The Cooper/Clayton Method to Stop Smoking
- The Cooper/Clayton method was started in the 1980s by Thomas Cooper and Richard Clayton. Cooper, a dentist, was a heavy smoker with a nicotine addiction, and Richard Clayton, a researcher, specialized in drug addiction. The two men worked together at the University of Kentucky, and when Cooper wanted to quit smoking, he teamed up with Clayton to devise the Cooper/Clayton Method of Quitting Smoking. The method is offered as a self-help program, complete with DVDs and videos or through classrooms and support sessions offered by specialists nationwide who have been trained in the Cooper/Clayton Method.
- This program runs on a couple of principles. First, it contends that giving up smoking is just like making any other plan, in that it needs to be thought of and implemented in stages, taking into account any possible stumbling blocks. Second, the program runs on the principle of breaking up the major problem of the smoking addiction into smaller parts. It also believes the answers to three questions are essential to helping you stop smoking. Those three questions are:
Do you remember why you started smoking? Do the reasons you started smoking still exist? Have you ever considered that you might be better off as a nonsmoker?
Once you have identified the answers to these questions and clarified your commitment to smoking, the program focuses on reducing your cravings and substituting nicotine-replacement products for cigarettes.
Reducing your cravings involves finding innovative ways to cope with your desire for a cigarette. For instance, if you are used to hurrying outside for a cigarette after a meal, the program suggests brushing your teeth after the meal instead, which conditions the brain to reach for the toothpaste instead of the cigarette to signal that the meal is over.
The program also requires you to select a nicotine-replacement product that best suits you, as well as to equip yourself with relapse-prevention strategies, healthy lifestyle information and stress management techniques. The nicotine-replacement product is an important component of the strategy. Replacement products include nicotine patches, nicotine gum and lozenges that have lower levels of nicotine than cigarettes. The nicotine replacement product is usually used for 12 weeks. - The total length of the program runs for 12-weeks, regardless of whether you do the program as a self-help program or attend support groups in your area and do the program with others. The first phase of the program lasts about a week, during which time you must note the number of cigarettes you smoke. This is done to help you, or the person organizing the course, to understand the level of your addiction. During the second phase, which lasts about six weeks, a suitable replacement product is suggested and implemented in phases. The focus of the third and final phase, which lasts about four weeks, helps prevent you from relapsing into the habit by focusing on the self-help techniques discussed. If you are working alone, the videos and self help kit are designed to help you through the program. If you are attending a support group, the number of participants will vary depending on the demand in your area.
