Quit Guide
From the day you decide to quit to your first year and beyond: explore what you may experience, steps you can try and where to find support.
Your next step
Start where you are now.
You may be preparing, getting through the first few days or trying again. Choose the topic that fits; each step leads to short articles in the Knowledge Center.
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Preparing to quit
Set your quit day, observe your smoking pattern, prepare your surroundings, and choose alternatives for hard moments in advance.
Preparation and planning2 min read
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Quit day
Get through your first smoke-free day with more of a plan, using simple steps like water, movement, breathing, and arranging your surroundings.
Quit Day2 min read
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The first 24 hours
Understand why withdrawal happens, what kinds of symptoms it can involve, and that it's part of a temporary adjustment process.
Withdrawal2 min read
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The first week
Decide in advance on your strongest triggers, the first method you'll apply, and who you'll turn to if you need to.
Build your own crisis plan2 min read
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When a craving hits
Delay • Breathe deeply • Drink water • Distract yourself: apply four simple steps in order to interrupt the automatic smoking behavior in a crisis moment.
The 4D method (Delay - Deep breathe - Drink water - Distract)2 min read
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Know your triggers
Identify the times, emotions, settings, and habits that automatically start the thought or urge to smoke, for yourself.
Map out your own triggers2 min read
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If you have smoked again
If you have a lapse, stop before it continues, analyze the trigger, update your plan, and return to being smoke-free.
Recovery plan after a lapse2 min read
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Changing your routine
Notice what function smoking served for you, and find a smoke-free answer to the same need.
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Getting support
Know in general terms that nicotine patches, gum, lozenges, and certain medications can be used to support the quitting process.
Support options2 min read
Before you quit
It can be hard to work everything out on quit day. Preparing ahead can make decisions easier, especially at the times when you would usually smoke without thinking.
Set your quit day
Pick a clear date for yourself and write down the preparations you want to finish before it.
Track your smoking pattern
Observe for a few days at what time, with what emotion, with whom, and in what setting you smoke. This record helps you see your strongest triggers.
Arrange your surroundings
Remove objects that remind you of smoking — packs, ashtrays, lighters — from home, car, and work. Choose a new behavior for strong pairings like coffee, after meals, or work breaks.
Ask for support
Telling people close to you about your decision to quit, and asking them not to offer you cigarettes especially in the first days, can make the process easier.
For difficult moments
Choosing what you will do before a craving arrives leaves you with fewer decisions to make in the moment.
Delay
when the craving hits, instead of acting right away, delay the decision to smoke for a few minutes.
Deep breathe
focus on easing the bodily tension with slow, controlled breathing.
Drink water
a few sips of water can place a simple pause in between and interrupt the automatic smoking behavior.
Distract
change your setting, take a short walk, call someone, or shift your mind to something else.
What changes in your body?
General health benefits of quitting, from the first minutes to the longer term.
Selected from the app’s health goals and checked against WHO, NHS and CDC sources. These timings are a general guide; individual health circumstances vary.
See 10 health milestones
- 20 minutes
Heart rate and blood pressure begin to return towards normal.
The first changes may begin within minutes of the last cigarette.
World Health Organization (WHO) - 12 hours
Carbon monoxide in the blood returns to the normal range.
WHO’s general timeline places this change at around 12 hours.
World Health Organization (WHO) - 48 hours
Your senses of taste and smell may begin to improve.
The NHS highlights improvements in taste and smell within the first two days.
NHS · Better Health - 72 hours (3 days)
The bronchial tubes relax; breathing may become easier.
The NHS includes this among the general benefits at around 72 hours.
NHS · Better Health - 2 weeks
Blood circulation may improve.
WHO’s timeline places these benefits within a 2–12 week period.
World Health Organization (WHO) - 1 month
Coughing and shortness of breath may decrease over time.
WHO describes these changes over a period of 1–9 months.
World Health Organization (WHO) - 3 months
Lung function may improve and respiratory symptoms may ease.
The NHS describes these benefits over 3–9 months; change does not happen on one fixed date.
NHS · Better Health - 1 year
The risk of coronary heart disease falls to about half.
WHO’s comparison is with someone who continues to smoke.
World Health Organization (WHO) - 10 years
The risk of dying from lung cancer falls to about half.
The comparison in the NHS’s general timeline is with someone who continues to smoke.
NHS · Better Health - 15 years
The risk of coronary heart disease approaches that of a non-smoker.
The CDC includes this among the longer-term benefits seen after about 15 years.
CDC · Benefits of quitting smoking
Sources: World Health Organization (WHO) · NHS · Better Health · CDC · Benefits of quitting smoking
Journey Map
The app’s Journey Map divides the process into 12 stages. Browse them below and open the freely available articles for the early days.
See the app’s 12 stages
- DecisionDay 0
- DetoxDays 1–3
- First VictoryDays 3–7
- Fresh Start1 Week
- Resilience2 Weeks
- Breaking the Habit1 Month
- Breathing Again3 Months
- Growing Stronger6 Months
- New Identity1 Year
- Lasting Change5 Years
- Major Transformation10 Years
- Freedom15 Years
The Journey Map in the app explains what happens at each stage, what to look out for and which thoughts can become traps.
All Knowledge Center articles
The Knowledge Centre is arranged to be read in order. Each section builds on the one before it.
See 29 articles in 3 chapters
Section 1
Preparation and the First Days
Section 2
Making a Smoke-Free Life Permanent
- Nicotine is gone — why might you still want to smoke?
- Rewrite your triggers
- Re-evaluate your thoughts about smoking
- What will you fill the gap smoking left with?
- Strengthen your natural rewards again
- From "I'm trying to quit" to "I don't smoke"
- Watch out for the "I can control it now" thought
- Smoke-free life checklist
- Making a Smoke-Free Life Permanent: Chapter Summary
Section 3
Managing Cravings and Preventing Relapse
- What is a craving?
- A craving rises and falls like a wave
- Urge surfing
- The 4D method (Delay - Deep breathe - Drink water - Distract)
- Plan before the trigger arrives
- A lapse and a relapse are not the same thing
- The "one mistake ruined everything" trap
- Recovery plan after a lapse
- Build your own crisis plan
- Review your process regularly
- Managing Cravings and Preventing Relapse: Chapter Summary
This content is for general information and is not a substitute for medical advice. Consult a healthcare professional about your own health.