Living Tobacco Free Grads Share Success
LIVING TOBACCO FREE PROGRAM EFFECTIVE,
FREE RESOURCE TO STOP TOBACCO USE FOR GOOD
COVINGTON - Joy Derise liked to relax on her porch with a glass of wine and a cigarette after work.
But when this 30-year smoker quit last spring, she decided the porch was off-limits because of its association with her evening ritual.
“I avoided the porch for some time because I knew it was a trigger,” said Derise, an administrative assistant at STPH.
Like Derise, Sonia LeBoeuf of Covington wasn’t planning on a 30-year addiction when she started smoking as an 18-year-old college student.
“Then before you know it, nicotine has you and you can’t stop,” LeBoeuf said.
Derise and LeBoeuf stopped smoking many times over the years, but never for long. It took completing tobacco-cessation classes at STPH – LeBoeuf in July 2013 and Derise in March 2014 – to quit for good.
“This time, quitting was different,” LeBoeuf said.
Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center at St. Tammany Parish Hospital sponsors the nine-week Living Tobacco Free tobacco-cessation program. It is open to the public and offered five times a year during weekly daytime and evening sessions at STPH.
Certified tobacco treatment specialists lead the sessions, which cover topics such as emotional triggers for smoking, coping with withdrawal symptoms and nicotine-replacement medications. Participants also learn strategies for coping with the temptation to use tobacco.
Derise learned to steer clear of her porch and spend more time exercising.
“There is a recognition that you need to replace both nicotine and the habit of smoking with something else,” she said.
Class participants are also encouraged to consult with their physician about FDA-approved nicotine-replacement medications as part of their smoking-cessation strategy. LeBoeuf, for example, relied on a combination of nicotine patches and Wellbutrin.
In Louisiana, the Smoking Cessation Trust covers smoking-cessation medication costs for smokers age 35 or older who meet additional eligibility criteria.
Another important element of Living Tobacco Free’s evidence-based approach is helping participants understand why they smoke, said STPH respiratory therapist Darla Steadman, a certified tobacco treatment specialist.
LeBoeuf stopped smoking in her car and tracked how many cigarettes she smoked. Doing so helped her reduce the number of cigarettes she smoked each day from 20 to 10 by her chosen quit date, she said.
“The class sets you up to succeed,” LeBoeuf said.
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A full-service acute care facility committed to providing world-class healthcare and the latest technology, St. Tammany Parish Hospital delivers today’s life-improving procedures with the utmost care to area residents with emphasis on wellness, preventive care and disease management close to home. STPH is a self-supporting not-for-profit community hospital; it receives no tax funding. STPH.org