We all know that there are many different methods to stop smoking, some a lot more effective than the others. This article is about stopping smoking all by yourself. Whether you have tried before or you are doing so now for the first time, the following techniques makes it both simple and easy.Now, there are two myths about smoking that I would like to see disappear in a puff of smoke before we get to the 'how to' part of this article. The first is that some smokers put off the idea of stopping smoking thinking that they need to be fully committed to the idea of stopping and totally willing. Well, that is just not true. Most people wanting to stop smoking also feel that another part of them wants to continue, or still enjoys it, or is scared about the idea of stopping. The good news is that as long as the part of you that wants to stop is more motivated than the part that still enjoys it, then you can have success.[]
Secondly, there seem to be a lot of 'good advice' out there about willpower that can help you to stop. Although some will-power is needed to take the initial steps towards becoming a non-smoker, applying too much of your will-power and pushing too hard to never smoke again, will have exactly the opposite effect. Instead, follow the top tips below and surprise yourself at just how easy it can be to relax creatively into the new non-smoking you.
Here are some tips to help you quit smoking:Select a date and stick to it.Talk to your family and friends about quitting and get their support. They are the ones who should understand best and respect your decision the most. You can be each other's support structure. Exchange your experience and tips.Take up another habit to substitute the habit of smoking. It can be simply to replace the oral fixation with sugar free chewing gums, or an activity of your choice.
Start exercising. This will help channel the excess energy you feel and make you fit as well. This should also lead you to drink some water, that is a great cleanser for your body.Stay busy. This will help you keep your mind off smoking and getting tired by the end of the day will help you sleep better. There are countless activities if you take the time to think about them. What can you do at home ? What can you do outside ? Even the smallest task needs focus, and you are not thinking about smoking during this time.
If you have stopped smoking in the past and not felt much of a desire, then you may well fall into the same pattern whenever you make an attempt to stop.The best way to help yourself when quitting smoking is by deliberately inducing your desire to smoke, so that you can retrain yourself to manage it and consciously accept it. This might look as though you are making things more difficult for yourself, but in fact you are simply facing up to a difficulty that already exists.Inducing a desire to smoke is a conscious mental exercise. It means deliberately interrupting your thoughts about the other things in your life, and, with your cigarette packet in front of you, focusing on the feelings inside you of wanting to smoke.There is a reason you are avoiding feeling your desire to smoke: you are no doubt afraid of it because you think it might make you smoke. You see it as an enemy, a nuisance and an unnecessary pain. When you deliberately induce it, you break down this negativity and fear, and turn the desire into something you have power over.
If you find inducing the desire difficult you will need to be creative to really understand how to quit smoking. Watching other smokers light cigarettes can be helpful. Smelling your cigarettes in the packet or, if you used to make your own, rolling one up should produce the desire to smoke. For some people, imagining that they are smoking is the best way to connect with their desire to smoke. If you are really stuck in repression, buying a new pack of your favourite brand and taking the cellophane off may do the trick.
Don't be surprised by this: it's all part of the process. The way through this conflict is to experience it and resolve it, and not avoid it in any way.In order to resolve this conflict, you simply ask yourself this one, basic question: "Am I willing to accept my desire to smoke in order to stop smoking and stay stopped?" In other words, here you are feeling uncomfortable and unsatisfied because you want a cigarette but aren't smoking one; do you think it's worth it to you to feel this way in order to break free from a life of smoking?
Out of Sight, but Not Out of Mind.Some people avoid resolving this conflict by ignoring their desire and quite often feel confident that they have conquered their addiction. One of the more unhelpful things about repression is that, at the time you use it, it appears to be effective, and is therefore rarely perceived as being a problem.You can see from your own experience that it is a problem, though, if you have ever stopped before. The first cigarette you smoked when you went back to smoking was preceded by a desire to smoke, even though you may have only been dimly aware of that desire at the time.
For other people, repression only becomes a problem a few days or weeks after stopping. What happens is that the desire is so persistent at first that it is impossible to repress it, but as it fades in strength and frequency, it becomes increasingly possible to ignore it altogether.After a few weeks into quitting smoking, you might need to induce your desire to smoke only once or twice a day. But it's important to do so because it's only while you stay in touch with your desire to smoke that you can stay in control of it.
Take advantage of familiar situations where you would have smoked, such as the end of a meal, as opportunities to induce your desire. Instead of jumping up from the table to get on with the washing-up, sit there for a while, as you would have done, let yourself feel your desire to smoke and think through your choice not to smoke - for now.Later on, as you become more familiar with these methods of how to quit smoking, your desire may only last a few seconds, but making a deliberate effort to acknowledge it by inducing it can make the difference between success and failure in the long term.If you lead a very busy life, inducing your desire will be especially important. Busy people can stop smoking for days or weeks, barely aware of their desire to smoke in the background of their crowded minds. But just because you don't take the time to deal with it properly, the desire doesn't vanish; it keeps coming, like a nagging child demanding attention. Or it can suddenly and unexpectedly explode, perhaps at a time of crisis, arid, because your conscious mind hasn't practiced dealing with it, you can suddenly find yourself on the verge of smoking.If you stop to induce a desire - and this only takes a few moments - you give your desire the attention it requires. As a result it becomes easy to live with and, most important of all, you are in control of it.
Secondly, there seem to be a lot of 'good advice' out there about willpower that can help you to stop. Although some will-power is needed to take the initial steps towards becoming a non-smoker, applying too much of your will-power and pushing too hard to never smoke again, will have exactly the opposite effect. Instead, follow the top tips below and surprise yourself at just how easy it can be to relax creatively into the new non-smoking you.
Here are some tips to help you quit smoking:Select a date and stick to it.Talk to your family and friends about quitting and get their support. They are the ones who should understand best and respect your decision the most. You can be each other's support structure. Exchange your experience and tips.Take up another habit to substitute the habit of smoking. It can be simply to replace the oral fixation with sugar free chewing gums, or an activity of your choice.
Start exercising. This will help channel the excess energy you feel and make you fit as well. This should also lead you to drink some water, that is a great cleanser for your body.Stay busy. This will help you keep your mind off smoking and getting tired by the end of the day will help you sleep better. There are countless activities if you take the time to think about them. What can you do at home ? What can you do outside ? Even the smallest task needs focus, and you are not thinking about smoking during this time.
If you have stopped smoking in the past and not felt much of a desire, then you may well fall into the same pattern whenever you make an attempt to stop.The best way to help yourself when quitting smoking is by deliberately inducing your desire to smoke, so that you can retrain yourself to manage it and consciously accept it. This might look as though you are making things more difficult for yourself, but in fact you are simply facing up to a difficulty that already exists.Inducing a desire to smoke is a conscious mental exercise. It means deliberately interrupting your thoughts about the other things in your life, and, with your cigarette packet in front of you, focusing on the feelings inside you of wanting to smoke.There is a reason you are avoiding feeling your desire to smoke: you are no doubt afraid of it because you think it might make you smoke. You see it as an enemy, a nuisance and an unnecessary pain. When you deliberately induce it, you break down this negativity and fear, and turn the desire into something you have power over.
If you find inducing the desire difficult you will need to be creative to really understand how to quit smoking. Watching other smokers light cigarettes can be helpful. Smelling your cigarettes in the packet or, if you used to make your own, rolling one up should produce the desire to smoke. For some people, imagining that they are smoking is the best way to connect with their desire to smoke. If you are really stuck in repression, buying a new pack of your favourite brand and taking the cellophane off may do the trick.
Don't be surprised by this: it's all part of the process. The way through this conflict is to experience it and resolve it, and not avoid it in any way.In order to resolve this conflict, you simply ask yourself this one, basic question: "Am I willing to accept my desire to smoke in order to stop smoking and stay stopped?" In other words, here you are feeling uncomfortable and unsatisfied because you want a cigarette but aren't smoking one; do you think it's worth it to you to feel this way in order to break free from a life of smoking?
Out of Sight, but Not Out of Mind.Some people avoid resolving this conflict by ignoring their desire and quite often feel confident that they have conquered their addiction. One of the more unhelpful things about repression is that, at the time you use it, it appears to be effective, and is therefore rarely perceived as being a problem.You can see from your own experience that it is a problem, though, if you have ever stopped before. The first cigarette you smoked when you went back to smoking was preceded by a desire to smoke, even though you may have only been dimly aware of that desire at the time.
For other people, repression only becomes a problem a few days or weeks after stopping. What happens is that the desire is so persistent at first that it is impossible to repress it, but as it fades in strength and frequency, it becomes increasingly possible to ignore it altogether.After a few weeks into quitting smoking, you might need to induce your desire to smoke only once or twice a day. But it's important to do so because it's only while you stay in touch with your desire to smoke that you can stay in control of it.
Take advantage of familiar situations where you would have smoked, such as the end of a meal, as opportunities to induce your desire. Instead of jumping up from the table to get on with the washing-up, sit there for a while, as you would have done, let yourself feel your desire to smoke and think through your choice not to smoke - for now.Later on, as you become more familiar with these methods of how to quit smoking, your desire may only last a few seconds, but making a deliberate effort to acknowledge it by inducing it can make the difference between success and failure in the long term.If you lead a very busy life, inducing your desire will be especially important. Busy people can stop smoking for days or weeks, barely aware of their desire to smoke in the background of their crowded minds. But just because you don't take the time to deal with it properly, the desire doesn't vanish; it keeps coming, like a nagging child demanding attention. Or it can suddenly and unexpectedly explode, perhaps at a time of crisis, arid, because your conscious mind hasn't practiced dealing with it, you can suddenly find yourself on the verge of smoking.If you stop to induce a desire - and this only takes a few moments - you give your desire the attention it requires. As a result it becomes easy to live with and, most important of all, you are in control of it.
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