Between exorbitant health care costs and lost productivity, employers lose about $8,000 per smoking employee per year compared to non-smokers. This adds up quickly. Helping people quit smoking is a smart move for both employers and health plans. But you have to reach them, help them quit smoking, and measure the impact. How smart is your smoking cessation plan?
Why is it so difficult to quit smoking and nicotine products?
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 68 percent of smokers say they want to quit, and more than half have tried quitting at least once in the past year. However, less than one in 10 successfully stopped. Why?
Nicotine is present in all tobacco products and is a highly addictive substance. Smoking is the fastest way to deliver nicotine, reaching the brain within 10 seconds. Over time, the brain becomes tolerant and requires more nicotine to maintain normal brain function. The effects of nicotine can have positive, albeit brief, psychological effects of happiness, arousal, and improved mood. As this relief wears off, nicotine increases anxiety. Thus, nicotine addiction is maintained through positive effects and continued use to avoid the unpleasant effects of nicotine withdrawal. This cycle of trying to keep the positive effects while avoiding the bad makes quitting so difficult.
Trying to quit smoking isn’t just a chemical reaction.
It takes an average of 7-10 quit attempts before finding the right combination of skills, support and internal motivation for success. Many people misunderstand their struggles trying to quit smoking and report shame, guilt and embarrassment for their smoking behavior. The stigma associated with smoking can permeate almost every aspect of their lives, including relationships with family, friends, employers and healthcare providers.
The coach may be the only person in the participant’s life who doesn’t judge or shame them for their nicotine habit. Instead of making participants feel guilty, the coaches worked with participants to learn more about how nicotine affects them and how this aligns with their values and goals.
One of the most powerful keys to building relationships is listening without judgment.This is unconditional positive attention. Unconditional positive attention involves communicating to a person that they are accepted and valued without judgment. This includes creating a receptive environment where participants can choose to learn first, reduce, drop out of their schedule, and have a “safe place” to come back to if they fail or relapse.
Coaches make it possible to quit smoking.
Every quitting journey is unique, and one size doesn’t fit all. Coaches can serve as a sounding board for those weighing the benefits of quitting and their cessation efforts. Additionally, coaches help find strong motivation, understand their challenges and identify possible strategies moving forward to help them gain greater confidence. For people who are ready to quit smoking, a coach can help them brainstorm small, actionable steps to take before quitting completely, discuss challenging situations that can be problematic when trying to quit, and help them develop strategies for dealing with triggers and withdrawals. When someone successfully quits smoking, there is a high risk of mistakes and relapse. If a user slips, the coach can help them explore challenging situations and solutions unique to them so they can do it differently next time.
Pairing with someone who provides them with a safe space to talk about real-world issues that hinder their success can give people who want to quit smoking a better chance of creating success.
Quitting smoking is not easy. Finding a caring and kind coach to guide one’s smoking cessation journey creates a real bond that will only strengthen over time as trust develops. This link provides participants in smoking cessation programs with a greater chance of success — and underscores why employers should opt for a smoking cessation program that includes personal coaching to help employees quit nicotine.
Photo: Liudmila Chernetska, Getty Images
