Kate Thornton: How I Quit Smoking

The smoking ban, which came into effect in July 2007, has left the UK's 12 million smokers facing a bleak future. Maire Bonheim, Assistant Editor at Keepthedoctoraway.co.uk, chatted to TV presenter Kate Thornton about why quitting was the most rewarding thing she’s ever done.

When did you start smoking?

I started smoking when I was 18. I quit this year in January at the grand old age of 33.

Why did you decide to stop?

The health reasons really. If I was going to quit smoking, this was the year to do it. Everything is working against smokers at the moment; they’ve been dumped on the pavement at the hands of the smoking ban.

Also, I’m getting to an age when I’d like to seriously consider starting a family and smoking just simply isn’t an option. It reduces your chances of fertility by 40%. And giving up smoking is quite an emotional experience as it is without throwing a pregnancy with the sickness and hormones into the equation. So for me it was the right timing, and it was an intelligent thing to do.

How many did you smoke a day?

I smoked about 15 cigarettes a day. I was a committed smoker and I really did enjoy it. So it was a tough thing to do.

How did you quit?

I just stopped. I didn’t use patches or anything; I bought the gum and didn’t like the taste of it. But I really did need to speak to friends who had given up smoking and I needed them to keep encouraging me and telling me I could do it and it would get easier. Every time I fancied a cigarette, rather than smoke I would phone a friend. I would say to myself, you’re not going to smoke today – you might smoke tomorrow, but today you’re not going to smoke – and I didn’t. I took it a day at a time. Those first few weeks are a real struggle!

Once I got passed that I thought, that’s it, I’m not going back again, and I really stuck to my guns – it would have been so easy to start smoking again. But ultimately as somebody who wants a family I will have to stop, and I won’t put myself through the hell of those early weeks again.

Every time I had an urge for a cigarette I’d do 20 sit-ups or lunges, so I was really giving my lungs a workout. And at the end of doing 20 lunges the last thing you fancy is a cigarette, trust me! So that was my way of beating the craving. I didn’t substitute cigarettes for food because I wanted to prove myself that I could do it without gaining 2 stone in the process.

What were the benefits?

I lost a lot of weight because I was exercising so much, which was brilliant! I started running, and I couldn’t run very far when I smoked because you don’t have the breath in your body to be able to do those long distances. And financially I felt the benefits; I certainly went to the cash point a lot less!

More than anything I really like not smelling of cigarettes. I can really smell it on other people right now and I think, crikey that was me. I also enjoy not being a slave to smoking. I always used to plan my social diary around places I could smoke. I wouldn’t go to a great restaurant if you couldn’t smoke there, and I’d plan my smoking en route to an airport because once you’re inside there’s nowhere to smoke and that would make me panic. It was silly and I hated being in the grip of an addiction. I really wanted to be in control of it, and I wasn’t, it absolutely controlled me.

Do you think the smoking ban is a good thing?

For me personally it’s been a real help because 6 months into giving up smoking suddenly nobody else could smoke in the restaurant or pub and I found that a lot easier. Would I have voted in favour of it? Probably not. But it’s here to stay and there’s not a lot we can do about it.

I would never say that everybody should stop smoking, because I know the pleasure that can be derived from it. It’s a personal thing and if you’re not serious about it then you just won’t stop, it’s as simple as that. But if you do want to quit, there is a lot of support to help you do that.

What advice would you give to people trying to quit smoking?

If you really are serious about giving up, then make sure that you’ve got all the support and help you need. The government are offering free advice and support through seriousquitters.co.uk. You’ll find all the help and contacts that you need to make sure you are guided through the experience by healthcare professionals that really know how to best advise you.

For more information on the dangers of smoking and tips for giving up, visit www.keepthedoctoraway.co.uk