I'm DESPERATE to help my mother quit smoking! Advice?

This is going to sound like a dumb question and I'm not being snippy...does she want to quit?

Angel

Your mother is 91, so I imagine most damage to her lungs has already been done. It would be nice if she would quit, because most facilities for older folks don't allow smoking.

Nicotine is so addictive and is one of the hardest things to put down. Have you tried nicotine replacement therapy with her? Many people do well with the lozenges. She can use them to take the edge off weaning from the nicotine. Recent research has also shown that staying on them longer if needed isn't a problem and better than smoking.

Many places now are not allowing electronic cigarettes. Why, I don't know. I know they're banned in many public places. If your mother's mind is sound, though, the lozenges may work.

Since she wants to quit, I have heard that a combination of reducing the amount day by day coupled with either the nicotine patch or nicotine gum is very effective. I assume she has been smoking for many many years...if she smokes 20 cigarettes a day you could start a wean off process. For example, for the first week she could smoke 18 a day. Then each week drop two off. This gradual reduction, coupled with the gum or the patch when she is down to 10 a day would definitely curb the physical cravings and be a gentle way to stop. However the is also the emotional addiction. Make sure she has something to do with her hands. She could hold licorice whips, do crochet, knit, read, play with a tablet etc. Having idle hands is a very hard thing for a cigarette addict.

I am not a proponent of those electronic cigarettes...studies have shown that the chemicals in them are even worse than real cigarettes!! No need to replace one chemical with another.

Angel

Would she use a nicotine patch? She could attend activities and then try to step down her addiction to nicotine. The lozenges are a good idea too...I'd talk to her doctor about either of those options if it was me.

im sorry , but at 91 ?
if i live to 91 i hope to make cigars out of physlocybin ( sp ) mushrooms , shredded tires and styrofoam peanuts -- and chain smoke them .
on a more serious note . a widow whom i just met is all flabergasted that her alcoholic , chain smoking hubby died at the age of 75 . freaking DUH !! . first of all he drove a truck for a ( good ) living , and needed the stimulation of tobacco to keep it on the road .
secondly , after getting to know this gal for a few weeks , im convinced that he died because he WANTED to .
yea , shes THAT type . " oh jeBus -- money, jeBus , inheritance , etc ..

898luvmymom, now you have some ideas to consider and perhaps try. That is good.

Your goals are excellent. "I want her to be engaged and active with others her age who are like-minded and intellectually involved in life." The health goal is probably too late -- what damage is done is done. But the goal to avoid isolation is wonderful ... if it is her goal. Setting goals for other people seldom works, and when the other person is 91 and addicted, if she is not committed to the goal I don't see much hope.

Go ahead and try to help Mom quite smoking, especially if she wants to. But also accept your limitations here. You didn't get Mom to stop smoking when she was 57 or when she was 73 and it isn't any easier now that she is 91. This is really not under your control. Try to help. Fine. But please don't feel "desperate" and certainly not "guilty" if you are not successful.

Many people face your problem. Do keep us informed as to how this works out. We learn from each other.

I am trying Chantix at the moment. sadly, while I have cut way back I am still smoking. I guess at 91 I would be more worried about a fire hazard than lungs

tacy, excellent ideas. When I checked off every non-smoking day on my calendar. I always wanted a cigarette so badly after breakfast. What I did was reserve that time for putting the check mark on my calendar and brush my teeth. This was reinforcing and helped me get past that urge or craving. Lozenges helped a lot when the cravings were particularly bad. Anyone who quits smoking knows what those bad days are like.

Smoking is both physically and mentally addictive. To quit, you have to fight the habits and routines that go with smoking as well as the physical addiction to nicotine. When you stop smoking you'll probably get nicotine withdrawals.
Symptoms of nicotine withdrawal include:Feeling irritable and craving cigarettes Getting hungry easily
Not sleeping well
Headaches, sweats and nausea
Feeling depressed or anxious.
This is really sad, probably nothing will make her stop smoking. Have you tried viper E-cig with the liquid, they have different amount of nicotine like 3,6,12mg.
I can say people like to smoke and having this habit cause the nicotine not other chemicals but in the real cigarette there are approximately 600 ingredients in cigarettes. When burned, they create more than 7,000 chemicals. At least 69 of these chemicals are known to cause cancer, and many are poisonous. Try get e-cig with the liquid and before you buy, check the nicotine % your mother smoke.

I'd like to thank all of you for your kind and thoughtful suggestions! I REALLY appreciate them. My mother is currently trying the nicotine patch, but frankly, they don't seem to be doing as much as I had hoped. I am now looking hard for quit-smoking classes in our area, and although I would expect them to be numerous, I'm not finding many! Still, I will keep trying, because I will ALWAYS want the very best for my mom, and nothing would make me......and HER.....happier than to quit this awful habit! Thank you all again.....VERY MUCH!