More than 44,000 people have called the state's Tobacco Quit Line in the past three and a half years, according to the Washington State Department of Health; funded by taxes on cigarettes and a settlement from a lawsuit against tobacco companies, the free service provides one-on-one counseling to people who want to quit.

Secretary of the Washington State Department of Health Mary Selecky:

Mary Selecky: “We know that it is really hard for people to quit smoking, and we want to be there because people who are ready to quit need a little bit of help and that’s what we are there for, we are there to help them.”

Zoey Luxton is a cessation specialist who answers calls for the quit line.

Zoey Luxton: “Some people aren’t quite ready to do the changes; they are kind of thinking it through. For those folks, what we really do is have them look at a “pro and con” list of why quit. For those who are ready to change, then it’s really matter of helping them develop a quit plan.”

The Department of Health quit line is available for all adults who want to stop using tobacco. For free immediate support go to Quitline.com or call 877-270-STOP.

That number once again is 877-270-S-T-O-P and it’s free.

The DOH reports there are 83,000 fewer adult smokers in the state today than there where in 1999, due in part to the quit line.

Mary Selecky, Secretary of the Washington State Department of Health, says the quit line is in response to smokers’ request.

Mary Selecky: “The Department of Health wanted to make it easier for people to quit smoking. So we went out and asked smokers, ’What do you need from us?’ They said, ‘we need help that is confidential, that will help me in my situation and that isn’t going to cost me a lot of money.’ It seemed to us that a toll-free quit line was the most successful thing we could give to people in this state.”

Zoey Luxton says the biggest hurdle to quit smoking is the fear of failure.

Zoey Luxton: “One of the biggest hurdles for people is overcoming that fear of failure. So many people feel like, ‘Oh gosh, because I’ve tried doing it before and I haven’t quit yet, what makes me think that I have any chance now?’ and they are fearful of disappointing others and themselves. And really, that is the opposite of what is really true; that you don’t fail unless you give up trying, and what studies have shown us is that the more times you try, the more likely you are to be successful.”