Quitting smoking
has been the best choice of my life!

After trying several times before, 36-year-old James Duffy finally quit cigarettes with support from the Be Well Stop Smoking Service. Here he explains how the service’s personal touch made all the difference…

I started because of stress. The job I was working got the best of me, so I ended up smoking.

Even then I kind of hated it, but it helped me to de-stress – which, looking back, isn’t really a positive thing. And even though I was working and I had money coming in, I was buying those cheap cigarettes; the ones that are about £5-£6 a packet. All cigarettes are bad for you, but you never know what’s in those!

So I knew I needed to stop and I’d been working towards it, on and off, for about six years when, one day, I came to Hindley Library for something work-related and I saw the advert for the Be Well Stop Smoking Service.

I stopped and thought to myself, ‘Do you know what? It’s getting close to a new year, let’s try and to stop smoking!’ Start a new year on a fresh start, you know, try to be healthier?

Because one thing I noticed with years of smoking, I couldn’t walk far. Walking from the train station to where I needed to be, even though it was only 10 minutes, I was so out of breath and my lungs were burning.

It was other things too, like I couldn’t run around playing with my nieces. I was not healthy.

The problem was, when trying to stop smoking before, it’s either been a case of ‘here’s some stuff, best of luck’, or telephone appointments. It’s never felt like it was the right kind of support for me.

So, when I told my family I’d signed up for the Be Well Stop Smoking Service, they were over the moon. With Be Well it’s more of a personal approach, every appointment is different. It’s designed to support me.

Being able to actually go somewhere and speak to someone and talk about when things are getting on top of me, and I’m stressing out and I feel like I’m gonna start smoking again… in a sense, it feels like having a friend you can speak to.

I’m actually very nervous around new people, but my Be Well health advisor Louise was amazing. She’s friendly, she’s supportive. She doesn’t make me feel like I’m a failure for smoking.

She makes me feel like every time I attend an appointment with her, I’ve made such massive steps, even if it’s just that I’ve not smoked for that week. To her, that is like the greatest thing in the world, and to me, that makes me feel proud of the choice I’ve made.

Other services don’t have that personal approach. And if it doesn’t have that kind of personal approach, for a lot of people, they don’t feel supported, myself included. I went through that.

I feel like this service needs to be used as an example because, as someone who has struggled to stop smoking in the past, it’s the best one I’ve seen – and I’ve tried quite a few!

It’s been the best decision. I’ve received amazing support and I 100 per cent recommend the service for anyone.

If anyone has any doubts, just phone up. Speak to someone. Because the thing is, as someone who was smoking for years, I never thought I’d be able to quit.

Even if you’re questioning if it’s the right time, if you’re dealing with stress, anxiety, if you’re dealing with the question of ‘is now the right time?’ 100 per cent make that phone call. Speak to the people. Even if you’re unsure.

There’s no ‘right time’. Stopping smoking isn’t about a time, it’s about a choice. It’s about if you want to. And when you find the right support service, like this one, 100 per cent it’s the right time then.

Getting to this point in my life now, it’s been amazing. It’s been the best choice of my life, and I’m just so happy with myself just getting to this point, and I’m just planning to continue.

Research shows you’re FOUR TIMES more likely to quit smoking when you have the right support. So if you’d like to find out about the help available from the Be Well Stop Smoking Service, get in touch today!

Start your journey to quit

Learn more about the Be Well Stop Smoking Service