Resources to Help You Quit

Students

UC San Diego Health Promotion Services can help. Schedule a free smoking/vaping cessation coaching appointment to create a customized quit plan, receive a free “quit kit”, and if you choose, personalized nicotine replacement therapy plan. 

Log in to MyStudentChart > Click on visits > Schedule an appointment > Choose SHS Health Promotion Services

Staff and Faculty

UC faculty and staff can access resources and services through their health plan options or by contacting Kick It California, a free statewide service operated by UC San Diego.

Other Resources

• Healthy Snacking for Smoking Cessation
• Tips From Former Smokers from the CDC
• Asian Smokers' Quit Line
• DHHS: Tobacco Use Cessation Treatments
• National Cancer Institute: 1-877-44U-QUIT
• Smokefree.gov online guide to quit and downloadable resources to help.
• American Lung Association Freedom from Smoking, an online program to help you quit.
• EX: The EX Plan is a free online quit smoking program based on personal experiences from ex-smokers.

How to Help a Friend or Loved One Quit Smoking

Once a smoker has decided to quit, they are most likely to be successful when friends and family provide help and support. Whether you are also a tobacco-user and going through your own quit process, or have never smoked, you can help someone you care about who has decided to stop smoking by being part of their support team, asking how you can be most helpful and/or encouraging them through their quit process. If they aren't ready to quit yet, you can help them with identifying reasons for quitting, setting a target quit date, and offering to be part of their support network. Consider offering healthy and fun alternatives to smoking such as:

• take walks with them
• be a "workout buddy"
• lend an ear if they need to talk about the challenges they are facing by not smoking

Visit the following links for advice and tips on how to help a friend or loved one quit smoking. Your support can be part of creating a healthy and successful environment for someone you care about as they become a non-smoker.

• Show Some Support - send Smokefree e-cards, send a Milestone Award, tips & advice

Secondhand Smoke Information

When non-smokers are exposed to secondhand smoke it is called involuntary smoking or passive smoking. Non-smokers who breathe in secondhand smoke take in nicotine and other toxic chemicals just like smokers do. The more secondhand smoke you are exposed to, the higher the level of these harmful chemicals in your body. Learn more about the dangers of secondhand smoke from the American Cancer Society.