Slips and Relapse: How to Get Back on Track

Most people who have quit for good needed more than one attempt. If you have slipped, or gone back to smoking completely, you haven't failed. You've learned something about your triggers that will help next time.

A slip is not a relapse

A slip (sometimes called a lapse) is having one or a few cigarettes after quitting. A relapse is going back to regular smoking. The danger is the thought that turns one into the other: "I've blown it now, I might as well have the rest of the pack." Psychologists call this the abstinence violation effect. Recognise it for what it is, and a slip can stay a slip.

When relapse risk is highest

• The first few weeks, when withdrawal and cravings are strongest.
• When drinking alcohol, which is linked to a large share of slips.
• Around other smokers, especially at parties, bars and casino nights.
• Under stress: arguments, work pressure, bad news.
• When you feel confident: "I've quit, so one won't hurt."

If you slip: what to do in the next hour

1. Stop. Put out the cigarette and throw away any others. Don't buy a pack.
2. Don't punish yourself. Guilt makes it more likely you'll smoke again.
3. Work out the trigger. Where were you, who were you with, what were you feeling, were you drinking?
4. Restart your treatment. If you've stopped your NRT or medicine, talk to your pharmacist or doctor about resuming.
5. Tell someone: a friend, your stop-smoking adviser or a quitline.
6. Plan for next time that trigger shows up.

If you've relapsed

Set a new quit date soon, while the reasons you quit are still fresh. Look at what helped last time and what didn't. If you went cold turkey, consider adding NRT or a prescription medicine. If you used treatment for a short time, plan to use it for the full course. If you tried alone, add support.

Never "just one"

Many long-term ex-smokers describe the same story: years smoke-free, then a single cigarette at a party "because it doesn't matter now", and within weeks they were smoking again. Nicotine pathways in the brain are quick to wake up. The simplest rule is the most effective: not one puff.

Using money to stay on track

Some people find it helps to raise the stakes. Commitment contracts, where you put your own money on the line and lose it if you smoke, have been tested in research with encouraging results. See bet on yourself: commitment contracts. Simply watching the money pile up can help too; see money saved by quitting.