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Smoking / Chewing Tobacco
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What is Tobacco addiction?
Nicotine is the chemical that makes tobacco addictive. Research suggests that people who use smokeless tobacco get as much or more nicotine into their bodies as people who smoke cigarettes. Just as with smoking, withdrawal from smokeless tobacco can cause intense cravings, irritability and depressed mood.
Smokeless tobacco products might expose people to lower levels of harmful chemicals than tobacco smoke, but that doesn’t mean these products are a safe alternative to smoking.
Smokeless tobacco contains nicotine, which can lead to addiction, and dozens of chemicals that can cause cancer.
Symptoms
Whether it’s you or someone you love, the first step to treating a nicotine addiction is admitting there’s a problem. How do you know if you’re dependent? These are some signs:
- You’ve tried to quit using nicotine, but can’t
- You avoid being at places or with friends where you can’t smoke
- You use tobacco to manage stress or anxiety
- You have health problems, but you still use tobacco
- You get irritable, moody, restless, shaky, or angry when you don’t use nicotine
- You crave nicotine
Once you recognize the negative effects of nicotine, you can take steps to kick your unhealthy habit. That starts with seeing your doctor. They’ll ask you questions about how you use nicotine to figure out if you’re addicted and how serious your problem is.
Tobacco Treatment Options
No matter how long you’ve been using nicotine, when you stop, your health improves. Research shows a mix of counseling and medications works best to help you kick the habit.
Proven counseling treatments include:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT): This type of talk therapy can help you recognize the thoughts, situations, and people that trigger your tobacco use. You’ll work with a therapist to build strategies that will improve your odds of stopping.
- Motivational interviewing: A counselor will help you figure out what’s stopping you from quitting and what will inspire you to make healthy changes. They’ll also point out gaps between your goals and current behavior.
- Mindfulness: This will help you become aware of and learn to detach from feeling, thoughts, and cravings that could cause you to use tobacco again. You’ll also learn ways to manage stress and negative thoughts that don’t involve tobacco.