Vim & Vigor - Winter 2013 - North Mississippi - (Page 33)

ST A R T For a successful "START" to your new smoke-free life, the CDC suggests: Set a quit date. Tell family, friends and colleagues you're quitting. symptoms," suggests Mary Ella Douglas, facilitator for the Freedom From Smoking online program (ffsonline. org) for the American Lung Association. "The most intense symptoms start to resolve in an average of 10 days to two weeks," Douglas says. "We want people to understand that they're recovering from an addiction, so these signs are very positive because they mean great changes are taking place physically. Quitting smoking is about the best thing anyone can do to protect their health." Claim a New Identity The majority of smokers want to quit, McAfee says, and many have already tried before. "If you don't try, your chances of success are zero. The most important thing is to keep on trying." He compares trying to quit smoking to learning to ride a bicycle. "You have to learn to be an ex-smoker," McAfee says. Just like falling off a bike teaches you how to stay on, so-called "failed" attempts to quit teach you how to set yourself up for success the next time. When asked by The Observer earlier this year how his life had changed since Good Will Hunting made him famous 15 years ago, Damon came up with one big difference: He doesn't smoke anymore. "It's an incredible personal accomplishment," McAfee agrees. "People should pat themselves on the back if they're former smokers." In transforming from eager aspiring actor to satisﬁed family man, his priorities and identity changed. "Ben [Afﬂeck] and I started [smoking] when we were in high school," Damon said. "We'd see the great actors-Brando, James Dean, Mickey Rourke, who we loved back then- smoking, and we just thought it was ... cool." A healthy lifestyle became a priority for Damon as he got older, got married and became a father. (He and Barroso now have four daughters.) When asked in 2011 how turning 40 had felt, Damon said, "Actually, it felt Anticipate and plan for the challenges you'll face. Remove cigarettes from your home, car and work. Talk to your doctor about getting help to quit. really good. I felt lucky to have the family that I have and the wife that I have, and the job that I have, and I just kind of found myself wanting health and more of the same." Finding Your Motivation "One of the most important ingredients to success is getting motivated and staying motivated," McAfee says. Protecting family members from secondhand smoke can motivate people to quit. "Secondhand smoke is full of carcinogens," Douglas says. "Quitting smoking is not only good for the individual but for everyone around them." Another source of motivation can be the money you save by not buying cigarettes. You can put the money toward a weekly massage, add it to your college or retirement savings, or donate it to a cause you care about. In fact, while saving your own life you could contribute to saving another person's. Damon became passionate about public health issues while traveling in Africa. "I cofounded water.org, which focuses on water and sanitation. I was in Ethiopia, and I watched children taking ﬁ lthy water out of a handdug well and putting it in bottles to take to school. The water was so dirty, it looked like chocolate milk," he told Parade magazine in 2009. "Parents in these impoverished areas lose children every year to diseases that could be completely prevented if they had access to clean water. "Just $25 will give someone clean water for life," Damon said. In many states, that's the cost of about three packs of cigarettes. In the 2011 movie We Bought a Zoo, Damon's character is giving his son advice on talking to a girl. He tells him, "Sometimes all you need is 20 seconds of insane courage. ... And I promise you, something great will come of it." To quit smoking, all you have to do is get through the next 20 seconds without a cigarette. Then do it again. WI NTER 2013 33 http://www.water.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Winter 2013 - North Mississippi

Vim & Vigor - Winter 2013 - North Mississippi
Contents
Opening Thoughts
The Weight Is Over
For Your Convenience
Got Excuses?
Managing Your Health with a DIY Tool Kit
Is It the Stress Talking?
The Wonderful World of Greens
Knee-to-Know Basics
On the Cover
Run for Your Life
14 Good-for-You Gifts
Special Delivery
Virtual Health
A Special Kind of Care
High Marks
A Dose of Prevention
Catch the Spirit

Vim & Vigor - Winter 2013 - North Mississippi