The most important thing you can do for yourself before you quit smoking is to try and identify:

a. Why you smoke

b. When you smoke, and

c. What the rewards are for you.

Look back at the initial assessment tests at the beginning of this program. What general category or categories do you fall into? Do you smoke for stimulation, to have something to do with your hands, for the pleasure of enjoying the way the smoke feels going in and out of your lungs or the way the smoke rises in clouds? Or, perhaps you smoke for relaxation, or because of cravings for cigarettes. Or perhaps smoking is more of a habit than anything else for you.

How did you score on the test for dependence? If you answered three to five as true on this test you are probably dependent on nicotine and will want to take that into consideration when making your stop smoking plan. The higher the score the more likely you should consider a nicotine replacement method.

It is also important that you keep track of every cigarette you smoke for one week and record:

• the time of day you smoked,
• the number of cigarettes smoked,
• where you were when you smoked and
• what happened immediately before you decided that you wanted/needed a cigarette.
• Also record how you felt while smoking each cigarette and
• how you felt once you were finished smoking that cigarette.
• Did you smoke alone or with others?
• At the end of the week indicate whether this was a pretty average week or a more stressful week than normal.
• Was this a typical week as far as the number of cigarettes you smoked?
• How much money did you spend on cigarettes or tobacco and matches and lighters?
• How often did you buy these products?
• Where did you buy them? Are these your usual places to buy tobacco products.

Look at the specifics of when and where you smoke, how you feel, why you smoke, etc...and plan strategies to do something else in place of smoking. This will be the first step in developing your quit smoking plan.