How to Avoid Relapse When Quitting Smoking

Going smoke-free is a journey with many obstacles along the way. While some people manage to quit on the first attempt, others may take several tries to finally kick the habit. However you get there, what matters most is that you actually make it. Progress is progress after all.

Cravings, withdrawal symptoms, and social triggers are some of the hardest roadblocks to overcome on your journey. All of these combined can make it very difficult to stay on the right track, causing many people to start smoking again after a period of stopping. But are there any steps you can take to try to avoid this?

Join us as we explore how to avoid relapse when quitting smoking, reasons why it occurs, how to go back to being smoke-free, and the role medications such as Champix and Zyban can play. Let’s begin. 

START YOUR CONSULTATION TODAY

Why is it So Hard to Quit Smoking?

Nicotine is a highly addictive substance that affects the brain and body in multiple ways. These effects are partly why smoking is so hard to give up, and include:

• Dopamine and adrenaline release: Smoking releases dopamine, a ‘feel-good’ hormone that can distract from unpleasant feelings and make you want to smoke more. Nicotine also releases a small amount of adrenaline, which increases heart rate and blood pressure.
• Nicotine tolerance: The more you smoke, the more your body gets used to nicotine. As your tolerance rises, so does the amount of tobacco needed to produce the same effect. Therefore, you need to smoke more to keep your blood nicotine levels stable and avoid withdrawal.
• Withdrawal symptoms: People with nicotine dependence experience physical and emotional withdrawal symptoms when they try to stop smoking. This can make you feel irritable and restless, which creates a powerful urge to smoke.

Even after the physical symptoms of nicotine withdrawal have passed, many ex-smokers find it difficult to abstain from tobacco. This is often due to a variety of behavioural and psychological factors, such as:

• Negative emotional experiences
• Repeated urges to smoke
• Diminishing motivation to quit
• Decreased belief in their ability to quit
• Social factors (such as visiting places that serve alcohol and spending time with friends who smoke)

The physical and behavioural aspects of nicotine addiction all contribute to withdrawal symptoms, and these are at the centre of many people’s struggle to quit. These symptoms (which can include anxiety, increased appetite, irritability, and difficulty concentrating) are why only 5-10% of people successfully stop smoking without help.

Is it Normal to Relapse When Quitting Smoking?

People relapse when quitting smoking for a variety of biological, behavioural, and psychological reasons. Relapse is most common within the first few weeks of giving up tobacco, when nicotine cravings and withdrawal symptoms are strongest. This is because a sudden drop in blood nicotine levels can create feelings of anxiety and stress, leading many to smoke for relief.

However, relapse can happen at any time and for a wide variety of reasons. Ex-smokers are at greatest risk of slipping up and using tobacco when they:

• Are exposed to situations in which they would have previously smoked
• Experience a stressful event
• Spend time with people who have a positive attitude towards smoking

How to Avoid Relapse When Quitting Smoking

Most people relapse when quitting smoking, and it can take several attempts to quit. However, you should treat mistakes as learning opportunities rather than a sign of failure. Identifying your personal smoking triggers and taking steps to manage these is the key to successfully quitting for good.

1. Identify Your Triggers

Triggers are things that ignite the urge to smoke, and they can be challenging to ignore. Everyone trying to quit smoking will have their own set of triggers, but some of the most common include:

• Drinking coffee
• Finishing eating
• Walking or driving somewhere
• Work breaks
• Talking on the phone
• Watching TV or relaxing at home
• Strong emotions (such as anger, sadness, stress, anxiety, joy, loneliness, frustration, etc.)
• Spending time with other smokers
• Drinking alcohol

Triggers can be emotional, social, pattern-based, or related to withdrawal symptoms. Once you’ve identified your own triggers, you must either avoid them or find an alternative coping strategy. For example, if drinking alcohol makes you want to smoke, it may be best to avoid alcohol. If you use smoking to regulate negative emotions, like anxiety, you can find other coping mechanisms (like speaking to friends, physical activity, or breathing exercises).

2. Use Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT)

Nicotine replacement therapies (NRTs) are products that deliver nicotine in a safer way than smoking. They can help to reduce withdrawal symptoms and curb tobacco cravings in the early stages of quitting, making you less likely to light a cigarette. NRTs come in many different forms, including:

• Gum
• Patches
• Lozenges
• Inhalers
• Sprays

Using NRTs can make it a lot easier to stop smoking, and some studies suggest they increase the likelihood of quitting by up to 70%. Though not officially a form of NRT, nicotine vapes may also help to manage withdrawal symptoms. Vapes aren’t classed as NRTs because they are regulated as consumer products in the UK, rather than licensed medicines. However, research suggests they may be even more effective than NRTs for smoking cessation.

3. Consider Anti-Smoking Medications

Anti-smoking medications are prescription medicines that can make it easier to quit smoking. Unlike NRTs, they don’t contain nicotine. Instead, they block the effects of nicotine on the brain or influence the brain’s chemical signals to reduce withdrawal symptoms and cravings. The main medicines proven to help people stop smoking are:

• Champix
• Varenicline
• Cytisine
• Zyban

If you are interested in trying a stop-smoking medication, discuss your options with a licensed clinician. They can help you choose the best medicine and treatment plan for your needs.

4. Learn to Manage Cravings

Nicotine cravings can cause intense physical and psychological symptoms that are difficult to ignore. These symptoms, which can include mood changes, headaches, and difficulty concentrating, typically peak 2-3 days after you stop smoking but can persist for weeks.

People are most vulnerable to relapse when experiencing withdrawal symptoms, so learning to manage your cravings is key to successfully quitting smoking. Avoiding triggers can help, but it isn’t always realistic, so when faced with the urge to smoke, try the 4 Ds:

• Delay: Nicotine cravings usually pass within 10 - 20 minutes; the longer you can resist the urge to smoke, the less likely you are to relapse.
• Deep breath: Take some slow, deep breaths to calm your mind and body. This can give you the space to remember your reasons for quitting, and reinforce your resolve not to smoke.
• Distract: Distract yourself from the craving with exercise, music, a TV show, a conversation, a puzzle, or a book.
• Drink water: Sip water slowly to keep your hands and mouth busy. Staying hydrated can also help with some nicotine withdrawal symptoms, like headaches.

5. Exercise Regularly

Exercise can be an effective antidote to nicotine cravings, and even brief bouts can help people resist the desire to smoke. Studies have found that cardiovascular exercise (like walking or cycling) can reduce psychological withdrawal symptoms. Exercise also delays smoking, which can allow time for the craving to pass. Therefore, brief bursts of exercise can help you manage cravings and avoid relapse.

Regular exercise may also help mitigate weight gain, which many ex-smokers experience due to increased appetite. It may also help to foster a healthier, more positive self-image that reinforces your new identity as a non-smoker. 

6. Seek Social Support

Social support is any behaviour from the people around you that positively reinforces your decision to quit smoking. Studies have found that support from partners, friends, and colleagues is associated with higher rates of successful smoking cessation. This may be partly because social support can boost your motivation to succeed and to resist cravings.

Surrounding yourself with supportive people can also improve your emotional state by reducing stress. As negative emotions are known smoking triggers, reducing their impact on your everyday life can make it much easier to avoid relapse.

7. Keep Hands and Mouth Busy

The hand-to-mouth habit inherent to smoking may be very hard to break, as research suggests it could play a role in emotional regulation. These smoking-related gestures may be particularly important for people with anxiety, and could explain why some people find the physical gestures of smoking difficult to abandon.

Keeping your hands and mouth busy when nicotine cravings strike can help you to satisfy this habit without smoking. Chewing gum, munching on carrot sticks or sunflower seeds, sipping water, or breathing through a straw can all help distract you from the urge to light a cigarette.

8. Remind Yourself of the Benefits

Motivation is the driving force behind quitting smoking, and many people start off strong. However, half of smokers report decreasing motivation over time, and this can put them at risk of relapse.  When cravings spike, it can help to remind yourself why you quit smoking in the first place. Write down or say aloud the benefits of quitting smoking, for example:

• Improving your health
• Saving money
• Not exposing loved ones to secondhand smoke
• Increasing fitness
• Reducing your risk of cancer and other diseases
• Regaining your sense of taste and smell

9. Practise Mindfulness Techniques

Some people find that mindfulness techniques help them to overcome nicotine cravings and avoid relapse when quitting smoking. Mindfulness can also reduce stress, anxiety, and depression, encourage healthier eating, improve relationships, and increase your overall enjoyment in everyday life. All of this helps reinforce a positive sense of identity, which can strengthen your resolve to stop smoking for good.

When you experience an urge to smoke, stop and take a deep breath. Notice the sensations in your body and what thoughts you are having. If you notice physical sensations of stress, continue to breathe deeply and slowly. Breathing exercises have been found to regulate the nervous system and reduce stress and anxiety, which can lessen your desire to smoke.

Immersing yourself in a hobby, visualising somewhere peaceful, and taking walks in nature can all help you to connect deeply with something other than thoughts of smoking. Nicotine cravings usually rise and then ebb away within 10-20 minutes, and practising mindfulness can help you to endure this temporary discomfort.

10. Contact a Stop Smoking Advisor

Stop smoking advisors are NHS professionals who can provide one-on-one or group support to help people quit and avoid relapse. They can help you make your personal quit-smoking plan and decide on a quit date. They can also tell you more about quitting aids, such as NRTs and anti-smoking medications.

The specialist support offered by stop smoking advisors can reduce your risk of relapse. Most people who see an advisor make it through their first month without smoking, and those who reach 28 days smoke-free are five times more likely to quit for good.

What to Do After a Smoking Relapse

Most people make several attempts to quit smoking before they stop for good, and relapse is common. If you slip up and smoke again, don’t beat yourself up - instead, take the opportunity to consider the cause of your relapse and how to avoid it in the future.

• Identify Your Mistakes: Think about what triggered you to smoke, and how you can avoid or manage this trigger in the future. What about the situation did you find difficult, and what coping skills could you employ next time you face a similar scenario?
• Make a Plan of Action: Consider what you will do differently on your next quit attempt. What worked for you before, and what made you relapse? Decide how you will handle triggers in the future so you are better prepared to overcome cravings and avoid relapse.
• Stay Positive: Relapses are disappointing, but you mustn’t let a mistake ruin your motivation. Think about what you achieved by stopping smoking, even if it was for a short time. Remind yourself why you quit in the first place, and learn from your mistakes so your next attempt is stronger.

If you’ve only had one or two cigarettes, throw the rest away and continue with your current quit attempt. If you’ve gone back to regular smoking, set a new quit date and prepare for your next attempt.

Can Medication Prevent a Smoking Relapse?

Evidence suggests that anti-smoking medications may help people avoid relapse after quitting. For example, varenicline, which is usually prescribed as a 12-week course of treatment, may help people to resist nicotine cravings long-term.

Varenicline works by dampening nicotine cravings and withdrawal symptoms, and by reducing the pleasurable effects of smoking. Cravings and withdrawal symptoms are two common triggers for relapse, and lessening these effects can help people stay on track in the early days of their quit attempt.

If the treatment is extended beyond the standard 12 weeks, these effects could also help people avoid relapse in the long term. Early research suggests that anti-smoking medications could be more effective for preventing relapse than other supportive therapies, such as behavioural counselling.

Champix

Rated 5.0 out of 5 based on 2 reviews

Rated 5.0 out of 5 based on 2 reviews

• Blocks the rewarding effects of smoking
• Reduces cravings and withdrawal symptoms 
• High long-term abstinence rates

• Discreet delivery next working day
• Online prescription - No doctor visit

Prices from £44.99 Review More Prices

Start Order More Info

Get Started

Start Order More info

Ongoing Support from Prescription Doctor

If you’re thinking about quitting smoking, it’s essential to have a support team to rely upon when things feel difficult. This is where Prescription Doctor can help.

Our specialist team is available to assist you however needed, from recommending the right smoking cessation medication for your circumstances to answering any questions about your treatment schedule or offering general medical advice. We also understand that accessing healthcare can be a hassle, which is why we strive to make the process as stress-free as possible.

Simply fill out our online questionnaire with details about your medical history and any other treatments you may be taking, and our experienced clinicians will review your information to determine if your chosen medication is suitable for your circumstances. If approved, your order is dispatched from our General Pharmaceutical Council-registered pharmacy directly to your door. It’s that straightforward.

You can also find a library of information about going smoke-free on our website, including how long it can take to stop, and strategies to combat social smoking. We even outline what could happen after you quit and explore a timeline of events.

Ready to begin your journey? Start a consultation with Prescription Doctor today. 

Authored By

Kate Latham

Medical Content Writer

Kate has been a scientific content writer since 2017. With a BSc in Biology and a background in cancer research, she is adept at identifying the latest findings in medical research and utilising these

Published on: 04/02/2026

Reviewed By

Mohamed Imran Lakhi

MPharm - Lead Pharmacist

Imran Lakhi is the superintendent pharmacist and founder at Prescription Doctor. He has been at the core of our team.

Reviewed on: 04/02/2026