Kicking the habit
Heartland Quitters’ Club shows signs of success after smoking banBy ANGELA BURCH, Messenger staff writer
Article Photos
Quitters do win, and winners do quit.
That's the motto driving a group of employees at Heartland Communications Group Inc. to kick the habit of cigarette smoking.
As part of the company's efforts to follow the Smokefree Air Act, The Quitters' Club, formed at the end of April, is already showing signs of success, according to Sara Blair, director of human resources at Heartland.
"I didn't think it was fair at all to those people to just sort of, on July 1, close the door and say, 'You're on your own; we don't care about you,'" she said.
That's why Blair saw the nonsmoking law as an opportunity to help people make a change. Closing the doors to Heartland's inside smoking break room was mandatory, but other efforts were made to ease the transition, she said.
Blair contacted Judy Gonzales, a registered nurse trained by the Mayo Clinic for tobacco cessation. Coming from a medical background, Gonzales has the training and knowledge to help the group through the hard times and help them push forward with their goals.
"It takes the average smoker at least seven times of trying to quit smoking to make it stick," Gonzales said.
She compared the process to quitting alcohol or drugs and said that kicking the habit has to start with an internal desire to quit. Once a person makes the decision to change, the group offers support in good times and bad, Blair said.
The Quitters' Club ranges from 10 to 15 people and meets at noon on most Thursdays at Heartland, using the time to talk about their successes and weaknesses.
In the three months since the implementation of the program, many members said they have made efforts to improve their health and four have given up smoking completely.
For Kathy Krause, a smoker of 30 years, cutting down on the amount of cigarettes she smokes has been a huge accomplishment, she said. Where Krause used to smoke 40 cigarettes a day, she now smokes 10. Now, instead of automatically reaching for a cigarette, she goes on a walk. Krause is breathing more easily, and it's because of her healthier habits, she said. Krause has set a goal to be entirely smoke-free by the time her son returns from serving in Iraq.
Mamie Payne, also a smoker of 30 years, has gone 44 days without a cigarette. One of the biggest payoffs for Payne is that her 3-year-old grandson has noticed how different her clothes smell without the smoke.
Another Quitters' Club participant, Randy Sells, said that singing in the church choir has gotten easier for him because he's regaining more use of his lungs.
Gonzales said simple acts such as changing a routine can help break the smoking habit.
"It can be as simple as their usual chair that they smoke in - you work out a plan that varies their routine, or move their chair that they smoke in," Gonzales said.
When the group meets, it is the accountability to one another and the close relationships that they have formed that will continue to drive their efforts to make lifestyle changes, she said.
Additionally, Gonzales and Blair have worked together to provide external resources to the participants.
"There are tons of resources out there," Blair said.
Community and Family Resources, Quitline Iowa and Becomeanex.org are just three places for people intent on quitting. A few Quitters' Club members have been attending the Community Health Center in Fort Dodge. For a sliding-fee scale, the center offers health care providers who can write prescriptions to help people quit smoking.
The Quitters' Club offers advantages to the individuals involved, their families and even for Heartland as a company, Blair said.
"It's awesome to have the support of everybody,'' Payne said. ''Even those who aren't going to quit, they still say, 'great, I wish it were me trying to quit.'"
At Heartland, nonsmoking employees have supported the group by providing a lunch to the Quitters' Club as a sign of support for their colleagues, Blair said.
Even with strong support, habits and addictions die hard.
Members agree it's hard to break the hand-to-mouth habit as well as the physical addiction to nicotine. Sells said he used Tootsie Roll Pops to fill the void, and Dawn Arellano said she chews Dentyne Fire gum to combat her cravings.
Money saved from quitting cigarettes is an added bonus for Heartland's quitters. With cigarettes between $4 and $5 a pack, the savings adds up to about $250 a month.
Blair said the company is excited to see healthier employees and that a healthier work environment is expected to follow.
"We will see lower absenteeism, healthier employees, lower insurance rates, but more importantly than that, these people will make a change in their lives that is just incredible," she said.
Not taking time away from work for smoke breaks will lead to more productivity, she added.
Gonzales said by the time a smoker craves a cigarette, leaves the desk, walks through the building, smokes, walks back through the building and gets settled back to work, it could add up to a couple hours away from work in day.
While the group is open only to Heartland's employees, many people are taking the methods and strategies they talk about in the meetings home to their spouses or children, Gonzales said.
The use of the smokers lounge at Heartland is still uncertain, though Blair is accepting ideas. Several club members have said that employees like to read in there since it is quiet, so a company library could be an option.
Whatever the Quitters' Club decides to use the smokers lounge for, it is the idea of health and vibrancy that keeps the members striving to lead healthier and smoke-free lives, Blair said.
Contact Angela Burch at (515) 573-2141 or aburch@messengernews.net
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nottotell
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07-15-08 11:49 PM
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I think it is wonderful of all of them as well. I smoked for 45 years and 2 years ago quit. It wasnt easy but I did it and I am so glad I did. The best thing is that I had a friend tell me I smelled like my perfume instead of like a dirty ashtray. Isnt that something, I never realized I smelled that bad. The Heartland company does a lot of community things and personal things for their employees that they should be commended for.
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hybernation
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07-15-08 2:15 PM
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just think after you all quit smoking you won't smell like a smoldering fire anymore
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hybernation
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07-15-08 2:09 PM
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congradulations heartland employees i hope you all succeed! i found from 1st hand experience a way to ease your cravings while at home(if you can do it) is to nap when you think you're going to be most likely to crave a cigarette,but i used chantex so it was a breeze for me to quit.
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gadfly47
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07-15-08 12:52 PM
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I commend Heartland for its efforts to help employees quit smoking. Nicotine addiction is incredibly hard to overcome, but well worth it when you consider the horrible effects it has on a person's health, not to mention the expense of buying cigarettes. To all the people trying to quit, please don't give up.
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