Dennis, a participant in UW-PASS at the Aurora clinic in Racine, said he entered the study as a ruse to placate his doctor, wife, and kids who wanted him to quit.

At times Dennis said he thought, “’I’ll never quit smoking.’ The other part of me thought, ‘maybe I can.’ But that part was way less. Because I really did want to quit. I just didn’t know how.” Still, Dennis never thought he’d actually go through with it, and even went so far as to contemplate ways out of the study.

He said the non-judgmental coaching from Tess Kuba, and the preparation before his quit date—including reducing smoking while on the patch, convinced him to quit for good.

“I could cut down smoking without having to quit right away. You can’t just take everything away from me all at once.” He’s proud to be smoke-free for himself and his wife and kids. For those reticent to quit he said, “I’d tell them, ‘I know how you feel. Relax. It’s not that bad. It’s actually something you’ll enjoy. I looked forward to coming (to the clinic) and talking about how to quit smoking. I felt stronger.’”