A Kirkby mum was inspired to quit smoking after the deaths of family members from lung cancer.

Now Rachel, 40, who is a home carer, is urging smokers to take inspiration from her by seeking the help of a free specialist support service commissioned by Nottinghamshire County Council.

Your Health Your Way is a health and wellbeing service, operated by ABL Health, which helps people to get more active, eat healthier, lose weight, drink less alcohol and stop smoking. It has received 3,000 referrals to its stop smoking service during the pandemic, 65% of whom have successfully gone on to quit smoking.

The service offers a range of 1-1 and drop-in sessions as well as telephone and digital support. It includes a full range of free nicotine replacement therapy alongside weekly support from stop smoking advisors.

The service aims to support people to understand why they smoke, manage their cravings, and deal with relapses.

Rachel received weekly supportive telephone calls from her trained stop smoking advisor, opting for nicotine replacement patches and gum, and said she could not have given up without their support.

“I quit in the past easily when I was pregnant with my kids, but started smoking again when the baby was born. I never manage to quit for good before,” she said.

“This time I got continuous support and encouragement to continue and the right choice of products.”

Rachel used the Your Health Your Way 12-week quit programme and received weekly supportive telephone calls from her trained stop smoking advisor

“I found it useful having an advisor ringing me every week to check my progress and provide weekly support. My advisor was non-judgemental, and I felt like I would talk to her about anything,” added Rachel.

“I changed my routine; I keep myself busy. I have breakfast with my kids instead of going out to have a cigarette in the morning. I am sleeping much better and have more energy. The best advice was given to me – continue with your attempt even though I had couple of difficult days, set a quit date and stick to it, ‘Not a puff’ rule’.”

ABL says that nearly 65 per cent of those who have come into the service were able to quit smoking successfully with free pharmaceutical products and support from experienced stop smoking advisors.

Rachel Parker-Haynes, Smoking Cessation Lead at ABL Health, said: “Covid has been a difficult time for all but here at Your Health Your way we are committed to provide a quality, evidence-based stop smoking service for the residents of Nottinghamshire.

“Over the past year we have supported and provided free Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) for thousands of residents within the community and for people coming out of hospital. We have adapted our smoke free clinics and posted NRT directly to client’s doors. With Covid restrictions easing over the next few months our Stop Smoking Practitioners will be delivering a quality service in the heart of the community within local venues.”

Coun Boyd Elliott, chairman of the council’s Adult Social Care and Health Committee, said: “Rachel’s story is an inspiration to anyone thinking of quitting smoking. The last year has been so stressful that smoking may have offered a window of relief for many people – particularly those whose families were impacted by Covid-19 or those who found paying the bills a real challenge.

“To give up in any circumstances is hard but to do so during one of the most stressful periods in our history is remarkable. Congratulations to anyone who has made a real go of it.

“The best way to stop smoking sustainably is with support from specialist services. It’s never too late to quit and I would urge anyone who’s thinking about taking that step to get support from Your Health Your Way.”

Find out more about the health benefits of quitting here.

If you would like support to stop smoking contact Your Health Your Way at https://yourhealthnotts.co.uk/residents/ or call 0115 7722515.