When Pharmacy Technician Jessie Bowlin, #1391, Pell City, Alabama, joined Publix, she decided to take advantage of the GET QUIT Plan to help break her cigarette habit.

“My husband is a non-smoker, and he had always wanted me to quit,” she says. “When I saw Publix offered a discount for Chantix, I thought, ‘Well, I’ll give it a shot.’”

That was four years ago.

Jessie smoked one-half to three-quarters of a pack per day for 39 years. After signing up for the GET QUIT Plan, she took Chantix for about three weeks and found her cravings were gone in less than two months. She says the program was very easy to follow, and she fought urges to smoke by keeping Nicorette gum, peppermints or butterscotch on hand.

“The hardest part was the habit,” she says. “You get used to having a cigarette at certain times like after you eat. When you stop, you realize you don’t have to do that anymore.”

Now, Jessie says quitting was worth the effort. It’s helped both her physical health and work life.

“I can actually get out and walk without gasping for air, and I’ve stopped coughing as much. I feel 100 percent better,” she says. “For smokers, when you’re at work and you can’t get out for a cigarette, you get a little ill-tempered. I don’t have to worry about that now.”

Jessie hopes her story encourages others to quit, and she urges current smokers to try the GET QUIT Plan.

When asked if there was anything else she’d like to share about quitting, Jessie added: “I never knew how bad second-hand smoke was until I started doing some research. I wish I’d known earlier to avoid exposing my kids to second-hand smoke for so many years.”

To learn more about the GET QUIT Plan available to BCBS PPO Plan enrollees or to find links to free resources for quitting tobacco in your state, visit www.publix.org > Life. Inspired. Program.