Bill McLean

Bill McLean, 64, well remembers the date he stopped smoking: 23rd June, 2008.  Although he was a relative late-comer to smoking, having started when he was 24 and wanting to ‘fit in’ with his pub-going friends, by the time he was in his early 60s he was smoking up to 40 cigarettes a day - and figured out that it was costing him over £3,600 a year to feed his habit.

Although saving money was the prime motivation for stopping smoking, being a smoker and an insulin-dependent diabetic had also taken its toll on Bill’s health, and in 2007 he was admitted to hospital with heart failure and fluid on his lungs. Although attempts to quit on his own didn’t succeed, he finally managed to give up cigarettes for good a year later.  A combination of support from his local NHS Stop Smoking group  and stop-smoking medication has meant that Bill has succeeded in stopping smoking completely – and the staff at the diabetes clinic are delighted!

Apart from improving his circulation and reducing the strain on his heart, Bill has also noticed a marked improvement to his senses of taste and smell, and can really savour his food and drink now.  He has been treating himself to new CDs and DVDs with the money he’s saved.  So what tips would Bill give to anybody else wanting to stop smoking?

“You have to decide that you really want to – it’s no use somebody else telling you that you should.  Then once you’ve decided that you want to stop, get support from your GP and local NHS Stop Smoking service; being in a group meant that I heard about other people’s challenges and successes, which was really helpful.  And don’t be upset if you ‘fall off the wagon’ – if at first you don’t succeed, try, try, try again!”.
 

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