No, the headline isn't clickbait - I really have been smoking for 14 years, and given I am only in my late twenties, that means I've been smoking for over half my life.
When my parents found out I'd started smoking in my teens, I was grounded for three months, but even that didn’t stop me.
I love the ritual of smoking. Whether it's starting my mornings, waiting for a friend or breaking up my work day, my favourite pastime involves rolling papers, tobacco and a lighter. However, whenever I pictured 'the best version of myself,' she wasn’t a smoker.
Why I finally quit
Everyone has a reason to finally stop smoking. For some people it's health and for others, it's the cost. My reason came via a clinic in West London called The Door W4, and a woman named Dr. Julia Coelho.
I first met Dr. Julia in February. I went to see her because I was feeling insecure about the discolouration of my teeth, and the fact that my teeth were moving (a classic case of not using my retainer).
Dr. Julie explained that there was plenty she could do to help my teeth, but there was no point perfecting my smile without 1. me quitting smoking and 2. tending to my gums, as I had developed gum disease, AKA gingivitis.
I thought my gums were in good health because they rarely bleed when I brush them, but it turns out smoking reduces blood flow to the gums, preventing them from bleeding. Dr. Julia told me that my gums were so bad that if I hadn’t been a smoker, I would've been waking up with blood on my pillow.
She told me it would take sessions of deep cleaning and quitting smoking altogether to get the gingivitis to subside before I could proceed with teeth alignment. And thus, my journey to quit smoking began.
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My appointment at The Door W4
From beginning to end, my visit to Dr. Julia's clinic felt luxurious, from the decor to the ambiance and even the little massage in Dr. Julia’s dentist chair, the clinic truly is a little hidden oasis.
Nestled in Chiswick, The Door W4 is a unique health, wellness and aesthetics space, specifically designed to help guests achieve their physical goals and aspirations in total comfort. Each room boasts large windows and skylights, with greenery and nature at every turn.
Dr. Julia took a 3D scan of my mouth which allowed her to show me my teeth and how my teeth would transform with treatment, and the relaxing space and Dr. Julia's reassuring but firm nature confirmed that quitting smoking was something I had to do - for my health as well as my teeth.
Quitting smoking
All the horror stories I had heard about quitting smoking had scared me off. The cravings, the mood swings… None of this seemed appealing to me, or outweighed anything for me - up until now.
I was slightly scared of the version of me I’d become with nicotine. I imagined having such a short temper I’d snap over something trivial, or worse, lose my temper at work and get fired, ruining my career.
So I’d often joke that when I was okay with losing my job, that’s when I’d quit. Plus the weight gain that people often see as a result of quitting wasn’t something I was buzzing for, as I’ve struggled with my weight in the past.
My journey to quit
I did try vaping in my quest to quit smoking, but that didn’t last longer than two weeks. I found myself smoking inside and therefore, smoking way more than I would a normal cigarette - typically I’d smoke between six and 10 cigarettes a day, however, at one point I got through a vape per day and then discovered that is equivalent to 40 cigarettes. Eeek.
So I went cold turkey. No cigarettes, no rolling tobacco, no vapes and honestly, the hardest part was the routine. In habit expert James Clear’s book Atomic Habits, he delves into how ‘change can come from the compound effect of hundreds of small decisions’.
The author breaks down how to create a good habit and break a bad one. Whilst it’s been a while since I picked up the self-help book, I remembered ‘the inversion of the 1st law (cue): make it invisible’ and so I did the age-old trick and threw everything smoking-related out and that was a huge help.
Making how many days it was since my last cigarette also helped. It gave me a proud feeling, which was the little boost I needed to move past the craving.
And then the craziest thing happened, I tried running! No, I don't have a running vest, or cupboards filled with gels… to be honest, I don’t think I even know what a gel actually is, but all of a sudden I found myself doing things that I never saw myself doing before.
If you’re thinking about quitting, you are capable of doing so, you can start by finding your why.
To learn more about The Door W4, visit https://www.thedoorw4.co.uk/
