Press Release
Gerd O’Sullivan, a Northwestern Health Unit board member for the Rainy River District Municipal Association, quit smoking on Jan. 18—10 days after the birth of her newest grandson.
O’Sullivan is publicly sharing her experience in hopes of encouraging others to quit during the fifth-annual “Driven to Quit Challenge” hosted by the Canadian Cancer Society.
This is the seventh time O’Sullivan has tried to quit and once again she is finding it difficult. However, her past attempts are an advantage because of the insight she has gained.
The nicotine addiction is tough to break but for her, with the rituals associated with smoking having stood in her way to being smoke-free.
“I can shake the nicotine withdrawal symptoms in a few days,” she said.
“It’s figuring out how to enjoy coffee without a cigarette or what to do in the evening without a cigarette that would sink me each time.”
Over her previous quit attempts, O’Sullivan has learned more each time about how to be successful in beating the addiction.
This time, she is more confident she will succeed.
One thing O’Sullivan has learned about quitting is that it helps to remove any temptation. For instance, she wasn’t able to break the connection between coffee and cigarettes until the Smoke-Free Ontario Act removed that temptation for her.
To her surprise, it became easy to go to the coffee shop and enjoy a cup of coffee without a cigarette because it had become a non-smoking setting.
Taking this wisdom one step further, O’Sullivan deliberately made her car and home completely smoke-free. If she wanted a cigarette, she had to smoke outside no matter what the weather—and many times that was enough to make her decide not to bother.
She also stored her cigarettes in the freezer in her garage so she had to get dressed for the outdoors to get a cigarette and then stand outside to smoke.
Many times this proved to be not worth the effort.
“Gerd is experiencing what many smokers do when they quit,” noted Jennifer McKibbon, the Tobacco-Free Living program manager at the health unit.
“A few days with lots of water and willpower will flush the nicotine from your body but, for most, smoking is far more complex than just a physical craving,” she said.
“After that passes, a smoker begins the tough work of identifying their personal triggers and successfully replacing them with healthier options.
“Gerd has learned a lot about her addiction and is well on her way to being a successful quitter,” McKibbon added.
More than 168 people in the northwest region already have committed to quit smoking this March by registering for the “Driven to Quit Challenge.”
There is still time for others to join O’Sullivan as registration is open until Feb. 28.
Ontario adults can enter with a support buddy, and pledge to quit smoking or tobacco use for the month of March.
Entrants who are successfully smoke-free for the month of March have the chance to win a 2010 Ford Escape hybrid and one of two $5,000 vacation getaways.
A $2,000 MasterCard gift card is exclusively reserved for one person in the northwest region.
To register for the challenge, Ontarians aged 19 and over can visit www.DrivenToQuit.ca or drop by their local Northwestern Health Unit office for an entry form.
