Table of Contents
Tobacco has been a part of human culture for thousands of years, and hasn’t come that far from the rituals and practices of the indigenous South American tribes that first cultivated the crop. It was used in a multitude of ways, and the science of today has allowed us to examine the contents of the tobacco plant, and discover the true implications of the compounds found inside, and therefore why it is so hard to stop smoking tobacco.
The most notable constituent found in tobacco is nicotine. Nicotine is a highly addictive substance that behaves as both a stimulant and depressant, acting on receptors in the brain that control and affect our thinking, focus, mood, among other things. It is for this reason that smokers often say that smoking helps them maintain focus, relaxes them, and improves their mood. The reality is that as a smoker, these receptors begin to rely on activation by nicotine, which means they don’t work so well when there is little nicotine to act on them. This leads to lower mood, less ability to focus, and feels stressful - and that is known as ‘withdrawal’.
The withdrawal symptoms are the biggest reason people have trouble quitting tobacco; these symptoms range from headaches and dizziness to anxiety and depression, and someone trying to quit knows that having a cigarette will alleviate the symptoms. We can get an idea for how strongly these symptoms affect smokers by referring to a study from the British Medical Journal that estimated the number of quit smoking attempts by smokers. The study concludes that it can take more than thirty quit attempts for many smokers to finally kick the habit.
That's why getting all the help you can get is advised, after all it doesn't matter how you get there, quitting is still quitting! On the physical side with such issues as nicotine withdrawal and physical habits there are a range of options to help, with perhaps the most useful one being the E-Cigarette.
The E-Cigarette, due to giving you the nicotine you need and feeling and tasting like a tobacco cigarette (while being 95% less harmful than cigarettes), has been a revolution for smokers looking to quit smoking, with studies showing an E-Cigarette is almost twice as effective as other nicotine products like patches of gum!
An E-Cigarette or Vape is a great way to beat the physical part of addiction, but what about the mental? That's where Social Media comes in.
SHOULD I GET HELP WITH QUITTING SMOKING
We have established that quitting smoking, for most of us, is an incredibly challenging process, and so it really makes sense to seek professional help in order to maximise your chances of success!
There are a variety of avenues to explore when seeking out resources that can help you, and high up on the list is a medical professional - they will be able to advise you of the forms of Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) available (for example nicotine patches) by prescription and over-the-counter. They can recommend programs to follow, and point you in the direction of support.
The NHS does a great job of going through all the options you have to help you quit smoking, including E-Cigarettes
In addition to seeking out a medical professional, there are other resources available to you online, and they may be more helpful than you think!
CAN SOCIAL MEDIA AND ONLINE RESOURCES HELP WITH QUITTING SMOKING
Quitting smoking is a tough process, and there is no shame in seeking assistance! The goal is to get off the cigarettes, so any resources that can positively contribute to that aim is worth exploring. The NHS website has a page dedicated to quitting smoking, and has a load of tips, ideas and means of support on there - make sure to check it out!
There are a few specific services on there that I think would be of great help to many smokers embarking on a smoking cessation program. This includes daily email support that contains advice and tips, a Facebook community group to engage with other people going through the same difficulties, and the number for the National Smoke-Free helpline if you want to talk to a trained advisor for advice and support.
Any of these options are great because all of them will remind you that you are not alone in the challenge you face and, silly as it sounds, that can make a huge difference. Talking with others facing the same struggles can improve your motivation, and social media offers a great opportunity to come together as a community to share your stories, your pains, and your reasons for quitting.
Getting engaged with others not only offers a healthy distraction, but you may well laugh and/or cry with these people and some of the stories they share! Believe it or not, a good laugh or cry can help reduce stress, so let it happen when it does.
Getting engaged with others not only offers a healthy distraction, but you may well laugh and/or cry with these people and some of the stories they share! Believe it or not, a good laugh or cry can help reduce stress, so let it happen when it does.
If you feel self-conscious about your struggles, you can always maintain a degree of anonymity online. This means you can access all of the help without any of the spotlight! If you are worried about feeling judged, then this might be the way to go for you. There is a wealth of knowledge online for those who would seek it, but don’t discount people’s experiences in favour of scientific studies! Studies are useful, but personal anecdotes, tips and tricks are often tried and tested by the person telling you about them, so make sure to listen to those who have made it through to the end goal.
One of the biggest benefits has to be the opportunity to interact with someone on the same journey but further down the line. They can tell you what did and didn’t work for them, they can warn you about the hardest times they experienced, and maybe even what they wish they had tried or done better from the get-go.
WHAT ARE THE SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS AVAILABLE?
There is no shortage of social media platforms online, and it is proving to be a central source of information for many of us. There is also good variation in the media available distributing this information - we are all a bit different, and some learn better from reading an article, while some of us absorb the information better through a demonstrative video. Whatever your preference, the choice is yours!
VIDEO CHANNELS
Platforms such as YouTube and TikTok offer a video format for people to present either themselves talking to the camera, or put together images and footage for a visual experience. On YouTube, there are many creators dealing with smoking cessation topics, as well as normal people sharing videos from experts like Alan Carr, a British author who is renowned for his ‘quit smoking’ books and other materials.
Tik Tok is more of a short form version of the video format, with the video length limit having seen an increase in 2021 from 1 minute to 3 minutes. These can be great for little bursts of inspiration and engaging in challenges to keep you occupied, and maybe even have some fun along the way. There are accounts dedicated to these little shorts containing something to make you smile, and videos from quit smoking gurus that may inspire or expand your knowledge.
QUORA
Quora is another online option - it is a social question-and-answer website that is highly ranked and sees a lot of traffic, so it is a great option for anyone who is happy to spend a bit of time reading! Everything from products or program recommendations, to personal stories, can be found on the site, and you can tailor your search towards particular questions, answers, topics and other styles of post.
SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCERS AND BLOGGERS
I know that society currently has a big question mark hanging over the value of social media, but the high level of accessibility and distribution of knowledge is a redeeming quality of the social media companies. For one thing, there are doctors making their understanding of science available to the masses, in a way that people can understand, which is key to building a multitude of reasons why you should stop smoking. Try writing out a list of reasons why you think you need to quit, then do a little watching or reading on these sites and add any extra reasons that apply to you!
The inspiring nature of some of these content creators shouldn’t be undervalued, either. Many young adults follow these creators because they have achieved something, and normally the person watching is striving towards that same goal. These creators earn the admiration and respect from their viewers in this way, which gives the creator the power to influence - hence the term ‘influencer’. It doesn’t matter what the subject matter is, their viewers will take the time to listen, giving the creator the opportunity to share their experience in overcoming challenges - like giving up tobacco, and how that might help the viewer achieve their goals.
A fitness influencer would tell you how smoking impacts your cardiovascular system, a music YouTuber may talk about the dangers smoking presents to your singing voice, a beautician content creator may well talk about how smoking can negatively impact your skin. Whatever piques your interest, you may find smoking could bring about the end of your ability to enjoy doing it, and that can be quite a powerful incentive to stop!
There are also plenty of videos reviewing nicotine replacement products - alternative ways of getting your nicotine that doesn’t involve smoking - and plenty of influencers that either vape or have a channel dedicated to vaping. Despite the media campaign targeting e-cigarettes and other vaping products, vaping is proving to be an invaluable addition to smoking cessation methods, so - if vaping seems like the right avenue for you, make sure to check out product reviews online!
ONLINE COMMUNITIES
There are more communities online for those that enjoy reading and interacting with others on the web. These forums aren’t always filled 100% with useful or engaging posts, but there are a lot of personal success stories, and horror stories, to get people to want to be on the right track.
One particular site, Reddit, has a stop smoking group that has over one hundred and twenty eight thousand members, and that is not the only group! Everyone is there for the same reason, so it really is a community of people who want the best for each other. This is why questions get answered, recommendations are made, and support is freely given! Successful quitters share what worked for them, potential treatment options or products, and Reddit even has a group dedicated to electronic cigarettes and how they’ve helped members quit smoking!
Facebook is another well known social media site that has lots of support for quitters. The NHS has a Facebook page dedicated to quitting smoking called ‘NHS Smokefree’, as do the Health and Safety Executive (a government agency for regulating workplace health, safety and welfare). These pages have plenty of information, and communities to engage with, but they also provide telephone numbers for quitters to call if they need support. Sometimes, there is nothing like talking to another human being about these issues!
If you want to stay away from social media sites, you have many other online forums dedicated to quitting smoking that you can check out. The Health Unlocked website has a quit smoking support forum, for example, and though it is free you do need to sign up to use it.
DOES SOCIAL MEDIA ACTUALLY HELP QUIT SMOKING?
Social media has such enormous reach that it has been suspected that these platforms could play a part in disseminating stop-smoking information, and play a role in helping people give up cigarettes for good. A systematic review from Naslund JA, Kim SJ, Aschbrenner KA, et al. found that in 3 of the 7 studies included in the review, active participation by posting or liking posts may be associated with improved outcomes when it comes to stopping smoking.
Another review of studies assessing the effectiveness of social media interventions utilised 13 studies and found that smokers who engaged with social media based interventions had a higher rate of abstinence after 7 days compared to baseline, and also had higher rates of abstinence at 7 days when compared to a control group. The mechanisms are not clear at this stage, but engaging with online stop smoking communities appears to have a positive effect on a quit attempt - so get out there, start liking posts and sharing stories!
You don’t need to look hard for successful quitters showering praises on these communities, many even cite the community as having saved their life. Not only is it a place where stories can be shared, advice and support given, the community can hold you to account, if you want them to. This kind of social networking may bring you friends, and personal satisfaction from helping others on the site, in addition to helping your quit attempt.
CAN SOCIAL MEDIA HELP YOU QUIT SMOKING
Overcoming a tobacco addiction, for most of us, is not easily done. As the number one preventable cause of death around the world, smoking is a health issue that scientists and governments are working hard to address.
Even with the help of things like E-Cigarettes and Vape Starter Kits the mental component of addiction will always be there.
Investigating new ways to improve the chances of a successful quit attempt is essential, and social media interventions are showing some promise in this area, so should not be discounted.
On an individual level, these communities make a difference. If they helped one person quit, they are worthwhile, and it would appear that many people benefit from these quit smoking communities, and we have social media to thank. Fancy that!
REFERENCES
1) Public Health England's statement on the safety of E-Cigarettes compared to cigarettes
2) British Medical Journal Article estimating the number of quit smoking attempts by smokers
3) NHS on methods to quit smoking with NRTs
4) A study on how laughing can help with stress
5) Search Engine Journal article that explains what Quora is
6) A report on Science Direct linking online resources to quit smoking success
7) Sage Journal Article found on quit success when participants actively participate in online research
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Written by Mike Cameron
Mike Cameron is a former smoker of 15 years (2 packs a day) until he successfully quit using a cigalike. Mike is the Co-Founder and CEO of SMOKO E-Cigarettes and over the last 10 years, SMOKO has prevented 600M+ cigarettes from being smoked, helped their customers save £320M+ of their hard-earned money from going up in smoke and helped 10,000’s of adult smokers in 25+ countries to live smoke-free.
