Links

• Contact your healthcare provider. Your doctor, nurse practitioner, or other healthcare provider can assist you with medicines to help you quit. They can also refer you to 1-800-QUIT-NOW.
• Check with your health insurance plan. Your health insurance should cover medicines and coaching to help you quit. MassHealth does.
• Connect with 1-800-QUIT-NOW (the Massachusetts Quitline) for FREE support
  • 1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669)
    • Interpretation services provided in 200 languages
  • Spanish: 1-866-DÉJELO-YA (1-866-335-3569)
  • Deaf? Use VRS or for TTY, dial (711) / Hard of Hearing? Call directly or for TTY, dial (711) / Spanish call (866) 930-9252
• Connect with the Asian Smokers’ Quitline for materials and phone counseling:
  • Chinese: 1-800-838-1987
  • Korean: 1-800-556-5564
  • Vietnamese: 1-800-778-8840

1. Write down your reason. Everyone has different reasons for quitting - visualize what you want and look at your reasons often during your quit journey.
2. Pick a date you will stop using nicotine completely. A date two to four weeks in the future works well — it gives you time to plan and prepare.
3. Use your experience. Most people try several times before they quit for good. Relapses happen. The good news is that with every attempt, you learn more about what works for you. What worked well before? What will you do differently this time?
4. Know your triggers. Triggers can be times, places, people, or feelings that make you want to use nicotine. Driving, coffee breaks, and boredom are often triggers. What are some ways you can plan to avoid or deal with them? You may also live in a community with many tobacco and nicotine retailers and advertisements around you. This can make it harder to avoid triggers.
5. Prepare for withdrawal symptoms. When you stop using nicotine, you may feel sick or nervous because your body is craving nicotine. You can take medicines to help you with these symptoms.

Besides your healthcare providers, let other trusted people know you are quitting and ask for their support and encouragement. This may be your family, friends, counselors, faith leaders, co-workers, and other support groups.

Stressful events such as losing a job, problems with housing, or experiencing daily discrimination in your life can impact your quit journey. Much of this is out of your control. Keep your support network close by for help. You can also reach out to information lines like Mass 2-1-1 for community resources to navigate these stressful situations.

For adults:

• 1-855-QUIT-VET: Free coaching to any Veteran who receives health care through the VA.
• Asian Smokers’ Quitline (ASQ): Free smoking cessation services in Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese to Asian communities in the U.S.
  • ASQ is open Monday through Friday, 10:00 am to 12:00 midnight (Eastern time) or sign up online: https://www.asiansmokersquitline.org/smokers/
  • Chinese: 1-800-838-8917, www.asq-chinese.org
  • Korean: 1-800-556-5564, www.asq-korean.org
  • Vietnamese: 1-800-778-8440, www.asq-viet.org
  • To learn more about ASQ (in English), visit: www.asiansmokersquitline.org.
• Nicotine Anonymous: Nicotine Anonymous ("NicA") is a non-profit 12-step fellowship of people helping each other live nicotine-free lives. For more information and to find a local meeting, visit www.nicotine-anonymous.org.
• Smokefree.gov
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Quit Smoking resources
• American Cancer Society
• American Heart Association
• American Lung Association
• Order free materials from the Massachusetts Health Promotion Clearinghouse 

For youth:

• Resources to help youth quit
• Additional information and resources are available through teen.smokefree.gov