When the smoke clears

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Jovan Banks
  • 509th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. --  For many smokers, the decision to start is made at a young age.

To a young and impressionable teenager, a bad habit can look exciting, but what starts out as something seemingly cool can end in addiction.

For one staff sergeant this addiction lasted for more than a decade. The decision to quit came as a promise to her father after he was diagnosed with lung cancer.

Staff Sgt. Jordan Lloyd, a security manager of the 509th Maintenance Squadron, shares her experience as a smoker and a successful quitter to help others with nicotine addiction.

Lloyd now serves as a Fresh Start facilitator, and is just one of many people here that are dedicated to helping others with quitting their smoking habit.

Lloyd, who had been smoking since her late teenage years, said she started smoking because she saw her father smoking and thought it was a cool thing to do.  It wasn't until her father fell ill that she decided the time to quit had come.

"I lost my father when he was 59 years old due to lung cancer," said Lloyd. "I had made a promise to my father when he was first diagnosed that I would quit smoking."

Lloyd, who has now been smoke free since January 2011, had more than a promise to her father to help keep her on the steady path. Her husband's allergy to cigarette smoke helped expedite her decision.

"It took me about three months to actually quit," said Lloyd. "I had a little bit of help with Chantix. I went for about a month using Chantix and then honestly I stopped having cravings for cigarettes. If I do have cravings, all I have to do is think about my father and they go away very quickly."

Everyone that is faced with nicotine addiction does not have the same motivation such as losing a loved one to make them want to quit smoking. This is why on-base programs exist.

Brian Kirby, the health promotion director of the 509th Medical Operations Squadron, said stress can cause a person to relapse and pick up smoking again.

"What I hear when people talk about why they smoke is stress or the occasional lifetime change," said Kirby. "It can range from a deployment notice, marital problems, or maybe even the stress of a wife or girlfriend getting pregnant."

According to Kirby there are multiple incentives and programs to help people quit.

"We have a multi-pronged approach" said Kirby. "Along with having local mentors who meet with those that want to quit for extra support, we also work alongside the American Cancer Society."

For Example the American Cancer Society holds a yearly event called The Great American Smokeout. It its initiative was to get smokers to just quit for a single day. It is held every third Thursday of November and according to Kirby this is a strategic date to get smokers to quit. 

While quitting, Lloyd was faced with the hardest obstacle many people encounter in overcoming addiction: the body's reaction.

"The nicotine withdrawals were pretty bad," said Lloyd. "Your body gets used to it so it's kind of a toss-up between that and smoking being part of your daily routine. You're not only trying to deal with the withdrawal, but you're also dealing with completely changing your daily routine because you are trying to replace smoking with other things to do."

Lloyd filled that void with something that she is very fond of now-- running.

"I run 5ks and 10ks almost every weekend now," said Lloyd. "I've just found healthier, better things to do with my time than smoking. I don't feel my breathing being restricted and I'm not hacking and coughing all the time," Lloyd said. "The longer I stay away from smoking the better I feel."

According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cigarettes cause the lungs to constrict as the initial puff is inhaled. Soon after, the smoker's blood pressure and heart rate drop as chemicals reside inside of their lungs, circulating and reaching the brain giving the initial buzz of smoking a cigarette.

That buzz can grow into full on addiction for nicotine. More than 16 million Americans suffer from a disease caused by smoking and each year an estimated 443,000 people die prematurely from smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke.

This year, Lloyd and Kirby hope that their efforts will decrease that number.


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