I read this question on the Oprah Message board about quitting smoking. When a smoker is smoking, it is like their gums are being smoked like a fish. When the smoker stops smoking, the gums start to shed that tough “smoked” lining and the smoker gets all new baby tissue. The new baby tissue is good but it hurts and it is like when a baby is teething ..it feels uncomfortable.

What you can do if you have just quit smoking and your gums are sore is rinse with Amosan mouthwash. You can buy it in the oral hygiene section of any drug store or buy it online at Drugstore.com . You just mix the powder packet with some water and rinse and it is soothing and will heal the sore mouth.

If you have quit and you have some physical symptoms that are bothering you I can probably help you . Just post your question on my blog.

Lela Bryan

I read the message boards from the Oprah and Dr Oz show about quitting smoking and I would like to know what is the biggest fear you have about quitting smoking?

On Oprah’s message board I read, “I need a buddy to stop smoking”

As I read over the message board from the Oprah and Dr. Oz TV show about stopping smoking the theme was very clear. Smokers said “I need a buddy” and the reason was that you needed accountability and support.

Smoking is a multifaceted habit that has got you emotionally, physically, psychologically, financially and behaviorally. Smoking has got you every way you turn. You smoke after a meal, first thing in the morning, last thing at night, with coffee, with alcohol and most of your cars won’t start without lighting that cigarette!

Getting a buddy is great and to learn how to quitting smoking permanently you need more than a buddy…You need to learn all about the habit and change your routines and habits.

Lela Bryan

Chief learning Officer

http://www.nicotinesolutions.com

I teach people how to quit smoking.

I am neither for nor against Chantix, the new pill to help people quit smoking.

I could recommend this or not but I want to know what the long-range effects after someone has been off Chantix for at least 6 months. Are there any of you out there?

I really don’t know of too many people trying Chantix.

Could you reply to my blog and let me know the good and the bad so I will know what to say to my clients who ask about Chantix.

Thanks!
The Quit Queen

Lela Bryan
http://www.nicotinesolutions.com
The Personal Approach to Quitting Smoking & Changing Your Life!!

One of our students went to her dentist because her dentures were hurting after she quit smoking.

This is fairly common when someone quits smoking. In fact, changes in teeth and gums will last up to 8 weeks when you quit smoking or chewing.

I was shocked when this student told the class that she asked her dentist what she could do for the painful dentures and her dentist told her to go back to smoking! Whoa!!!

When I talked with my advisors, who are dentists, I heard a loud gasp when I explained the problem!  Here is what they told me. If you quit smoking and your dentures are bothering you or your mouth is sore

You can try this:

1. Amosan, which is a soothing mouth rinse.
2. Orabase paste, which has benzocaine, which numbs the pain.
3. Orajel Denture plus gel. There is a version of this that babies use when they are teething.

If you are quitting smoking and your dentures are bothering you, go to a Prosthodontist, which is a dentist that specializes in dentures.

A full realignment right away would be good and or a soft tissue conditioner.

I am not a dentist, but I have been teaching people to quit smoking and chewing since 1978 and I know that this can be very painful.

The good news is that this is a temporary condition and the body is restoring and rebuilding itself .

Lela Bryan
http://www.nicotinesolutions.com
The Personal Approach to quitting smoking and Changing your life!

It is very individual for each person. Most of the people that I talk to say:

• “I really love smoking…it is the only thing that I do for myself…”

• “It is my companion…my lover…my best friend…”

• “It is my way to relax…my way to deal with stress…”

• “It is always there for me…my quiet time…and so why would I want to give up all of that!”

What was the main reason you decided to start smoking in the very beginning?

You didn’t know what it was going to be like to smoke.

You did not know if it would relax you…You certainly had your assumptions about what it would do or feel like, but you really did not know.

Why did you have that first cigarette?

1. Peer Pressure
2. to fit into an environment
3. Rebellion
4. to look older and cool

Now let’s take a closer look at these reasons, and whether or not they still hold true today….

• Is the peer group still pressuring you to smoke? I bet Those same people, if they are still around, are pressuring you to quit.

•   Are you still hanging around smoky environments? More and more places are now smoke-free

• Are you still rebelling against the same people? Probably not…..now you are probably rebelling because people are telling you where to smoke and how long you can be there.

•  Are you still trying to look older? Most people  say…”yeah, I guess it worked to make me look older”.

•  Do you still think it makes you look sophisticated?

If you take the original reason that you started and reverse it, that will be the reason that will be motivating to help you quit smoking!

If something will  motivate you one time, it will motivate you again. Now use the reason that motivated you to start smoking, in reverse, to help motivate you to quit smoking.

If you started for peer pressure, now let that peer pressure work for you to pressure you to quit (sort of pressuring you the other way). Let the people that want you to quit be a part of your quitting experience.

Maybe your environment is now smoke-free. Maybe it is even a hassle now to go and have a cigarette. If your environment has changed, let that be a motivator for you.

If you started for rebellion, let that rebellion work for you. For instance, you might not be rebelling against the same people anymore, but in order to have a cigarette you have to go outside to smoke, or it might be a big hassle to smoke. So you can rebel against all the restrictions and let that be a motivator for you.

If you started smoking to look older, guess what, it worked!  Now you want to look younger and you know if you quit you would look younger, and would not have those deep crevices that smoking creates. If you started smoking to look older, now you can quit smoking to look younger and more rejuvenated. Let that work for you to motivate you.

Remember—The way you do anything is   the way you do everything.

If it motivated you one time, it will motivate you again, and it will actually help You quit smoking.

Lela Bryan
http://www.nicotinesolutions.com
The Personal Approach to Quitting Smoking and Changing your Life!