Ready to quit tobacco products? Take steps to quit now! Join the American Lung Association’s Freedom From Smoking® Group Program. The Freedom From Smoking program gives you options, resources and support to quit for good!
Beginning January 2026, Valley Regional Hospital will be offering the Freedom From Smoking program® on-site. The group will work with other people who are quitting along with a trained facilitator to set a quit date, build a quit plan, learn new tips for success, and work through your first few months tobacco-free.
What to Expect:
- 8 Sessions designed for ages 18+ (Must attend all sessions)
- Next Session Dates: 1/6, 1/13, 1/20, 1/27, 1/29, 2/3, 2/12, 2/17
- 2 Hour Sessions (5:30pm-7:30pm)
- Program Cost $0 (Funded by the Ladies Union Aid Society)
- Location: Valley Regional Hospital: 243 Elm Street Claremont, NH 03743
- Seats are limited on a first come, first served basis.
- Can’t make this Group Session? We can add you to the waitlist for the next
available session in the Winter and/or Spring.
Sign up today by calling (603) 542-6700!
Benefits of Living Smoke-Free
Within 20 minutes
Your blood pressure and pulse rate return to normal.
Within 8 hours
The level of oxygen in your blood rises to normal.
Within 24 hours
Your risk of heart attack starts to drop.
Within 1-9 months
Coughing and shortness of breath decreases. The tiny hair-like structures called cilia that move mucous out of your lungs start to work again.
Within 1 year
Excess risk of heart disease is half of someone who still uses tobacco.
Within 2-5 years
Your risk of having a stroke can fall to the same risk as a never-user.
Within 5 years
Your risk of developing a tobacco-related cancer is cut in half.
Within 10 years
Your risk of dying from lung cancer is about half that of a person who is still smoking. Your risk of developing cancer of the larynx decreases, and so does your risk of pancreatic cancer.
Within 15 years
Your risk of developing heart disease is the same as a never-user.
Source: American Lung Association
Health Effects of Secondhand Smoke
“Secondhand smoke is a serious health hazard with more than 19,000 deaths attributed to exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke in the United States every year. It can cause or make worse a wide range of damaging health effects in children and adults, including lung cancer, respiratory infections and asthma.” Learn more by visiting the American Lung Association website.
Resources
- www.lung.org/quit-smoking/
- Freedom From Smoking also offers and online self-paced format with live phone and chat support.
- www.smokefree.gov
- www.cancer.org/cancer/risk-prevention/tobacco.html
- www.quitnownh.org
- Free one-on-one telephone coaching and live chat support for New Hampshire residents.
- 1 (800) – QUIT – NOW 1 (800) 784-8669
- www.802quits.org
- Free quit support for Vermont residents online, by phone, or in-person.
- 1 (800) – QUIT – NOW 1 (800) 784-8669