Councillor’s advice to smokers this Stoptober as she celebrates a year of being smoke-free

The Councillor who leads on Public Health issues for the borough shares her story this Stoptober, as she prepares to celebrate one year of staying smoke-free.

Cllr Lisa Denson, Cheshire West and Chester Council’s Cabinet Member for A Fairer Future (Poverty, Public Health and Mental Health) quit smoking on 18 October last year.

Cllr Denson, who represents Westminster ward in Ellesmere Port, said that the secret to success is getting the right support, and said that she had seen a real difference in her health:

“Quitting gets easier the more you stick with it so please give it a go, get support and keep going,” she said.

“I would never have stayed smoke free if I hadn’t booked an appointment with our Brio stop smoking services.

“Having that support and using patches really helped me on my journey.

“What surprised me most was how quickly my chest improved – the cough I had every day was gone.

“I haven’t had a chest infection since I stopped smoking and I don’t wake up in the morning and hear a wheeze on my chest any more.

“For anyone thinking of quitting, I would say don’t do it alone, and don’t be afraid to go to the appointment.”

The 13^th annual Stoptober quitting campaign takes place across the UK throughout the month of October, with thousands of smokers taking part nationwide.

Nearly 6 million adults in England smoke and it remains the single leading cause of preventable death, with 64,000 deaths a year.

Quitting remains one of the best things a smoker can do for their health. If a smoker makes it to 28 days smoke-free, they are five times more likely to quit for good.

Cheshire West and Chester Council and Council company Brio Leisure, which provides free, stop smoking services to all residents or those registered with a Cheshire West GP, are joining the call for smokers to try and stop this year.

Stoptober offers a range of free quitting tools including the NHS Quit Smoking app, Facebook messenger bot, Stoptober Facebook online communities, daily emails and text messages, and an online Personal Quit Plan tool.  Search ‘Stoptober’ online for more information.

For more information about the free Cheshire West and Chester stop smoking service offered by Brio and how to access support visit: 

cheshirechangehub.org 

...or call:

0300 777 0033

Pictured - Cllr Lisa Denson celebrates her anniversary of being smoke-free with Brio stop smoking advisor Alison.