Forever Free® Self-Help
Forever Free® offers smokers a series of booklets to help them quit smoking and stay quit. The original Forever Free booklets were developed to help recent quitters remain smoke-free. Later versions were created specifically for pregnant women and new mothers, as well as in Spanish. Finally, a version (Stop Smoking For Good) was created for current smokers who want to quit smoking.
A Guide to Remaining Smoke Free
"QUITTING SMOKING IS ONLY HALF THE BATTLE."
Although most smokers want to quit smoking, and many attempt to quit, nearly 90% of smoking cessation attempts eventually result in relapse (return to smoking). Forever Free® was designed to help prevent relapse – to help former smokers remain smoke-free for life. Booklets are written at an easy-to-read level (5th - 6th grade).
The original Forever Free® program was designed for smokers in general. The new Forever Free® for Baby and Me program was written for pregnant women and new mothers. Click on the booklets below for more information on each program.
Original Program
ORIGINAL FOREVER FREE®: A GUIDE TO REMAINING SMOKE FREE
This is the original set of eight booklets designed to prevent smoking relapse among individuals who have recently attempted to quit smoking. They are also available in Spanish (see below).
Evidence-Based: The efficacy of these booklets has been supported in two clinical trials funded by the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute. Results demonstrated that the booklets were effective at preventing smoking relapse throughout the two years of follow-up and that they were highly cost-effective at producing expected life-years saved.
Booklet Topics
- Booklet 1: An Overview
- Booklet 2: Smoking Urges
- Booklet 3: Smoking and Weight
- Booklet 4 What if You Have a Cigarette?
- Booklet 5: Your Health
- Booklet 6: Smoking, Stress, and Mood
- Booklet 7: Lifestyle Balance
- Booklet 8: Life without Cigarettes
Brandon, T. H., Collins, B. N., Juliano, L. M., & Lazev, A. B. (2000). Preventing relapse among former smokers: A comparison of minimal interventions via telephone and mail. Journal of Consulting & Clinical Psychology, 68, 103-113.
Brandon, T. H., Meade, C. D., Herzog, T. A., Chirikos, T. N., Webb, M. S., & Cantor, A. B. (2004). Efficacy and cost-effectiveness of a minimal intervention to prevent smoking relapse: Dismantling the effects of content versus contact. Journal of Consulting & Clinical Psychology, 72, 797-808.
Chirikos, T. N., Herzog, T. A., Meade, C. D., Webb, M. S., & Brandon, T. H. (2004). Cost-effectiveness analysis of a complementary health intervention: The case of smoking relapse prevention. International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care, 20, 475-480.
LIBRES PARA SIEMPRE: GUÍA PARA NO VOLVER A FUMAR
The original set of eight Forever Free® booklets was created for Spanish-speaking smokers.
Booklet Topics
- Booklet 1: Introducción
- Booklet 2: Deseos de fumar
- Booklet 3: Fumar y el peso
- Booklet 4: ¿Qué ocurre si se fuma un cigarrillo?
- Booklet 5: Su salud
- Booklet 6: Fumar, el estrés y los estados de ánimo
- Booklet 7: Estilo de vida balanceado
- Booklet 8: La vida sin cigarrillos
Simmons, V. N., Quinn, G. P., Litvin, E. B., Rojas, A., Jiménez, J., Castro, E., Meade, C. D., & Brandon, T. H. (2011b). Transcreation of validated smoking relapse-prevention booklets for use with Hispanic populations. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 22, 886-893.
FOREVER FREE®...FOR BABY AND ME: A GUIDE TO REMAINING SMOKE FREE
More and more women are quitting smoking during their pregnancy. But up to 70% of them relapse after they give birth, putting both mother and infant at risk of smoking-related illness. This 10-booklet version of Forever Free® has been adapted for pregnant and postpartum women, and is based on previous research and interviews with women. It also includes a booklet for the woman’s partner. They are also available in Spanish (see below).
Booklet Topics
- Booklet 1: An Overview
- Booklet 2: Partner Support
- Booklet 3: Smoking Urges
- Booklet 4: Smoking and Health
- Booklet 5: A Time of Change
- Booklet 6: What if You Have a Cigarette?
- Booklet 7: Smoking, Stress, and Mood
- Booklet 8: Lifestyle Balance
- Booklet 9: Smoking and Weight
- Booklet 10: Life Without Cigarettes
Brandon, T. H., Simmons, V. N., Meade, C. D., Quinn, G. P., Khoury, E. L., Sutton, S. K., & Lee, J-H. (2012). Self-help booklets for preventing postpartum smoking relapse: A randomized trial. American Journal of Public Health, 102, 2109-2115.
LIBRES PARA SIEMPRE…POR MI BEBÉ Y POR MÍ: GUÍA PARA NO VOLVER A FUMAR
The 10-booklet version of Forever Free®…For Baby and Me: A Guide to Remaining Smokefree has been transcreated to reduce relapse among Spanish speaking pregnant women.
Booklet Topics
- Booklet 1: Primer folleto: Información general
- Booklet 2: Segundo folleto: Apoyo del compañero
- Booklet 3: Tercer folleto:Impulsos de fumar
- Booklet 4: Cuarto folleto: Fumar y salud
- Booklet 5: Quinto folleto: Tiempo de cambios
- Booklet 6: Sexto folleto: ¿Qué ocurre si se fuma un cigarillo?
- Booklet 7: Séptimo folleto: Fumar, el estrés y los estados de ánimo
- Booklet 8: Octavo folleto: Estillo de vida equilibrado
- Booklet 9: Noveno folleto: Fumar y el peso
- Booklet 10: Décimo folleto: La vida sin cigarrillos
Simmons, V. N., Cruz, L. M., Brandon, T. H., Quinn, G. P. (2011a). Translation and cultural adaptation of smoking relapse-prevention materials for pregnant and post-partum Hispanic women. Journal of Health Communication International Perspectives, 16, 90-107.
FOREVER FREE®: STOP SMOKING FOR GOOD
This 10-booklet version of Forever Free® was specifically designed to help individuals to quit smoking.
Evidence-Based: The efficacy of these booklets has been supported in a clinical trial funded by the National Cancer Institute. Results demonstrated that the booklets were effective at improving abstinence rates throughout the two and half years of follow-up.
Booklet Topics
| Booklet 1: An Overview (PDF) | Pamphlet 1: Angie's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 2: Smoking Urges (PDF) | Pamphlet 2: Michael's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 3: Smoking & Weight (PDF) | Pamphlet 3: Bryan's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 4: What If You Have a Cigarette? (PDF) | Pamphlet 4: Gloria's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 5: Your Health (PDF) | Pamphlet 5: Candice's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 6: Stress & Mood (PDF) | Pamphlet 6: Maria's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 7: Lifestyle Balance (PDF) | Pamphlet 7: Dave's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 8: Life Without Cigarettes (PDF) | Pamphlet 8: Carlos's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 9: Benefits of Quitting Smoking (PDF) | Pamphlet 9: Clement's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 10: The Road Ahead (PDF) | |
Brandon, T. H., Simmons, V. N., Sutton, S. K., Unrod, M., Harrell, P. T., Meade, C. D., Craig, B. M., & Meltzer, L. R. (2016). Extended self-help for smoking cessation: A randomized controlled trial. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 51(1): 54-62. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2015.12.016.
Simmons, V.N., Sutton, S.K., Meltzer, L.R., Unrod, M., Meade, C.D., & Brandon, T.H. (2018). Long-term outcomes from a self-help smoking cessation randomized controlled trial. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 32(7): 710-714. doi: 10.1037/adb0000401.
FOREVER FREE®: If You Vape
This 10-booklet version of Forever Free® addresses the special needs and circumstances of smokers who also vape. Because many individuals start vaping to quit smoking, but some are unable to quit and concurrently use both products, these booklets were developed to help them transition to exclusive vaping and eventually be completely nicotine free.
Evidence-Based: The efficacy of these booklets has been supported in a clinical trial funded by The National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA). Results demonstrated that the booklets were efficacious at improving smoking abstinence rates over the 18 months the materials were distributed.
Booklet Topics
| Booklet 0: If you Vape: A Guide to Quitting Smoking (PDF) | Pamphlet 1: Anna's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 1: An Overview (PDF) | Pamphlet 2: Joe's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 2: Smoking Urges (PDF) | Pamphlet 3: Chen's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 3: Smoking and Weight (PDF) | Pamphlet 4: Gloria's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 4: What if you Have a Cigarette? (PDF) | Pamphlet 5: Candice's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 5: Your Health (PDF) | Pamphlet 6: Maria's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 6: Smoking, Stress & Mood (PDF) | Pamphlet 7: Steve's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 7: Lifestyle Balance (PDF) | Pamphlet 8: Carlos's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 8: Life Without Cigarettes (PDF) | Pamphlet 9: Warren's story (PDF) |
| Booklet 9: Benefits of Quitting Smoking (PDF) | |
| Booklet 10: The Road Ahead (PDF) |
Martinez, U., Simmons, V. N., Sutton, S. K., Drobes, D. J., Meltzer, L. R., Brandon, K. O., Byrne, M. M., Harrell, P. T., Eissenberg, T., Bullen, C. R., & Brandon, T. H. (2021). Targeted smoking cessation for dual users of combustible and electronic cigarettes: a randomised controlled trial. The Lancet Public Health, 6, e500-e509. doi: 10.1016/S2468-2667(20)30307-8
LIBRE DEL CIGARRILLO POR MI FAMILIA Y POR MÍ
The 10-booklet version of Forever Free® was transcreated and culturally adapted for Hispanic/Latinx smokers who prefer to receive health information in Spanish.
Evidence-Based: The efficacy of these booklets has been supported in a clinical trial funded by the National Cancer Institute and by the Department of Health James and Esther King Biomedical Research Program. Results demonstrated that the booklets were efficacious at improving abstinence rates throughout the two years of follow-up.
Booklet Topics
| Booklet 0: For my Family and Friends | Libro 0: Para mis familiares y amigos (PDF) |
| Booklet 1: Introduction | Libro 1: Introducción (PDF) |
| Booklet 2: Smoking Urges | Libro 2: Los deseos de fumar (PDF) |
| Booklet 3: Smoking and Weight | Libro 3: Dejar de fumar y el peso (PDF) |
| Booklet 4: What if you Have a Cigarette? | Libro 4: Qué ocurre si se fuma un cigarrillo (PDF) |
| Booklet 5: Your Health | Libro 5: Su salud (PDF) |
| Booklet 6: Stress and Mood | Libro 6: El estrés y los estados de ánimo (PDF) |
| Booklet 7: Lifestyle Balance | Libro 7: El equilibrio en el estilo de vida (PDF) |
| Booklet 8: Life Without Cigarettes | Libro 8: Vivir sin cigarrillos (PDF) |
| Booklet 9: The Benefits of Quitting Smoking | Libro 9: Los beneficios de dejar de fumar (PDF) |
| Booklet 10: The Road Ahead | Libro 10: El camino que le espera (PDF) |
| Pamphlet 1: Angelica’s story | Folleto 1: La historia de Angélica (PDF) |
| Pamphlet 2: Mario’s story | Folleto 2: La historia de Mario (PDF) |
| Pamphlet 3: Rafael’s story | Folleto 3: La historia de Rafael (PDF) |
| Pamphlet 4: Jorge Luis’ story | Folleto 4: La historia de Jorge Luís (PDF) |
| Pamphlet 5: Carmen’s story | Folleto 5: La historia de Carmen (PDF) |
| Pamphlet 6: Maria Estela’s story | Folleto 6: La historia de María Estela (PDF) |
| Pamphlet 7: Jose Luis’ story | Folleto 7: La historia de José Luis (PDF) |
| Pamphlet 8: Carolina’s story | Folleto 8: La historia de Carolina (PDF) |
| Pamphlet 9: Ramiro’s story | Folleto 9: La historia de Ramiro (PDF) |
Simmons, V. N., Sutton, S. K., Medina-Ramirez, P., Martinez, U., Brandon, K. O., Byrne, M. M., Meade, C. D., Meltzer, L. M., & Brandon, T. H. (2022). Self-help smoking cessation intervention for Spanish-speaking Hispanics/Latinxs in the United States: A randomized controlled trial. Cancer, 128, 984-994. doi: 10.1002/cncr.33986
For more information about the Forever Free® materials, please contact Dr. Thomas Brandon at thomas.brandon@moffitt.org.
TRIP Research