OSF Saint Anthony’s Health Center Offers Free Smoking Cessation Program
ALTON - OSF Saint Anthony’s Health Center is giving Smokers who want to quit a helping hand, and is taking reservations for an upcoming American Lung Association smoking cessation program: Freedom from Smoking.
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The free eight week program starts with an orientation session April 18 at 6:00 pm, in the Auditorium of OSF Saint Clare’s Medical Office Building, 815 East Fifth Street.
“Most people have tried to quit on their own many times in the past, but being around others in a support group is very helpful,” says Tina Bennett, a trained smoking cessation facilitator at OSF Saint Anthony’s. “The addiction to Nicotine is very strong. It is not a moral failure, and I try to explain to people that its effect on them is very powerful.”
Bennett recognizes the difficulties that come with quitting, which is why the program takes small steps toward the eventual goal of living smoke free.
“The first night is not quit night. It is In the middle of the course so participants can plan and prepare for their quit day,” she said. “The course emphasizes group support, lifestyle changes, coping strategies and how to remain smoke free.”
It’s a process that helped John Barth kick the habit. The 58 year old Granite City man successfully completed the Freedom from Smoking course in the fall of 2015.
“I know that I could not and would not have quit smoking without the coursework materials, excellent teaching and prompting,” said Barth. “The entire eight week session was more than helpful and definitely more than worthwhile for anyone willing, ready, and able to quit smoking.”
At the beginning and end of the session, participants also receive free pulmonary function screenings to measure lung capacity, as well as blood pressure readings throughout the eight weeks.
To register, or for more information about the eight-week Freedom from Smoking program, please call OSF Saint Anthony’s Health Resource Center at 618-465-2264. Or, register online at osfsaintanthonys.org.
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