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Smokers Have Ally In Battle Of Butts

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By GEOFF FOX, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 7, 2008

NEW PORT RICHEY - After 56 years, Dave Melden was ready to quit smoking.

He had tried before, and once went an entire year without a drag, but he always returned to the habit he picked up as a 13-year-old farm boy in Bay City, Mich.

But when Melden and his wife began raising Dominic, their 7-year-old great-grandson, the former New Port Richey fire chief said he found the inspiration he needed to stop for good.

"I've got bad lungs as it is," he said. "I said, 'Well, I want to see him at least become a young man.'"

He said he decided to try a quit-smoking clinic offered by the Pasco County Health Department after he saw a newspaper notice.

Melden hasn't had a cigarette since the two-month program ended two months ago.

"The program is very, very good," he said. "They handed out a book, and I read it every day. If you read the material, it really aids and helps you. Plus, sharing with other participants is good, like a buddy system."

The Health Department's next Freedom From Smoking clinic starts at 1 p.m. Wednesday at 4719 Vorhees Road, New Port Richey. Meetings are every Wednesday through Feb. 27, although there is an extra meeting on Feb. 1.

The clinic is facilitated by Tina White of New Life Wellness Center. White was certified by the American Lung Association, which researched and developed the program.

Cost is $30, although low-income participants might be eligible for a reduced rate. The program includes a workbook, relaxation CD, incentives and optional nicotine patches.

The Health Department began hosting the program last year, said Lisa Sloan, the agency's tobacco prevention specialist.

"The first class is a real testing ground," she said. "There are survey questions to see how prepared someone really is. If you're not really sure you want to quit, when the discussion is wrapped up students usually will know whether or not they want to go all the way.

"For a lot of people, just getting to the classroom is enough to see that they're not alone and that everyone else is scared, too."

Sloan said participants spend the first few weeks preparing to quit.

"They have to kind of de-program themselves and get used to doing things without cigarettes," she said. "You know, having coffee without smoking, leaving the house without checking for cigarettes. They'll see that they're down to three and need to go to the store. It becomes such a part of peoples' lives.

"They think, 'How am I going to wait and worry without smoking?'

"

Bonnie Lehing of Hudson said she recommends the clinic to anyone who is determined to quit. She said she smoked for 20 years, but hasn't lit up since September.

"The support was extremely helpful," she said. "You had other people to talk to when you had rough times, and they were there for you. The leader was excellent; they injected a lot of humor into it. The American Cancer Society books were helpful, too."

Lehing also used Chantix, a medication that helps people quit smoking.

"You use it seven days while you smoke," she said. "Then, the day you quit you have, like, two a day. It was the best thing in the world because you don't get that craving."

Melden said that simply sharing with other participants his inspiration to quit was beneficial. He also used a nicotine patch for a month.

While some people turn to chewing candy while they're quitting, Melden said he would chew a couple of raisins whenever an urge hit. After meals, when he normally would have a cigarette, he began brushing his teeth instead.

"What you have to do is give it the program a chance and study the material," he said. "The material's there. It will aid and assist you if you use it, and I really believe in the buddy system for encouragement. I don't think people would be successful without the buddy system and if they didn't seriously want to quit."

HOW TO REGISTER

To register for the Freedom From Smoking clinic, call Lisa Sloan, tobacco prevention specialist at the Pasco County Health Department at (727) 861-5250, Ext. 161.

TOP 10 REASONS TO QUIT

Need a reason to quit smoking? The Pasco County Health Department offers these 10:

1. For your health. Tobacco can harm nearly every organ in your body and smoking causes more than 13 major diseases.

2. For your family's health. Secondhand smoke is the third leading cause of preventable death in the United States. Secondhand smoke has twice the tar and five times more carbon monoxide than the smoker inhales.

3. For your future family. Recent studies have demonstrated a link between smoking and infertility for both women and men.

4. For the inconvenience of it. It's becoming more difficult to light up. Florida prohibits smoking in workplaces, restaurants, airports, airplanes and many other public spaces.

5. For the money. The price you pay helps support the cost of tobacco lawyers, marketing, researchers and public relations campaigns. Smokers spend more on dry cleaning, health insurance and life insurance.

6. Help is just a phone call away. The state established a toll-free number, 1-877-822-6669, that connects smokers to the Quit Line, which provides telephone counseling services, nicotine replacement therapy and referrals to community services.

7. Medications can help you quit.

8. To set a good example. Parents who smoke are more likely to have children who smoke.

9. To prevent house fires. According to the National Fire Protection Association, cigarettes are the leading cause of fatal fires in the United States.

10. For the health of your pets. Cats living with smokers are twice as likely to develop malignant lymphoma, while dogs living in a smoking household are susceptible to lung cancer, and cancers of the nose and sinus area.

Source: Pasco County Health Department

Reporter Geoff Fox can be reached at (813) 948-4217 or gfox@tampatrib.com.

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