“I never thought I would quit,” said Nikki Huggins. “At one point, I was smoking 40 cigarettes a day.”
After kicking a 40-year habit, Nikki shares her story after a year smoke free.
Although the numbers of smokers has declined over recent years, there are still significant numbers of smokers in the country – 12 per cent of all adults in England are smokers.
Nikki first considered quitting after she caught COVID. She lost her sense of taste and smell.
Nikki was given some vapes and patches, and invited to appointments once every two weeks for support with the NHS.
During these sessions, Nikki took carbon monoxide breath tests.
“In the breath tests, someone who is smoking would score ten or above. At my first session I got an 8, and I got down to a 1, so I could see the steady progress which was good.”
Nikki swapped to vaping, gradually reducing her strength to just 3ml tobacco. Her next was nicotine-free.
Asked whether she has noticed a difference, Nikki said it’s small things: “I’ve noticed that my hair doesn’t smell of smoke now, and it is easier getting up the stairs at work.
“I’m content vaping nicotine-free at the moment, but probably will give it up eventually.
“I never thought I would quit. At one point, I was smoking 40 cigarettes a day.
“I would advise anyone thinking of quitting to do it, but to get support. The patches and vape do make it easier to quit.”
Quit smoking with support from our Wellbeing Service. You don’t have to go it alone. There is help in place to guide you through.
North East Lincolnshire Council’s stop smoking service is on hand to offer a variety of support.
This includes face-to-face support and advice, phone calls/texts and stop smoking aids that can help you to not smoke when you feel you really want to. You can also get access to a free vape starter kit, with up to 12-week supply of salts when using the service and meeting regularly with the team, as well as Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT), such as nicotine patches and gum. You can use more than one of these paths.
- To find out more, discover a support venue near you or self-refer by visiting: www.nelincs.gov.uk/stop-smoking
- Call: (01472) 325500, Monday to Friday, 8.30am – 4pm, except bank holidays
- Email: [email protected]
The council also offers free six-month premium access to the Smokefree app to set goals, track progress and stay motivated, with expert advisors on hand 24/7.
The app is available on iOS and Android and can be downloaded via the app store or by visiting getmesmokefree.com. You will be invited to enter your details, including your postcode. Once a qualifying North East Lincolnshire postcode is provided, you can create an account and get started.
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