One of the more popular New Year’s Resolutions each year is to quit smoking. If you’re interested in making 2020 the year you finally quit smoking, or vaping, Piedmont Fayette Hospital can help.

Piedmont Fayette offers the course, Freshstart, a free, four-week program, that can help participants get and stay smoke-free. The group meets five times over the course of four weeks. The first meeting gets the group ready to quit and lets the participants know what to expect. In the second meeting, each participant teams up with a buddy, talks specifics and makes a plan. The third meeting is quit night. After that meeting, there will be no more cigarettes. The class discusses how to interact with friends, family members and colleagues at work. The fourth class is 48 hours later and the group meets to discuss the successes and challenges. The final class talks about healthy living and how to stay smoke-free long term.

“Freshstart is designed to help participants plan a successful quit attempt by providing essential information on nicotine dependence, skills for coping with cravings, and group support,” said Abigail Davis, RN, a respiratory therapist at Piedmont Fayette and a nurse at Piedmont Newnan. “If someone has made up their mind that they are going to quit smoking, this class can help them kick the habit for good.”

The American Cancer Society states that cigarette smoking greatly increases the risk of numerous cancers and that an estimated 21 million people in the United States have died because of tobacco use since 1964. Quitting smoking, even after many years of prolonged use, can help a person lead a longer and healthier life.

The next class starts on Tuesday, January 7. Fresh Start meets in Conference Room C on the third floor of the 1279 Building on the campus of Piedmont Fayette Hospital, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Class dates are Tuesdays, Jan. 7, 14, 21, and 28 with a special class on Thursday, Jan. 23.

Visit piedmont.org/classes-and-events to register.