There's no doubt about it, it's hard to quit smoking especially for women who may experience severe withdrawal symptoms during their menstrual cycle.
So what can a woman who honestly wants to quit smoking do?
For starters, grab your calendar. The key to quitting for good is to plan it out according to your menstrual cycle. You want to avoid days one and 14 of your menstrual cycle when you could experience major withdrawal symptoms.
The worst time to quit smoking is during the week prior to your period. This is because your body is going thorough hormonal changes and mood fluctuations which can put your body's coping mechanism at a disadvantage.
Research also suggests that since women usually derive more pleasure from the smell and tastes of cigarette smoke than men do, that the patch may not be as successful in helping you quit smoking once and for all. Because of this you may want to consider trying a nicotine inhaler instead.
When women are trying to quit smoking it's also good to know that smoking is not a simple physiological addiction to nicotine - it also has a behavioural aspect.
This means that when we feel a little down in the dumps we're more likely to reach for a cigarette or if we've already quit, we may be tempted to relapse.
Sometimes depression can also be a factor in unsuccessful attempts to quit smoking. Some people have found that taking Zyban (an antidepressant) has also been successful in reducing their cigarette cravings.
Published by Sherrie Le Masurier on July 21, 2006 07:57 AM
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