David's decision to quit

David has decided to save up for a trip to South America, he's stashed away $6500 in six months. All because he quit smoking!

I started smoking when I was 15, I'm now 63.

In recent years I have been on 25-30 a day. I was in hospital for 2 days, where they did not have a smoking area. At this time I decided that if I can go 2 days I should try to give up.

I had my wife dispose of all remnants of my smoking before I got home. No ash trays, no lighters or matches etc. I tried prescribed stop smoking tablets and other aids. Unfortunately they caused bad sleep patterns so I had to go cold turkey. I found family support vitally important. However they should not always remind you that you have given up.

I estimated that my smoking habit was costing me around $25 per day. I promised myself that if I could give it away, I would shout myself a trip to South America. I bought a large money tin and have been putting $20 away every day. So far I have $6,500 and I'm leaving on Cup Day for a 10 day trip with my wife.

Another good point is my taste buds have improved. I'm enjoying my meals much more.

This is how you give up the smokes:

1. Set yourself an achievable target.

2. Get support from family friends

3. Change your habits

4. If possible take long walks, i.e. 1-2 hours. Every time I almost faltered I simply looked at the brochure.