I'll gain weight if I quit. People don't gain weight because they quit smoking; they gain weight because they eat more. Ex-smokers gain an average of 5 to 10 pounds. But you can lose it--or keep from gaining--if you get more exercise and stay away from fatty foods and nervous snacking. (See chapter 5, Weight Loss: Tipping the Scales in Your Favor.)

I need cigarettes to relax. Nicotine is actually a stimulant; it prompts the nervous system and the adrenal glands to trigger the release of adrenaline, the "fight or flight" hormone. Adrenaline leaves you feeling wired, not relaxed.

I know lots of people who smoke--they're still healthy. We all know people like this, but they're the exception rather than the rule. The odds are stacked against you.

Cigarettes won't hurt me--I'm in good shape. Don't bet on it. Even if you don't die from smoking, you'll almost certainly experience some degree of disability--like difficulty breathing, a hacking cough, high blood pressure, or heart disease--and eventually be forced to quit. Why not quit now, before the damage is done?

I've tried to quit-dozens of times. It's no use. If you've tried to quit smoking 17 times--and failed 17 times--each attempt increases the likelihood that you'll succeed on a subsequent attempt. Most ex-smokers made many attempts before they finally succeeded.

Quitting is too difficult. If you once quit for a short time but were in total agony each and every day, remember that no one ever died from quitting. You'll get through it.

I can't imagine life without cigarettes. You weren't born smoking; you acquired the habit. You survived before you smoked, and you'll survive after you quit.

SOURCE: Adapted from "Tobacco Tattler," by Don R. Powell, Ph.D., Your Patient and Cancer (May 1984).