The Epsilon Project


You may have noticed our five-spot logo. We designed this for a reason. Four of the spots represent the programmes we provide for smokers: Phoenix, N5, and our acupuncture and hypnotherapy programmes. The fifth spot is for the epsilon project.

What is epsilon? It's the fifth letter of the Greek alphabet, and it represents our research work. The work that feeds into all of our programmes. Without it, we would not exist.

Because the government does not fund research in smoking cessation, and because the pharmaceutical companies have no interest in doing it (they research drugs, which is completely different), the National Smoking Cessation Institute carries the responsibility for conducting research into new ways to help smokers.

Understanding why people smoke, why they have difficulty stopping and why the current medical model fails to help them, all of this is what makes our programmes so successful.

To do this research we need people, smokers - we need you. This isn't research that can be carried out in a laboratory, it can only be done by talking to the people with the problem, by giving them ideas to work with and seeing how they respond. We have been conducting this research since 1991, with tens of thousands of smokers. You might think that by now we might know all there is to know about stopping smoking, and yes, we do know a lot, more than anyone else probably, but the problem with smoking is that it's done by people, and no two people are the same. This is research that will never be complete.

The epsilon project is how we use smokers to help us learn even more. By becoming a member of the project, you do something for us and we do something for you (rather a lot for you, actually). We take on your case, analyse it carefully, get to know what your problems are, and then we turn this round and start helping you to address these problems with the help of our expertise. You take our advice and report back on your progress, we take note of that and further develop ideas to help you personally. By the end of your membership of the project, the chances are you will have stopped smoking. And we will have increased our knowledge base.

What you will get


So in practical terms, how does your membership of the epsilon project work, and how is it going to help you to stop smoking?

When you join the project you will receive your membership pack. This includes:
  • A copy of one of our publications, which you will read fully before going any further.

  • A questionnaire which you will return to us immediately, with details of your smoking history and your attempts to stop. (This does not go on a computer, and is confidential. If, say, you are using other drugs, we need to know this.)

  • A project workbook. This has personal projects for you to follow, and you will use it to keep a record of how you respond to these. We will need this back at the end.
Having read the book, you will make an appointment for a telephone consultation with one of our counsellors. This is on a local-call number, and is likely to last about half an hour.

The purpose of the project, remember, is for us to respond to your personal needs with stopping smoking, so the project is going to be totally tailored to those needs.

When you talk to an NSCI counsellor you enter a new world, a world where everything is explained simply and fully, where you are listened to patiently, where ideas you have never heard before make it all different.

Our psychological techniques are state-of-the-art. There is literally nothing you could say that won't have an answer. Because epsilon is about the psychology of smoking, which means we don't need to do any physical therapy with you, all of this can be done during telephone consultations (although you may opt to come to our Hove Centre if you live in Sussex).

Remember too that although we run the epsilon project to do research, as far as you are concerned as a member it is about helping you to stop smoking, so we will be completely dedicated to that task.

Every time we give you something to work on (it might be keeping a smoking diary, or changing your diet, or doing some stress management work, for example), we need you to call back at the appointed time to let us know how you got on. At the point when you are actually stopping smoking (it's unlikely to be immediately, because there is almost always preparatory work to be done), you must particularly keep in touch. If it is going well, we need to know so we can move you on to the next stage. If it isn't going well, we need to know so we work out why and make changes.

Being in the epsilon project is going to be like having your own personal trainer dedicated to getting you stopped. You can call as much as you want for support and advice - we really won't mind. We will try to ensure you talk with the same counsellor, but we're not a large organisation and you will get to know everyone on the epsilon team quite quickly.

Can you join Epsilon if you are using a drug product to stop smoking?


Definitely. Almost everyone we help in our programmes has failed with nicotine replacement products (NRPs) and / or psychotropic drugs (Zyban or Champix) prescribed by their GP. Part of our work is to help people who are struggling with these drug products, so if you are currently on them, or planning to be, join epsilon and we will help you to get a better result with them. This in turn will help us to learn how to help more smokers who are using these drugs.

Are you a candidate for the project?


Not every smoker is suitable to join the epsilon project. If you have already tried seriously to stop smoking and failed you should probably be in one of our main programmes, because we will know, from your case history, what your problems are and how to resolve them.

On the other hand, if you have never really tried to stop, or you have made half-hearted attempts, or you do periodically stop but have been unable to stay stopped, you are the kind of smoker we accept onto the project.

If you don't stop in Epsilon


So, what will happen if you don't stop smoking during your membership? Obviously, by the very nature of research, not everyone does. One of two things will happen:

  • You will have made progress, probably you will be smoking a lot less, and at some time in the future what you have learned from your membership of the project will enable you to stop. In this situation, think of stopping smoking as a journey, and epsilon as the way you get started on that journey.

  • You will not have made much progress but you will have gained a good understanding of what the problems are and how to resolve them. This might involve getting help outside the Institute, or more probably it will mean transferring to one of our main programmes. If you do this, the fee for the main programme will be discounted.
So joining the project can only ever be a good thing.

Is there a cost?


We get no state funding of any kind, and as a not-for-profit public service we work on a very tight budget, so yes, we do need to ask you for a contribution towards the cost of helping you. This is nothing like a commercial fee though.

You have two membership options. If you join for six months, the cost to you is £47.50. If you have had experience of stopping smoking and starting again, over a long period, you should consider a year's membership, which is £67.50.

How to join the Epsilon project


If you are sure one of our programmes wouldn't be better for you, and if you are prepared to make a commitment to work on stopping smoking, the next stage is to call us, on 0845 345 2092 or 01273 205196. Please call during office hours, which are Monday-Friday, 9-5.30 and Saturday 10-2.

We will check your suitability and then you can confirm your place on the project in one of two ways:

  • We can take your details over the phone (and you can pay by card), and send you your membership pack.

  • You can post the application form to us with your payment. We will send you your pack when we receive this.