According to the CDC, half of adult smokers lose an average of 13 (male) to 14 (female) years of life expectancy. Could following the advice on a free 14 minute quit smoking video help restore those years? Absolutely!

The Babe Ruth or Henry Aaron of quitting, Joel Spitzer has devoted 40+ years, full-time toward helping smokers break free. His most viewed video is entitled "How to quit smoking." In it, he reviews his top 16 quitting tips.

Topics covered include the importance of acknowledging dependency, how to measure success, avoid blood sugar swing symptoms, extinguish smoking cues, control weight, reduce stress, the importance of avoiding crutches, and basic relapse prevention.

How did you feel at 8:50 into the video when Joel said you're a drug addict? Frankly, there's no more empowering admission than who we are, and what we've become.

Slave to nicotine for 30 years, nicotine-free for the last 18, my name is John I'm a drug addict. While I have not had anything a smoker would consider a crave since 2001, my brain remains permanently wired for relapse. I live comfortably, just one puff away from three packs-a-day.

Brain studies show that just one puff of nicotine activates up to half of brain dopamine pathway receptors. While most who attempt to cheat during quitting walk away feeling like they've gotten away with it, it isn't long before their awakened dependency is again wanting or even begging for more.

Fully accepting who we are ("real" drug addicts) greatly simplifies quitting's rules. In fact, there's really only one. It's that one equals all, that lapse equals relapse, that one puff will always be too many, while thousands never enough.

Nicotine dependency is a brain dopamine pathway wanting disorder. The same pathways that make us want and crave for food are taken hostage by nicotine. But there's one big difference. Without food we die, without nicotine we thrive.

Coming home is vastly more wonderful than the wanting flowing from nicotine dependent brain dopamine pathways suggests.

The body becomes 100 percent nicotine-free and withdrawal peaks in intensity within 72 hours of ending all use. We now have two studies showing that unplanned attempts are twice as successful as planned ones.

So what do you have to lose? Be brave and say "no" to the wanting for that next fix. Baby steps, the next few minutes are all that matter and each will be do-able.

Pour yourself into Joel's Library and discover the magic that happens once we become smarter than our addiction is strong.

If in need of support, join us at our Facebook group Turkeyville. Never has coming home been easier. In fact, it's impossible to fail so long as all nicotine remains on the outside. Yep, just one rule ... no nicotine today!

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