(Govier), they say they had both
tried many methods to quit,
unsuccessfully. Govier stopped for
more than a year, but eventually
went back. McAdam's longest stint
was only 11 days when her husband
bought a pack for her because of her
moodiness.
Being ready to quit was an
important factor to their success, this
time, they say.
The eight-week course
(compressed to seven so the group
contest, entry forms, and advice,
support and resources to help you
quit smoking, call the Huron County
Health Unit at (519) 482-3416 or, if
long distance, 1-877-837-6143.
Smokers can also register for the
contest on the internet at
www.srhip.on.ca/tichu
The Quit Smoking 2001 Contest is
funded in part by the Ontario
Ministry of Health and Long-Term
Care and is supported by 57 local
councils on smoking and health and
public health units throughout
Ontario in partnership with their
Industrial Accident Prevention
Association and the Ontario
Tobacco-free Network. This year's
sponsors include CTV Television
and GlaxoSmithKline.
toll-free helpline is there to offer
support through trained quit
specialists.
Research has shown that smokers
who use a telephone support system
are twice as likely to succeed.
The Smokers' Helpline provides
information, advice and support on a
confidential basis from 9 a.m. to 9
p.m., Monday through Thursday and
9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Fridays.
Within one to nine months of
quitting smoking, your energy
level will increase; you won't
cough as much; sinus
congestion will be alleviated;
and you won't be so short of
breath,
could finish before Christmas)
allows participants to smoke for the
first five-weeks then periodic "time-
outs" must be taken.
Aside from the gradual cutting
down of nicotine intake, Govier says
there were assignments to do each
week.
One such assignment was to
calculate approximately how much
they had spent on cigarettes over the
years. McAdam's bill rang in at over
$60,000 and Govier's hit $69,000.
McAdam says the program made
her stop and think about why she
was smoking. She would sometimes
get up three times a night to have a
smoke. She had to learn to place her
cigarettes in a less convenient
location, making it more of a task to
light that smoke. Now, she sleeps
through the night.
Because of the group support and
the regular meetings, they say they
were afraid to cheat. They didn't
want to have to report their failure
the next week.
One advantage they have both
noticed since the journey without
cigarettes began is improved health.
"After Lynda had stopped
smoking for only a few days, she
called me on the phone," • says
Govier. "I didn't recognize her
voice. It was the first time I had
spoken to her when she wasn't
wheezing."
The wheezing was a major factor
in McAdam's decision to quit
smoking and she has already seen a
vast improvement.
Both say they can even shovel
snow now, a necessity this winter.
Both also noticed that food tastes a
lot better now. "The gravy at
Christmas was so good," smiles
Govier.
Though they have seen a weight
gain since being off the smokes, both
say it is not a top concern right now.
"We will get the smoking under
control first, then think about the
Within 15 years of quitting'
smoking„ your risk of heart
disease is the Same as that of a
person who never smoked.
weight, says McAdam.
Now that they are non-smokers
they also realize how they smellec
for many years.
Taught not to criticize smokers
both women can see the other side tc
the issue now. They are doing things
as non-smokers they had complaineC
about as smokers. Annoyed when
non-smokers would take "smoking'.
seats in restaurants, they have found
themselves doing the same.
For anyone who is ready to quit
smoking, both women highly
recommend X Smokers.
"If it worked for me," says
McAdam, "it can work for anyone."
"It feels good to accomplish
something," adds Govier."
And that accomplishment is worn
proudly by both as they excitedly tell
those they talk to about their success.
Govier and McAdam will
definitely be breathing easier in
2001.
The Founding of X Smokers
Created in 1978 by Peter
Lambert, a 25-year, two-pack-a-
day smoker, X Smokers has been
determined by a University of
Western Ontario study, to be a
highly successful program.
With an immediate success rate
of 94 per cent and 70 per cent after
one year, X Smokers far surpasses
other programs which may have
success rates below 20 per cent.
Through an investigation
undertaken by CBC's
Marketplace, it was concluded
that cold turkey works for just
three to four per cent of the
population, while drugs with no
counselling increases that number
to only 10 per cent. A combination
of drugs and counselling can push
that to 20 per cent and the Mayo
Clinic in Minnesota has achieved
a 45 per cent success rate with an
eight-day, in-hospital program.
Lambert plans to return to
Huron County for another course
in late February or early March.
Anyone interested in participating
can contact him by phone at 1-
866-976-6537.
Stop smoking, earn great prizes
Smokers get helpline