What programme did you use in One You Lincolnshire, and what year was it?
Smoking Cessation 2022
Can you give a brief description of your programme?
I was supported via a practicioner to stop smoking.
What did you think of your time with One You Lincolnshire? (improvements, setbacks, etc.)
If I'm completely honest, when I was told someone would help me quit smoking over telephone calls, I didn't really believe it to be a thing. But I wanted to try and quit, and struggled by myself. I was pleasantly surprised by the support I got from my Practicioner and actually, the level of support the telephone appointments provided in general.
When checking in, you felt as if your practicioner cared about you, it wasn't just a one in one out service, they knew who you were, what you did and got to know you more and more through the programme, which in turn helped me achieve my goal, by them using this with me.
It was very beneficial, and I took away skills that I use in day-to-day life, which helped me build my mindset around things even outside of my health.
-What did you enjoy on the pathway?
The success of the quit, it was nice to feel supported at that moment, and it was satisfying counting down the days since I last smoked.
-What is your core memory, such as ( ‘aha’ moment on what you were learning about or praise that you were given)
I had a craving, and I remembered a tip my practitioner had told me about cravings, that they go away, and to find another way to control them. I instead went out and took a walk, and the craving went, I stopped thinking about it, and I realised it was all in my head in that moment.
Why do you think Integrated Health and Wellbeing services like One You Lincolnshire are beneficial for the community and for primary and secondary care? Who benefits from it the most?
I think its huge to allow people to access information to empower themselves. They are preventative; they tackle health issues before they become debilitating issues. Those who are suffering from health issues and may not have the necessary information to turn things around on their own can greatly benefit from these services. They can learn and apply these tools, taking them away to use them effectively.
Then, please include any comments you wish to make that would benefit the improvement in health care, social care, and community-based support.
I think the holistic approach to healthcare is vital in preventing health issues. When people think of getting healthy, they think about eating nothing but fruit and veg and going for a run every day, the realities are not like this, its all about life balance and understanding the impacts that things have on our body. Living healthy isn't never eating a chocolate bar. Living healthy is understanding the things that affect our health and making informed choices about whether you should eat that chocolate bar given your current lifestyle.