If you’re thinking of quitting smoking, Stoptober is the perfect time to make a change. In Stoptober, you’re encouraged to aim for 28 days smoke free. Do that, and you’re five times more likely to quit for good.
To mark Stoptober, we spoke to Maria Beaumont from Haringey, who shared how taking part in the lung screening programme motivated her to finally quit smoking.
“I started smoking as a teenager. It was due to teen bravado, I think – “Look at me, I’m cool,” that sort of thing. It was easy to do back then, people used to smoke on trains, aeroplanes!
I told my GP I was a smoker, and I was in the eligible age range for lung cancer screening. I got an invite through the post to go for screening, saying I was at higher risk.
As a smoker, you know what you’re doing is dangerous, so you’re always a little bit worried. The health anxiety gets worse as you get older, more things can go wrong! So, when I saw the invite envelope with the little blue NHS logo in the corner, I thought: Seriously, what am I doing?
Lying in the scanner, I felt such a panic. Not at the scan itself, but at imagining them coming back with the results and telling me the worst news possible. It was pure terror – suddenly it became very real. I had an epiphany. When I left that day, I quit smoking. It’s been a year now and I haven’t smoked since.
I’d made attempts in the past to quit, but they never lasted long. There weren’t as many support options as there are now. For me, vapes were really helpful in quitting. I know they have their own issues, but as a replacement for my heavy smoking, they were such a help.
Smoking is a horrible addiction. Before this, I really felt like I just couldn’t quit. I felt it was impossible for me. It was that terror lying in the scanner that finally made me do it. I couldn’t have done it without the lung screening programme. Even after the tests came back okay, the memory of that fear motivates me. Other people can smoke around me now and I don’t even feel the urge to light up.
I would say to current smokers –If you’ve got anything to live for, why would you risk that? If a lifelong smoker like me can quit, anyone can”.
For resources and info on support to quit smoking: Smoke Free App for London – Stop Smoking London
For more info on lung cancer screening visit: Lung Check London