No Smoking Day: ‘I was the black sheep’ - Andy Lobo, from Hornchurch

James Schofield, Reporter Wednesday, March 13, 2013
4:40 PM

Andy Lobo, 34, of Coltishall Road, Hornchurch, proudly holds his new iPad aloft.

It’s more than just a nice piece of kit; it’s a symbol of the money he’s saved when he ditched the cigs just over a year ago.

Andy, a senior service adviser at Honda, in Romford, gave up smoking for his son and for his health. He said:

“In the past I have found trying to quit smoking very hard. The time before now lasted just three days! None of my family smoked, even on my wife’s side, so I was the black sheep.

“The day I stopped smoking was Father’s Day in 2012. I had my last cigarette at 3pm.

“I wanted to give up for my health and for my boy. I became guilty of smelling of smoke and forcing it on others who didn’t smoke.

“I downloaded the NHS Smoke-Free app on my phone. It initially felt like a game to see how many days I could go without smoking. After a week or so I found it easy.”

“Once the habit is broken it’s easy. I don’t even think about it now nor do I crave one.”

“According to my app I have saved over £800 in 263 days. To congratulate myself I bought myself an iPad.”