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Senior Residence Hall Manager
Housing, Dining, and Guest Services
Jay Barden quit smoking. He enrolled in a "Freedom from Smoking" program in Spring 2006 offered by Employee Health & Well-Being and taught by a tobacco cessation specialist from Fort Hamilton Hospital. He is the first of many Employee Health & Well-Being success stories we will highlight on our website. Jay was interviewed by Jay Kimiecik, Director of Employee Health & Well-Being.
Jay had been a smoker for 20 plus years and had tried to quit many times. "In looking back, I just wasn't as committed to quitting as I should have been," he says. "I just wasn't ready."
Jay noticed that over the years his breathing and endurance was getting worse and worse. "Smoking definitely prevented me from trying to exercise because it was just too hard," he says. "I was kind of stuck. I wanted to exercise more but I knew I needed to quit before I could get more active."
Then Jay got married and as a result welcomed a step-grandson into the family. "Suddenly, this situation made me even more aware of the fact that I have a lot to live for," he says. "I wanted to be able to do things with and be around awhile for my family."
Now he was really ready to quit. Jay joined the smoking cessation program with a few of his friends and co-workers. "We had a great time helping each other," he says of the program experience. "The peer support was a big factor in helping me quit. We all decided to set a quit day. We wrote letters to ourselves to get us ready and the instructor helped to prepare us emotionally and physically for quit day."
Jay quit cold turkey with the help of the program and nicotine gum. At the time of this writing, he hadn't smoked a cigarette in six months. "Within six weeks, I felt that my senses were coming back to life," he says. "My sense of smell and taste got back to normal. My high blood pressure also starting coming back towards normal. I check it frequently at the Recreational Sports Center and my doctor says that I may soon be able to go off the blood pressure medication."
Jay did gain a little weight after he quit, but that was not unexpected and still worth it. He bought a treadmill and has been using it on a regular basis.
Jay concludes, "For awhile I wasn't sure if I had it in me to quit smoking. But my family and the program provided me with an opportunity to give quitting another chance. If I can quit anyone can."
Congratulations, Jay.
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