Support to stop smoking | Shropshire Council

Smoking is the primary cause of preventable illness and premature death in England. Quitting smoking is one of the most important things you can do for your health and is easier with the right support.

Stop smoking treatments help with managing cravings caused by nicotine and other tobacco withdrawal symptoms. They also increase your chance of successfully quitting alongside expert behavioural stop smoking support.

Stop smoking treatments include prescription-only medicines and Nicotine Replacement Therapies (or ‘NRT’). NRT gives you nicotine, the addictive substance in cigarettes and tobacco, without any of the harmful chemicals. Types of NRT include nicotine patches, nasal and mouth sprays, inhaler, gum, and lozenges.

If you already smoke, nicotine vaping offers an effective tool for quitting smoking when used with behavioural support as part of a concerted quit attempt. Nicotine vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking tobacco. Switching from cigarettes to vapes reduces your exposure to toxins in tobacco smoke that can cause cancer, lung disease, heart, and circulatory disease such as heart attack and stroke, and at lower levels than smoking cigarettes.

Healthy Lives (Social Prescribing & Health Coaching) behavioural support to stop smoking

Shropshire’s Healthy Lives (Social Prescribing and Health Coaching) programme is a non-medical approach designed to help people aged 18 years and over who are experiencing a wide range of social, emotional or practical needs.

Skilled Healthy Lives advisors can offer free behavioural stop smoking and weight management support, as well as support with a wide range of issues such as loneliness and isolation, low level mental health concerns or long term conditions.

NHS Quit smoking support

Download the free NHS Quit smoking app for daily support to help you quit smoking, track your progress and see how much money you’re saving.

Get your free Personal Quit Plan and find the combination of support that’s right for you in 4 easy steps.

Find your online community by joining the Quit Smoking Support group on Facebook.

Togetherall online mental health support for young people and adults across Shropshire. The online service provides 24/7 365 days/year free access and support for people with anxiety, depression, and other common mental health issues.

Togetherall includes an anonymous community where members can share how they are feeling and support each other, as well a wide range of self-guided courses including Quitting Smoking. To access support, visit the Togetherall website – the service is completely free and only requires a postcode and email address to register.

Smoking in pregnancy

Many of the chemicals in cigarette smoke are dangerous and harmful to your unborn baby. Protecting your baby from tobacco smoke is important in giving them a healthy start in life. If you smoke, the best thing you can do for you and your unborn baby is to stop smoking. It’s never too late to quit!

There are lots of benefits of stopping smoking in pregnancy. These include reducing the risk of complications during pregnancy and birth and reducing the risk of stillbirth.

Passive smoking is also harmful in pregnancy because you're breathing in smoke from other people’s cigarettes. If you can, try to avoid being around people who are smoking.

Healthier Together provides advice for parents, young people and pregnant women, as well as clinical resources to support healthcare professionals.

The Shropshire Telford & Wrekin Healthy Pregnancy Support service (HPSS) offers healthy lifestyle in pregnancy support including support to stop smoking and advice and support about healthy weight gain and lifestyle choices in pregnancy.

Contact the Healthy Pregnancy Support Service on 01952 565732 Monday - Friday 8.30am – 4.00pm for support with stopping smoking in pregnancy. Alternatively, ask your midwife to refer you.

For expert advice, videos and tips on pregnancy, birth and beyond, sign up for NHS Better Health: Start for Life’s emails.