Woman shares path to giving up smoking

Change will do you good: The participants of the World No Tobacco Day celebration cheering for the good cause at Beach Street, Penang.

GEORGE TOWN: She had been puffing away for 30 years but her desire to do so went up in smoke after a challenge from her daughter.

Rita Francis, 53, remembered clearly the day that she decided to quit smoking.

“It was April 12, 2016. I felt shame. I was in distress and my ego hurt after that argument with her.”

Her daughter, she said, had just come back from university that day.

“I realised that she had gained some  weight, so I urged her to go to the gym and lose some weight. She refused and I hurled some comments to make her want to go to the gym but instead, she questioned my smoking habit.

“She said if I could not quit smoking after all these years, why pester her about losing weight?”

“It was at that moment when I felt really upset. I could not respond to her because I knew I was wrong,” she added.

Francis said she began her quest to quit smoking then.

“I started using nicotine gum,” she said, adding that she would also be chewing gum to occupy her mouth and mind.

“It was hard at first. I gave up at times but eventually, I made it because I wanted that change so badly.”

“It was not easy, as a smoker for the past 30 years, but I believe if anyone has the desire to do it, it is possible,” she added.

She is now into her third year without a single puff .

“I used to smoke a lot, especially in times of stress because of the corporate environment I was in,” she said, explaining that smoking was a way for her to de-stress.

“Back then, I would just puff away in between meetings, or when I needed a break. It just happens naturally,” she said.

“My daughter would always tell me that it was bad, and that she hated the smell of it. She asked me to get rid of my addiction but I never thought about it seriously.”

Francis was among those who shared their experience during the World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) celebration in Beach Street yesterday.

Organised by the Penang Adventist Hospital (PAH), there were activities like carbon monoxide tests, health talks, health exhibitions and a “Box of Hope” designing competition.

PAH chief executive officer Ronald Koh said the event was held in conjunction with the WNTD to advocate and encourage smokers to quit.

“We recruited 95 Smoke-Free Ambassadors to be role models and leaders to influence more people to stop smoking and create a smoke-free environment for the community,” he said.

Penang Health Committee chairman Dr Afif Bahardin said the state government was also aiming to create a smoke-free society.

“We are glad to witness this initiative as we currently have six areas which we gazetted as smoke-free zones in Penang.”

“It was an initiative started since 2013 and we want to expand it further and make the whole of Penang smoke-free.”

“We are not taking away the rights of smokers. But we hope smokers can respect others who want a smoke-free environment and fresh air,” he added.

The celebration was also held in conjunction with the PAH’s 95th anniversary.